The transition as a land manager

[Buckhunter10]

I have been active on these forums for years (I think over a decade on a few). Over the years, I have met so many wonderful people. I have learned from numerous folks and had opportunities I could have never imagined come from simply joining and meeting like-minded folks online.

As I have been blessed to add more land to our farm, and also start a family - I feel my entire outlook on management has changed. I really try to look at my decisions at the macro level. An example is - I don't worry much about creating a specific bedding area, but more so how I can harvest or clear-cut 5-10 acre sections, produce income and add more food/cover to the farm.

Likewise, when adding food - I use to worry more about small "kill plots". Now, I find myself carrying more about adding more food to benefit the deer (via cutting and food plots) and less about the hunt ability.

I guess all in all, it is not that I don't care about the hunting but just feel I care more about the macro decisions on the farm vs. hunting strategy.

Does anyone else feel this way? Like a stronger pull to soil, timber, and overall herd management vs. hunting strategy?

Love this forum, by the way, read it often - working on posting more!

Albert

 

[Wind Gypsy]

I would feel more that way if I had more acres! Easier to consider and work on the micro when you don't have much scale to work on!

 

[yoderjac]

I'm right with you! For me, balance is the key. For example, If I only cared about killing big bucks, much of the property would be a thicket and we would dramatically reduce hunting pressure. I like knowing we have some big bucks that use the property and on any given day, one could be mine. But, I have other priorities as well. For example, I build permanent box blinds all over the property. This allowed me to introduce kids and new folks to hunting easily. They got to see plenty of deer and could shoot any legal deer regardless of sex or age. Shooting young bucks goes completely against the grain for QDM. These stands will hopefully allow me to continue hunting in later life when Ladder stands become problematic. I'm already past climbing and hang-on stands.

I'm also more interested in the big picture. I like the idea of bending nature more gently rather than intense cropping. I'm focused on soil health and permaculture trying to plant mast producing trees that are zero maintenance. Every time we sell timber, it screws up hunting for a bit. Deer relate to the land differently and we have to relearn things. The same thing goes with putting in firebreaks and executing controlled burns. They are very disruptive to hunting, but they benefit deer and other wildlife immensely over time. This method of producing more quality native foods and using food plots to supplement. I also like to "rest" my food plots from herbicides sine I min-till/no-till everything. Every year or so, I'll pick a field and stop planting it. I'll just mow as needed to keep it from getting away from me. I'll then bring it back into planting and rest another. I feel this helps keep a healthier mix of weeds and forbs that can be skewed by continued herbicide use.

I love the concept of low density weedy food plots. We have only taken a handful of deer that are 3 1/2 or older on our place, but I have loads of pictures of kids with ear-to-ear smiles standing over a spike. I would not trade them for a state record buck.

By the way, all of our efforts have made deer HARDER TO HUNT! When we started, we had a food desert. Deer had very distinct patterns from bedding to food. Even on good acorn years our high density population of deer were pretty much forced to use our plots during shooting hours. As we progressed, we reduced deer density and created much more native food in cover. Now, deer respond to hunting pressure much quicker. They mostly use the food plots at night when the season starts. You can still kill young bucks and does over food from time to time, but we no longer see shooter bucks in the fields during the season. It is very rare anyway.

Plan to keep doing what I have been as long as I can.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Buckhunter10]

I'm right with you! For me, balance is the key. For example, If I only cared about killing big bucks, much of the property would be a thicket and we would dramatically reduce hunting pressure. I like knowing we have some big bucks that use the property and on any given day, one could be mine. But, I have other priorities as well. For example, I build permanent box blinds all over the property. This allowed me to introduce kids and new folks to hunting easily. They got to see plenty of deer and could shoot any legal deer regardless of sex or age. Shooting young bucks goes completely against the grain for QDM. These stands will hopefully allow me to continue hunting in later life when Ladder stands become problematic. I'm already past climbing and hang-on stands.

