Is Phlox deer resistant?
Phlox sp.
Browsed where deer pressure is high. Protect it.
Rating source: Rutgers NJAES E271
About Phlox
Powdery mildew is close to inevitable on border phlox unless you thin the stems to five or six per clump for airflow, water at the base, and choose a resistant cultivar. Do all three and it is one of the best scented summer perennials. Deer browse it readily.
Soil and care
- Soil pH
- 6 to 7.5
- Drainage
- Consistently moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Spacing
- 18 to 24 in apart
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Maintenance
- High
Deer-resistant alternatives to Phlox
Same plant type, hardy in the same zones, but rated better on the Rutgers scale. If Phlox keeps getting eaten, these go in the same spot.
- Anise HyssopAgastache sp.Zones 4–9, genus rangeRarely damaged
- Bearded IrisIris germanicaZones 3–9Rarely damaged
- Butter and EggsLinaria vulgarisZones 3–9Rarely damaged
- CatmintNepeta x faasseniiZones 3–8Rarely damaged
- CinquefoilPotentilla sp.Zones 3–8, genus rangeRarely damaged
- Common TansyTanacetum vulgareZones 3–8Rarely damaged
Similar to Phlox
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 Phlox
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.
- 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 Phlox 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 Phlox belongs to.
Hardy in these zones
Common questions about Phlox
- Is Phlox deer resistant?
- Phlox (Phlox sp.) is rated Occasionally Severely Damaged on the Rutgers NJAES four-tier scale. Browsed where deer pressure is high. Protect it.
- What hardiness zones does Phlox grow in?
- Phlox is hardy in USDA zones 4 to 8. 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 Phlox grow in shade?
- No. Phlox wants full sun and will grow thin and flop in shade.