Apples.....and how I think I messed up.....
 

My son is 14. I think it's important when kids are at this age for them to actually SEE deer when they're deer hunting. So....(and it's legal her ein NC) I bought a bushel of apples and put them out in a field where I sometimes hunt. I thought.....hey....they love apples!!

I don't think they've been touched. Even funnier.....I ALWAYS (almost, always) see deer there.....and I didn't see ANY last night.....nor did it look like they were tearing up the apples.

I'm thinkng I just introduced a scent into their world that they know doesn't belong there. I'm thinking of going and picking them all up.

What do you think????

Jeff

RE: Apples.....and how I think I messed up.....
 

I put apples out behind the house for the local deer to stop by and chow on. Not an apple tree within a mile of my house. Very rarely do the deer chomp the apples the first night they are out there. More often than not, it is the second or third night that they get eaten. You leave them out there and they will disappear...and a little trick, cut the apples and they will get eaten sooner (but never the first night).

RE: Apples.....and how I think I messed up.....
 

Where i hunt, there isn't a single apple tree (that produces apples yet)--but I still put out apples that I pick up from around my grandparent's trees. I also used to be able to get the damaged apples from a store I used to work at, and fed those to the deer

One thing I have noticed is that if you can get a batch of apples that give off a lot of scent (almost rotten apples work GREAT) that deer will find them, and eat them.

If I were you, I'd go and cut a couple of the apples up, get the scent out good...the deer will come.

RE: Apples.....and how I think I messed up.....
 

Here's the deal.

I put ALL of the apples out.......thinking I didnt know when I'd get back in there. I put them out LAST THURSDAY. I had turkeys come into the field, last night.....but no deer. Most of the apples look like nothing has touched them.

What I do......to keep from handling the apples......is walk back around after putting them out.....and step on several of them (to get the scent in the air).

Have I done all I can do????? I KNOW there's TONS of deer in there. The moon phase may be my enemy.

Jeff

RE: Apples.....and how I think I messed up.....
 

I'd try carrots... my father in law puts a carrot pile out and deer are all over it, he can't even keep up with it!

Not that apples are bad, they are great, the deer love them. I don't think you've messed anything up.

RE: Apples.....and how I think I messed up.....
 

Like BHG said, I don't think you've messed up anything either. Another thing I have noticed tho is that if the available food sources in your area are abundant, the apples last a couple days longer as well.

RE: Apples.....and how I think I messed up.....
 

Just be patient and give them time. They will be found and eaten. The deer are heavy on mast crop right now, and they will wait to see what happens around this area with the new scent of delicious apples before they decide to dine.

RE: Apples.....and how I think I messed up.....
 

They can dine all they want to for the next 12 days. The only place my scent's gonna be is in Cancun, Mexico.

Dos Celas, mi amigo. Bien Alada.

Jeff

RE: Apples.....and how I think I messed up.....
 

Deer like soft mushy apples. Let them rot some and they will eat them up.

RE: Apples.....and how I think I messed up.....
 

Deer will come running when they hear apples around here.