Deer are prevalent in many different areas of North America, but you might be looking to attract deer to your property. Many hunters who own large properties want to try to keep deer in a specific area so that they will be able to hunt them during hunting season.
Keeping deer around and taking care of the deer herd will allow you to have healthy deer that you can hunt on your property when they’re the right age. This is why so many people are looking for reliable ways to attract deer to their yards.
How can you attract deer to your yard, though? Are there certain methods that have proven to be reliable?
Keep reading to learn more about how you can attract deer to your yard. There are quite a few things that will work well that you can consider, and you’re going to have an easier time getting results once you’ve read all of the information below.
Deer Will Be More Likely to Come to Your Yard If It’s Near the Woods
Of course, some people are going to be located in places that won’t get a lot of deer. If you’re too close to a busy street and you don’t have any woods nearby, then it’s unlikely that you’ll attract deer to your yard.
That being said, deer will pop up in many rural areas that are close enough to the woods. If you happen to have your yard positioned right by the woods, then you’re going to be far more likely to see deer in your yard.
This doesn’t mean that deer will come to your yard for no reason, though. You’re going to need to have things that deer like that will give them a reason to come around.
Below, you’re going to find a lot of different things that you can do to get deer to come to your yard. Some of these tips will take a bit of work on your part, but it’ll be worth it in the end.
1 – Plant Food Plots
One of the most practical things that you can do to get deer to come to your yard is to plant food plots. Planting different types of food on your property that deer like will make it more likely that they will want to stick around.
You’ll want to plant good foraging foods that will appeal to the local deer population. There are many types of plants that deer like to graze on that you should consider planting in your yard.
Deer will regularly eat chicory, orchard grass, and red clover that has been planted in people’s yards. It might even be worth planting crops such as kale, corn, peas, and turnips in an effort to attract deer to the yard.
There are even certain types of nuts that deer like to eat that you can try to make plentiful on your property. Deer have been known to enjoy acorns and chestnuts, and it makes sense to try to include them in your food plot if possible.
If you have a large enough property, then you should be able to plant your food plot in a convenient location. This will allow the food plot to be far enough away from roads and traffic so that the deer can feel safe.
You’ll be creating a safe spot for the deer where they will have everything that they need. This will keep the deer coming back, and it might even make it so that the deer won’t stray too far from the food plot’s location.
When you’re planting food plots, it’s going to be good to choose a spot that will allow the crops to thrive. You don’t want to plant things in an area that will be prone to flooding since that could easily wipe out your food plot.
Make good choices so that you can have a good experience with the food plot. Creating a good food plot is probably the most practical thing to do when you want to keep deer in your yard, and this means that putting in some thought about where you’ll place the food plot is a good idea.
2 – Plant Apple Trees
Planting some apple trees will make it significantly more likely that deer will be interested in your property. You see, deer really love the scent of apples, and they’re going to want to come to your yard if you have apple trees.
If you plant apple trees in your yard, then you’ll be able to get more deer to come by. Crabapple trees will also work nicely if you would prefer to plant those.
Another good thing about having apple trees or crabapple trees on the property is that it will give the deer some cover. It creates a nice spot for the deer to hang out, and you’ll probably see many deer munching on fallen apples or crabapples over time.
The only bad thing about this idea is that not everyone lives in an area that has a suitable climate for apple trees. If it doesn’t seem like this will be a real option in your area, then you might want to just move on to other ideas.
Just know that apples can be great for attracting deer to your yard. In fact, some people even mix apples in with certain types of feed so that they can get deer to stick around.
3 – You Could Try Using Lures
Deer lures might be effective when you’re trying to get deer to come into your yard. Admittedly, deer lures are most often used during the hunting season to try to get deer to specific locations, but they can work during other times of the year, too.
There are quite a few types of deer lures out there, but most of them involve scents. You can spray scents, deer urine, and certain types of pheromones in your yard that will make it seem like a safe place to the deer.
Deer urine might be the best thing to spray in the yard since that will help to attract deer to the area the most. You should spray quite a bit of deer urine in whatever part of your yard you’re hoping to get the deer to come to.
You could try to apply doe scent to various leaves and the grass if you’re attempting to attract bucks to the area, too. Overall, this works pretty nicely and should be a good additional thing you can do to get more deer in the area.
