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Late Season natural food sources

doublej

Junior Member
85
0
So saw the late season baiting thread..but
What's some natural food sources to look for this time of year and on until the end of the season?
Seems like mostly just browse left, oaks seem to all be done? Saw a few still dropping 2-3 weeks ago but they didn't have much left. So any oaks now seems it would just be deer raking the leaves to get to older acorns... IF any may still be putting out what types to look for?
Found some Honey locust trees but they didn't seem to really be hitting them hard.
I find plenty areas where they are hitting browse with moderate sign but I have developed the inability to hunt over a spot unless it blows me a way. Which results in me scouting way more than I hunt, and lately been having trouble finding anything I'd want to sit over

Anyone know if ODNR or anyone has out in publications listing all naturally occurring food sources for deer in Ohio?
Thanks Fellas
 

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,060
223
Ohio
Late in the season I notice a lot of deer key in on woody browse, especially near the edges of hay and crop fields. Multiflora rose seems to get hit pretty hard. Openings near fields or clearcuts where there's a lot of undergrowth are good places to scout. I find it's best to wait for some snow, for two reasons... One, you can obviously follow their tracks easier. And two, if the browsing is fresh you'll see bits and pieces laying beneath the brush on top of the snow.
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
274
Appalachia
If you had the kind of oak crop we had, there are still tons of acorns hidden under a blanket of leaves. I kicked around last weekend in our oak flat and there are plenty of acorns available. If a feller was industrious, he could take a leaf blower in to an oak flat and make himself a "food plot" right quick.

Also, honeysuckle and the right hay fields this time of year are great locations to hunt.
 

dante322

*Supporting Member*
5,506
157
Crawford county
The acorns from white oaks have a lot of sugar in them and dont last as long before they rot. That's why the deer hit them so hard when they drop, they're sweeter and won't be there for long. The acorns from black and red oaks have more tannins in them that act as a sort of preservative but give them a more bitter taste. The acorns that are left are black and red, and there are plenty of them, the deer will be digging them up from under the leaves before long. Locust pods, green briar, and multiflora will be getting eaten as well as any left overs in the corn fields. If this weather holds out, anything that is still green is worth a look as well.
 

hickslawns

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
39,721
248
Ohio
Goes without saying, but nobody has said it. If you have any picked fields around, they will hit them. Plenty of acorns under the leaves up here.