It depends somewhat on how attractive your garden is and how scarce food is for the deer nearby. There are so many different deer deterrents, from scent deterrents, sounds of voices (an old radio) and moving scary things to motion activated sprinklers. But the only true, for sure method is a really high fence, I'm afraid. Has to be over 6ft. to make them think twice. A 4ft. fence will only amuse them.
For the lowest price, I'd start with a scent deterrent, spray something noxious smelling like egg whites mixed with garlic and pepper in a perimeter around the area you want to protect. There's a commercial product called 'Critter Ridder' available at the big box stores. Or there are a variety of scent deterrents available online. Be sure to choose one that says it repels deer, because some scents are repellent to smaller animals but the deer don't mind it. Here's a link to a bunch of others to try from home made stuff:
http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf/P... Be sure to scroll down to the second article where there is a list of several ideas.
My favorite is a motion detector sprinkler, a gadget called a Scarecrow sprinkler. It has a motion detector (even works at night) that activates an impulse sprinkler that sprays a strong, noisy spray of water for 3 seconds. Very startling. It works to keep the birds and squirrels off my fruit trees, but does use a fair amount of water if it's windy. The motion of the leaves also activates the spray. They're available online from Amazon. Also works well to keep the neighbor's dogs off your lawn . . .
