If you look outside today in Branson, Missouri you’ll see a blanket of snow. We received 4 inches of snow Sunday and a few more inches Tuesday. This winter has certainly broken the trend set over the last few years. We have had numerous snowstorms that have left southern Missouri covered with snow. There are areas of the country that have received much more snow than we have!
Winters like these can be very stressful on wildlife. With a good portion of an animal’s food source covered with snow they have to resort to browsing on food sources above snow level or digging through the snow for food. Recently Grant and I took a walk to try and learn more about what our food plots were providing during the snow.
Standing soybeans can be the ultimate attraction with snow on the ground.
As we approached the food plot of standing beans you could obviously see the bean pods above the snow, with several deer tracks around. The deer had found the beans and were using them as a food source. Next, Grant and I stepped into a part of the food plot that was only wheat. The only thing you could see of the wheat was the very tip of the wheat which was covered in ice. Looking at this we also noticed there were not very many deer tracks in this section of the field. Probably because the deer would have to dig in the snow for food, while a better source of carbohydrates could be found not far away with the soybeans. Next, we moved to a section of the field that was planted in Eagle Seed Broadside blend. There were deer tracks in this part of the field but certainly not the amount of sign that was in the 100% bean field.
After all this walking around we pieced the information together to see what we could learn from these observations. First, on snow covered days the standing beans are hands down the most attractive thing we have provided. Second, a field of straight wheat isn’t going to provide much forage for deer when there are multiple inches of snow on the ground, although wheat can still be a great attractant when there isn’t snow. Finally, when considering the entire hunting season a food plot that provides both greens and standing beans can have the greatest attraction for deer. By planting Eagle Seed beans in the spring and then drilling back through them in the fall with the Eagle Seed Broadside blend we have the best combination food source that I have ever laid eyes on – a food plot that can provide year round forage and the most ideal forage during hunting season.
Brian wrote about burning up our debris piles in his blog last week. We took that one step further this week. Not only did we burn up debris piles from past storms but we also burned dozer decks. These dozer decks have laid next to our food plots for a few years with the goal of drying out. Once they reached a point of being dry we could burn them and remove over 90% of the pile. That’s exactly what we did this week!
One of the dozer decks after being burned. Once the stumps are pushed away it will be ready to plant.
During these last few years the piles have only provided housing to the local groundhogs and snakes, irritation for the tractor operator when trying to plant, and the overall worst thing, obstructed views when trying to hunt.
Adam standing next to one of the big brush piles that was in the center of a food plot.
All of these have been a nagging element when waiting for them to dry out. Finally, this winter, we decided they had dried enough to burn. We didn’t receive the average amount of rain throughout the growing season when our beans were trying to survive. After we add the groundhog variable on top of that, our beans took a hurting! After debating whether to burn or not everyone at GrowingDeer.tv came to the same answer, Burn Baby Burn!
Once they’re burned, we’re only left with root wads that will be pushed off out of the way permanently! We now have open areas that will be great for planting, which is exactly what our goal is. Now that all our work is finished removing the piles, the bare ground is a perfect site to plant clover or even expand our food plot more for Eagle Seed soybeans. We’re turning the calendar from January to February soon so we have some time to decide what we’ll plant. Be sure to follow GrowingDeer.tv to see what we decide to plant and when we do it! As always thanks for the support and good luck on all your off season management projects!
Daydreaming of long beards and long spurs together,
For me this time of year is a test of mental strength. Deer season is over and cabin fever sets in. The occasional warmth of a sixty degree day brings on thoughts of chasing long spurred gobblers. A bone chilling cold front quickly snaps us back to reality. There is work to be done.
This is the perfect time of year to get projects accomplished that would otherwise be hindered by pests like snakes and ticks. Those pesky debris piles left over from last summer’s storms can be piled up and burnt without fear of uncovering a venomous snake. More importantly, those clearings that we have wanted to turn into clover plots can be cleared without getting covered in ticks.
A beautiful crimson clover plot at The Proving Grounds in the spring of 2013.
If you are like us there are always those few areas that have been overtaken by saplings before you can establish a good clover food plot. We spent some time this week mapping out those areas and clearing out those saplings before things get grown up with the warmth of the spring sunshine. It is the perfect time to evaluate the amount of clover seed that you are going to need before frost seeding. Ideally you have your seed on hand and your clover plots ready for seeding.
