My property tour
- Thread starter jlane35
- Start date
Chainsaw
Well-Known Member
Wow your fields are being hit hard. Fertilizing is also an option instead of planting more. Here brassicas have been fertilized with up to 350 lbs of urea to the acre. They responded with turnips up to 22 inches in circumference. That makes for a lot of food tonnage. And extra heavy logging also adds to available food and cover. Complete releasing of all fruit and nut trees also Increases available food many times over “normal”. And as you said sometimes one just has to thin the herd as well.
jlane35
Well-Known Member
We timbered our property a few years back, it was done in two stages. In my opinion, we have plenty of browse. And come fall it’s like walking on marbles, from all the acorns, throughout the property. I put down 100 pounds of urea before planting and incorporated it into the soil then another 100 before a heavy rain a month ago. However we haven’t received much rain if any since.
Those are massive turnips, I couldn’t imagine seeing them that large!
I don’t think we have a lack of browse because our clover plot exclusion cages don’t show excessive browsing. It’s just the traditional winter plots, brassica and winter peas.
And I don’t know how many more deer we can kill. We took 7 doe and 2 buck off our place last year. We ran out of tags in our family and friend circle.
Those are massive turnips, I couldn’t imagine seeing them that large!
I don’t think we have a lack of browse because our clover plot exclusion cages don’t show excessive browsing. It’s just the traditional winter plots, brassica and winter peas.
And I don’t know how many more deer we can kill. We took 7 doe and 2 buck off our place last year. We ran out of tags in our family and friend circle.
jlane35
Well-Known Member
I remember only planting 2 acres of food plots in the past and growing softball size turnips. I don’t know what changed, but they destroy them anymore. I don’t mind planting them because they eat them and it has to help them in some way. I wish they lasted but they don’t. Luckily I asked questions this year and added acreage if rye and wheat. Otherwise I would be in the same boat as years past, depleted foodplots before the season even starts.
What caused me to be fed up with what I was doing was when I planted winter peas last year. My Uncle and I walked the foodplot in front of his stand and I could only point out two plants.
This year in a different field I planted winter peas with crimson clover, oats, winter rye, and buckwheat,. The peas are gone but everywhere I look I see clover, oats and rye. It’s nice being able to show my Uncle food in the field this year.
We have zero ag around us. It’s an old farming area but no one farms anymore. It’s all hay fields now.
MarkDarvin
Well-Known Member
There are lots of signs that this season is different. Cold weather came earlier, trees are turning earlier, consumption patterns are shifting forward. You're experiencing the "too good" scenario with food plots. There are lots of guys out there that have said 10 and 20 acres of soybeans wasn't enough to make it to hunting season.
Keep a keen eye on those oats. They've worked great for me when turning down the desireability of forage so that it makes it to hunting season. Deer will eat damn near anything. It's knowing when they'll eat it that pays.
Chainsaw
Well-Known Member
It sounds like you are close to peaked out on the food side and when deer eat as much as your property seems to be cranking out deer food then taking seven doe is likely not even keeping up with annual deer recruitment. Our property at one time was at the stage yours sounds to be in. Through DMAP we were able to get twenty-five extra doe tags for a few years. Those tags plus regular doe permits barely kept us up with fawn production. Eventually neighbors started shooting does many for the first time in their lives AND nature stepped in and “helped us out” one winter. It may be time to consider taking pictures and documenting the deer population and working with your DEC to maybe get more permits for the year 2021 fall season. Our habitat took a beating and is looking better now but some damage has been done that the habitat likely may never recover from.
jlane35
Well-Known Member
Yeah, I guess your right. Now that I’m thinking about it I can think of 6 fawns that are regularly seen throughout the property. What also doesn’t help is the 700 acre hunting club on our one side. They had their best year ever last year, 7 buck and 3 doe. The family below us has a small farm and sells at farmers markets and they try and shoot as many doe as possible but they are in the same boat of limited tags.
I asked a guy I work with to apply for doe tags for our place so his daughter could have an opportunity at some during the youth doe season. However our zone sold out.
jlane35
Well-Known Member
So all of our family members who hunt have filled their buck tags. Two during archery and 1 just now on our inaugural Sunday during rifle season. 
This guy stepped out into an overgrown hayfield to check out two doe that a 2 point, only 1 y, was harassing. It’s my cousins largest buck and another very respectable buck, by our standards, taken off our property. 225 pounds live weight and a 17 1/2” inside spread.
This guy stepped out into an overgrown hayfield to check out two doe that a 2 point, only 1 y, was harassing. It’s my cousins largest buck and another very respectable buck, by our standards, taken off our property. 225 pounds live weight and a 17 1/2” inside spread.
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Elkaddict
Well-Known Member
With all the pressure around us, the deer have finally started moving to our place. Had 37 in 6 acre plot complex tonight. I nearly shot....but the big buck turned his head and I saw his right side was broken off. I’m still waiting on a half dozen 41/2+ year old bucks that I’m still getting night photos of. Any of the top 4 will be shot on sight. I’m just wishing some typical winter weather would set in to cover up a huge acorn crop. It’s comforting knowing I’ve got two weeks of rifle followed by 11 days of MZ. It will happen.
jlane35
Well-Known Member
We don’t ever get that kind of movement into our property but it seems like we are doing something right when it comes to limiting hunting pressure on our place. We are seeing more and more normal movement every rifle season. In years past it was bumped deer moving quickly and now it’s food plot and rut activity.
Elkaddict
Well-Known Member
Late season food really matters. I’ve got 41/2 acres of brassicas essentially eaten to the stem. The dry summer cut our production significantly even with good fertilizer. Right now, the deer are focused on winter rye and clover. They really haven’t even begun to hit the corn. By the the way, I really like that heavy tight racked buck...love the mass.
Mennoniteman
Well-Known Member
Your hard work is really paying off! A habitat manager needs a good year every now and then to gain incentive to fuel them through the long hours of planting, mowing, and spraying during the summer.
jlane35
Well-Known Member
I appreciate it and you are right. My one friend hunted archery with me the day I had a really nice 8 within 10 yards but my knock slipped and then ended up shooting the 6 pointer. He had this buck at 23 yards but it stopped behind some trees and then smelled him.
He’s a state game land hunter, he said the encounter made his season. He will be hunting on our place the next two Saturdays since everyone is tagged out.
I know this isn’t the recipe for success for huge bucks but he’s a great employee to my father and a good friend/co worker to me.
We had our best year ever in my opinion.
jlane35
Well-Known Member
I only planted an acre of brassica but that was wiped out well before the season.
We never had a picture of that big archery 8. We had plenty of pictures of one similar but not this one. Here is the similar one. If he makes it he will be a dandy next year.
