Those counties were hit hard with EHD a few years back and have also been hit since. Do the neighbors farther away hunt? Thats a fairly populated area so Id bet that you have more pressure than you think.
Limited deer even after habitat work
I'm looking for some opinions on where to go with my property.
I bought 40 acres 4 years ago on the Platte County-Buchanan county line. It's a rural area on a dead end road. I've done some aggressive TSI/Selective cut work to 5-7 acre area of the farm over the last two years winters (Red circles). I've cut out the cedar groves and created some old field areas along a shelf that used to be a field 30-40 years ago (light blue). I've burned about 2 acres of cedar and timber. The farm has 6 acres of alfalfa (green area) that we planted to produce hay for my wife's horses and in hopes of it feeding deer as well. It gets cut 4-5 times per year so its always new growth. I've edge feathered around one of the alfalfa fields and put about an acre ring of native warm-season grass in late this spring (orange area). It has water from a creek that runs year-round (blue). My property ends on the south side near the row crop field which was tobacco for the last couple of years and sudangrass this summer. There are corn, beans, and clover on my near by properties and but very limited cover.
Despite all of that I still have very limited deer sightings the last three years. I pulled three cameras last weekend (two weeks of pics) and I literally had 10 deer pics. The cameras were over salt licks and near the TSI areas, and over the alfalfa. I feel like the thick security cover has responded tremendously. The TSI picture is from last summer and its even thicker this year. Rough dogwood stump sprouts, oak regen, and forbs everywhere. It is head high and super thick. I just don't see the deer using it. Heck I don't see deer period. If I take an infrequent side by side trip through the farm I have only bumped deer once in the last year. I've seen three deer in the alfalfa in the last three years. I have three neighbors around me and only one of them hunts and certainly not what I would consider heavy hunting pressure (opening gun season weekend only). I don't see tons of coyotes or predators on the cameras. I don't feel like I have a dog problem as mine stay near the house and the barn for the most part and I never see my dogs or stray dogs on the cameras. My kids don't go wandering through the woods much and I stay out of the TSI area completely except to pull cameras on the edge or to do more work in the late winter.
I priced a habitat/deer consultant but it was way out of a price range I could justify. I don't feel like my farm lacks much from a habitat standpoint but the deer have just not responded.
I'm open to any thoughts or suggestions. I know Platte and Buchanan counties are not great deer areas but I didn't think they were this bad.
I bought 40 acres 4 years ago on the Platte County-Buchanan county line. It's a rural area on a dead end road. I've done some aggressive TSI/Selective cut work to 5-7 acre area of the farm over the last two years winters (Red circles). I've cut out the cedar groves and created some old field areas along a shelf that used to be a field 30-40 years ago (light blue). I've burned about 2 acres of cedar and timber. The farm has 6 acres of alfalfa (green area) that we planted to produce hay for my wife's horses and in hopes of it feeding deer as well. It gets cut 4-5 times per year so its always new growth. I've edge feathered around one of the alfalfa fields and put about an acre ring of native warm-season grass in late this spring (orange area). It has water from a creek that runs year-round (blue). My property ends on the south side near the row crop field which was tobacco for the last couple of years and sudangrass this summer. There are corn, beans, and clover on my near by properties and but very limited cover.
Despite all of that I still have very limited deer sightings the last three years. I pulled three cameras last weekend (two weeks of pics) and I literally had 10 deer pics. The cameras were over salt licks and near the TSI areas, and over the alfalfa. I feel like the thick security cover has responded tremendously. The TSI picture is from last summer and its even thicker this year. Rough dogwood stump sprouts, oak regen, and forbs everywhere. It is head high and super thick. I just don't see the deer using it. Heck I don't see deer period. If I take an infrequent side by side trip through the farm I have only bumped deer once in the last year. I've seen three deer in the alfalfa in the last three years. I have three neighbors around me and only one of them hunts and certainly not what I would consider heavy hunting pressure (opening gun season weekend only). I don't see tons of coyotes or predators on the cameras. I don't feel like I have a dog problem as mine stay near the house and the barn for the most part and I never see my dogs or stray dogs on the cameras. My kids don't go wandering through the woods much and I stay out of the TSI area completely except to pull cameras on the edge or to do more work in the late winter.
I priced a habitat/deer consultant but it was way out of a price range I could justify. I don't feel like my farm lacks much from a habitat standpoint but the deer have just not responded.
I'm open to any thoughts or suggestions. I know Platte and Buchanan counties are not great deer areas but I didn't think they were this bad.
Attachments
1 - 20 of 21 Posts
1 - 20 of 21 Posts
