Deer are decimating Western Pa. crops, costing millions. Farmers are fighting back.

PITTSBURGH — Imagine a herd of 100 deer in just one farm plot, chomping through a soybean field like a mower.

When an insurance adjuster visited Jim Lindley, who has a farm in the Scenery Hill section of North Bethlehem in Washington County, last summer, the soybean crop was so decimated the adjuster thought the field had been mowed.

“We had five fields absolutely leveled — wall to wall. There was nothing left,” said Lindley, 54, a seventh-generation farmer who farms 800 acres.

He said his crop loss topped $620,000 in the last three years. He has concerns about losing more money as crop insurance covers less.

He has company.

Farmers across Washington and other southwestern Pennsylvania counties have also recorded substantial crop losses — a hit of thousands of dollars for some — in recent years as they watch increasing numbers of deer herds demolish crops and orchards. Farmers like Bob Simmons have noticed deer even going for crops that in the past they wouldn’t have touched.

“Years ago, deer didn’t bother with tomatoes, but now they can wipe them out. The green beans were a total loss last year,” said Simmons, a fifth-generation farmer in Peters Township.

He and Lindley were among about 60 farmers to join representatives from the Pennsylvania Game Commission — including its executive director, Stephen Smith, board members and a cadre of game wardens — and lawmakers Feb. 21 in the Lone Pine Community Center in Amwell, Washington County. The farmers had called the meeting, in large part to discuss measures, new and old, in an attempt to halt the flood of crop losses.

Crop damage from deer has been a longstanding problem in the state. Some U.S. Department of Agriculture studies have ranked Pennsylvania as one of the top states for crop damage from wildlife.

For years, the Pennsylvania Game Commission has offered hunting programs to address crop damage from wildlife. During the past several years, however, farmers in Washington County and elsewhere have called for more help.

These farmers wasted no time inviting game officials to their farms to show the crop damage first-hand. The efforts paid off last year, when the Game Commission launched a pilot program just in Washington County to vet and certify agricultural hunters and match them up with distressed farmers.

Smith had been in Washington County before: The February gathering was the third large meeting between the Game Commission and farmers in the last two years.

Last year, beset by upset farmers losing their crops to deer and pleading for help, Smith humorously noted he felt like a punching bag.

“A lot has changed in the last 18 months. I’m not going to say we’ve completely solved the problem,” Smith told the crowd at last month’s meeting. “Everything on the table is moving forward. We are not done.”

He suspects the large deer herds are caused by multiple factors, including a plentiful food supply, available woodlands and mostly mild winters in recent years.

Game Commission and other studies have shown that deer herds can double in size in two to three years. Without natural predators, deer herds are managed by the agency through hunting.

To help farmers across the state, the commission significantly expanded its Agricultural Deer Control Program, known as “Ag Tag” (formerly “red tag”), to encourage more hunters to frequent farms in Washington County and elsewhere.

Additionally, it piloted the new Certified Hunter Program in Washington County last year, with plans to scale it up statewide later in 2026. The program vets hunters and connects them with farmers.

The agency’s board of commissioners will finalize changes to both programs during its April meeting.

Staggering crop losses in the last three years

Farmers around Washington and other counties have reported substantial crop losses to agencies including the Washington County Farm Bureau.

Lindley grows corn, soy, oats and hay on 800 acres across 30 farm properties in the county. Farming on his own since 1997, he has seen the spike in destruction from up close.

“We always had deer damage, but it has never been on the scale that it has been for the last few years,” he said.

The only planted acres that survived in 2025, he said, were farms with heavily controlled hunting programs.

With last year’s report of 100 deer feeding in one of his fields, Lindley said, “It would take an army of hunters. It’s such a daunting task.”

Simmons, who grows sweet corn, green beans and more, reported crop losses of more than $1.6 million in the last three years.

Something has to be done on a larger scale to thin the deer herd, he said. At the very least, he would like to see the paperwork for hunting programs streamlined and simplified to meet the regulations.

A fruit and vegetable farmer, Simmons sells directly to the public with roadside markets and options for pick-your-own apples, strawberries and flowers.

“We’ve always had a deer problem and spent a lot of money,” he said. “Recently, it has gotten even worse for tomatoes, green beans and sweet corn — our main crops to sell.”

In years past, the farm fenced in 13 acres of orchards. “We’d be out of the apple business if we didn’t,” Simmons said.

Lisa Wherry, president of the Washington County Farm Bureau, reports deer entering hoop tunnels to reach pepper plants and eating apples right off the trees.

“In the southwest corner of the state, we’re getting hammered,” Wherry said.

Vegetable farmer Mike Janoski of Findlay, in Allegheny County, lost tens of thousands of dollars last year because of deer crop damage. On top of that, he’s spent $80,000 to $90,000 in the last several years for fencing, he said.

“Our biggest problem is that deer go on other grounds during the day. It is at night when they come here. This time of year, you can find 40 or 50 deer at night, but in the day, nothing,” Janoski said.

He would like to see the Certified Hunter Program in effect until midnight. Currently, those hunters can hunt 30 minutes before sunrise through 30 minutes after sunset.

What’s next

Farmers suggested tweaks to agricultural deer programs during the recent Game Commission meeting, and officials were responsive.

“We want to see how effective programs are before the next steps,” Smith told the crowd. “Hunting is the first option to control the deer population.”

Wherry and other farmers applauded the Game Commission’s efforts, but they are looking for fast-acting measures to add to current efforts.

“I don’t think they will make an impact until they get more certified hunters out there,” said Wherry.

Smith reported that more hunters are coming. While the pilot Certified Hunter Program has about 300 hunters, more than 1,000 have signed up for Washington County.

Lindley and other farmers are concerned about crop insurance, as they have been filing successive claims and losing more money.

“Something has to be done,” Wherry said. “If they get dropped by insurers, will they still be able to farm?” Some farmers have stopped or reduced plantings.

As a sheep farmer, Wherry is covered by a sheep indemnity program under the USDA's Livestock Indemnity Program. She uses it to compensate for coyotes taking lambs.

“They need to have something like that to cover deer damage,” she said.

State Rep. Tim O'Neal, R-Washington, agreed that more solutions are needed to help the farmers, such as grants to cover losses from deer damage and perhaps other means to cull the deer population.

“The issue comes down to these programs taking time, and some of the farmers might not get the help they need soon enough,” he said.

Wherry said farmers are more informed about what they can and cannot do with managing deer after the commission’s meeting.

While some farmers are already taking deer without a hunting license as "nuisance animals,” not all farmers were clear on the specifics of the state law.

Farmer Don Carter, a member of the Washington County Farm Bureau who has been rallying the farmers, listening to their stories and talking to the Game Commission, said, “They know there’s a problem.”

But there’s work to do with the solutions, he said. “It’s like trying to rope the wind.”