Is Mountain Bluet deer resistant?
Centaurea montana
Browsed where deer pressure is high. Protect it.
Rating source: Rutgers NJAES E271
About Mountain Bluet
Spidery cornflower-blue flowers in late spring on a tough perennial that thrives on neglect. It goes shabby straight after flowering, so cut the whole plant to the ground and it reflushes cleanly and often flowers again. Self-sows and spreads at the root.
Soil and care
- Soil pH
- 6 to 7.5
- Drainage
- Well drained
- Water
- Low
- Spacing
- 18 to 24 in apart
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Maintenance
- Moderate
Deer-resistant alternatives to Mountain Bluet
Same plant type, hardy in the same zones, but rated better on the Rutgers scale. If Mountain Bluet keeps getting eaten, these go in the same spot.
- Bleeding HeartLamprocapnos spectabilisZones 3–9Rarely damaged
- ButtercupRanunculus sp.Zones 3–8, genus rangeRarely damaged
- Dame's RocketHesperis matronalisZones 3–8Rarely damaged
- Forget-Me-NotMyosotis sp.Zones 3–8, genus rangeRarely damaged
- Fringed Bleeding HeartDicentra eximiaZones 3–9Rarely damaged
- LungwortPulmonaria officinalisZones 3–8Rarely damaged
Similar to Mountain Bluet
Other perennials with the same deer rating.
- AvensGeum sp.Zones 3–8, genus rangeOccasionally damaged
- Balloon FlowerPlatycodon grandiflorusZones 3–8Occasionally damaged
- BellflowerCampanula glomerataZones 3–8Occasionally damaged
- Blanket FlowerGaillardia sp.Zones 3–10, genus rangeOccasionally damaged
- Bloody CranesbillGeranium sanguineumZones 3–9Occasionally damaged
- Cambridge GeraniumGeranium x cantabrigienseZones 4–8Occasionally damaged
Protecting Mountain Bluet
Whether this survives comes down to local pressure, so it is worth knowing the options before it gets browsed rather than after.
- How tall a deer fence needs to beEight feet, and six is the most common expensive mistake in deer fencing.
- Repellent that actually worksThe egg-based recipe that reproduces the active ingredient in the commercial sprays that win university trials.
- Fencing a raised bedA deer jumps from ground level, so measure the barrier from the ground and not from the top of the bed.
- Check it is actually deerDeer tear and leave a ragged stub. A clean 45-degree cut is rabbits, and slug holes get blamed on deer constantly.
Where Mountain Bluet grows
Hardy across most of these 50 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
- Florida
- Alabama
- Mississippi
- Louisiana
- Arkansas
- Oklahoma
- Kansas
- Nebraska
- Iowa
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Montana
- Wyoming
- Idaho
- Utah
- Nevada
- Arizona
- New Mexico
- Alaska
- District of Columbia
Browse from here
Every list Mountain Bluet belongs to.
Hardy in these zones
Common questions about Mountain Bluet
- Is Mountain Bluet deer resistant?
- Mountain Bluet (Centaurea montana) is rated Occasionally Severely Damaged on the Rutgers NJAES four-tier scale. Browsed where deer pressure is high. Protect it.
- What hardiness zones does Mountain Bluet grow in?
- Mountain Bluet is hardy in USDA zones 3 to 8. Outside that range it will either not survive winter or will struggle with summer heat.
- Does Mountain Bluet grow in shade?
- Yes. Mountain Bluet tolerates part shade, which makes it one of the options for a shaded bed where deer also browse.
- How big does Mountain Bluet get?
- Mature height is roughly 12–24 in. Growth rate is fast.