I've had the best results rattling the last week of october into november, I belive you get better results during the chasing phase of the pre-rut while the bucks are not yet tending the majority of the does.Unliek the previous posts i have more success from a treestand, the deer are usually far enough away that the can't tell the sound is comign from the trees, I feel this will buy you more time just for that reson because when the buck comes in he wont be searching in the treetops and if you're on the ground he'll have a better chance of picking you off or winding you.This was very evident last year on a buck that i rattled in at the end of october, he stood 15 ft from the base of my tree for over 15 minutes obviously searching for the bucks that had made the commotion, I believe had i been on the ground the buck would have caught me without offering a shot JMO