I'm also more interested in the big picture. I like the idea of bending nature more gently rather than intense cropping. I'm focused on soil health and permaculture trying to plant mast producing trees that are zero maintenance. Every time we sell timber, it screws up hunting for a bit. Deer relate to the land differently and we have to relearn things. The same thing goes with putting in firebreaks and executing controlled burns. They are very disruptive to hunting, but they benefit deer and other wildlife immensely over time. This method of producing more quality native foods and using food plots to supplement. I also like to "rest" my food plots from herbicides sine I min-till/no-till everything. Every year or so, I'll pick a field and stop planting it. I'll just mow as needed to keep it from getting away from me. I'll then bring it back into planting and rest another. I feel this helps keep a healthier mix of weeds and forbs that can be skewed by continued herbicide use.

I love the concept of low density weedy food plots. We have only taken a handful of deer that are 3 1/2 or older on our place, but I have loads of pictures of kids with ear-to-ear smiles standing over a spike. I would not trade them for a state record buck.

By the way, all of our efforts have made deer HARDER TO HUNT! When we started, we had a food desert. Deer had very distinct patterns from bedding to food. Even on good acorn years our high density population of deer were pretty much forced to use our plots during shooting hours. As we progressed, we reduced deer density and created much more native food in cover. Now, deer respond to hunting pressure much quicker. They mostly use the food plots at night when the season starts. You can still kill young bucks and does over food from time to time, but we no longer see shooter bucks in the fields during the season. It is very rare anyway.

Plan to keep doing what I have been as long as I can.

Thanks,

Jack

I agree with much of this Jack!

It is not that I don't have the drive to harvest a buck. However, I enjoy the process of setting up the farm, access, maximizing food, etc. far more.

One of my favorite times of year is when I have talks with all the neighbors and do the math on how many bucks, does, etc. were shot on X number of acres. It is so fun to then extrapolate that data out and see what I can/cannot expect deer densities to do the following year.

 

[Buckhunter10]

I would feel more that way if I had more acres! Easier to consider and work on the micro when you don't have much scale to work on!

That is a good point. I have a few smaller properties I help manage and those are much more just about the hunt. Some are only 11 acres. Yet, we have still had some good success laying out the properties and managing what we can manage!

 

[GMan5465]

It’s interesting how perspective changes over time. 30 years ago, I wanted to shoot a limit of ducks, so I could say I shot a limit of ducks. That changed quickly after getting my lab and hand signal training her. Her first retrieve was via hand signals, then it all changed to just wanting to see her work. What a great dog.

Then 24 years ago, my first child arrived. No time to duck hunt, and only deer hunted. Hard focus for another dozen years to get that huge buck, then my son started hunting. One of the first nights in the stand he got to draw back on a doe but it never came out, could have been from his hyperventilating in the stand! He just looked at me and said “that was so intense”. At that point, game on to get him his first deer, then his first buck.

Now we have hunting land, time to shoot that big buck...or take a few does to get the numbers down and ease some pressure on the food plots! Or, just spend time in the woods, or on the tractor, or just hanging out with family and friends. I do still want to kill big bucks, but It’s not so much about the kill and more about the journey.

And yes, I am getting old.

 

[j-bird]

I think many of us change our outlook as we progress in our journey..... as parents, as a spouse, as land manager/hunters, as people. What was once important may not be so much now, and what we once overlooked has now come front and center. Some of it comes from maturity, some of it comes for the lessons that the journey has presented us with. I know my outlook on hunting and the work on the property has changed as well. I too am focusing much more on "long term" food sources and changes vs just what to do to kill a deer this year. I think much more about "once I'm gone", or "too old to do this stuff". It used to be all about "me"...I now love hunting with my kids....some day I hope to hunt with my grandkids. I care much less about antler scores or my name being in some book than I once did. Those things will not last, and are more trivial than we may really care to admit. Those memories of sharing a hunt where your kid or grandkid take their first deer....those will live forever.....maybe not in my mind as it fades with age, but most certainly in theirs. I prefer my name be in the heart of my kids and grandkids than in some book somewhere. I want to be remembered by the actions and the time shared....not some deer head on a wall. I carry the memory of my grandfather in this same way....and because of that he is never really gone. Focus more on making memories, and less about making trophies. Sorry for the rambling....got a little into the feels there....

