You Could Be Attracting Ticks To Your Yard With This Sweet Flowering Shrub

If you've got staghorn sumac growing in the yard, it can look lovely. Unfortunately, it may be responsible for an increased tick population in a roundabout way. That's because staghorn sumac is a favorite deer snack, and deer, of course, are tick magnets. It's no wonder. Deer offer food, warmth, camouflage, and a free ride to a tick's next meal. 

Staghorn sumac is among several types of sumac trees or deciduous shrubs, and a relative of the cashew family. It's known for the fuzzy reddish-brown growth over its branches, which mimic that of a young male deer growing antlers. This pretty blossoming tree offers up white blooms in the spring and summer, followed by sweet red berries that can be a favorite of both songbirds and deer. (These berries are even edible for people. When soaked in water, they make a tart, lemon-like drink.) While the flowers and berries aren't any interest to ticks, deer that graze readily on low-lying branches might leave one of their hitchhikers behind.

Ticks aren't welcome in any yard, as they can carry several fairly debilitating diseases, including Lyme disease and other infections. Many tickborne diseases can feel like summer flu, but Lyme disease often comes with a red bullseye around the tick bite. You can potentially reduce your risk of getting an illness from a tick bite by making your yard unfriendly to the tiny blood-sucking arachnids ... which might mean taking another look at your staghorn sumac bush. 

If you've got a staghorn sumac bush in your yard and you're worried about ticks, first evaluate whether it's in the pathway of where people congregate. If it's near a walkway or patio where ticks dropped off from deer might easily find a new host, then you might want to consider removal. You can rip out your staghorn sumac trees, making sure to remove the stump and mulching down the tree.

But if you want to keep the plant, you can look for other solutions. Since it's the deer and not the plant itself that's the problem — you could try to make sure the deer can't get to it. The best way to keep the deer away from your staghorn sumac is probably a physical barrier, like a fence between 7 and 8 feet high. It also wouldn't hurt to add in a thorny shrub or bush near the fence that would discourage deer from jumping the obstacle. You might also try making your own homemade deer repellent from garlic and hot pepper.

If you like the occasional deer sighting, and want to keep the animals around, you can consider other defensive measures against ticks. Think about using a pesticide in your yard to try to kill them. For a more organic solution, you can keep ticks at bay with garden plants they hate going near. If you continue to have issues with ticks, contact a pest control expert for professional help.