4 – Salt Blocks
Salt blocks are going to do an excellent job of attracting deer to the yard. You’ve probably heard about people using salt blocks to attract deer while hunting, but they can also be used to keep deer on your property.
You’re going to want to buy a salt block or two and place what you’ve purchased in the spot that you want the deer to go to. Deer will be able to find the salt block by scent, and they’ll love licking it.
Deer can get very addicted to salt blocks, and they’ll just keep coming back for more. Hunters use this to their advantage to ensure that they can keep as many deer in the area as possible.
There are many different types of salt blocks out there that you can use as well. Some are combination salt and protein blocks that will provide various nutritional benefits to the deer.
You can buy flavored salt blocks that smell like certain things, too. Many people find that apple-scented salt blocks are especially good at attracting deer to their yards, but other things will also work well.
If you’re going to be using salt blocks, then you can also consider using salt and protein powder. This is basically the same thing as a salt block, but it’s in the form of powder so that you can spread it out across a wider area.
It can be good for allowing larger groups of deer to enjoy things at once. With a standard salt block, only one or maybe two deer will be able to lick the block at once.
Salt blocks are much more durable, though, and rainstorms can wash away the powder. If you use salt blocks, then even a heavy rain won’t disintegrate them, and this makes it easier to just leave salt blocks out in the elements.
It’s also notable that many people like to use salt blocks that are made to look like natural blocks. The deer aren’t going to care whether you use a normal salt block or one that blends in, but it can help to keep other hunters from seeing what you’re doing on your property.
Even though you shouldn’t have to worry about other hunters trying to hunt on your private property, it’s still an issue sometimes. This is why many people use salt blocks that can be easily concealed instead of using obvious salt blocks.
5 – Consider Allowing Your Grass to Grow Taller
Deer want to have as much cover as possible because they like to feel safe and hidden. If your yard has spots where the grass is substantially taller, then that’s going to make it easier to attract deer.
Very short grass will not be as appealing to deer because it won’t give them any cover at all. Also, deer like to munch on grass, and this means that tall grass could also be something for the deer to graze on.
It might be beneficial to have the perimeter of your yard lined with tall grass. This might only be practical if you have a large property, though, since most people aren’t going to want very tall grass too close to their homes.
You’ll get used to having sections of your property that you just don’t mow. It’ll create spots that are perfect for the deer, and you’ll be able to have an easier time keeping them around.
6 – Consider Removing Fences
Fences are practical for many reasons, but they can be a detriment when you’re trying to attract deer to the yard. When you have fences on your property, it’s going to make it tougher for the deer to access your yard.
If you want to have an easier time attracting deer, then you should consider removing any fences that are present. At the very least, you should keep fences away from the parts of your yard that you wish to attract deer to.
You could still have a fence closer to your home for the purpose of having a fenced-in area for your dogs. This might all depend on how big your yard is and what is going to be practical in your situation.
Without fences in the yard, the deer will have a much easier time getting where you want them to go. Fences might prevent deer from being able to get to food plots that you’ve planted, and that wouldn’t be good at all.
Final Thoughts
There are definitely a lot of things that you can do to attract deer to your yard. It’s likely that you’ll get the best results if you use many of the ideas above.
Planting a food plot will be a good place to start, and you can use deer lures such as deer urine to try to get deer interested in the area.
Deer are very attracted to the scent of apples as well, and this means that the simple act of planting apple trees in your yard might work out nicely. Both crabapple trees and apple trees have helped people to see many more deer in their yards.
Salt blocks work well to attract deer and you can also try to give the deer places that they can hide in your yard. Keeping the grass tall and not putting up fences will make it more likely that the deer will come to the area.
You should be able to have a lot of deer on your property if you create the ideal conditions for deer. If your yard is positioned near the woods, then it’ll be that much more likely that deer will come by.
Ben has a bachelor’s degree in construction engineering. When not constructing or remodeling X-Ray Rooms, Cardiovascular Labs, and Pharmacies, you can find him at home with wife and two daughters. Outside of family, He loves grilling and barbequing on his Big Green Egg and Blackstone Griddle, as well as working on projects around the house.
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