Baiting?

terrym · Post by **terrym** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 5:04 pm

How many here use bait for deer hunting? We used corn this year at the deer camp to take advantage of a later season and some surplus doe tags and it worked beautifully. Now I'm thinking of also putting in some apples prior to rifle season to see if I can concentrate them more for the firearm opener. Setting up a food plot where we hunt is basically impossible as we mostly hunt heavy mixed bush with very few openings of any size and it's crown land anyway. So, what do you all use and when do you start?

Doe Master · Post by **Doe Master** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 5:08 pm

We use whole corn . But being in Bradford you should be able to use surplus carrots and such . A person I know was a few years ago able to get ahold of carrots and the deer devoured them . Not necessarily all during legal hours but the deer definitely liked them once they figured out what they were .

terrym · Post by **terrym** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 5:32 pm

Yeah, I will definitely be using carrots near home but at the deer camp up near Dunchurch they wouldn't know what a carrot is so the apples would be the better way up there.

mikej · Post by **mikej** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 6:14 pm

terrym wrote:Yeah, I will definitely be using carrots near home but at the deer camp up near Dunchurch they wouldn't know what a carrot is so the apples would be the better way up there.

don't be so sure of that we use apples and corn here and there isn't an apple orchord or corn field within 100 kms and they love it

crazyfarmer · Post by **crazyfarmer** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 6:24 pm

its illegal here

only bait I use are what falls from the tree's and the fields crops are in

huntman · Post by **huntman** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 6:25 pm

I dont like using corn only becuase i find you feed the birds more than anything else. I have had great results with carrots and some apples. I usually start baiting late august early sept

Houndsman · Post by **Houndsman** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 6:29 pm

We use mostly Sweet Potatoes or Sugar Beets.There are too many Turkeys to use corn,unless you can find it still on the cob.

wildwindom · Post by **wildwindom** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 6:36 pm

Me and pops use corn off the cob.

ecoaster · Post by **ecoaster** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 6:52 pm

Seems to work better in forest areas. I have tried it around here, but there is so many crop fields they don't seem to bother with the bait.

pdislow · Post by **pdislow** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 7:11 pm

you might like to try corn soaked in water and salt for a few days until it starts to swell and soften up and smell a little bit (less than a week) . then dig a shallow trench and pour the corn in the trench and cover it up, leaving just enough for the deer to find and get started on. the deer will paw it up , consuming time, and this also helps keep the birds and squirrells from eating it up so quickly. works down here in N.C.

OneShot · Post by **OneShot** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 8:08 pm

We started our bait sites on labour day weekend.

Left 10 bushes of apples,pears and several large bags of whole corn.

The brown salt blocks are always out!

Come October 1st, not a kernel or seed was left!

You will most likely find out if you leave it; "they will come"!

We are starting carrots also this year.

A friend farms them here and always offers to give us all we want.

He only asks for a roast or two and some of the keilbassa we get made!

WE found out long ago not to use cracked corn; birds and squirels eat it faster than the deer did.

oneshot.........

michiganman · Post by **michiganman** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 10:29 pm

here in michigan baiting was banned last year.but before that many have used it for years.the down side to it ,is if you dont shoot a deer first two weeks,then they come to the piles after hours.when its legal,every were you go is a bait pile,and the deer go pile to pile after hours.very seldom you shoot a buck of any size.

we use corn,sugar beets,and carrots.and there is none of that type of feed in any of these aeras.in our areas if there are no acorns,then there is very limited food supply.so it works beter when there are no other food supplys in the area.when you have corn field,corn dosent work well.also carrots dosent work well if they have acorns or corn.but if there is no corn or acorns,they hammer the carrots,corn and beets.

Mike P · Post by **Mike P** » Tue Feb 17, 2009 8:49 am

We feed deer, but we do not "bait" deer. We found it to be lots of effort with little reward for what we are after. Seldom if ever did we have mature bucks visiting the feeding stations during shooting hours. The only time we would see them visit during daylight was during the rut checking for doe's that frequent the feeders. We do get lots of photos from the cuddies of bucks visiting the feeders at night and that is one of our goals.

We use different types of supplements to insure not only antler growth but overall good health of the resident animals. Corn alone certainly does not do that and has been found by many studies to be detrimental to the results we are trying to obtain.

Our food plots and shooting plots have been much more effective then any "baiting" station we ever tried.

warningshot · Post by **warningshot** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 2:46 am

we started in the middle of august and used apples corn and pumpkins ..... the birds, squirrels, racoons and bears seemed to sweep up the corn before the deer .... the apples and pumkin were left for the deer....we did a small test plot and hope to expand out our food plot this year and less on the baiting ...

Doe Master · Post by **Doe Master** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 5:50 am

We start our baits after the snow starts to fly . For there is too many crop fields around to feed them . As for not seeing bucks Mike you are right ,but at the end of the season we will take anything that offers itself .