Question for hunters with high deer numbers

[BobinCt]

This year is the first year in hunting an area with high deer numbers. The area I've always hunted in Ct in the past had aver-low deer population. For those of you who hunt areas with high deer density, what would you say the minimum number of acreage you need for food plots so the plots don't get cleaned out before the end of the season and can carry the deer through the winter ? Also, some corn around but not in a Ag area to speak of.

 

[yoderjac]

It really depends on what else is around and what you plant. Winter Rye and perennial clover can handle browsing pressure pretty well. Keep in mind that "carrying deer through the winter" implies a program with significant acreage. When I started we had very high densities. I had to get to 7 acres of Eagle beans before I could get them to canopy. We put about 20 acres in plots in. I had no problem with deer wiping out winter rye/cover in plots as small as a quarter acre.

So, if you are trying to sustain the herd during a stress period, I'd say converting 10 acres (1% of a 1,000 acre home range) into quality food aimed at that stress period will let you begin to achieve measureable results. However, that 10 acres can be divided in to different sized plots.

If you are simply trying to keep your plot attractive during the season for hunting purposes, you can do that with much less acreage in plots. The exact amount will be something you need to experiment with in your area. I'd start with WR and Perennial Clover. They handle browse pressure as well as anything.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[BobinCt]

Thx Jack

 

[hilltopper]

I second what Jack says. I can only grow "forage." I have 5 acres of total plots. Clover, rye and alfalfa are the ticket. I grow great turnips in my exclosures, but they never get much bigger than thumb size with the browsing pressure they get. My plots may not help the critical winter period much, but they are feeding on them the instant the snow disappears so I got to believe it helps the spring recovery. Very little ag close to me. Jack always reminds us, correctly, that deer are browsers, but they sure look like grazers to me when they park themselves in the plots.
By all means put out exclosures on your plots or you'll think you're a failure as a farmer.

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

My suggestion would be to concentrate on kill plots to lower deer numbers before making a food plot program on a property that will more than likely help to increase the number of deer. The more deer you shoot the longer your plots will last. Clover and Cereals like mentioned above would also be my choice. It would also be advisable in a high density situation to do the "layering" thing with your cereals. Example clover and oats the last week of August (getting an early start might not be a bad idea in this case as deer wont let them get mature anyway) 2-3 weeks later broadcast WW into standing oats. 2-3 weeks later broadcast WR into the WW/Oats/Clover and call it a year.

 

[yoderjac]

I second what Jack says. I can only grow "forage." I have 5 acres of total plots. Clover, rye and alfalfa are the ticket. I grow great turnips in my exclosures, but they never get much bigger than thumb size with the browsing pressure they get. My plots may not help the critical winter period much, but they are feeding on them the instant the snow disappears so I got to believe it helps the spring recovery. Very little ag close to me. Jack always reminds us, correctly, that deer are browsers, but they sure look like grazers to me when they park themselves in the plots.
By all means put out exclosures on your plots or you'll think you're a failure as a farmer.

You will find that kind of concentrated feeding whenever there is a situation where quality food becomes scarce. It is telling you something about your deer herd and where particular stresses are. Generally this can't be addressed with small plots. In order to get things in balance, you need to address the food side of the equation at scale during the stress period or address the deer numbers side. Deer can handle quite a bit of stress and survive. The more we reduce stress, the more the local herd health can improve. When this stress is reduced over multiple generations we can begin to see epigenetic effects.

Thanks,

Jack