411 On Landings’ Plants and Flowers

The beauty of The Landings is undeniable to anyone who dares to take a look. Sprawling golf courses, beautiful trees and flowers, co-mingled with some of nature’s most exotic creatures -- furry, gilled, and feathered -- help make up this island paradise.

But living among such beautiful creatures often can be hard on residents’ landscape designs. It is well known that deer and other animals enjoy feasting on plants and flowers. In fact, they find certain varieties even tastier than others. Despite your best efforts to thwart their meal plans, they seem to win every time.

If you manage to dodge these four-legged residents, you then have to deal with the issues of soil type (what’s good for what plants) and climate, as everything doesn’t thrive in Savannah’s sticky, warm temperatures.

No plant is totally deer-resistant, according to Landings Association Environmental Manager Sean Burgess. Deer will eat most any plant, especially those plants that are young and tender. And the plants all require a little tender love and care. Following are just a few native plants that thrive in The Landings. A complete listing of Native Plants can be found on page 55 of the 2019 Landings Residential Directory.

Native Plants:

• Azalea
• Cardinal Flower
• Devil’s Walking Stick
• Dogwood
• Red Maple
• Silverbells
• Yellow Jessamine

Following are some suggestions from Landscape Architect Valerie Hinesley of plants and herbs that residents might find to be more deer resistant than others. According to Hinesley, these recommendations are based on her personal observation and are not meant to be all inclusive. As each year is different based on rainfall, number of deer, deer travel patterns, etc., she recommends residents check sources such as other gardeners and landscape architects, gardening books, nursery catalogs, magazines, and websites.

Recommended Flowers, Groundcovers, and Herbs:

African Iris, Asiatic Jasmine, Cast IronPlant, Chrysanthemum, Coleus, Climbing Fig, Confederate Jasmine, Coneflowers, CreepingJenny, Daffodils, Duranta, Ferns (most), Garlic, Ginger Lily, Holly Fern, Lantana, Lenten Rose, Marigolds, Mint, Oregano, Plumbago, Rosemary, Sage, Salvia, Snap Dragon, Society Garlic, Thyme, Variegated Ginger, Verbena, Vinca, Zinnia

Flowers, Groundcovers, and Herbs to Avoid:

Agapanthus, Daylilies, Geraniums, German Iris, Hostas, Impatiens, Lilies (most), Liriope, Pansies, Petunias

Recommended Shrubs:

Angel Trumpet, Anise, Abelia, Banana Shrub, Bottlebrush, Boxwood, Butterfly Bush, Elaeaganus, Formosa Azaleas, Gardenia, Grasses (most), Hollies (most), Junipers, Ligustrum, Leucothoe, Loropetalum, Mahonia, Nandina, Oleander, Philodendron, Pineapple Guava, Pyracantha, Sago and other Palms, Tea Olive, Viburnum, Wax Myrtle, Podocarpus Yew, Yucca

Shrubs That Require Additional Protection:

Acuba, Azaleas (except Formosa), Camellias, Cleyera, Euonymus, Fatsia, Hydrangea, India Hawthorn, Pittosporum, and Roses