When many novices to deer hunting find out about hunting for discarded antlers in the offseason, the first question they ask themselves is when do deer shed their antlers? It’s no secret that most of us who hunt love antlers, and the ability to collect them without expending a single round or tag is an alluring prospect and quite easy if you get out at the right time.

When Do  Deer Shed Their Antlers?

The Short Answer

Most deer will shed their antlers pretty soon after the rutting season is over. The antlers primarily serve to allow bucks to spar over females during the breeding season and serve little purpose once their task is over.

It’s not a universal given that all bucks will drop around the same time. Deer that are malnourished or injured, for instance, will tend to drop their antlers quite a bit earlier than those who are healthy and jacked full of testosterone.

It’s pretty dependent on your area, actually. The quicker it gets cold, the sooner they’ll be getting rid of their antlers. The general rule of thumb is that they’ll be dropping between January and mid-March, with colder areas being closer to the start of the year.

The Variable Time of Drop

There’s a lot more than just the weather to factor in, however. For instance, if you wounded a buck on a property you frequently hunt during the season but are unable to seal the deal that buck may drop his antlers much earlier than the rest in the area.

Age also plays a crucial role, with studies showing that the time at which bucks shed seems to get earlier as they get past the prime of their life.

Nutrition and habitat also play key roles. Areas that are overgrazed, meaning food is scarce, will often have the deers shedding earlier than an area where there is plenty of forage to go around. A varied food source, meaning healthier deer, will also help them hold on for longer.

If the deer in your area go into breeding season early, for whatever reason, you can reasonably expect them to shed their antlers earlier as well. Remember that the primary purpose of these antlers is fighting over mates, and once that’s done they’ll fall off.

Here Comes the Science

What scientists have found primarily is that the antlers are linked to the testosterone levels in the deer. When the antlers first begin to emerge from the pedicle, they’re covered in a soft substance which is often dubbed “antler velvet” which allows for their rapid growth.

During the summer, their antlers will stop growing and the male deer will rub the velvet off of them, leaving them with the prominent rack to which hunters are so attracted. These remain for the breeding season until they are shed.

After breeding season, as the testosterone levels in the dear go down rapidly, there will be a weakening at the pedicle. This can occur quite rapidly, a deer with a solid rack of antlers one day might have lost them in as little as forty-eight hours.

This doesn’t appear to cause the animal any sort of inconvenience or pain. In fact, contrary to popular opinion, the buck doesn’t seem to have any better idea than we do of when they’ll lose them.

By Region

If you’re shed hunting in the US, it’s safe to assume that the farther north you are, the sooner the animals will begin to lose their antlers. In the coldest regions of North America, this can begin to happen as soon as late December.

As you venture into the more temperate regions, you’ll find that things slowly change. If you’re in this region it’s probably safe to assume that the deer in your favorite hunting grounds will begin losing their antlers by mid-January and sheds will continue through February.

In the Southern states, you’ll have to wait quite a bit longer. The beginning of March is a safe assumption, and in the hottest regions, a healthy buck may not shed until the middle of April.

One fun fact: if regional conditions don’t change year to year and you’re seeking a particular buck’s shed you’ll find that they often drop their antlers within a couple of days of the previous year’s date of shed every time.

Conclusion

We hope that we’ve helped you to find out what you’re looking for. There’s a lot of variables at play when you ask yourself “when do deer shed their antlers?” and it’s dependent on region and the health of the animals in your area but in general it will happen after the mating season is over.

Please leave us a comment below if you have any more questions on this fascinating subject.

Sources:

http://www.grandviewoutdoors.com/big-game-hunting/why-do-deer-shed-their-antlers/

http://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/hunting/2009/04/when-do-bucks-shed-their-antlers

http://www.grandviewoutdoors.com/big-game-hunting/when-do-deer-drop-their-antlers/

http://www.bonecollector.com/white-gold-when-do-bucks-shed-antlers/

Do you love it when your local wildlife comes to visit your property? Squirrels, rabbits, birds, and deer are wandering around and living their lives. You can become closer to nature and encourage more wildlife with food plots.

Related:19 Hunting Enthusiasts Reveal The Common Mistakes When Planting Food Plots

Food plots are particular areas of planted land that are set aside to be a food source for wildlife. These food plots usually contain forage grasses, beans, alfalfa, turnip, et cetera. For deer, something they enjoy is chicory.

Chicory is a member of the dandelion family that can be used for many things. It has numerous health benefits for humans and is even used as a coffee substitute. Wildlife also loves it, especially deer.

