It has indeed helped for us....but it has cost a LOT of money! Like many others, habitat improvement is my passion, so I have enjoyed every bit of it. I have co-owned the property for almost 8 years now...we went from an old, overgrown, barely producing apple orchard to 13 acres of food plots, 125 crabapples, 50 pears, and 75 various oak tree plantings. Along with hinge cutting, and clear cutting small lowland poplar groves. For us, it was planting enough clover, and providing enough natural browse to weather the pressure so that brassicas, turnips, rye grain, and RR Sugur Beets can make it through December. This year, they may not miss a meal until the snow load becomes too deep.
strawhead
5 year old buck +
Just got home yesterday after being in the northwoods since Labor Day. I have all kinds of mixed thoughts on this question-poll. The food plots are doing what we intend them to do. PUT THE DEER IN BETTER SHAPE TO SURVIVE THE WINTER. The woods work is ongoing. Did some logging about 10 years ago and all the associated work is ongoing. We have and continue to plant for thermal cover. We have been hinge cutting for 3 years now and will continue to do so. This cost and work is a question mark. I'm not sure we can get to a goal I once thought we could. With millions of wild forest acreage around us the deer can bed almost anywhere. I am not complaining, just explaining. 80 acres surrounded by millions of acres gives lots of choices. I don't want to hijack this thread so down the road I will start a new one for sharing some of our experiences. I have an idea why, but it seems like the deer went more nocturnal this year than they have in many previous years in our area. Thus we had fewer deer seen while hunting this WI gun season.
shawnv
5 year old buck +
I would not sweat it too much, the warm weather and moon phase set up perfectly for more nocturnal movement this year than what many of us would call normal. Many landowners I know including myself had lots of nighttime movement even if there was not pressure around. I actually had more daytime movement that I have had in the past few years but that is only because I was attracting more deer. The way it shook out most of the daytime activity I did have was real early morning or midday this year.
nwmn
5 year old buck +
Would it be worse if this were true?
I can bust my butt doing plots and cover improvements and yet a neighbor less than half a mile away does absolutely nothing and kills nice bucks but I dont.
This seems to be the issue we face. We're putting time and money in and we get people that will show up the one day of the year and shoot the nice 9 pointer that was on my trail camera half hour before I got in my stand for opening morning then gets shot half a mile away from idiots that didn't even know what to do with the deer once they shot it(tag it/gut it).
If I didn't enjoy the habitat stuff and want more trees and a better property in the future I wouldn't consider planting trees since the last 3 years we've had most trees die from winter burn/drought.
nwmn
5 year old buck +
Over the summer we saw good amounts of mature bucks. Improvements over the past couple years since habitat work started. Once November hit, all those bucks disappeared. We didn't catch anything on camera for all of November except for the one the neighbor got opening morning of rifle. We have the best food in the area, and the only standing beans in the area so we've got the does. Our cover is fine, as we've got 160 acres of woods you can't see 5 yards into.
I'm just gonna keep plugging away and planting trees until we start seeing growth. I feel it's a long term improvement phase, but with trees dying every winter it's tough to stay positive. Keep getting better at food plots, and plan to add more acreage to compensate for tough winters. Seems like our ground is all 'dead ground'.
Keep on keepin' on though up here at our camp. I'm determined to make it work.
I'm just gonna keep plugging away and planting trees until we start seeing growth. I feel it's a long term improvement phase, but with trees dying every winter it's tough to stay positive. Keep getting better at food plots, and plan to add more acreage to compensate for tough winters. Seems like our ground is all 'dead ground'.
Keep on keepin' on though up here at our camp. I'm determined to make it work.
shawnv
5 year old buck +
Poperties are like people in some respects,
Neighbors are always going to benefit some from your efforts so I would not fret too much about it when you know you're seeing more and better deer than you had prior to the work.
Neighbors are always going to benefit some from your efforts so I would not fret too much about it when you know you're seeing more and better deer than you had prior to the work.
shawnv
5 year old buck +
Doing the same thing over and over can be insanity you know. I think it utterly important to figure out the "why" the deer are being shot by the neighbors. Maybe you need more diversification of food sources or simply have a problem of stand access or who knows maybe the neighbor is dumping 1,000lb corn piles out.
