Quick answer: 10 deer-resistant native plants are native to Alaska, 7 with a live listing as of 04 Nov 2026.
10 species
- Bearberry Arctostaphylos uva-ursi · 34 states
- Bog laurel Kalmia polifolia · 13 states
- Canada wild rye Elymus canadensis · 37 states
- Common juniper Juniperus communis · 39 states
- Engelmann spruce Picea engelmannii · 1 states
- Littleflower penstemon Penstemon procerus · 11 states
- Northern maidenhair fern Adiantum pedatum · 37 states
- Sitka spruce Picea sitchensis · 1 states
- Western columbine Aquilegia formosa · 1 states
- Western yarrow Achillea millefolium var. occidentalis · 18 states
Deer-resistant native plants in Alaska: what to know
10 of the 40 plants native to Alaska in this directory fit this need: 25% of the state's list, below the 28% share across all species.
Between them they flower from March through September, with the most in bloom in May. Mixing early and late bloomers keeps the planting useful all season.
Many do double duty: 6 are also good for birds, 5 are also good for pollinators, 4 are also shade-tolerant.
9 of them grow in full or partial sun and 4 tolerate shade, so there are options for open beds and woodland edges alike. Sizes run from low plants like Bog laurel and Western columbine to trees such as Bearberry and Common juniper. For wildlife, 5 support pollinators, 6 provide food or cover for birds and 2 are caterpillar host plants.
7 of the 10 have a seed or plant listing we verified as the wild species. Be careful buying Engelmann spruce: common listings for it are often a bred variety or a different species.
Good places to start
Verified wild-species listings that take sun and are widely native, so they are forgiving first plants.
- Canada wild rye Elymus canadensis · Sun, Part Shade · blooms Mar-Jun
- Bearberry Arctostaphylos uva-ursi · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Mar-Jun
- Western columbine Aquilegia formosa · Sun, Part Shade · blooms May-Aug