Well, like I tried to post yesterday, the deer found my little "kill plot", which is a good thing I guess. Problem is, the seedlings are only a week old and if there's this much traffic there probably isn't going to be anything left growing by the beginning of bow season. I thought about leaving the tripod sprinkler set up to keep them spooked off, but they would probably get used to that quickly, just like they do a new feeder. I'm not sure there's much I can do except to stand by to replant and be thankful that I'm drawing deer in. Any suggestions?
If you want the plot to grow, throw some stakes up around the perimeter and use a few rows of fishing line... Very cost effective tool we have used. You can even use trees as the posts.
I would guess that it will still grow good even with the deer nibbling on it. You dont want to really deter deer from going to it because when it comes time to hunt it the deer might still think they cant get in there.. I would leave it like it is for now.
I kind of wanted to lean this direction even if it meant having to replant. Fencing it off would be a good idea if growth were more important than traffic, but honestly I'm thrilled to see the deer traffic start up. If I can keep them there it's going to be a great spot to sneak into after work or on a weekend when I don't want to travel. On a side note, I'm thinking that the doe with the scar may be a priority target for me. I may be wrong, but coming in her face looks old. If she is and that scar is from a bad bow shot from someone, she's going to be pretty well educated. Granted, that scar could be from anything, but the angle sure looks like someone attempted a straight-on shot and either shot right or she jumped the string.
Good they found it! Like other said, post it off and use some fishing line, it will decrease the amount if pressure on it.
Does this doe look old to you or do you think it's just the lighting? I'm just curious. She's the one on the right in the last pic.
