I've used di-calcium phosphate in a lick before, but only because i read where you should. It is a cattle supplement. What exactly does it do for deer? As BSK already said, deer are not cattle. Does anyone know, or is it just one of those things that someone come up with?

I'm no biologist, but my understanding is that protein, calcium, and phosphorus are the three main elements needed when a buck is growing his rack. Maybe one of the biologist on the site can give more info on this..

Had neighbor that had a place with no clay, he took a small plastic kiddie pool, filled it with clay and buried it. It turned into a pretty good lick.

this was the most common recipe I found when researching:

Pulled from previous thread
"
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 loos kind without the medications.
Comes in 50lb Bags at around $5.00 you need two bags.

1 part Stock salt, ice cream salt.
Comes in 50lb Bags at around $2.00 you need one bag.

Directions:

-Use a 3 pound or similar size coffee can to use as your measure for each part of the mix.

-Mix all together well but not until read to use, keep ingredients separate until ready to put to use.

-Dig or tear up a circle in the soil about 36 inches wide and about 6 inches deep.

-Mix your mineral mixture with the soil.

Maintenance:

-Replenish in 6 months with fresh supply of mineral, and then each year there after."

We use the same mix, except we use dolomitic lime instead of the white salt. From our experiences, our deer won't touch white salt.

These licks are about 10 years old and are only 12-16" deep. The depth of a mineral lick doesn't tell me much about whether or not a deer is getting good use out of them. It just tells me that the deer are digging deep to try and find what they're looking for...We try to freshen these licks up each year in the Spring...The deer pound them from February/March through October.