Privet Hedge Bushes

It is the largest selling hedge plant in America for residential landscaping. Acording to the internet.
The woods I hunt are full of them. I also noticed them at Joe Wheeler state park in Limestone County as well as other places in the state I travel in. Always noticed them just never gave it much thought of their purpose in the woods.
My question is how did they get deep in the woods and do deer eat the leaves. I've never seen them eat the leaves before or it might be they eat them when I'm not looking I don't know.
We recently did alot of dozier work for roads and clearings for food plots and that's when I realized how tough they are.
Do any of y'all have them in the counties were you hunt? Probably make for great cover and bedding areas I guess.

They were brought over for landscaping, men when off to war, the women didn't keep them trimmed, they flowered and proceeded to populate wherever they weren't wanted. I bush hogged a billion of them yesterday

Birds eat the purple berries and then fly off to another location and crap out the seeds.

They make great cover until they get tall and thick enough that they shade out every living thing under them, including their own lower branches. Then they look thick from outside the patch, but when inside it's wide open.

They rank slightly better than coyotes on my least favorite things list.

Deer will eat the leaves. They aren't a preferred food, but they will eat them.

I hate them to fur. Wish lighting would kill them all at our place.

Much like Kudzu to me.

Deer will eat the leaves.


God Bless,
David B.

I think if they are dense enough deer will use them as safe cover. I once decided to crawl into the cave looking area created underneath a thick patch and discovered the entire skeleton of a mature 8pt. The next year, I hunted where the power company cut a lane through this patch and killed a nice wall hanger within 2 minutes during the peak of the rut.

Then I'm fixin to be a brazillionaire

I'd much rather have kudzu. At least it dies in the winter.

Cruising timber in the summer time in privet/yaupon you look like you have been sorting wildcats when you get out. Privet is considered an invasive species and cost share money in available for spraying thru the NRCS office.

Cows will run your ass over to get to the berries.

I don't guess its a prefferred food, but I know a couple years ago when the snow stayed on the ground for several days the deer around here ate that stuff down to the nubs.

1. Cogongrass. 2. Purple water hyacinth. 3. Chinese Privet hedge. My top 3 invasive species I hate. At least deer eat the privet

Yep, tough years I've seen them eat it too. Over in PRV, years ago, saw them eat Cedar !

Yaupon is really think in allot of my hunting grounds down here in LA. Hate it like no other plant in the world.

they eat the tender shoots of the branches/stems also. the stems keep growing back as they are nibbled on so it is a good food source for deer. can be a good source for bedding cover also.

They must like it. I watched a couple chew on it for 45 minutes a while back and there was a very nice patch of oats, rye and clover 50 feet from them. I keep the area bushogged which probably helps with the palatability.

They fight over the stuff at our place:

Wrong forum I know but sometimes when there's an acorn failure or shortage I'll find all the turkey scratching a in cedar thickets and limestone, especially in february when theres not hardly any food left in the woods. What are they finding to eat in there? Those little berries that cedars make?

Guess so Brent, bout all it could be that time of year. Not alot going on in cedars. I'm not the guy to talk turkey as I can count the turkeys I've killed on one hand. Lets talk big ol' hillbilly bucks.

Won't take long for me to tell you everything I have learned about them in the past two years or so since I started hunting them:
1. They're a lot harder to kill than I figured they would be
2. I still ain't got enough sense to figure out how to kill an old one yet

Jughead your go to guy for big buck info?

I've used round up on them with some success around the house. Not the pre mixed kind though, just mix it a little strong.

Jughead, jug's dad, and T123Winters so actually that's a pretty strong panel of experts. I ought a have seven or eight killed by now that would make book if I listened better I guess.

Agree with folks who say deer eat them regularly. Have seen deer eat their way through a whole bottom of em... going from one to another gobbling leaves. Hung stand today overlooking some - bad acorn crop this year.