Acorns??

The property I’m hunting this year is absolutely loaded with white oak tress and they are dumping acorns by the millions right now. Sometimes it’s like trying to walk on marbles. It’s still been really warm here and the corn and beans are still not cut in the fields around my hunting area. It doesn’t appear that the deer are touching the acorns yet. Is this typical for acorns??

I read somewhere that during certain times a deer’s diet can be made up of 75% acorns??? Do the acorns need to dry up some before the deer eat them or will they rely on them once the crops are gone?? What have been others expierences with acorns??

Not sure, I know around here the wood ducks have been chomping acorns for about a month.

–Whitey

Ben usually in MN this is the time of year Deer focus on the acorns. You find acrons you find the deer. With that said there are different types of Oak trees that have a lil different flavor of Acorns. White and Reds are the main ones and deer have a preference for the “sweeter” oak, the other is a tad bit bitter. I can’t remember, but I believe they prefer the Red Oak, but do not quote me on this!

Actually white oak acorns are considered to be one of the preferred foods by whitetails. They contain a very low tanic acid level unlike other acorns (red, black, bur). They are low in protein content but high in fat and carbohydrates making them easily digestable for the deer.

I would think the deer would eat them as soon as they are dropped. Here in MN/WI, sometimes they will even run to the noise as soon as the acorn hits the ground! If I were you, I would concentrate on the white oaks that are closest to their bedding area (trying to remain down wind) and you should see deer.

Thank You Brad!

What he said Ben!

Thier not touching them here Eigther Ben. Theres lots of acorns on the ground where im hunting and they don’t look like they have been touched. Infact some have been walked on and thier laying there cracked and broken. Im sure the squirrels and turkeys are getting thier share. Theres still alot of sweet alfalfa and green grass where I am. They started to combine beans and chop silage the last week where my spots at, lots of acorns.

my experience: if there is corn and beans up still, they will leave the acorns for winter forage…the whitetails know where the acorns are. when the corn and beans are gone, concentrate on the acorns. My nose bleed stand is 25 feet over millions of acorns, and the deer just walk right over ’em to get to the beans which in my area have been coming down quickly. just what i have observed in SE MN over the last few years. but yea like Brad said…they come running when they hear em drop when field crops are out. good luck

Welcome to IDO DeanoB!

I have found that it changes from year to year, but more often than not they will eat them right away. we had a bid wind storm a couple months ago leaving alot of blow downs and the deer were eating the acorns off of the tree limbs and downed trees , the ground around them would be down to bare dirt from so many deer trompling all around them. I do belive that deer will eat white oak acorns right away and leave others go until winter when food is more scarce. If you dont know how to tell the difference , White oaks have rounded leaves not pointed, I know that is not a good description. If someone else dont bring up a link or something I will post a couple pics next time I get to the woods.

I know for sure that they are white oaks because the leaves have rounded edges.

The easiest way to tell is the Red Oaks, do not drop their leaves until after winter.

big G

I wonder if theres a climate diffrence between the ones there and here because burr oaks are the only ones that don’t drop thier leaves here at the same time the others do, theres not many burr oaks here. The wind and other elements eventually takes them off. White oaks have realitively smooth bark compared to other oaks here and its not thick and it has a lighter coloring and looks fairly white. Red oaks have coarse and thick bark and it looks black.

I have 6 does and fawns and one little 8 that visit my yard every morning and have been for about 2 weeks now eating acorns. They come out of my food plots which is corn, alfalfa, and brasica and go right to the acorns to eat so…. I would say they are liking them in my area.

You guys are right. The white acorns are preferred to all. I also belive they prefer them when still fresh. A little on the softer side. In most cases they go for the acorns first as they have a very high fat content in order to pu on winter weight. We don’t have very many farm fields up here that intrest the deer. So the acorns are the key. This year we have the largest crop that I can ever remember.

Even in my yard the deer come in and eat the acorns, never touching the corn in the feeder.

I notice that all of you are talking about acorns, I dont know how you would hunt near acorn, where i hunt all of the trees are primarily acorn, I dont think i would know how to set up my stand where i hunt because the place is loaded with acorn all around. everywhere you go there is acorn, basically a acorn forest.

Find the bedding area and set up on the downwind side of the trails they use to enter/exit the bedding area.

big G