food plot

[Hunter10]

Hey guys me and my dad went out to our property to start clearin some areas for hunting to put up a feeder by our stands. Well when we arrived to our property my dad decides to start clearing out one big section to put a couple feeder in there at each corner. Him and my uncle think that if they do this the deer will hang out in the openin by the feeder all day. I was wonderin if this was such a smart move by my dad and if u have any suggestions to what he could do instead of clearing a big open area. I told him that i dont think the deer will be in there much bc there is no cover for them and that they will just come out at night to eat by the feeders. So could you guys give me some suggestions to wat he could do and if his idea will even work. This land is good for hunting and I dont want my dad to just start clearin out brush and then the deer will leave off our property. The property is 5 acres. Thanks guys.

[coonskinner]

keep all the cover you can,5 acres aint a lot...i cant believe what some people are doing to the woods with the tree eatin chainsaw just in the name of qdm...i will be buying some land soon and i wont cut one tree down for the sake of hunting...if i wanna grow a plot of corn or somethin i'm sure theres a nice lil secluded natural area or one maybe cleared by the previous owner...i guess i'm just a tree lover...:D

[ohiotrapper1984]

:rant: DONT CUT THE TREES:biggrin:

[Buckmaster]

If you clear it the does and young deer will hang out near the feeders most of the day. Any decent buck may visit only after dark. The more cover you leave the greater the likelihood of seeing a better buck there during daylight hours.

[bowtech_buster]

you really cant ever tell if those big bucks will show up in daylight hours at your feeders or not but i would say yhat the more cover the better the chances are i personally dont use feeders anymore caus i diddnt really notice a big difference in the number of deer i did see in 03 and 04 when i did use them so good luck and tell your dad dont make the mistake of cuttin the trees:tsk:

[Double drop]

Cut the trees and leave them there. Make as big a mess as possible! The sunlight that is now able to hit the forest floor will take care of the rest. If I had 5 acres of land, I'd have 4.5 of it in clearcut, .4 in foodplot, and .1 in trees still standing where I would strategically want to hang stands. Remember, clearing trees gives all wildlife a double positive.....security cover, especially after the first summer, and also browse....food and cover that's what it's all about!

If you want to listen to these other guys that's fine, but I wonder if they can say the same thing as this: We have seen and heard over 20 shootable male turkeys on our land this turkey season (2 kills so far) and we also made about 10 acres of clearcuts this winter. Coincidence? I think not!
good luck!
DD
ps look at my pictures to see some of the work we got into

[Buckmaster]

That's the other side of the argument. Clear cuts sure are ugly however the do hold lots of deer and other critters.

[ferg]

Just hinge cut the smaller trees, let the area thicken up and you'll have deer. Remember one thing: Deer are creatures of 'the edge' -

Deer will hang out, feed and other social things in area 'close' to cover - you will rarely see a deer 'in the open' without cover close by -

By creating cover and areas where deer feel secure and safe you'll create a hot spot for activity -

ferg....

[eschatts]

Just hinge cut the smaller trees, let the area thicken up and you'll have deer. Remember one thing: Deer are creatures of 'the edge' -

Deer will hang out, feed and other social things in area 'close' to cover - you will rarely see a deer 'in the open' without cover close by -

By creating cover and areas where deer feel secure and safe you'll create a hot spot for activity -

ferg....

Thanks for the information and welcome to OhioSportsman

Ed

[Full Rut]

Knowing which trees to cut and where is the key. If they have cover reasonably close to your plot hunt the trails to and from. If you want deer to hang on your property, they want hiding places. Like already mentioned ,thick is better.

[coonskinner]

its like pruning and you should never go over a certain percent...open up let light in,prest stuff grows...you dont have to take a whole tree but can limb it letting light reach the forest floor...now big bucks will love that,youre not disturbing the surrounding much at all and still get new growth...too many want to clear to be able to see more animals...my brother in law did this on his place...40 acres but all beds...it was all 2nd growth farm...the deer left completely but are now starting to return after years...but he also did not feed the deer...preferring not to hunt controlled/unaltered or artifically fed deer...:mischeif: :mischeif: