Funny how many times they beat us by a day, and the repellents don't work well still in the bottle.

I got caught 'day late', can't even tell you how many times with new growth on roses. I'd see they'd put out buds and foliage, make a mental note to spray (I use Bobbex), then leave it till the next afternoon and they'd come that night :)

I feel your pain! I have been through that same scenario more times than I care to admit. My main problem is tulips and yes, just as soon as they emerge I make a mental note to spray them... but the deer often beat me to it.

Last year, one summer night I heard a strange snapping sound outside the bathroom window. Snap...... snap...... snap. I didn't think much of it until the next day when I saw a formerly wonderful hosta reduced to stems. The funny thing is that this spot was under construction and there were materials strewn all about and it much have been rather uninviting to walk through. Plus, deer had never before visited this spot nor have they ever eaten a hosta here. But last year our deer turned an unfortunate corner in terms of eating anything and everything. Sad.