Around these parts, if you haven't made a lick yet.... you are pretty much wasting your time.
Salt/mineral licks need to be in the ground no later than the end of April around here. The earlier the better. The deer need it in the summer as they grow antler and nurse young 'uns. They will be completely off of the mineral by mid September as their antlers have quit growing and they are weaning their young.
People wonder why they don't see any deer activity over a mineral lick that was put out in the fall right before season starts. That is why. Go back and check it about next June and see what it looks like. :wink:
If you are purely wanting an attractant, use salt. If you are wanting to help in antler
development, use a mineral.
Here is a recipe for a homemade mineral lick that is much cheaper than anything you can buy premade:
WHITETAIL DEER HOMEMADE MINERAL MIX RECIPE
Ingredients: Makes 200 lbs. for about $23.00
1 part Di-calcium phosphate, this is a dairy feed additive bought at feed stores. Comes in 50lb bags at around $11.00. You need one bag.
2 parts Trace mineral salt, the red and loose kind without the medications. Comes in 50lb Bags at around $5.00. You need two bags.
1 part stock salt,or ice cream salt. Comes in 50lb Bags at around $2.00. You need one bag.
Pouring it on a stump is striclty a regional thing. You don't need a stump and it generally doesn't help anything unless you just have a stump that you want removed. Simply dig a hole about 2 feet deep and big enough in diameter to hold the entire bag leaving about 3" or 4" at the top. Fill that 3" to 4" with some of the dirt that you removed from the hole and mix it with the salt. You're done and it can be done anywhere you want to put it without the need for a stump.
If I am strictly using salt, I will buy a 25 to 50 lb bulk bag of rock salt like they sell for making ice cream or melting ice on your sidewalk. It's cheap and it works as good as anything else.
The deer will home in on that and the rain will leach the salt into the surrounding ground. It won't be long until you will have a hole the size of a truck hood in the ground (given that you are doing this in the spring). If you are just now doing this, you may not see much (if any) activity until next spring.
I use licks to attract deer to an area and hopefully have them stick around that area for the season. You won't see much activity at a lick site once season starts so they are nothing like hunting over a pile of corn or a feeder. They make good spots to hang trail cameras for summertime deer photos, though.
