New Pond and big results

[Tim]

Well, I finally had a chance to put in a small pond along the hardwoods in a staging area before the deer make it out to the bean fields and my food plots....basically placed it in the center of a "triangle" of food along a main runway. I have had steady pics of deer ever since I put it in. It's only 2' deep at deep end and about 8'x12' roughly. Here are some pics.

 

[strawhead]

Looks real nice. Is that natural water fill?

 

[kabic]

Hey Tim, was just reading your thread at QDMA. Welcome to Habitat Talk!

 

[bat man]

Don't these ponds work better in the secure cover of the woods?

 

[Riggsgwp->]

Don't these ponds work better in the secure cover of the woods?

I don't have any in the woods but I get a lot of daylight pictures on mine. In theory I would agree to your thinking but my experience has been nothing but positive with them out in the plots. I will say that my fall pics of bucks have been after dark but spring and summer there is equal day and dark pictures. I added some near stands and it will be interesting to see if the deer are as comfortable when I am in close proximity hunting. Either way the waterhole should be on everyone's project list as they are a great tool for inventory pics.

 

[Bill]

I wonder if size matters.
Tim's pond here is much bigger than the small pool I'm using and mines had virtually no use.

 

[Riggsgwp->]

I would say size does matter, I get more use on the dug out ponds vs my water tank. Bill you have a tractor and loader right? Why not dig out a bigger one next year? Nothing against your kiddie pool but a guy with equiptment has a lot more options.

 

[Bill]

I would say size does matter, I get more use on the dug out ponds vs my water tank. Bill you have a tractor and loader right? Why not dig out a bigger one next year? Nothing against your kiddie pool but a guy with equiptment has a lot more options.

Yep. I think I'm going to get some pond liner in the spring and put in two. One in the timber and one in the open just to see who gets more use.

 

[buckdeer1]

I added a wading pool and it took a couple weeks but they started hitting it

 

[buckdeer1]

It is right over that little hill

 

[buckdeer1]

The does hit it first,this is the first one I put in woods,the others are in NWSG or food plots,thats where this one is

 

[Tim]

the pond is on the bottom of a slope that all the water runs down on all big rains...it filled up w the first rain and has stayed filled for the most part since. I placed it right on the edge of a hardwoods stand that the deer always skirt prior to coming out into the bean fields. The picture makes it look like its in the open, but its really just a very small opening that I brushed out for a plot, but then sedge took it over, so I decided to build the pond here since I didnt want to compete with the sedge. I have constant pics of deer drinking from it, standing in it, last week I had 3 small bucks fighting around it in the pics for an hour. I would have gone larger had it been a natural spring or something to keep it filled, but since its dependent on the rainfall mostly, I kept it small. I also dug in a "plastic peanut pool" next to a clover plot and it gets used, but not as much as this one. Heres a pic of the "peanut pool" I put in from menards.

 

[Tim]

Hey Tim, was just reading your thread at QDMA. Welcome to Habitat Talk!

thanks, yeah, I keep one going there, but bounce between here and there all the time. Can't get enough of each:)

 

[Tim]

Looks real nice. Is that natural water fill?

mainly runoff....located on the bottom of hill, always had standing water before, now I just added the pond for a place for the water to hold.

 

[buckdeer1]

I have about a 50 gal tub that I out in food plot last year and had a lot of bucks hit it mostly at night

 

[bwoods11]

Those tubs from Menards work very well!

 

[bat man]

Best kept secret for habitat improvement. I hear the term killplots, how about killtanks? I have had them for 20 years, it's a social, scent checking magnet as much as it is for a slurp.

Low hole or social magnet?

 

[bat man]

I can say to anyone doubting waterholes that the first has over 100 kills in 20 years. I have 2 big spring ponds and a 16 square mile standing water swamp and they love the social/scent dynamic of a waterhole.

That was my curiosity, whether you had other water sources.

 

[buckdeer1]

Almost all my water holes are within about 200 yards of a river

 

[Tim]

been a deer magnet! Best addition to the land yet!