Do Deer like to eat ferns?

';Narrow Buckler Fern'; or ';Ostrich Fern';?Do Deer like to eat ferns?
The white-tailed deer is an herbivore or plant eater. It follows well-used trails to its feeding areas. It feeds in the early morning hours and in the late afternoon. A deer's diet changes depending on its habitat and the season. It eats green plants in the spring and summer. In the fall, it eats corn, acorns and other nuts. In the winter, it eats the buds and twigs of woody plants.


If it is part of their habitat, sure they will fern. Ferns are good to eat.


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Here is a list of what they wont eat


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Plants which deer rarely eat:





Perennials





Annuals





Peonies Foxglove Hosta Daylilies Gazanias Daffodils Verbena Balloon Flowers Scabiosa Rock Rose Columbine Coreopsis Iris Poppy Gaillardia Yarrow, Sneezeweed Ornamental Onion Alyssum saxatile Basket of Gold Amsonia Anemones Angelica Asclepias Butterfly Weed Astilbe species False Indigo Bergenia species Campanula Centaurea species Chrysanthemum Shasta Daisy Bugbane Dianthus species including Pinks Bleeding Heart Dictamnus Gas Plant Echinacea Coneflower Echinops Globe Thistle Joe-Pie Weed Euphorbia Cushion Spurge Ferns Geum Gypsophila Helleborus Candytuft Liatris Tiger Lily Statice Toadflax Flax Loosestrife Beebalm Forget-Me-Not Catmint Oenothera Ribbon Grass Jacob's Ladder Primula Lungwort Soapwort Goldenrod Lambs Ear Tansy Veronica Speedwell Viola Yucca Bishop's Weed Bugleweed Lily-of-the-Valley Dead Nettle Pachysandra Clematis species Honeysuckle




















Cosmos Ageratum Snapdragon Wax Begonia Cleome Dahlia species Heliotrope Polka-Dot Plant Morning Glory Lobelia Four-O'Clock Zonal Geranium Salvia Dusty Miller Marigold Verbena





Herbs





Sage Sweet Basil Parsley Thyme Spearmint Basil Chamomile Chives Garlic Chives Mint Oregano Rhubarb Rosemary





Trees and Shrubs





Maples Common Barberry Russian Olive Hydrangea Potentilla Honeysuckle Birch Boxwood Buddleia species Butterfly Bush Dogwood Hawthorn Daphne European Beech Heather %26amp; Heaths Forsythia Honey Locust Junipers Mountain Laurel Beautybush Spruce Pine Grape WillowsDo Deer like to eat ferns?
I would think so. Some salads are made with ferns. And I think capers are just unopened fern fronds.
Yes they will eat them in the early spring before they open up. They are known as ';fiddleheads'; at this stage. Humans can also eat them when at this stage. Be careful, as they get acidic and some species poisonous when mature.
ferns tend to have an odor, taste or texture that deer are not fond of.