Garden Location Choice: Exposed on the lawn or hidden in the meadow?

I have a theoretical question about a garden location for you guys!

I was just given a large amount of spoiled, unsprayed hay. I plan to lay it on the ground very thick, dig some holes in it, throw some soil/amendments in the holes, and plant my sprawling vines like squash and pumpkin in it. It’s a small, half-hearted, temporary garden. If it flops that’s fine. I just don’t have anywhere else to plant sprawling vines, so I’ll take my chances.

I have two choices of location for this single-summer garden. I have a flat field where half is covered in grass that is regularly mowed like a lawn, and half is a meadow covered in grass, oats, peas, clovers, wildflowers, and who knows what else.

Here’s my question: Do you think the squash and pumpkins have a better chance of surviving bugs and deer if the garden is exposed out on the mowed lawn, or hidden in the meadow?

I think the meadow might be good for its, I'm assuming, somewhat hidden location. However, if its yummy food, it may be found one way or another.

I think making a garden on the lawn would be a good way to increase the soil fertility, but again, I think it might get nibbled despite efforts to protect.

Since its success is not of great concern, I think it could be an interesting experiment to split the hay in half and create a miniature garden in both locations and gather data that way. Then, I think there would be useful results for future planning from a free resource you just got access to.

I have a field in which I only grow squash. Because the deer eat pretty much anything else that I plant into it, but not the squash.