Salt Lick

[b35w]

They are hammering it



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[Coastal Woodie]

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[Drylok]

Wonder how long before the stump is gone...

[Palmetto Bug]

I've never had any deer show any attraction to a salt lick in the Lowcountry. I've even put blocks in the middle of a corn pile that they ignore it.

[2thDoc]

then you put it out at the wrong time...or they are getting it from somewhere else.

[Duck cutter]

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Fat lighter stump?

[Palmetto Bug]

then you put it out at the wrong time...or they are getting it from somewhere else.

I've got one that has been out for years and gotten no attention. I don't doubt they are getting it in their diet from somewhere else but whatever source it is, it seems to be adequate and/or way more attractive than mineral blocks.

[Johnny Reb]

They really hammer them during the spring green up as well as early summer. I used Silentweapon's recipe he posted a few years ago and set up a site on opposite ends of my property. They have been established for 2 years and look like a small bull dozier has been working the area.

[Coastal Woodie]

Fat lighter stump?

Yeah it used to be about 2ft in diameter. But they’ve ate it down over the past 15 or so years.

[SCswampCAT]

Yeah it used to be about 2ft in diameter. But they’ve ate it down over the past 15 or so years.

You're gonna make DC pass out.

[Duck cutter]

You're gonna make DC pass out.

I ain't gonna pass out but I dang sure wouldn't be using that stump as a serving platter for deer.

[2thDoc]

I've got one that has been out for years and gotten no attention. I don't doubt they are getting it in their diet from somewhere else but whatever source it is, it seems to be adequate and/or way more attractive than mineral blocks.

try a different formula and NOT in block form.

[Johnny Reb]

dicalcium phosphate.
Hi mag/Hi phos
trace mineral salt
splash of dried molasses


https://scducks.com/forum/showthread...dried+molas%2A

[Silentweapon338]

They may not need the salt (may be a natural supply available too them), but I assure you if you get a calcium and phosphorus mix worth a crap, bucks will hit it at the end of the season on through middle of Feb. Bucks actually stock pile the nutrients in their skeletal system. It is how they are able to grow the fastest biological growing matter we know of.

Eighty to 90 percent of the calcium and phosphorus in a deer’s body is found within its skeletal system. Hardened antlers are composed of about 22 percent calcium and 11 percent phosphorus.


Both calcium and phosphorus are required for growth and reproduction. A deer can store these minerals in its skeleton until they are needed, such as for antler growth. Then the deer experiences a form of osteoporosis, or removal of minerals from the skeletal system, an annual occurrence for deer. Once the demand ends, the minerals that were removed from the bones are replaced by nutrients obtained through the deer’s diet. Because they have run their bodies down chasing doe, and their hormones are starting to change they will start hunting out minerals they need to restock. The easier you make it for them the faster they can replenish.

If you can subsidies their needs when they are growing antlers, you can get extra mass. This is especially true if you can get them to uptake more protein. Your giving them more "bricks" by adding the minerals, and adding more protein is adding more "brick masons" to the job.

You will see some activity from the middle of Feb to April, but come April you will see the bucks & pregnant doe start hitting the sites hard.

The doe are able to transfer the extra nutrients on to the fawns, and you will see your fawns put on weight & size faster. It also ensures the doe are getting what they need and will be ready to breed again in the fall.

Another interesting thing is every one sees twins, but a lot of instances doe are actually carrying triplets. Because of nutritional faults the 3rd fawn is usually lost during pregnancy. We have several sets of triplets every year now.

The first time I ever saw a set I thought it was a weird, strange, and a freak thing. I did some research and discovered it wasn't that odd in high nutritional areas, and in pens.

Bucks will start using it about the time you see the pedicles start to show bumps. Our older bucks that have been born and grew up around the mineral sites will start pounding the sites about June-middle of July. They will usually hit the sites twice a day. The younger ones use them too, but the older ones have discovered they don't have to try as hard to stuff their snouts with browse, with the minerals.

Out of everything we do I would say the minerals are by far the single best thing we do.

We use loose minerals and mix them together. (We use a gas powered auger, and mix it all together like a big kitchen aid). We find the Di-Calcium Phosphate tends to harden up from the moisture and we have to go break it back up about 3-4 months after putting the minerals out.

Some deer get frustrated with our timing and just start breaking it up with their feet.

Some deer love it out of the buckets, and refuse to eat off the ground. Some deer refuse to eat out of the bucket and will only eat off the ground.

The way we do it with the buckets and drill the holes in the bottom you get the best of both worlds.

We put out 2 new ones this year, on top of the 33 we have been doing.

I was prepping food plots Monday, and noticed they had dug out around the bucket 3.5-4" in less than 3 months. (We were late this year)

Normally we refresh the sites middle of December.

When I get to that phone I will post a pick later on.

As a side note most of the "blocks" and "rocks" are 98% salt. They have very little (Ca) & (P) in them. There are very few on the market that are as good as the mixture posted above. Thunder Chicken found some already premixed in Manning. I don't recall the name of the stuff. I swear they stole my receipt! Which is fine. I love to see big deer!

Antler King makes a easy to use bag, but lord it is expensive, and is missing the % of the mix mentioned above. The guy in manning is the bet premix for the money I'm aware of.

If you are gonna do it on a large scale I would recommend buying the minerals your self.

[uga_dawg]

Where you put it is important too. Soil type seems to be the key around here.

Wet loamy soil hasn't worked well for me. Clay works well.

[thawhacker]

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Me and my little boy rode behind the house and found where I put some salt out last year and they have dug it down over a foot
So I added some more and put my camera up
Red dirt to me is the best place to put it

[Silentweapon338]

The clay will hold the best, for dirt.

To avoid the whole location thing we came up with the bucket strategy. It isn't perfect, but it is the best thing I've seen so far. We have tried strait dirt, cattle troff, and the current solution the bottom 1/3 of a 55 gallon plastic drum with 1" holes drilled all around the bottom.

Even on sand because the mix will not come out except for when it rains (after initial fill up) it is a constant drip out the bottom for the deer that prefer to eat off the ground.

Now, when it comes to protein I totally agree with location.

[b35w]

This is just a plain ole salt lick from Tractor Supply. Got one white and one pink.


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[Palmetto Bug]

Where do you get the ingredients? Feed/fertilizer store?

[SCswampCAT]

I ain't gonna pass out but I dang sure wouldn't be using that stump as a serving platter for deer.

Its just a piece of wood.