Habitat Improvement Advice Needed for Small Parcel

[SD_Bowhunter]

Hi everyone,
Looking for some advice as I start my first habitat improvement project. The outlined parcel is 16 acres. This spot is a great rut funnel. There is a large shelter belt a little less than 1 mile to the west and some other small shelter belts to the east. This spot has held some bucks during velvet but around the first part of September they all seem to dissapear. the orange squares are current stands. The tree portion of the property is pretty thick with lots of blowdowns.

Goal: Increase buck bedding on the property in hopes of being able to harvest a buck in the early season or in October.
Current Strategy: Plant a foodplot in the highlighted red area (.25 acres) in Real World Wildlife products Deadly Dozen
- Plant bedding grass that will grow to 6-7 ft in the highlighted yellow areas (2.5 and 1.6 acres).
Input Needed:
- Are there any specefic trees I should plant within the bedding grasses that people have had good experience with?
- Thoughts on this approach to attract more bucks?

Thanks for your help.

 

[Telemark]

Just grasses? Why no cedars or spruces?

 

[SD_Bowhunter]

Just grasses? Why no cedars or spruces?

I was thinking about possibly creating a thick sanctuary on the southeast grass area. Maybe have grass and half spruces. Especially in the winter the main tree grove can block the wind and then have the thermal cover of the spruce trees.

 

[Telemark]

The guys here recommended to me to do clusters of about ten Norway spruce per cluster. The idea is that each cluster could comfortably accommodate a doe family group or a buck.

 

[Telemark]

Something like this. Clumps for bedding. Lines for blocking wind and movement.

 

[bwoods11]

Plant some cedar/spruce, and maybe even some hybrid oaks, make your farm better than the neighbors...small ponds help.

 

[trampledbyturtles]

Id say that looks like one heck of a rut funnel! essentially a wooded land bridge bordered by two decent water bodies if im seeing things right.

 

[j-bird]

I like the grasses and conifer idea. Maybe even some clusters of wildlife friendly shrubs as well. I also like the oaks as they will hold leaves and provide cover as well. However if I was after an early season buck on this property I would NOT plant a food plot. My fear would be that a consistent food source with the cover you are providing is going to draw does.....and those does are going to bed nearby and push that buck out. A buck wants an isolated pocket of cover away from the stress of doe family groups and people. He will travel to food sources under the cover of darkness if he has to. At most I may add a few pear and crab apple trees in areas near my stands to help bring that buck to visit where I want. Stand placement and stand access is going to be super important as well. I think this property is a perfect example of less...IS....more. Especially if you are after an early season buck. This may be an ideal "honey hole" type location....you just have to be patient and disciplined enough to not hunt it too much and hunt it in a very smart, low impact, manner. I would suspect you won't see many deer, but those you do see may be exactly what you claim you are looking for. Good luck.

 

[SD_Bowhunter]

I like the grasses and conifer idea. Maybe even some clusters of wildlife friendly shrubs as well. I also like the oaks as they will hold leaves and provide cover as well. However if I was after an early season buck on this property I would NOT plant a food plot. My fear would be that a consistent food source with the cover you are providing is going to draw does.....and those does are going to bed nearby and push that buck out. A buck wants an isolated pocket of cover away from the stress of doe family groups and people. He will travel to food sources under the cover of darkness if he has to. At most I may add a few pear and crab apple trees in areas near my stands to help bring that buck to visit where I want. Stand placement and stand access is going to be super important as well. I think this property is a perfect example of less...IS....more. Especially if you are after an early season buck. This may be an ideal "honey hole" type location....you just have to be patient and disciplined enough to not hunt it too much and hunt it in a very smart, low impact, manner. I would suspect you won't see many deer, but those you do see may be exactly what you claim you are looking for. Good luck.

Good points. This might partially explain why I don't see any mature bucks living in this grove in the fall. There are usually a couple doe groups that live this funnel. I am hunting Eastern South Dakota so not a lot of tree around. I am hoping the grass and some strategically planted cedars/spruce trees can create a spot out in the middle of the grass away from where the does typically bed in the trees.

 

[Peplin Creek]

J-bird I think has the right idea about not planting plots if your desire is to shoot a buck early season.

Personally I would plant as much food and cover as one could and then only hunt it during the rut. Let the doe groups relax, the bucks will know where the ladies are.

 

[Telemark]

I am so confused. This seems like two different methodologies.

Is early season buck hunting appropriate for a "rut funnel"?

 

[SD_Bowhunter]

I am so confused. This seems like two different methodologies.

Is early season buck hunting appropriate for a "rut funnel"?

Traditionally this spot has only been good during the rut for mature bucks. Given the lack of trees in this area a pretty good amount of does live in this tree grove as well. My thinking in creating a foodplot and adding more cover is to entice a mature buck to start using some part of the property for its primary bedding and try to kill him while he is on a more predictable pattern instead of waiting for the rut.

 

[Telemark]

Gotcha. Sounds good.

Any idea where they go? Do they take up residence somewhere else or just roam around?

 

[j-bird]

Traditionally this spot has only been good during the rut for mature bucks. Given the lack of trees in this area a pretty good amount of does live in this tree grove as well. My thinking in creating a foodplot and adding more cover is to entice a mature buck to start using some part of the property for its primary bedding and try to kill him while he is on a more predictable pattern instead of waiting for the rut.