The GrowingDeer.tv team will be preparing our clover plots and watching the weather. When the forecast indicates that there are approximately four frosts left we will begin frost seeding clover. The freezing and thawing action of early spring will lead to great seed to soil contact. Before we know it we will be enjoying beautiful blooming clover and strutting gobblers. In the meantime we will be working hard to better The Proving Grounds. I hope you have a chance to get out and do the same to your property.
January 15th is a bitter sweet day for me. Why? January 15th marks the last day of archery season here in Missouri. On one hand I’m extremely upset that the season is over. We started chasing deer in the beginning of September and now, the middle of January, is when we hang up our Prime bows for a rest. That’s where the “sweet” part comes into play. After all these months it is nice to step back and take a breather and rest, charge our batteries, and clear our heads.
We start our management plans by reviewing our property map.
After we clear our heads we then start putting in thoughts and ideas for the upcoming season. Yes, you heard me correct. It’s January 17th and we’re already thinking about next deer season! Great management plans aren’t drawn up and executed in a matter of a few months – that’s why we’re starting now. Obviously we’ve been doing management projects throughout the season but we’ve postponed the projects that will add more disturbance to the property. Now with this season complete it’s time to start back up!
Like most years we start by looking at our map. Where are our stands located? Where is the food located? Where are the bedding, bottlenecks, and water sources located? Finally, how can we hunt the property more successfully? One of our biggest projects for this year is dealing with the southern part of The Proving Grounds. This part hasn’t been as highly managed and has very few food sources and stand locations. Our plan is to provide both of those and bring it all to you in coming months, stay tuned to GrowingDeer.tv!
Other goals we are looking forward to completing are clover maintenance and additions, invasive species control, and prescribed fire.
First we’ll talk clover. We manage about 10% of our food plots in clover. Every year we’ll watch it progress or decline and study which areas need to be replanted and which plots are being used heavily and could possibly be hunted more regularly.
Invasive species control can bore most people, including myself, but it’s part of good management. Over the last couple of years we’ve tackled a huge infestation of honey locust trees but I’m happy to say we’ve knocked about 90% of the population out and we’re now searching the hillsides for any squatters that may still be surviving. This next year we’ll be shifting our focus to multi-floral rose bushes. They’ve begun to spread into the food plot edges so it’s important for us to eliminate the problem before they start to gain ground and compete with the food sources we’ve planted.
Lastly, one of our biggest and most time consuming projects, prescribed fires. We spend a lot of time working for fire, it all starts by making the fire line to finishing it with the lighting of the fire. This is a huge project but when it’s all said and done the benefits are huge! Be sure to check out our progress throughout the off season!
But – we’re not completely locked up inside! Cabin fever is real ya know! We’re going to be doing a little predator hunting to see if we can’t have a little fun and deal with the depression of deer season closing.
Here in Missouri we have a five more days left of bow season! It’s been cold and snowy so our hunting strategy will be to continue to focus on hunting food sources. There are still a few hit list bucks holding their head gear and we would love to pull back and let an arrow fly on one before the end of the season! These last days of bow season are also a great opportunity to harvest a few more does. We are always striving to balance our herd so taking a few more food plot munchers would be a blessing.
In many states deer season has closed and it’s time to transition into shed hunting. To some it may not be as exciting as tagging that buck you have been chasing but it’s still an opportunity to get your hands on some antlers and enjoy Creation!
We have viewed several Reconyx images of bucks that have dropped their antlers. Miss Tracy and her shed dog, Crystal, will be out searching the Ozark hills soon!
Tracy and her Labrador Retriever team up each year to hunt for shed antlers.
If your state has already closed for this deer season, I hope that it was a great year and good luck chasing sheds. If you are trying to make the most of the last few days of open season, then be sure to clearly identify your target. Don’t make the mistake of shooting a shed buck that you thought was a doe. That is never a good feeling!
We have turned the page of 2013 and as we enter 2014 we’re still looking to have payoffs from last year’s work!
A lot of the loyal GrowingDeer.tv followers have watched the progress of our Non-Typical Hot Zone electric fence throughout the summer, fall, and now the beginning weeks of winter. The entire plan all began back in May when we started planting our food plots in Eagle Seed beans. We selected this plot we call “Lil Cave” back in the spring as being a great location to leave some grain for the late season. This particular food plot is located on a ridge top and is relatively small, especially compared to the large food plot less than 300 yards away. Because of the plot’s small size we used our Hot Zone fence to protect it throughout the growing season, and into the fall, and now winter. By allowing these Eagle Seed beans to grow without the heavy browse of wildlife, they reached shoulder height and are completely covered with bean pods.
A group of deer entering the Eagle Seed beans through a gap in the Hot Zone fence.
Although The Proving Grounds was completely covered with acorns this year, we received an early snowfall which caused our deer to start using our food plots sooner than we expected. When the snow fell and deer became more and more active on the food plots we decided it was time to open a portion of the fence and allow the deer to feed on the beans. Like a lot of things dealing with wildlife, there’s a learning curve (from days to weeks) from opening the gap to when deer learn of it’s safety and value. While checking our Reconyx cameras last week we noticed the deer were really starting to enter the gap and consume the beans, even during daylight hours, GREAT NEWS!
Now with just a couple weeks of season left, we can’t wait to climb into the Muddy stands overlooking the Eagle Seed beans in hopes of harvesting a mature buck or even a couple of does! Be sure to check out upcoming episodes of GrowingDeer.tv to see how our plan works! Good luck to everyone as we roll into the New Year and may God bless you in your pursuit!
During late August when the temperatures are soaring and sweat pours from your body, it is tough to be excited about the work required to plant food plots. It is strenuous work that seems lost for many months. However during December and January you may be rewarded for your work!
This week has been frigid in the Ozarks and the food plots that were planted in August have been great stand locations. It is alternative methods season in Missouri and we have been taking to Redneck Blinds that overlook large feeding plots with hopes of seeing smoke pour out of the black powder rifle!
Glen Woods tagged an Ozark Mountain buck in late December during the alternative weapons season.
Keying in on the fact that deer need to eat to stay warm, we had high hopes that a hit list buck would come to chow down on the Eagle Seed food plots. The first sit this week we were not disappointed. Just before dark a hit list buck we call Two Face appeared in the bushes at the edge of the field. Sadly, he out-smarted us and never left cover to present a kill shot. The very next night Grant’s dad, Glen Woods, joined us for an afternoon hunt. Once again, the bucks hit the food plot just before dark. This time the deer hung around a little too long and Glen Woods dropped a buck where he stood!
We will continue to hunt evening food sources after Christmas and we hope you are blessed with the opportunity to do the same! Good hunting and may everyone be blessed with a prosperous and happy New Year!
For many whitetail hunters we’ve reached the late season post rut phase and it’s time to switch gears! We’ve been hunting trails, bottlenecks, and food plots lately but as we set aside our Prime bows and pick up our muzzleloaders for the opening of primitive season Saturday we’ll take a little time to talk about our strategy.
As you’ve heard me talk about recently the second rut is generally sometime during December here at The Proving Grounds. It’s caused by female fawns reaching approximately 60 or 70 pounds which triggers puberty and makes them receptive, and as every deer hunter knows, a hot doe is the number one attraction for a whitetail buck. The greatest thing about the second rut is unlike a mature doe who seeks cover when she becomes receptive, doe fawns go about their normal schedule. They are still going from cover to food, regardless if they are receptive or not.
Hit list buck “Funky” caught on the Reconyx camera nudging a doe fawn.
Checking our Reconyx cameras recently I’ve noticed several bucks nudging doe fawns around food plots, even a couple hit list bucks! This makes them very prone to following hot doe fawns into a food plot during daylight hours! Even better!
Another great advantage of late season hunting over early season is frost. This time of year here at The Proving Grounds we usually receive a frost every morning, and this frost can be extremely heavy at times! During the cold weather months deer obviously are very concerned with staying warm, and like you and I when we’re trying to stay warm we don’t typically eat ice cream or any other frozen food! Putting this in hunters terms, deer don’t usually feed while there is a heavy frost on; they can be seen feeding mid morning (like the doe fawn we caught Trashman chasing last year) or they’ll feed more heavily in the afternoons.
Late season is one of my favorite times to hunt whitetails! You can usually be more successful hunting in the afternoons than mornings, and if you find a lot of doe fawns using the area, hang tight because a hit list buck will most likely make an appearance there.
Saturday afternoon, weather permitting, Grant and I will take to the field in hopes of finding that hot doe fawn with a hit list buck not far behind! Good luck to everyone headed out and be safe!
