By Emmy Powell

Communications Specialist

Deer populations continue to grow across Texas, and some are helping themselves to farmers’ corn crops.

Matagorda County farmer Bob Reed said deer are a daily sight in his corn fields, especially on farms near creek bottoms that provide ideal habitat and cover.

“You see them every day, pretty much all day long, and the population seems to be growing,” he said.

The deer feed along field edges and leave behind visible damage. Some stalks have been eaten nearly to the ground.

Reed said the full impact on yields is difficult to measure, but the growing deer pressure is becoming harder to ignore.

“We do what we can in the fall during hunting season to harvest as many deer as we can,” Reed said. “But really and truly, it doesn’t appear to me that we’re gaining on the population.”

Although Reed participates in the Managed Lands Deer Program (MLDP), which allows additional harvest opportunities beyond a standard hunting license, controlling the population remains a challenge.

Last year, Reed’s corn crop produced record yields despite noticeable deer damage, but he said there was no reliable way to determine how much production was lost.

“I really have no way of quantifying how much yield was lost. I just know the deer are eating corn,” he said.

This year’s growing season also brought weather-related concerns. Dry conditions early in the season stressed the crop, although recent rains have helped improve overall conditions.

“The corn is tasseling, pollinating and pretty much on schedule,” Reed said. “Everything really looks good now. We’re just not sure at this point what impact those dry conditions early on may have with yields at harvest time.”

He said the combination of wildlife pressure and unpredictable weather highlights the many challenges farmers face each season alongside rising input costs.

Despite those obstacles, Reed said his commitment to farming comes from a lifelong passion for agriculture and a belief in its importance.

“I do it because I have a passion for it. I love it,” Reed said. “I understand the importance of it, not only to our local economy, but more importantly to the security of our country. I think it’s extremely important that we continue to be able to feed our own country.”