Horses/Deer and Gardens

[CSquared2]

I thought I was being so smart and I made an attractive garden and, rather than a gate, I made just a single-tile opening in the fence for an entrance, thinking the horse wouldn't be able to get in.  Well, I'm not as smart as a simulated horse because the horse didn't need to get in: he just stood outside the fence at the opening and was able to reach the plants closest to him.  Since then, I've fenced in the entire garden.  The horse will still decide to eat the garden plants, but can't complete the action.  I've noticed that the horse always picks on smaller plants and not trees.  Is this a rule of thumb or just my limited experience?  I'd like to leave the smaller plants fenced in the garden and have an unfenced orchard outside the fence.  Will the horse eat the trees?  Does it make any difference whether the trees are full grown or not?  I really appreciate any experiences others have to offer to help with this garden/orchard/horse pasture design dilemma.

[Pam]

Did you put a gate up or just fence all the way around?  I haven't seen any animals trying to eat trees, but I've got limited experience, too.  Once I realized it could happen, I've been fencing and gating every garden since then.

[CSquared2]

I put a gate on the garden and the horse can neither get in nor eat the plants.  It's a two-tile gate, but I locked it to pets.  I guess once my garden is more established (i.e. I have more than one of things) I'll plant trees outside and see what the horse does.

[CSquared2]

Hey, Pam, after playing for awhile longer, I don't think horses can eat trees.  I wasn't about to try to have my horse eat any of her owner's own produce, but when he rode her to the community garden, I noticed that the option to eat the peppers, potatoes and other ground plants was there.  There wasn't any option to eat the fruit from the trees.  All the plants I tried were in harvest.  So it appears trees are safe from the devilish intrusions of equines.