We have alot of deer and I' ve never seen even sections of a plot eaten down to bare earth. In one 900 ft x 75ft (1-1/2 acres) - I leave 6-8" growth going into winter - and in the spring, before growth restarts with any vigor - its like a putting green from late winter feeding - but it comes back strong.

Germain - You really need to build a test cage - even if its only 2 ft x 2ft and put it in a section. At least you know whether overbrowsing is the problem.

In the spring where I am, you cannot see any difference in growth inside or outside the cage - the deer simply cannot keep up with the fast growth of an established clover field. - especially in a wet spring - food is everywhere.

If it turns out that the deer are repeatedly cutting it to the ground - you may have to explore other options - like planting more acreage - or going with a faster growing crop (like crimson clover/brassica mix). You may have other problems like TOO manay deer for the type of land. For example - if its all open lots, and strip mines, with open woodlots - the area might only sustain 20 deer/square mile - and you could have 3x that amount - In that case - with farm fields scarce or far away - a 1 acre food plot will never be enough until the deer herd is thinned. More plots would help (thats what I did - 20 acres now are planted into " something" at any given time - you should see the undergrowth build back up as food becomes more available).

Good luck - try the cage.