Holding Bucks on a Property
Filed under: Ask Grant, Habitat Management
Every year I have some great bucks show up on my trail cameras in September and October. Unfortunately, my neighbor’s (a local farmer) property is overcrowded with hunters. Because my property primarily holds food (agricultural fields and small food plots) and his property contains most of the bedding areas (large wooded areas) what do you think is the best way to hold bucks on my property and keep them away from the neighbor? Ryan
Ryan,
As bucks mature, many of them will use a smaller home range to avoid danger. The smaller the area that contains quality food, cover, and water, the smaller their home range size can be. A great plan to maintain mature bucks on your property a larger percentage of the legal hunting time is to insure that everything they need is available on your property.
Within that large goal, my priority is cover (as you’ve discovered). Deer will spend the majority of the legal hunting hours in cover. Hence, by providing the best cover in a deer’s home range, you’ve substantially increased the odds they will be on your property from dawn until dusk.
It sounds like you’ve identified what you need to work on when you stated “…his property contains most of the bedding areas…” The bucks in your neighborhood are likely on the neighboring property during most of the legal hunting hours.
Growing Deer together,
Grant