I can't remember if you've posted a property pics but we might get some ideas going if we see it.
j-bird
Moderator
Oh, I will continue to do what I do and I know the other hunters in the area will benefit. My point is that in free ranging deer your efforts are not limited to your own benefit. Like some have stated - other hunters can simply stumble into success. This is where our efforts can get frustrating. There is NO WAY I am going to hold a deer, any deer, to just my place of 150 acres. It isn't going to happen. In fact I have changed the way I hunt because of that fact. Even at 150 acres only 30 to 50 of it is actual cover so I have a few does bed on my place but the bucks come from other properties and I know that. As such - I cater to the does so when the time comes they bring the bucks to me. Now would the bucks come looking for does on my place anyway, without the habitat work? I'm sure they would. However I increase my chances of those does staying on my place longer by doing the habitat work and as such keep those bucks on my place longer increasing my window to shoot one of them.
My harvest data for my place shows that the habitat work makes a difference.
I started hunting in 2000 when the fields went right to the edge of the timber and absolutely no habitat work had been done. It took me 2 years to even kill a deer. Then I took a single deer for 5 years in a row with only minimal habitat work being done ( I was still not "all in" as far as habitat work was concerned). In 2007 we implemented CRP and things changed. The CRP increased the amount of cover and created small areas that I then was able to really use as food plots. Since that time I have killed multiple deer EVERY year since. I killed my first 120+ buck in 2008. And with increased habitat work, passing young bucks and even changing some hunting tactics, I now take multiple deer a year and we have at least a crack at a nice buck every year and have harvested 3 140+ bucks since 2011. These are not monsters and to be honest my place may have plateaued - but my place and the related deer hunting have come a long ways from where I started in 2000. I may never grow or take a B&C class buck off of my place. But venison is the primary red meat of my household and since the beginning I have put 29 deer in the freezer and have lost some others along the way as well. These numbers don't include deer my boy and buddy have taken off the place as well.
I am a true believer in many of the cornerstones of QDM practices. I have seen them work for me first hand. I realize they may not work for everyone and not everyone may have the same level of passion or ability for it as I do. I am no guru or deer whisperer or anything of the sort. I have only been deer hunting for 15 years now and have been doing habitat work even less than that. I realize the deer hunting culture may not be the same for everyone, everywhere. I don't have hunters in every tree and the like, but I'm no island either. I don't participate in a local cooperative or anything like that or have any elaborate feeding program or high fences involved. The neighbors are going to get a few of the deer I helped feed and or may have helped draw into the area. That's the way it goes. It can get frustrating but if some of those deer didn't come from other properties - I am sure I wouldn't have some of them on the wall that I do.
My harvest data for my place shows that the habitat work makes a difference.
I started hunting in 2000 when the fields went right to the edge of the timber and absolutely no habitat work had been done. It took me 2 years to even kill a deer. Then I took a single deer for 5 years in a row with only minimal habitat work being done ( I was still not "all in" as far as habitat work was concerned). In 2007 we implemented CRP and things changed. The CRP increased the amount of cover and created small areas that I then was able to really use as food plots. Since that time I have killed multiple deer EVERY year since. I killed my first 120+ buck in 2008. And with increased habitat work, passing young bucks and even changing some hunting tactics, I now take multiple deer a year and we have at least a crack at a nice buck every year and have harvested 3 140+ bucks since 2011. These are not monsters and to be honest my place may have plateaued - but my place and the related deer hunting have come a long ways from where I started in 2000. I may never grow or take a B&C class buck off of my place. But venison is the primary red meat of my household and since the beginning I have put 29 deer in the freezer and have lost some others along the way as well. These numbers don't include deer my boy and buddy have taken off the place as well.
I am a true believer in many of the cornerstones of QDM practices. I have seen them work for me first hand. I realize they may not work for everyone and not everyone may have the same level of passion or ability for it as I do. I am no guru or deer whisperer or anything of the sort. I have only been deer hunting for 15 years now and have been doing habitat work even less than that. I realize the deer hunting culture may not be the same for everyone, everywhere. I don't have hunters in every tree and the like, but I'm no island either. I don't participate in a local cooperative or anything like that or have any elaborate feeding program or high fences involved. The neighbors are going to get a few of the deer I helped feed and or may have helped draw into the area. That's the way it goes. It can get frustrating but if some of those deer didn't come from other properties - I am sure I wouldn't have some of them on the wall that I do.
