Are Fruit Trees Necessary?
Filed under: Ask Grant, Food Plots, Hunting Tactics
There’s a lot of hype now about planting shrubs and trees for deer. Soft and hard mast plants like apple trees, dogwoods, nannyberry, arrowwood, elderberry, dwarf chinkapin oaks, etc. From things you have written, it seems you support this, but you acknowledge that there are better/easier/cheaper ways to do this in the form of ag crops like clover, corn, soybeans, etc.
I know planting trees and shrubs won’t hurt anything and I’m sure it will help somewhat. To what extent will it help and is it worth all my time and energy to do so? On my 100 acre property I have 30 acres in ag crops in an area limited in food. I just had my property select cut to eliminate the “park effect” in my woods, to encourage hard oak mast and mainly to create more cover/bedding.
In areas other than my ag crops, is it worth planting all of these native and non native soft/hard mast trees and shrubs (i.e. will I see and grow more deer from them)? Part of me knows that 30 acres of ag crops is more than my deer can eat. But will the increased diversity in planting these shrubs and trees increase deer sightings and success, possibly from providing something that deer in my area have never really seen (i.e. elderberry, apple trees, crabapples, hazelnuts, etc, etc, etc.)? I’ve already planted over 100 apple trees this past year that mature and drop from September to December.
Thanks!
Eric
Eric,
It sounds like you’ve been doing your homework! Planting more shrubs and trees on the property is probably not necessary. Although fruit trees can provide some exciting hunting come fall they require a lot of care to get them to maximize their production and quality. In addition, soft/hard mast production is probably already increasing in response to the select cut you’ve performed. It looks like planting the remaining open areas in native warm-season grass might provide the greatest benefit if cover is a limiting factor at your property. Warm-season grass provides excellent bedding, security, and fawning cover.
With adequate food, cover, and water available, the next step is to set areas aside as sanctuaries. When it comes to sanctuaries and holding deer, more acres generally are better.
Growing Deer together,
Grant
