MINERALS & CORN

[lance.huhn]

I do not know much about putting out minerals and blocks.  If it is legal to hunt over bait in your state, is it an acceptable practice to hunt over mineral sites?  Also, there has been no rain in my area.  I am having a hard time finding tracks and trails.  If I bait an area with corn and a licking block, will it attract deer into that area?  And is it too much to have 2 or 3 mineral sites on 50 acres of land?

[DeerCamp]

youll have to check with your state's dnr to see if you are able to hunt over a mineral site. as far as attracting..YES it will deffently bring in the deer. Im can really remember how many mineral sites you should have..I believe it is something like one for every 80 acers..i could be wrong though. minerals are a great way to help out your deer, but deffently check in with the laws for your state before hunting over them.

[buckhunter21]

DeerCamp is spot on.  Make sure you check with your local regulations before doing anything.  As far as mineral sites, I think he's right when you say one per 80 acres.  Hunting over a mineral site probably won't see a ton of action come hunting season as most of the deer use these areas in the spring and summer.  Baiting will bring the deer in, but one thing to remember is sometimes you'll leave your herd in worse shape than it originally was by doing this, mostly if you only bait say during the two or three months of the hunting season.  Deer can over-eat, and worse yet, get used to this 'free meal' and then when it's gone it is said that they're stomach takes some time to get used to the other food that is available and this can lead to starvation.  This happens mostly for people that bait during the cold, winter months. 
 
Best of luck!

[passin through]

Based on the surmise that it is legal in your state to feed and supplement minerals otherwise you would not be asking.  We can legally hunt here over whatever, so in my experience:  2-3 sites on 50 acres not too many with the understanding that mineral sites are better utilized early on in the year and will not do you much good to hunt over them.  Minerals are a good thing to put out for overall supplementation year round.  As to finding trails...set up and observe late evenings on pastures and clear cuts see where the deer are moving to and from, then place feed sites or cameras or whatever.  Another trick to locating trails is to cruise dirt roads/atv trails and look for crossings.  A trick to check trail use is to pull a few fresh pine limbs with needles on as a drag behind you...come back in 24 hours and you can tell by the tracks how well the crossing is used.  As for drawing deer into an area...yes feed and minerals will do that but you have to place the station where the deer are at least going by, ie trails.  If you are going through a dry spell check out water sources for signs of activity.  BTW what state are you in?

[lance.huhn]

East Texas.  20 miles West of Shreveport.