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
I agree. Where I hunt, there are about 5 other smaller camps ( 80 to 250 acres ) that all plant plots, apple trees, etc. And there are a couple really large camps with a lot of acreage and a large amount of state land. The large camps also plant plots, apple trees, etc. So some of the deer we see are coming from other acreage, and some of " our deer " go out to other camps as well. Free-ranging deer will go where they want - when they want. Our goal is to offer the best year-round food sources, the thickest cover, good diversity of food and habitat, and least disturbance that we can. The more does we can get to call our acreage home, the better off we'll be.
If any of us were 22 years old, would we " sniff " at places where 1 or 2 hotties could be, and travel miles to another place to find another 1 - maybe 2 more ?? Or would we hang out at a place where 15 to 25 hotties were known to frequent on a regular basis ?? Where is the best odds ??????? Case rested. ;):D
If any of us were 22 years old, would we " sniff " at places where 1 or 2 hotties could be, and travel miles to another place to find another 1 - maybe 2 more ?? Or would we hang out at a place where 15 to 25 hotties were known to frequent on a regular basis ?? Where is the best odds ??????? Case rested. ;):D
D
dipper
Guest
Nwmn, do your bachelor exodus happen every year late summer? Are u basing this exodus on trail cameras? Sightings? What kind of scouting are u doing? Hunting?
All the colored buck studies I've seen never really show a dramatic change in core area.
All the colored buck studies I've seen never really show a dramatic change in core area.
nwmn
5 year old buck +
I'm all for hosting bucks in the fall, this year they seemed to disappear. We had a tough food plot year in regards to not enough rain then too much rain. Planted our oat/rye/radish plots and had standing beans. We had does around, just not the bucks. Could be a pressure thing too, I lay some fault on myself as well.
nwmn
5 year old buck +
I think we may have been on the fringe of core areas, with some overlap. I really didn't bowhunt this year, so my data was pulled from sightings from the cabin/road and trail cams. I noticed the 'bro breakups' typically occur late summer/early fall, as soon velvet is gone they ride solo.
D
dipper
Guest
Don't give up hope
nwmn
5 year old buck +
My hope is that my spruce areas don't keep dying each year. I've got an idea of clearing a few areas in the woods and letting it regen and give the oaks more sun. I'll go in here and plant spruce and pine as well for some thermal cover.
I'm hoping adding diversity will make it appealing for the bucks to hang around longer. Or different unique areas so we can house multiple mature bucks. We'll see!
Booner21
5 year old buck +
Yes, I put in a water whole next to my main food plot, I sat there last weekend and saw close to 25 deer, over 20 of them walked to the water hole and got a drink during the time they spent in the plot. The water hole didn't see much use at any other time this year guess moisture content in the food is down?
We also hinge cut my property line which borders a large alfalfa field buddy had 20 does walk under him no way that happens when they can walk where they want.
We also hinge cut my property line which borders a large alfalfa field buddy had 20 does walk under him no way that happens when they can walk where they want.
Steve Oehlenschlager
5 year old buck +
Planting clover fields for the first time increased our deer hunting the best. Before the clover (1st food plots) deer movement was very random. The fields anchored them like a rock. We had the cover. Just not the food. 2nd would be active logging. Next fall will be our 2 clear cut in 37 years in the same land. Never dreamed as a kid I would see it cut again.
Peeps
5 year old buck +
Most of my hunting is done on my lease in SW Wi where I am very limited on what improvements I can make to the farmers land. But 2 years ago we bought a cabin on 40 acres in the dreaded northern forest region of Wi. This land was all wooded varrying terrain with no near ag. We bought a better saw, a wheeler, rented a dozer, and went to work. We did some cutting, put in a trail system, opened up clearings, and then started putting in food plots and planting fruit trees. In only 2 years I have already noticed a clear difference in the health of and numbers of deer on the property. This is still very much a work in progress.
strawhead
5 year old buck +
Peeps....Look forward to progress with northern 40. From our experience, go to extreme measures to protect your fruit trees. I have tried "heavy " gauge fence panels. Something very similar to this.
The bears have pushed over the heavy T fence posts. Haven't tried solar fencing. Don't think we will. Again look forward to all your progress.
The bears have pushed over the heavy T fence posts. Haven't tried solar fencing. Don't think we will. Again look forward to all your progress.
