mineral/salt lick?

just wondering when to start a mineral lick any advice is appriciated thank you

It’s important to know your state laws first and foremost. I’ll leave the placement replies up to the experts who have much more experience with this than I do.

I can tell you in my brief experience, the deer visited our sites religiously. The bucks less as the hunting seasons opened, but the does were still hitting them on the last days we had cameras out.

I just went out last night and established a new mineral site. Now is a great time to get one started.

Quote:

---

I just went out last night and established a new mineral site. Now is a great time to get one started.

---

I usually begin my mineral licks in early spring when the ground thaws. I have already established licks in years past and have found this to be ideal as deer definitely remember. They also have no issue finding new licks, from my experience.
I have placed them in a variety of places, but I have found that on the fringes of bedding areas/on the way to food has worked best for me. I have also started licks near ponds that I have made, and that seems to work well too.
I have been playing with my own concoction of minerals, and have stayed away from pure salt blocks. That stuff is for cows, and if you look at the composition of pure salt blocks, there is little for beneficial minerals in the block. However, I will crush up part of a salt block to mix in with the rest of the minerals I put out. I have found that crushed mineral seems to soak into the ground much better and linger longer at the site. Some licks have turned into mini ponds for me!

I freshened mine last week and will every 3 weeks from now until Oct 1

Quote:

---

I freshened mine last week and will every 3 weeks from now until Oct 1

---

X2 Lucky Buck Mineral is what I found to be the best

Lucky Buck is a great attractant with the apple smell that will carry for miles. But 64% salt doesn’t help the deer out much. While everyone on here has their personal favorites the question was when to start a mineral site

Quote:

---

I freshened mine last week and will every 3 weeks from now until Oct 1

---

X3

zmax I keep my mineral sites running year round. Right now is a perfect time to start new ones or replenish an old site.

It’s never too early to start a mineral lick. One thing to keep in mind… what are your goals with your mineral lick? Are you looking to attract deer to an area so you can take inventory with a trail camera? Or… are you trying to provide them with supplements that help support antler growth? They are both good reasons but very different from each other in regard to mineral lick ingredients.

Quote:

---

Lucky Buck is a great attractant with the apple smell that will carry for miles. But 64% salt doesn’t help the deer out much. While everyone on here has their personal favorites the question was when to start a mineral site

---

This topic says mineral/salt lick in the first place. Guess you dont know much about Lucky Buck, the salt is in there so they can’t consume Unhealthy amount of the mineral that is in Lucky Buck. Deer will only consume so much salt and thats it. This way they can have high levels of the minerals they need. Care to let us know what kind you of mineral you use?

Sorry Wrinkle I will not derail another persons post with a Ford vs Chevy debate

Again Zmax I run my sites year round but the heaviest traffic is May – October Good luck and let us know how your sites turn out and be sure to share some pictures

Thanks guys the info you provided is great. I am going to start next week also a buddy said that 1or2 of the trophy buck rocks would be a plus any advice on if they work?

Quote:

---

Thanks guys the info you provided is great. I am going to start next week also a buddy said that 1or2 of the trophy buck rocks would be a plus any advice on if they work?

---

The trophy rocks are almost all salt. I would look for something that gave more vitamin and mineral benefits. But that is just my opinion.

The problem with salt is that it contributes very little to antler growth or lactation. Furthermore, over consumption of salt is just as unhealthy in deer as it is in humans and can increase the water consumption of deer, which takes up valuable stomach space and decreases overall food consumption. What deer really need are the proper amounts and integration of macro minerals, trace minerals and vitamins that play a much more active role in antler growth, lactation and herd health than does salt. There is no scientific proof that salt has any “positive” benefits to a deer’s diet.
Some goods starters inculde and are not limited to WINA’s 30-06, Hunter specialties Vita rack 26, Monster Raxx’s Trophy Mineral, as well as a plethera of home brews. Bottem line is that any mineral is better than none. The mian factor that is going to hamper or help your minersite is LOCATION. I have found that if you start to get pooling of water in the site that the use by deer goes down dramaticly over the course of the summer. I find areas with well drained soil consistantly work the best for me, if well drained soil is not avalible i will look for a slight slope so the water will run off. I have gone to the extend off trenching the water out of some sites in the past with awsome results, as the water runs off rather than draining in it deposits the trace minerals on the surface instead of leachin deep into the ground out of the deers reach. When looking for the location for a site keep in mind travel and time spent at the site, I generaly look for an intersection of 2 or more trails in good cover where you know deer are spending a good amount of time. This may be deep into cover on the fringe of known bedding areas or at evening staging points near destination food sources weather it be a plot or and ag feild. The goal is to locate them where the deer feel the most comfortable and will spend as much time as possible at your site yet allows you acess to refresh with out pushing your herd. Hope this helps and good luck with your sites

Quote:

---

The problem with salt is that it contributes very little to antler growth or lactation. Furthermore, over consumption of salt is just as unhealthy in deer as it is in humans and can increase the water consumption of deer, which takes up valuable stomach space and decreases overall food consumption. What deer really need are the proper amounts and integration of macro minerals, trace minerals and vitamins that play a much more active role in antler growth, lactation and herd health than does salt. There is no scientific proof that salt has any “positive” benefits to a deer’s diet.
Some goods starters inculde and are not limited to WINA’s 30-06, Hunter specialties Vita rack 26, Monster Raxx’s Trophy Mineral, as well as a plethera of home brews. Bottem line is that any mineral is better than none. The mian factor that is going to hamper or help your minersite is LOCATION. I have found that if you start to get pooling of water in the site that the use by deer goes down dramaticly over the course of the summer. I find areas with well drained soil consistantly work the best for me, if well drained soil is not avalible i will look for a slight slope so the water will run off. I have gone to the extend off trenching the water out of some sites in the past with awsome results, as the water runs off rather than draining in it deposits the trace minerals on the surface instead of leachin deep into the ground out of the deers reach. When looking for the location for a site keep in mind travel and time spent at the site, I generaly look for an intersection of 2 or more trails in good cover where you know deer are spending a good amount of time. This may be deep into cover on the fringe of known bedding areas or at evening staging points near destination food sources weather it be a plot or and ag feild. The goal is to locate them where the deer feel the most comfortable and will spend as much time as possible at your site yet allows you acess to refresh with out pushing your herd. Hope this helps and good luck with your sites

---