Yes, remove the spent blooms. I wouldn't cut the foliage back because you would them smell it more, not less.

Highly unlikely that they are keeping deer away.

been a weird fall here in our corner of MI ... the temps have fallen.. but after the 7 inches of rain... its been cool and ridiculously humid ... its like i want to put the a/c on to get some of it out of the house ... but crikey.. i just turned it of and saved a few bucks .... i also noted.. that my shower towel isnt drying on the hook.. and some of the older varnish in the house is tacky ...

also.. there hasnt been a lot of wind ... noted again.. because with the windows open.. air is not blowing in the house...

its just dank, airless and miserable ... ah.. the good old days when we were kids w/o a/c... lol ...

perhaps that is why the smell is so pervasive ...

ken

ps: i also noted with all the morning dew... all the spider webs on the plants ... i really look forward to that show in fall .. its like the garden has all these crocheted doilies all over the place .. lol .. and it amuses me no end.. to think of all the bugs they are getting rid of ....

in other words .... see if the same thing happens next year.. before divesting ...

or just be done with them.. lifes to short to be repelled by the stink of your garden.. unless its manure.. and then .. well ... thats an investment in the future.. and will soon be gone ...

ken

Thanks, all! I’ll be removing the spent blooms today and hopefully that will do the trick. I have a very sensitive nose and will have to remember that with my future plant selections! (No konjac for me, ha ha!)

I, too, wondered if the smell was particularly bad because of the fog and humidity. While I don’t mind the mid-70’s fall temperatures here in SE MI, the continuous rain is depressing and the usual fall colors seem to be suffering for it. Hoping for a better next few weeks!

As for keeping the deer away, I haven’t sprayed deterrent since planting these alliums and haven’t had any of my roses nibbled on at all. Though maybe they’re staying away because of all the spraying I did earlier in the season, who knows.

another side effect of fall .. would be that deer are on the move ... so though you may have trained them away earlier in the year.. it might be a good idea to start again .. if you are worried about anything ....

i also noted SAD this week.. seasonal affective disorder ... just to many stinking grey days in a row.. with no sun on my retinas and no vitamin d ... i was joking at the store. i was going home and turn all the lights in the house to get over it..this usually doesnt happen until the misery of february in our MI ...

ken

Ken, I tend to get lazier as the end of the growing season nears and I stop being hyper-vigilant about protecting my pretties from the ravages of the local deer population. I went through a shocking amout of Bobbex this summer, applying it more than I normally would because of all the rain, and that stuff isn’t cheap! I’ve also gotten better about selecting deer-resistant perennials and shrubs.

Yes, the never-ending rainy days have been very gloomy and depressing, but today is showing us a bit of sunshine, so that definitely helps set a favorable mood! :-)