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We have tomatoes!

When I got home from work the other day, my hubby, Chris, surprised me with two tomatoes sitting on the window sill of our kitchen. I was so happy!

I’m hoping more tomatoes aren’t too far behind. I’m ready to make some sauce, salsa and diced tomatoes with chilis. Yum!

Thank you, readers, for all your deer-deterrent suggestions and garden tips. Without your encouragement and suggestions, we may not have had any veggies from our 8-by-8-foot plot.

I believe the scarecrow and other minor deterrents did the trick.

After my July 4 column about deer destroying our garden, many of you sent e-mail or called. Among the suggestions I received:

Smelly solutions

The most common suggestion I heard was human hair. The smell of the hair, laid around the garden, should keep the deer away. Chris and I wondered how you’d keep it from blowing away.

One woman recommended getting three bags of hair cuttings from a beauty shop, stuffing them inside panty hose and then hanging the nylons on stakes. No problem with hair blowing away.

Another reader suggested tying up Coast soap or another strong smelling soap.

Some people suggested more ... natural deterrents.

One man told me about a fertilizer that claims to be made out of human waste — Milorganite, based in Milwaukee, Wis. He said he’s sprinkled it around the edges of his garden and hasn’t had any problems. He was leery about putting it directly on his garden.

I would be, too. So we didn’t investigate that option.

Crystal Bullock suggested urinating in a bucket and sprinkling it around the garden.

We both had a laugh when I said, “It’s a good thing I have a small garden!” Otherwise, I’d have to throw a big party and direct the men to the garden.

Bullock said the farmers she met while living in Willis, Va., swear by it.

She also suggested tying CDs along the perimeter. Light reflecting off the CDs should keep the deer away, she said.

Carolyn Niece suggested planting a garden near an air conditioning unit. The sound keeps them away.

Fences

Though my string, pie plates and plastic bags didn’t work last year, there were some readers who suggested various fences.

One man called and said build a fence waist high and then one a couple feet behind that. “The deer got into my okra, and I put up the fence and they don’t get it anymore,” he said.

Doris Burchette suggested tying up reflective surveyors tape like a fence. It’s something she did when she lived in the mountains near Jefferson.

Burchette suggested tying a long tail of tape every 6 to 8 feet so that it will flap in the wind.

Dan Marlow offered to give me insulators, wire and fencing if I found an electrician to wire up an electric fence and a device that would reduce a voltage to 30 or 40 volts.

“Nothing will keep them away, but this will,” he said.

I was touched by his offer but decided to wait before I went through so much effort for a small plot of land.

Happy gardening to you, and I hope you can use some of these tips for your own veggie plot.

Contact E.A. Seagraves at 883-4422, Ext. 241, or elizabeth.seagraves@news-record.com