If you have resident does on the place already.....that changes things significantly. A mature buck wants solitude and safety..... If you have does groups on the property already the odds of him finding that are pretty slim.....even if you increase the amount of cover. Get/buy/borrow a book by Jeff Sturgis called "Whitetail success by design" and "mature buck success by design". In these books Jeff talks about depth of cover and how does relate to food and cover and how then bucks relate to those as well as where the does bed. Often times, especially on smaller properties, there simply isn't sufficient room for a mature buck to find the room and features he is looking for.

I originally pictured that this area lacked deer in general, which is ideal for holding a mature buck. Resident doe groups, pose an issue and more cover and especially more food may do nothing more than increase the doe numbers even consuming more area.....

To be honest my concern is that your property scream "rut funnel" yet you goal doesn't align with that. I fear you are trying to force something to happen that is not in line with what is naturally there. This tends to lead to lots of frustration...... We also tend to see our properties as islands, yet the deer do not. We need to embrace what the property gives us and enhance it and simply cope with some of the things we can not control. You may very well be able to take a nice buck off the place, but you may have to bend some on when it happens. A small property will have enough challenges as it is in being able to hunt it without educating the deer in the process......Good luck.

 

[SD_Bowhunter]

If you have resident does on the place already.....that changes things significantly. A mature buck wants solitude and safety..... If you have does groups on the property already the odds of him finding that are pretty slim.....even if you increase the amount of cover. Get/buy/borrow a book by Jeff Sturgis called "Whitetail success by design" and "mature buck success by design". In these books Jeff talks about depth of cover and how does relate to food and cover and how then bucks relate to those as well as where the does bed. Often times, especially on smaller properties, there simply isn't sufficient room for a mature buck to find the room and features he is looking for.

I originally pictured that this area lacked deer in general, which is ideal for holding a mature buck. Resident doe groups, pose an issue and more cover and especially more food may do nothing more than increase the doe numbers even consuming more area.....

To be honest my concern is that your property scream "rut funnel" yet you goal doesn't align with that. I fear you are trying to force something to happen that is not in line with what is naturally there. This tends to lead to lots of frustration...... We also tend to see our properties as islands, yet the deer do not. We need to embrace what the property gives us and enhance it and simply cope with some of the things we can not control. You may very well be able to take a nice buck off the place, but you may have to bend some on when it happens. A small property will have enough challenges as it is in being able to hunt it without educating the deer in the process......Good luck.

Thank you for the advice. I will have to go purchase Jeff's books. I have been focusing on "The Beast" style of hunting as of late, hence my focus on trying to drill down on mature buck bedding. In this area it does seem that the bucks tend to bed in more isolated patches of cover based on the buck beds I have found. I think I am better off increasing the cover to hold possibly more does and hunting it as a rut funnel.

I have permission on other areas that are more "buck bedding" specific, but this is the only spot that I can plant food plots, manipulate cover, etc.

 

[trampledbyturtles]

Try planting a couple isolated pods of hybrid poplar. 7-8 in a bunch.
Let them grow with the intention of being used as rub posts.
Then close by on higher ground plant a few patches of thick hedge growing type shrub, then a year or two down the road carve out a couple beds an see if anyone takes residence.

 

[Telemark]

I would still put clusters of spruce. I think a buck might still take up residence in one. They like tight cover.

My cousin has a similar type of property with some woods and grasses surrounded by ag. The does tend to bed in the grasses and open woods, but every year there is a big buck in "the thick stuff", which is only about 30 yards from his house, and about 75 yards from where the does bed.

But yeah, in the mean time hunt it like a rut funnel. There was a post on here about horizontal rubs which might give you some ideas. And in my experience the biggest scrapes are always under you beech branches.

 

[Peplin Creek]

Thank you for the advice. I will have to go purchase Jeff's books. I have been focusing on "The Beast" style of hunting as of late, hence my focus on trying to drill down on mature buck bedding. In this area it does seem that the bucks tend to bed in more isolated patches of cover based on the buck beds I have found. I think I am better off increasing the cover to hold possibly more does and hunting it as a rut funnel.

I have permission on other areas that are more "buck bedding" specific, but this is the only spot that I can plant food plots, manipulate cover, etc.

But if you treat it like a rut funnel, you can still do all those habitat improvements. Generally more doe will prolong some of that rutting behavior. The food plots will give the does a place to eat after getting out of bed. I really don’t hunt any of my plots anymore until it’s the cruising phase or lockdown phase of the rut. You just have to be smart about hunting it.

The key here is to adjust expectations to understand your going to make your rut hunting, that much better. You may find every couple of years, there will be a socially accepting buck that calls your place home early fall. Take that as icing on the cake.

 

[sandbur]

I am not answering your question but am thinking about stand approach and funneling.

Two questions, from the west stand, can you shoot across that narrow spot to the small creek behind you? How do you approach that stand?

Have you walked that edge where the woods meets the north pond? A canoe or waders might allow a scent less approach to a stand there. Is there a string of rubs along there?


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[sandbur]

Do I see deer trails coming together just east of the red shaded area? Maybe strengthen or focus that movement to your advantage.

Plant a string of red cedars, or focus to that corner a bit east by the pond.


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