RE: rye cover crop like corn?
There are two types of rye, grass and grain. Grain rye islike corn, wheat, or oats. Deer will utilize thesegrains after winter kills the green stuff. Plant ONLY when you have a significant chance of rain within 2 or 3 days. Cover the seeds with dirt, not pine straw. You can also try frost-seeding if your ground heaves in winter. For early season hunting, plant greens such as turnips and collards, for late season plant grains and leave standing. If you have applied lime and fertilizer, deer may be eating the dirt to get to the minerals. If the rye is grain rye, they are probably eating the seeds.