Reducing Fallow Deer Damage to Woodland and New Planting near Sutton Bank

The problem

The farm sits near Sutton Bank, with sheep on the grassland, blocks of woodland, some new tree planting, and a small pheasant shoot. Fallow deer were stripping bark from beech and sycamore in the woodland and browsing the newly planted saplings, and in spring they were coming out onto the grassland and competing with the sheep for grazing. The damage had been building for a few years and getting worse.

What had already been tried

The owner had put plastic guards on the new trees, but they didn't stop the damage. Temporary electric fencing had been tried too, and the landowner and friends had done some stalking themselves, but none of it brought the pressure down enough.

Finding out what was really going on

We walked the damaged areas to look at the browsing, slots, and droppings, and put trail cameras on the rides and along the edge of the new planting. Thermal was used to count the deer using the woodland. Everything pointed to fallow.

The plan

We agreed a written cull plan with the owner to bring numbers down to a level the woodland and new planting could cope with. Stalking began in late 2025, mostly early in the morning and at dusk, from high seats and using natural cover.

Working around the farm and the shoot

Before every outing we checked where the stock were, and gates were always left closed. Dates were fitted around the shoot so we never clashed with a shoot day, and the neighbours were told whenever we were working near a boundary. The owner got regular updates on how it was going.

The result

Browsing on the new planting has dropped, and the young trees are now growing away. Fresh bark stripping has virtually stopped, and with fewer deer coming out of the woodland, we expect pressure on the spring grazing to drop too. Venison from the cull has been shared with the owner.

What happens next

The work is ongoing, with a small cull each year to keep numbers at the level agreed in the plan.