Favorite seldom discussed deer food

[Plebe]

An apple patch is completely different than a patch of ragweed. I would hunt an apple patch every day and twice on Sundays. That is almost better than the aforementioned pile of corn.

Probably so.

But there's times of year I pay attention to certain flora. I took my buck this way last season. And several times in previous years. And passed many others.

The patterns become relatively repeatable...until they change.

 

[131north]

I had a hickory tree this year that hung onto it's nuts into the first couple weeks of November. It was on fire with activity, I can't believe I never noticed before. Never thought deer cared for them, but they were eating them all hours of the day. Some amazing all day sits on that tree this year.

 

[BTaylor]

Pokeweed

Good call. They will absolutely pound that stuff.

 

[Allegheny Tom]

Pokeweed

They destroy pokeweed here. And bucks will rub the stalks too. I've seen rubs on it many times.
Another great thing about pokeweed is that the stalk is easily bent-over by hand (no saw needed) and it will continue to live and sprout leaves thru the summer providing food. When a plant grows tall enough that it's upper leaves are out of deer reach, I'll break the stalk over and deer will eat it all. But it stays alive and re-sprouts.
Deer also eat any dead, dry pokeweed leaves. It's a great forage.

 

[Allegheny Tom]

I don't think this one is much of a food source but deer do eat the rubbing shreds of cedar trees.
I watched and filmed bucks in Iowa approach a huge cedar rub and they began working it. Then I watched them pick at the shreds and eat it.
I saw Barry Wensel at the outdoor show in Pgh last weekend and I asked him if he'd ever seen that behavior in Iowa and he said that he had seen it.
Huge cedar rubs are very common in Iowa and I asked Barry if those rubs are scent marking or are they a result of bucks making shreds to eat? Barry said he feels they are both a scent mark and a minor food source.
Which makes me wonder how many other species of trees we see rubbed also have the shreds eaten. Could be what happens with pokeweed rubs. I have grown sunflower plots and when the plants were long picked clean, with nothing more than dead stalks 6 feet high, I watched bucks rub the stalk and pick at the shreds.

 

[Mopar1169]

Stinging nettle is a good one in river bottoms and wet areas. Especially later in the season when everything else is brown. But they eat it all year.

 

[BTaylor]

Stinging nettle is a good one in river bottoms and wet areas. Especially later in the season when everything else is brown. But they eat it all year.

Dont remember seeing a single plant with a single leaf after Nov 1 this past year. Totally browsed out but we had a really poor mast year.

 

[Jammintree]

I don't think this one is much of a food source but deer do eat the rubbing shreds of cedar trees.
I watched and filmed bucks in Iowa approach a huge cedar rub and they began working it. Then I watched them pick at the shreds and eat it.

When you say cedar are you talking about Juniperous Virginia? Or perhaps of the other species we call cedar?

 

[Weldabeast]

I think there was already a thread started about cannabis....that's everybodies favorite that isn't discussed hahahahaha

 

[Allegheny Tom]

When you say cedar are you talking about Juniperous Virginia? Or perhaps of the other species we call cedar?

I don't know for sure.
I see this particular variety all over Southern Iowa. They seem like they have more of a shrub type growth rather than the huge Port Orford cedar that I see out west along the coast. The Iowa cedars do get pretty big at the trunk, maybe up to 7 feet circumference, but I've never seen any that were more than ~20 feet tall. Bucks sure like to rub them and they do actually eat the shreds.

 

[Mopar1169]

I don't know for sure.
I see this particular variety all over Southern Iowa. They seem like they have more of a shrub type growth rather than the huge Port Orford cedar that I see out west along the coast. The Iowa cedars do get pretty big at the trunk, maybe up to 7 feet circumference, but I've never seen any that were more than ~20 feet tall. Bucks sure like to rub them and they do actually eat the shreds.

Those are red cedars. I love hunting around those trees. Tons of them out in Nebraska as well.

 

[Jammintree]

Those are red cedars. I love hunting around those trees. Tons of them out in Nebraska as well.

So, yes to juniperois virginiana?!

 

[Tim0712]

Choke cherry especially gun season when the pressure is on because it likes to grow up as under growth in thickets and if there’s no acorns they hammer it just as well

 

[Mopar1169]

So, he’s to juniperois virginiana?!

Yes also known as the eastern red cedar or red cedar is what we called them growing up.

 

[Jammintree]

Same here. I just wanted to be clear. Common names are so often misleading.

 

[woodsdog2]

Old Hidden orchards with high stem count in and around them are definitely watchable! Orchards in and amongst high stem count connected via a strip of thick cover to a bedding area with scrapes and rubs are even more watchable!!