By creating a food plot on your property, you will encourage wildlife to visit and chow down. If you are attracting them to hunt or if you just want to enjoy nature in your backyard, planting chicory in a food plot will attract deer to wherever you planted it. This guide will tell you all you need to know about planting chicory for deer.

How To Plant Chicory For Deer? What You Will Need

How do you plant food plots, to begin with? You will need several things and to have some patience. There is a lot that goes into making a food plot. The one I will be going over is a mini plot. Mini-plots do not need heavy equipment like tractors to be built.

Here is a list of things you should have ready to create your food plot.

• Soil
• Leaf blower
• Small sprayed with roundup inside

• Lime pellets
• Chicory seeds
• Fertilizer

What You Have To Do

Step 1: Determine the Location of Your Plot

The first thing you need to do is figure out where you are going to put your food plot. Usually, you are also picking what crop you want to plant, but we are using chicory. Take a look at your property for locations that fit the bill.

An ideal location for a food plot is dependent on what you want to happen. Since we are talking about deer, make sure your plot is located in an area frequented by them.

You also want somewhere you can get too easily that is not out in the open. The more cover there is, the more animals will come to your plot.

Related: Do You Know When To Plant Food Plot For Deer?

Step 2: Test the Soil

Getting a sample of the soil that is present where you would like to build your plot. You need to have it tested so you can know how much lime you need to neutralize the pH level. You can have this done at the most agricultural feed store for a pretty decent price.

The pH is the measure of alkalinity and acidity of the soil you are considering. You will not want to skip this step. It is critical to the success of your crop. If the pH is off, your plants may not grow properly, if at all. A balanced pH level allows plants to get the maximum amount of nutrients.

Step 3: Kill the Weeds

With a mower, mow the area as short as possible without hurting your mower deck. After this, using your spray bottle, spray the area with roundup or the weed killer of your choice.

A product with 41% Glyphosate is ideal for this, which you can find at your local home improvement store. After spraying, wait for 10 to 14 days for the weed killer to do its job. This is essential for the health and vitality of your chicory plot.

Step 4: Break Ground

Depending on what is available to you, use whatever tools you have to loosen and break up the soil to be ready for planting. You can use a Rototiller or even hand tools.

With your tools, go over the entire area you would like to be your plot. Make sure everything is turned over and broken up evenly. For other options, you may be able to rent a food plot machine from a local wildlife habitat.

Related: Do You Know When To Plant Food Plot For Deer?

Step 5: Lime and Fertilizer

With the recommended amount of fertilizer and lime for your soil, spread it evenly over the plot. With the lime, you can either use pellets or the pulverized version. The bullet version needs to be redone each time you plant something.

Using a tiller or what tool is readily available, mix the fertilizer and lime in with the soil. You can have a professional ‘disk’ the ground for you if you want to. This is done using a disk attachment from an ATV.

Step 6: Prepare the Ground

After you spread the lime and fertilizer, it is time to make the ground smooth for your seed bed. You can use a chain-link fence or a cult packer, whichever is more convenient for you.

When you have an ideal seed bed, you have to spray it with your weed killer once more. This gets rid of the dormant weeds that are hiding. The fertilizer and lime give them nutrients to come back, so wait for 10 to 14 days before moving on to the next step.

Step 7: Plant the Seeds

To plant your seeds, hold on another week or week and a half before planting. A cult packer is recommended in general for this task, but it comes in handy here. It can efficiently get your seed nice and profound into the soil without agitating any remaining dormant weeds.

Doing anything but planting with your soil is not a good idea at this time. Do not mix it up or spray again with the weed killer. Also, for even better results, watch your weather forecast and see if you can plant before a good rain. The rain helps the seed and the soil to retain good contact.

Step 8: See Your Results

When your results are finally coming to fruition, you probably want to consider treating it with a grass herbicide a few times throughout the season. This helps to control weeds. A little bit of mowing every now and again will probably help the chicory to cultivate nicely.

The deer in your area will appreciate the source of food as will the other creatures that enjoy chicory. If you want to encourage them to come to your property, building a food plot with many different plants will do the trick.

Chicory, however, is well known for its appeal to wildlife. Humans, too, get great health benefits from chicory. It is not used as much as it used to be, but certainly is coming back to be an ideal lunch for Bambi.

Conclusion

Ensure that you have all you need before starting each step. Apparently, you can take some time when you are waiting for the land to be ready. This time, can be used to find the equipment you would want to rent or to find someone to hire to help you out.

Once you have gone through all the trouble, it takes to make a food plot, maintaining it is just as important if you want to keep your success. Treating with grass herbicide goes a long way, and now you can say that you know how to plant chicory for deer. And as always, if you know someone who would benefit from this piece of knowledge, feel free to share this article with them.