I need to ensure that the deer return to my property. I have 15 acres but my neighbor owns 100+ acres across the north end of my property and all the way down the east side. . My wife and I bought the place in June and have heard from family members of the former (now dead) owner that deer used to inhabit my land but when the neighbor moved in some years before, the deer population plummeted. The former owner suspected that the neighbor did something to cause that. My hunch is that the neighbor has feeding stations and who knows what else, so much so that no deer need to come across my land. We live in a rural area and our land is surrounded by acreage. There’s no reason why the deer wouldn’t at least pass through my land from time to time but we’ve been here for 6 months and I’ve done a lot of scouting with no results. Something is definitely up. So, how do I get deer to return and then keep them coming back? The land here is rocky but I may still be able to plant some clover. If grass grows here - and it does - then hopefully clover will too. But how do I get the deer over here to even find the clover? I’ve tried leaving vanilla extract all over the place; used a garden sprayer to spray apple juice everywhere. I’ve left oats and molasses, and apples, carrots, and jars of peanut butter, yet no luck. None. It’s frustrating. The whole reason I agreed with my wife to buy this place was because of the appearance that there was potential to hunt. My property is treed but not thick Ben. There is a lot of prickly ash. There’s an old and unused concession road on the west side of my property. My other neighbor across the road has plenty of deer, so it’s not a question of a low population. I need to get the deer back and I need them to keep coming back regularly so my land becomes an excellent place to hunt. Please advise.
