hcurt

I have just recently picked up 300 acres to bowhunt along a river bottom. It is mostly bean fields with timber strips splitting the fields and a wider strip of timber down along the river. My main question is I have walked along all the timber and I have not seen one single oak tree. Almost every tree on the property is Hickories. They are loaded with nuts but what I am wondering is do deer really like Hickory nuts? I am not sure what type of Hickory they are. I know they are not shaggybark Hickories. They are either Bitternut, Pignut, or Mockernut Hickories. There is heavy timber a quarter mile to a half mile away that may have oaks I'm not sure but after they are done with the beans I just wonder if they will hang around and eat the Hickories? Also if they eat them do they wait till they are dropping and when would that be?

Angus74

On our farm we have oaks and several hickory trees, not sure which type of hickory, but Ive never seen a deer eat a hickory nut, they seem awful hard to me, Im not saying they wont eat them, but never seen it or any evidence that they have. They will really concentrate on the acorns when they fall, even to the point that they almost stop using my food plots for a coupole weeks. If it were me Id key in on the beans, until the acorns start to drop, usually about the first or second week of oct in mo, then try to find a good patch of white oak dropping nuts, somewhere close to the beans, and try to set up there.

bowhuntinoh

i have seen deer eating hickory nuts from a shagy bark tree where im at it seems they prefer those to the stand of oaks down by the pond

hcurt

Angus74 from what I have seen on this property there is not one single oak tree. All I have been able to find are Hickory trees and a few sycamores.
Bowhuntinoh that sounds like the Shaggybark Hickory trees. From what I found out on the internet they have very good sweet nuts but the ones on this property don't have the shaggy bark. Thanks for the opinions so far would like to hear from anyone else with any experiance in this area.

Buckslayer1

36 years of bow hunting I never seen a deer eat a hickory nut.

VAhuntr

20 years of bowhunting and I have never seen a deer eat a hickory nut. I have seen them walk straight through stands of hickorys to get to a lone oak though.

timbercruiser

About 35+ years of deer hunting and I've never seen a deer eat a hickory nut.

greg-dude

I would think teeth wear would be a major problem if they ate shag bark hickory nuts. Those things are hard to crack with a hammer. Pig nut may be a possibility.

30 years of hunting and have not seen a deer eat a hickory nut.

rwilson

What about pecans? Should be easy enuff to bust 'em but i've not seen any evidence that they do.

kevin1

Pecans have a bitter tasting interior , I doubt that they would eat them . [:'(]