- Joined
- Jul 28, 2020
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Started a management plan this spring on a ~40 acre property that began by creating 3 bedding areas using a combination of hinge cuts, girdling and some native plantings. The property was 100% wooded when we bought it in 2014. We built a house on the front of the property, and my wife and kids hunt this property 95% of the time. I sometimes bow hunt, but sparingly.
The deer immediately began using these new bedding areas as soon as we finished as evidenced by having to upgrade my spypoint cell cam plans....
This is the entrance to the largest of the bedding areas. You can see the rubbing stick and also the watering hole to the right of the trail. The bedding area itself is much more complex, this is just the entrance.
The second part of the plan was to create high impact, screened food sources directly adjacent to that new bedding.
In a previous year (2017) we cleared approximately 1 acre on a large hill that dips down into the creek bottoms. Its been good, but it needed to be improved and expanded.
This is what we started with - this is a view looking out the left side of the blind.
Expanding in progress early summer 2020:
Too wet for dozer, but good enough to get egyptian wheat started! And no time to waste - it's already the end of June. So much rain! The egyptian wheat did not come in well on the hill (loamy clay), but did great on the lower portion.
Growing well!
A week later
6 weeks later
Mid August - Finally dry enough for dozer. Got it done just in time for the rains to come back and fill in the pond. Its about 4 feet deep.
View of the pond and front view of the blind. Straw around the pond to help erosion and sowed.
1700 pounds of lime and fertilizer (BY HAND...whew) and 300 lbs of Cereal Rye, Winter Wheat and a little brassica and clover later. Finally looking like a place to hunt.
Looking down the new plot/lane.
Was able to use the "mulch" method on the hill, but the lower part was bare ground. Still... seems to be coming in well.
Decided to sit sunday morning in a chair behind some of the egyptian wheat. The deer are really using these areas, which is super satisfying. very excited for my wife and kids this year!
Only thing left to do now is wait for this rain this week and overseed 100 mor elbs (50 lbs forage oats, 50 lbs cereal rye) to really get a thick carpet. Oh, and one more round of fertilizer tossed over the new growth.
The deer immediately began using these new bedding areas as soon as we finished as evidenced by having to upgrade my spypoint cell cam plans....
This is the entrance to the largest of the bedding areas. You can see the rubbing stick and also the watering hole to the right of the trail. The bedding area itself is much more complex, this is just the entrance.
The second part of the plan was to create high impact, screened food sources directly adjacent to that new bedding.
In a previous year (2017) we cleared approximately 1 acre on a large hill that dips down into the creek bottoms. Its been good, but it needed to be improved and expanded.
This is what we started with - this is a view looking out the left side of the blind.
Expanding in progress early summer 2020:
Too wet for dozer, but good enough to get egyptian wheat started! And no time to waste - it's already the end of June. So much rain! The egyptian wheat did not come in well on the hill (loamy clay), but did great on the lower portion.
Growing well!
A week later
6 weeks later
Mid August - Finally dry enough for dozer. Got it done just in time for the rains to come back and fill in the pond. Its about 4 feet deep.
View of the pond and front view of the blind. Straw around the pond to help erosion and sowed.
1700 pounds of lime and fertilizer (BY HAND...whew) and 300 lbs of Cereal Rye, Winter Wheat and a little brassica and clover later. Finally looking like a place to hunt.
Looking down the new plot/lane.
Was able to use the "mulch" method on the hill, but the lower part was bare ground. Still... seems to be coming in well.
Decided to sit sunday morning in a chair behind some of the egyptian wheat. The deer are really using these areas, which is super satisfying. very excited for my wife and kids this year!
Only thing left to do now is wait for this rain this week and overseed 100 mor elbs (50 lbs forage oats, 50 lbs cereal rye) to really get a thick carpet. Oh, and one more round of fertilizer tossed over the new growth.
