Is Monkshood deer resistant?
Aconitum sp.
Plant typePerennialHardinessZones 3–7, genus rangeLightFull shade to part shade
MaintenanceLow, mostly leave it alone
Toxic to cats and dogs if eaten
About Monkshood
Deep blue hooded flowers in late summer shade, and one of the most poisonous plants you can grow. Wear gloves when handling the roots and site it away from vegetable beds.
Soil and care
- Soil pH
- 5.5 to 7
- Drainage
- Consistently moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Spacing
- 12 to 18 in apart
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Maintenance
- Low
Similar to Monkshood
Other perennials with the same deer rating.
- Anise HyssopAgastache sp.Zones 4–9, genus rangeRarely damaged
- Basket of GoldAurinia saxatilisZones 3–7Rarely damaged
- Bearded IrisIris germanicaZones 3–9Rarely damaged
- Bigleaf GoldenrayLigularia dentataZones 4–8Rarely damaged
- Bleeding HeartLamprocapnos spectabilisZones 3–9Rarely damaged
- Butter and EggsLinaria vulgarisZones 3–9Rarely damaged
Where Monkshood grows
Hardy across most of these 48 states on zone range alone. Mountain and coastal areas sit outside the ranges used here, so check your own zone before ordering.
- Pennsylvania
- New Jersey
- New York
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- Virginia
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
- Ohio
- Indiana
- Illinois
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- North Carolina
- Tennessee
- Georgia
- Texas
- Colorado
- California
- Oregon
- Washington
- New Hampshire
- Vermont
- Maine
- Rhode Island
- Delaware
- West Virginia
- Kentucky
- South Carolina
- Alabama
- Mississippi
- Arkansas
- Oklahoma
- Kansas
- Nebraska
- Iowa
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Montana
- Wyoming
- Idaho
- Utah
- Nevada
- Arizona
- New Mexico
- Alaska
- District of Columbia
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Every list Monkshood belongs to.
Hardy in these zones
Common questions about Monkshood
- Is Monkshood deer resistant?
- Monkshood (Aconitum sp.) is rated Rarely Damaged on the Rutgers NJAES four-tier scale. Deer almost always leave this alone.
- What hardiness zones does Monkshood grow in?
- Monkshood is hardy in USDA zones 3 to 7. Outside that range it will either not survive winter or will struggle with summer heat. That is the range across the genus, so a named species or cultivar may be narrower.
- Does Monkshood grow in shade?
- Yes. Monkshood tolerates full shade to part shade, which makes it one of the options for a shaded bed where deer also browse.
- Is Monkshood toxic to dogs or cats?
- Yes. The ASPCA lists Monkshood as toxic to dogs and cats. Site it away from where animals graze, or choose something else if you have a dog that chews.