New property… how deep you dive year one??

[Shearwood Forest]

We acquired our place last June. Spent most of the first summer working on the cabin over the land.

What I did was walk as close to every square inch as I could multiple times. I did throw several small plots in locations they had been previously by old owners that were fallow for 3 years. Only about 2 acres total most were 1/4 to 1/2 acre in size. Spent most of the season observing and moving cameras around, getting a feel for deer quality, quantity at various stages of season, and patterns. Once in the stand it's much easier to assess what the low holes are I think. I now have a better idea of what I need to do but the hard part is breaking it up into affordable doable chunks over the next few years.

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[omicron1792]

I would get a wildlife biologist to come walk area and help create a plan. Then you have a list of things to do as you can.

Congrats!!!

 

[Maddog66]

One more thing that isn’t always top of mind with all the excitement of a new property is your neighbors. In my case I didn’t know anyone. So I’ve spent considerable time getting to know and helping out my neighbors whenever I can. I ask them for nothing in return.

 

[Troubles Trees]

I lived next door to the land I bought so I already knew the woods and travel patterns. I ordered 480 trees and shrubs my first year and was in way over my head when they arrived. I didn't think about not having a 4 wheeler so I had to walk everything up and back but lucked out and had a wet summer so thank God I didn't have to water everything. It was still too much, I wasn't prepared for cages for protection and didn't have time to do weedmats and mulch. I did have a very detailed layout I dreamed and salivated over all winter but I didn't know anything about what I was doing other than what needed full sun and what didn't.

So my advice would be to start small and work your way up, buy better quality things and protect them over just getting 1,000 things in the ground. If you have an open area already it never hurts to kill off the vegetation and throw some winter rye and clover and you can get more complicated later once you understand your soil and what you can or can't grow well. Every property has good's and bad's and often you have to look at the bigger picture of everything a mile from you and see if you can give the deer something your area doesn't have. For me it is cover, everything for miles is either open AG fields with hedgerows or mature forest with nothing on the ground. Once you get more acquainted with the bigger picture you might realize there aren't any apples, Oaks or browse and you can key in on that stuff.

 

[356]

First, learn what is growing on your property. You mention invasives, but can you name them by sight? What about the native habitat? If you don’t know what is there, the state or paid expert you bring on the property will overwhelm you.

Second, the best way to eat the elephant is invite the community. Sure, management and eating elephants is done one bite at a time, but if you develop a coop or invite a bunch of family and friends who are crazy about deer, the outdoors and management, your dinner of elephant meat will not go rancid.

Third, program in small successes. A spring squirrel or rabbit hunt, the goal of “any deer” this fall. Replace an acre or two of invasives with something good and you will feel good about your 2023 progress.

My 3 cents worth. And congratulation on the new property. Enjoy!

 

[back4me]

ck on property tax credits

 

[Garrett S]

Some great sound advice shared. Thank you all. I have had the DNR Biologist and Forester out, The Co/NRCS program manager and a wilderness consultant.

Have some trees going in. More next year once I have a handle on layout.

Now that we are in this thread a ways I’ll be more transparent - I was wondering how many acres to clear for plots knowing food is the lowest hole in the bucket. I’ve had a number of people I respect say “sit back and watch” for a year or three. This is not my personality. Frankly if this property wasn’t meeting my whitetail goals I’d likely sell and have dragged my feet on building for this reason… so this makes waiting all the harder.

 

[Maddog66]

I just remembered that I also rented a mini-ex my first summer and improved 3 existing water holes on the farm. Nothing big or complicated, just dug down 3-4’ in wet spots that held a little water adjacent to the plots. I re-fill them in dry spells with an old spray tank converted to a water hauler.

I get more and better pics at those water holes than all the plots combined. Every animal in the woods stops by.

I started with 6 acres of plots on my appx 300 acre property. Go plant some plots if you want to. It’s fun and you’re hurting nobody.

 

[silver_yummies]

Buy and plant trees this spring. Screen off any roadways year 1. Get a start on fruit trees this spring if you can as well if they are in your land goals. Only plant what you can pay to protect though!

 

[Garrett S]

Buy and plant trees this spring. Screen off any roadways year 1. Get a start on fruit trees this spring if you can as well if they are in your land goals. Only plant what you can pay to protect though!

I have wasted a chit ton of money on being lazy and planting County plugs. No more. I don’t want to go too far into the tree planting without the layout being known. So this all feels akin to the “chicken versus the egg” convo.

Screening will/is happening. Oh yeah


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[Hoytvectrix]

Since it sounds like you are going to go with food plots anyways, I would be really careful adding foodplots to the interior of your property. Think more about access than about food. It does no good if you plant a bunch of plots and then in the process of hunting them, condition the deer to come in the middle of the night.

I would plant the plots near the exterior, thinking about how you can get in and get out without the deer knowing.

 

[Garrett S]

Since it sounds like you are going to go with food plots anyways, I would be really careful adding foodplots to the interior of your property. Think more about access than about food. It does no good if you plant a bunch of plots and then in the process of hunting them, condition the deer to come in the middle of the night.

