How to Attract Deer Without Feed
- 1). Select an observation area. Generally speaking, this area should be at least half an acre, and as close as possible to natural habitat such as a wildlife preserve or untouched woodlands.
- 2). Plant several dozen raspberry plants at the edge of a clearing using the shovel. Raspberries are native to most of the U.S., and they are an excellent snack for deer. Be sure to place the plants in an area where they will get more shade than sun.
- 3). Refrain from any chemical or fluid-based maintenance of your observation area. Trimming the raspberry bushes and other scrub plants is okay, but chemicals, fertilizer, and fluids (even tap water) can negatively affect the desirability of the area for wild deer.
- 4). Plant several apple and pear trees near the middle of the clearing using a shovel. Be sure to plant these trees at least 30 feet apart as they can get quite big later on. Deer have a tendency to gnaw the bark, leaves, and buds off of these tree, so the more and bigger the trees you can start with, the better chance they have of surviving the browsing by the deer.
- 5). Dig a shallow pit at the base of the largest depression in your clearing using the shovel. You can make this pit deeper or more shallow according to your own preference, but the idea is to cover the majority of its bed with the tarp.
- 6). Lay the tarp out over the bed of the pit, and spread 1 inch of dirt evenly over it. This pit catch rain water and supply water for the deer, so feel free to bring in some water if rain and runoff do not keep it properly filled with water.
- 7). Plant clovers, grasses, and other plants of your preference randomly in the clearing during the springtime. While the raspberries, apple and pear trees will supply the deer with forage during the summer, fall, and winter, you should plant a variety of early blossoming plants like clovers in order to provide forage for the springtime.