Without a lease or your own land you are totally at the mercy of the landowner and his notions (and often relatives). I’ve been hunting totally on Public since 2017. It has it’s own challenges, but there’s venison in my freezer and quite often I have a square mile of good habitat all to myself, only 20 minutes away. Had tag soup the first year but still had plenty on hand from three killed in 2016. Six taken since then, all I can use really, and it’s very early in this season..
Farmland is great because the crops draw the deer, but, cover is often limited and as you note, it’s easy to run the deer off unless the fields are bordered by big woods. A bad wind can leave you sitting at home instead of merely changing your approach.
