Winter habitat project question

[Someday isle]

I have a kind of low spot on my property that I wonder what the best options are as far as habitat development. The area has a wet weather creek running off to the side of it. When I bought the property they advertised it as having a "lake site". Basically the previous property owner had a timber harvest done is this area four years ago and they left a lot of the logs and debris and a few standing trees, several of which are just dead standing timber right now. I assume because the trees were left standing didn't mean that damage wasn't done to them during the harvest. From my understanding his intent was to someday put a four or five acre lake in that spot. He just didn't really ever have a real plan. Today that area is just overgrown with blackberries and what I'd call brambles. I was considering clearing an acre or so of that area and creating a food plot and still leave a couple acres of some of the brush for cover in the remaining parts.

This is relatively gently rolling ground so it's not like the low spot is a big valley or anything like that. I know that the deer will use the blackberry bushes themselves as woody browse and maybe even be there occasionally. I also plan on doing some hinge cutting to create bedding areas in a variety of places on the property that hopefully will also increase the available browse.

The limiting factor in the immediate area is food and I feel like creating cover is a priority too. Since we had a wet summer my two wet weather creeks held a little water in deeper holes but I'd also like to add a water hole or two. Maybe this is an area where I could put in a little bit of food and dig a small waterhole.

I guess my question is are the blackberries worth keeping instead of food plots or would I benefit from creating a year round food source in that area while still keeping some of the brushy cover too.

 

[Bill]

The deer will use the blackberrys as cover. But if you have plenty of other cover and this is the place for food, go for it.

As always consider how you will access it and prevailing November winds if your planning to hunt the food.

 

[wiscwhip]

Clear what you want, proceed with your project as you see fit, those blackberries will fill in whatever niche you leave them. They are likely more beneficial to you than the deer...........mmmmm! In MO, the time of year that the deer would be feeding on the blackberries themselves, they have plenty of other food in the woods. You could potentially miss out on the deer being able to browse some of the canes in the dead of winter, but they are not that highly preferred anyway, and a food plot could provide a far better source of winter food than an acre of blackberry canes. If the areas is relatively square and accessible, you could have a great foodplot if you plant a 10 yard "buffer strip" of ladino or Durana clover all the way around the perimeter and plant the interior with soybeans. Obviously with a sub-acre of soys, and any amount of deer at all, you may have to be willing to e-fence around the beans to keep the deer from browsing them to the dirt. If you need proof how well this would work, take a look at some of MoBuckChaser's videos and pictures of the deer in his soybeans in MO durng the winter..........ridiculous!

 

[Someday isle]

Thanks Bill and wiscwhip. That section is very easy to access which is why I like it. The east side of my property is easily accessed through an access road that only one other property owner can use - and they don't hunt. The north side is also an easy entrance. It's easy to get to with equipment and by foot. I need to accurately measure the whole area before making any real decisions but I think I can put in 3/4 to an acre and still leave a couple acres of surrounding cover. After firearms season is over in Missouri I'll post some pictures of the area and my overall measurements.

Wiscwhip - Mobuckchaser's videos are amazing. He obviously has great land, lots of deer, and the knowledge, experience and wisdom to put it all together. I read everything he posts just looking for both information and entertainment.