Corn Field
 

hello everybody, new here to the forums and still pretty new to deer hunting. heres my question for you guys.

I just started bow hunting deer last year so im still learning. now the field i was hunting in last year was beans, which was great, saw tons of deer (unfortunatly never got a chance to harvest one of them). The field next to mine was corn. Last year the farmers took the corn down very late in the year which made it really hard to see the dear coming from the other field. This year the field i have permission on is corn. I am sitting in a 15' treestand but if the farmers dont take the corn down early, is this location any good? I have a strong fealing that it will be very hard to get a decent shot unless they are right under me, in which im am not the most comfortable with that shot anyways. Should i be looking at finding a new area until the corn is taken down? thanks for your help, trevor

Personally, I would figure out where the deer are coming and going and set the stand near there. Place it where you're comfortable taking a shot from.

What is surrounding the corn field? If there are hardwood bottoms/hillsides I would set up off of the field where the bucks are going to be staging before dark waiting to enter the field after dark. Hard to really say without more information, but I would look for trails off of the fields.

Trevor, if there are well wore trails going to the corn field set a stand up near that trail within your shooting limits. If there are no good trees think about setting up in the corn field itself. where ever the trial meets the corn get permisson to cut down a few corn stalks and set back in the corn a couple of rows. Last year one of my land owners wanted me to shoot some deer that was getting into his garden. These deer were coming off the land owner next to him. I went and cut two stalks out of the row and trimmed a couple more. The deer would jump the fence then cross a ditch. Once they crossed the ditch they were fair game. I shot two nice does from that corn and so did a buddy of mine. Good Hunting.

I've killed many deer this way.

Not much to add..as others have said look for active incoming and outgoing trails, as well as staging areas. Do your homework and scout the area well, and you should be successful.

I got my first deer in a similiar situation. I have 3 of my 9 acres in woods, wedged between approx. 200 acres of corn. I found the deer trails, dropped some salt blocks to 'train' the deer, and then set up my treestadn just off the trail.

I actually got my deer the day they were harvesting. I saw him enter the cornfield about 35 yards from me, then the combine came by and scared him right past my stand:-)

So, consider being in the stand the day the harvest if you are still hunting then.

One more nice thing is that the corn will protect the deer from gun hunters until it is harvested.

If you find a route in and out that you can set up on...you can also spread some sort of seed on the outsides of the field that couldn't be planted. Deer love to browse that outter fringe if they have something worth keeping them there. ex: turnips just thrown around the edges and rakes in...

Just one more agreeing - Without seeing the whole picture of where you hunt, if the are woods "lines" or wooded draws or wooded fence lines along the edges of this corn field, the deer will be using this for cover to travel to and from this food source. Look for a heavily used trail or junction of several trails in the woods, off the field 30-50 yards and hopfully there wiil be a good set-up spot. Play the wind with the stand location(s) and hope for the best. These spots are usually a good place to try.

It has been my expereince that in the afternoons, the more mature deer often hold up off a field until "dark:30", then step into the field late to feed. Often past archery gear shooting light. But you might be able to see well enough back in the woods woods 30-45 miutes earlier in the day for a clean shot.

Good hunting !

If you are not comfortable taking that shot from an elevated stand you could always try a blind. Deer seem to be looking up a lot these days. It's time we start changing it up a little.