 

[wthforever]

It’s interesting how perspective changes over time. 30 years ago, I wanted to shoot a limit of ducks, so I could say I shot a limit of ducks. That changed quickly after getting my lab and hand signal training her. Her first retrieve was via hand signals, then it all changed to just wanting to see her work. What a great dog.

Then 24 years ago, my first child arrived. No time to duck hunt, and only deer hunted. Hard focus for another dozen years to get that huge buck, then my son started hunting. One of the first nights in the stand he got to draw back on a doe but it never came out, could have been from his hyperventilating in the stand! He just looked at me and said “that was so intense”. At that point, game on to get him his first deer, then his first buck.

Now we have hunting land, time to shoot that big buck...or take a few does to get the numbers down and ease some pressure on the food plots! Or, just spend time in the woods, or on the tractor, or just hanging out with family and friends. I do still want to kill big bucks, but It’s not so much about the kill and more about the journey.

And yes, I am getting old.

I'm with you on all this!

 

[Foggy47]

I was just doing one of my "family updates" on my property at Deertopia. They live a few hours away and don't get to be here too much prior the the hunting season. Anyway....I like to keep them up to speed on what I am doing....and they are kinda into it. I hope they are paying enough attention so they can pick up where I leave off one day. Here is what I e-mailed tonight:...
-------
A little update on the property.

We caught another 4/10" of rain tonight......bringing the total to about 1" in three events since planting the fall (and spring) foodplots two weeks ago. That should keep everything growing better than it has all summer. I think with a little luck we will have decent food plots to hunt around after-all. Been hard to watch the drought foul all my plans. Seems to be a fair number of deer.....and a few decent bucks hanging about....tho no B&C....yet. The bucks have now shed their velvet and are into sparring a bit more. One never know what bucks will show up once the rut is underway.....and that is always anyone's guess.

The overall cover at the property is now just about ideal. Found another plumb thicket today....that I never noticed in the past. Looks like the bears been working it over. That makes 4 plumb thickets on the property plus our plumb trees....and they are spread around pretty good. Hazel nuts were really thick until recently....then "poof" in a weeks time they are gone. Acorns were the best I have seen....but had a pretty early drop here. Same for the apple trees.....surprising how much fruit this year despite the drought. Native browse is quite good in general.

One thing this property has going for it....is that it's only about three to five feet above the water table. Thus even tho the top soil can be very dry......like this year.....deeply rooted trees and crops can thrive.....even in a drought. Giving that knowledge I have switched gears toward more deeply rooted crops too....which are drought resisitant. Clover, chicory, yellow sweet clover, cereal rye, and more.....are quite drought resistant.....and the chicory is kinda like brassica.....as a very favored forage especially when it gets to freezing temps. Tho, I have brassica too (turnips, Radish, Rape, Kale). I've seen the deer just destroy a chicory plot....pretty cool....and it grows well with clover plots.

Over time I've learned, that to do any amount of tillage here (as what is needed for row crops) is simple folly. It just brings lots of weeds into play, increases the need for more and more expensive fertilizer and herbicides....dries out the precious moisture, increases the soil temps and......without mulch to protect, it reduces organic mater, and generally ruins the biology of the soil. Soon, your just farming beach sand.

Also ALLOT more passes over the plots and allot more work...and expense. Dumb. Now, I think I have this down to one or two no-till planting times....depending on what I plan to accomplish. I don't need to do anything until July or so....unless I get a freak out-brake on weeds. I'm growing my own mulch and fertilizer and building a better soil. Kinda fun....and it's working.

With the dry summer.....the neighbors have already taken their corn crop off for silage as it was beyond growing any furthrer due to the drought. That is a good thing. I'm not sure if the beans will go early too.....but that is my guess...as it's an early fall. With those food sources diminished....that should keep the "girls" on the food plots here and the boys will usually be hanging around those girls as the rut happens. <---that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Best.....

 

[b116757]

Most of my managment is macro in nature.