For soybean production within this area, high yield is not always possible if a high deer population exists. The primary way to manage excess loss of crops to deer feeding is to remove 70% of the does annually until the population of does is about 30% or lower. If one cannot do this and the doe population increases, then there is virtually nothing one can do to deter deer from damaging crops. As such, communicate with your neighbors and landowners to encourage antlerless hunting. (Using NC Wildlife data, this means that 21-32 does must be killed per square mile for Craven County. To reach this goal, it is may be necessary to kill only does until we reached a target population)

Another option that appears to work for many are the use of products applied to the crop to prevent feeding. However, this has potential concerns. First, one must begin sprays as the crop emerges and continue spraying about every 10-14 days. Secondly, one must rotate products because deer simply become accustom to a product when used continuously. Lastly, these products are not cheap. Thus, even if one succeed in preventing damage, there is no guarantee of profit!