That SUCKS, over in the hosta forum they have had mixed results with the Irish spring by carving of a piece and putting it on a stick of some type just above the plant. You need to replace it as the weather gets to it. Something to do with the smell. Good luck

Is it legal to shoot them? They are garden pests.....

We had a lady in town that grew a community garden by herself and she donated all of the crops to the local food bank. She had a double electric fence just to keep the deer out and that was in town. Unfortunately she was asked to leave last year after she work so darn hard. The county jail said it needed the land for something else. I see nothing different there when drive by. She was even teaching poor home owner's how to create a square foot garden and provided everything they needed to do so. So sad it fell apart.

If you're not talking acres of pumpkins, you might forget the sprays, lotions, and potions. Get a roll of chicken wire and make loose tents over the fruit covering all sides. Deer are basically lazy when it comes to free food and won't nose through secured down chicken wire. Relatively small $investment in wire and a bundle or two of construction stakes.

The deer around here love my garden. They eat the pumpkin leaves, too. But my deer are so impatient, they eat the tips of the vines with the flowers on them--they don't even wait for the pumpkins.

One year, I put soap on my jumbo pumpkin and they left it alone, but it had a funny looking spot from the soap sitting on it.

This year I planted my pumpkins in an old dog pen, but the dumb pumpkins don't know that they are risking their lives by growing outside of the pen. I have as many pumpkins growing outside the pen as there are inside of it.

Outside the pen, the only thing that stops the deer from eating my pumpkins are the ones that start growing in the dead sticky weeds. I usually get at least one big one that way.

But I'm not suggesting you grow weeds--there just happens to be an empty field full of weeds next to my little garden patch.

I could not have pumpkins with out an electric fence. I tried using chicken wire cages but I had too many pumpkins to cover and so many vines to get the cages on I was concerned about damaging them. Not sure why it is not an option for you but if you reconsider, they really are quite easy to put up. The last two years I have just had the line up with no fencer attached. They must know enough to stay away.

I have had some success with plastic bird netting supported with #9 wire hoops. The vines do end up growing through it some but most of the squash ended up protected. Before that, the deer would come along and stomp the smaller squash and eat them all. The bird netting helped to deter squirresl from scratching the squash too.

I had to put a fence after 170-inch bucks vandalized my patch. If you don't have the budget for a fence, there are plenty of other cheaper alternatives. For example, you can surround the area with a net. You can also have scarecrows and loudspeakers in your garden, and you will keep the animals off. Source: https://workhabor.com/do-deer-eat-pumpkins/

I grow few acres every year and always have deer problems. I usually stake around the perimeter of the area use bale twin to connect all around the patch then use tins and empty soda cans. Sometimes the rattle sounds will work distractions. Very difficult to keep them out. Good luck.....