Know These 7 Natural Deer Forage Species When You See Them
Jun 19, 2024Kyle Hedges
It’s no secret deer consume a long list of plants. In fact, there have been hundreds of articles, research papers and even books written on the subject. Much of the analysis of a deer’s appetite…
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Deer Hunters Should be Weed Farmers
Apr 19, 2023Cheyne Matzenbacher
Deer hunters should be weed farmers. Wait, not that kind of weed! I’m talking about forbs – all those non-grass, broad-leaved, herbaceous plants that most people call “weeds” and most deer consider food. Common ragweed,…
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Can Deer Freeze to Death?
Feb 15, 2023Matt Ross
Can deer freeze to death when severe cold weather, such as dangerously low temperatures, deep snow and crushing winds, set in? Although this winter has been warmer than average for much of the country, many…
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What Do Deer Eat? A Deer Diet Breakdown by Season
Mar 30, 2022Matt Ross
Updated April 4, 2024 White-tailed deer are absolute plant-eating machines, but understanding what foods they prefer to eat will vastly improve your knowledge and effectiveness in both managing and hunting them. A deer needs to…
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Green Fields: 10 Ways to Grow Low-Impact Food Plots
Aug 28, 2018Lindsay Thomas Jr.
Questions about growing quality food plots are nothing new for NDA’s phone lines and e-mail in-boxes. But over time, new themes emerge among the questions, and for the last couple of years, one new theme…
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8 Winter Projects for Better Fall Deer Hunting
Jan 25, 2017Craig Harper
Unless you hunt in portions of the Deep South, deer season is over. And for those who hunt in south Alabama and Mississippi, you have precious few days left. The end of the season can…
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When Do Fawns Begin Eating Natural Forage?
Jun 19, 2015Kip Adams
This great photo of a young fawn taking a bite of hopclover was captured by Vermont forester and wildlife expert Susan C. Morse and it helps answer an interesting question about fawns: When do they wean…
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Food Plot Species Profile: Lablab
Mar 27, 2015Ryan Basinger
Along with soybeans and cowpeas, lablab is one of the primary forage legumes planted for deer each spring and summer – and for good reason. Lablab (Lablab purpureus) is a warm-season annual legume that originated…
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Food Plot Species Profile: Red Clover
Jun 30, 2014Ryan Basinger
If you don’t have red clover growing in some of your food plots, let me explain why you should. Dr. Craig Harper and I examined red clover in research plots in Tennessee for several years. We…
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Food Plot Species Profile: Soybeans
Jan 24, 2014Ryan Basinger
Soybeans (Glycine max) are a warm-season annual legume and perhaps the most preferred summer forage for white-tailed deer. They are extremely nutritious, containing upwards of 25 to 30 percent crude protein in fields with good…