I would plant the plots near the exterior, thinking about how you can get in and get out without the deer knowing.

Wholeheartedly agree on the access. Have some roughed in and the remainder to come soon via equipment work.

Not necessary true on the plots. It’s what I felt all along and do want- but also know making decisions while emotions are involved is likely to fail. The majority of folks asked said move small and slow. I’ve never done that before BUT stakes and the urge for success are high here. I’ve spent 30+ years working and owning land in the Midwest to hunt is a dream I may have just grabbed the tail of. It’s easy to be excited and anxious… but anxious leads to casualty. I get it.

While the design is almost always best to have plots on the edge and bedding in the center- this place doesn’t offer the ideal layout for that. Between what is good access unless plots are on the edge and some neighbors of concern I don’t want to clear and plant the edges just yet. It’s a darn shame too- have two spots that would work so well for me but offer visibility to a neighbor who hunts and has had some negative reviews.


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[BenAllgood]

Do you know where the deer are during the day during hunting season? If not, then that needs to be defined. If so, then can you make it better and more defined? I like to know exactly where the deer are probably at during the day. That way I know how to hunt around it. Personally, for small properties, I like food on one side and bedding/loafing on the other. That way, I know where the deer are coming from and going to and I can setup in relation.

 

[J B]

Garrett, I’m not in favor of waiting either. If food if the lowest hole in the bucket, I’d be adding it now. If there’s a chance that you’re going to sell it in the near future, food will likely help it sell. Maybe post a pic of your property and one of the surrounding area and we could give a little more input. Cover is always king. I would be working on some projects to increase thick cover. If it looks like you need trees or shrubs, I’d be planting a few also. Fruit trees are priceless, but take time. Id be planting them year one also. Get your stands in place and take care of the details to make them the best that they can be. Good luck!

 

[jsasker007]

Don't know if it was already mentioned but having an area that you try to never disturb with thick cover to use as their sanctuary is a good idea for most.

 

[Garrett S]

Do you know where the deer are during the day during hunting season? If not, then that needs to be defined. If so, then can you make it better and more defined? I like to know exactly where the deer are probably at during the day. That way I know how to hunt around it. Personally, for small properties, I like food on one side and bedding/loafing on the other. That way, I know where the deer are coming from and going to and I can setup in relation.

Nope- don’t know on this place. Not even sure if they’re there to be honest. I can take you right to specific beds on my other piece and the family farm so I know what you’re presenting and understand it. This is 45 ac of invasive jungle surrounded by homes or Appalachian oak ridges for miles. Topography defines some movement but they’re running around evading danger, trying to breed and browsing on anything from ankle deep acorns to MrsSmiths tulip patch. I’d say I’m a better than average hunter and good with laying out ground for hunting… have even pinged some industry known folks on this one…. It’s real hard.

Food will change everything
Too little and they’ll wipe it out
Too much and the whole place will be covered in deer- which rarely brings the right ones per my observations
It’s a bait state so hunting neighbors have corn feeders, piles, etc.

Pic to come


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[Garrett S]

Neighborhood, topo, and breakdown.
White is closed canopy woods. Green is evergreen (varied) pockets, yellow is early to mid maturity trees with thick (primarily invasive) understory, the remainder (?40-45ac) has some varied trees but is bush honeysuckle, autumn olive, MF rose, privet, cal pear and the other chit you dont want. There are also some random fruit trees, berry bushes, green brier, quality saplings, crabs, etc. couple creeks and water holes-
Most have some water year round. Mineral will be deployed.

the mowed paths are just that. The black lines are access. The whole place will be treated as a sanctuary- no wind, sight or sound getting to them, very little hunting pressure from me (cell cams hung high on scrapes etc). Let’s just say all neighbors hunt, none have plots, all use corn and the worst pressure is from the north and west. Ag is 1.5mi both west and east. City to the se.

Make it seem easy boys and girls… and before someone says nope- there are big deer in the vicinity all of the time


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[BenAllgood]

With access from the east, you have an almost bullet proof kill spot on the southeast area where you come in. It looks like the ground could be pretty bad, but if not, this would make a dynamite 2 acre plot and treat the rest as sanctuary. Looking at the surrounding area, you're right on the need for food. You can always make some really defined bedding in strategic locations. That old field area at the end of the old road looks like a great spot to keep in a thicket for bedding. You can just set back succession every few years there to keep it at that preferred bedding stage. I think you know what to do. It just helps validating with other people sometimes.

 

[Garrett S]

Appreciate it BenAllgood and we are aligned on your takes. Commend and thank you for taking a swing at it too.

That lower spot is infertile (guessing mine spoils). Putting in some more Virginia pines and brome (as much as that doesn’t intrigue me) to limit erosion and provide some organics. If I had a million dollars and two million hours, I’d approach it differently.

I have never seen a deer property, in a good area stump so many folks. Had two folks who do TV based things slink away … one was along the lines of sell it and buy some bring in an ag area.

 

[Mortenson]

If it's so tricky I think I'd settle into the sit back and hunt it for a year group. If you're dead set on owning it for a long time, then 1 year of observation is within reason. Spend your free time working on stands and access.