Management thread for sub 500ac land

[KactusKiller]

Originally Posted by EastTexun

Kactus, how much are you putting out at one time and how often?

My feeders are all timed. I only have it going for about one second a feed a.m. and p.m. and it’s still backing up at times. I had to turn it off earlier in the year but once I saw a couple deer hit it on camera turned them back on, but they still are not cleaning it out last time I was there.

[EastTexun]

Originally Posted by KactusKiller

My feeders are all timed. I only have it going for about one second a feed a.m. and p.m. and it’s still backing up at times. I had to turn it off earlier in the year but once I saw a couple deer hit it on camera turned them back on, but they still are not cleaning it out last time I was there.

Gotcha. I should have asked how much feed you were buying at one time and how often you were buying it. I have had some good luck with a few feed stores when I commit to buying *** tons over the summer and even when I just get 2 pallets at a time.

[KactusKiller]

Originally Posted by EastTexun

Gotcha. I should have asked how much feed you were buying at one time and how often you were buying it. I have had some good luck with a few feed stores when I commit to buying *** tons over the summer and even when I just get 2 pallets at a time.

Sorry misunderstood. Not much but it’s our first yr in ok and need to get the deer on it but honestly we prob wouldn’t feed more than 2 pallets a yr. We feed it pretty light as more of an extra attractant than major food source. Small properties you always seem to be feeding the neighbors trophies.

[KactusKiller]

Not 100% for deer management but should be wrapped up with my 2 new ponds tomorrow. One is close to an acre the other will be just shy of a half acre. Gonna be adding some structure hopefully before we get too much rain. Should be good for the deer, fish and cows alike.



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[DuramaxDude]

Niiice!

[KactusKiller]

Anyone been doing any land improvements? I got my ponds finished and created almost an acre food plot next to one of them. Will give me 2 stand locations for different winds. Using the pond/dam as a funnel. Should be great. I have also located where my other two plot/stand site will be and have started clearing those as well. Going to completely move all my stand setups for the next year in navarro co. Should make for better hunting next season utilizing the bedding areas.

[KactusKiller]

This is one of the areas I started with. I had already mulched the brush but still had a few trees and an old erosion terrace. Leveled it out and ripped it a little to start removing some of the roots.

It runs down the side and wraps around back of dam. The big timber in background is the creek bottom and where the majority of bedding are is located.


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[KactusKiller]

Also got some rock/brick piles in the flats of the new pond. Those areas will be about 9-10’ deep when it’s full. I need to add some trees of some artificial fish habitat in the deep area in center.



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[Leon County Slayer]

in for future reference... best of look on your endeavors also

[KactusKiller]

Hoping some more chime in on what they are doing. Wanting to share ideas and not just show my progress.

[toledo]

Today im planting 100 cedar seedlings. Sight blocks along the road and close around my stands. Dibble bar is a must.

https://mdc.mo.gov/trees-plants/tree...rder-seedlings

Last week I planted switch grass for sight block along fencelines on another property.

Is it too early to start complaining about needing rain?

And live staked a bunch of willow where I don't want ducks to land near my duck blind.

[EastTexun]

Originally Posted by toledo

Today im planting 100 cedar seedlings. Sight blocks along the road and close around my stands. Dibble bar is a must.

https://mdc.mo.gov/trees-plants/tree...rder-seedlings

Last week I planted switch grass for sight block along fencelines on another property.

Is it too early to start complaining about needing rain?

And live staked a bunch of willow where I don't want ducks to land near my duck blind.

Every time I see the 2 dibble bars in my shop I shiver a little. Either I take too much time or I just suck at planting with one.

Interesting that you are planting cedar. One of my management goals that I work on each year is cutting as much cedar as I can to alleviate competition with other, more favorable trees. And this is in East Tx, not west.

[KactusKiller]

Originally Posted by toledo

Today im planting 100 cedar seedlings. Sight blocks along the road and close around my stands. Dibble bar is a must.

https://mdc.mo.gov/trees-plants/tree...rder-seedlings

Last week I planted switch grass for sight block along fencelines on another property.

Is it too early to start complaining about needing rain?

And live staked a bunch of willow where I don't want ducks to land near my duck blind.

Your busy as well, we are about to push some trees to make our food plots bigger in Oklahoma then plant some screen cover with a mix of hybrid sudan and switchgrass. I am about to do some switch grass and sudan screening on my navarro place as well but waiting for Turner seed to get there Sudan and switch grass seed available for order.

[KactusKiller]

Originally Posted by EastTexun

Every time I see the 2 dibble bars in my shop I shiver a little. Either I take too much time or I just suck at planting with one.

Interesting that you are planting cedar. One of my management goals that I work on each year is cutting as much cedar as I can to alleviate competition with other, more favorable trees. And this is in East Tx, not west.

I have some cedar to cut as well but I def like some cedar for screening and stand cover. I haven't purposely planted them either.

[MedicineMan7]

I've been walking out every inch I possibly can over the last couple weeks trying to learn as much as possible during the off season. Found a few sheds along the way during my walks which is always a nice bonus.
As far as work goes, my chainsaw has not left my ranger the last couple weeks either and has been put to use daily working on trimming interior trails and fence lines as well. I've also dove off into a couple spots and worked on some bedding areas in some postoak/blackjack flats where there is essentially zero ground growth of any sort due to the canopy shading everything out. My hope is to increase browse available as well as make a few bedding areas where I want them. Still a long ways to go there!
I did get soil samples pulled a couple weeks ago on all of my plots and just got the results back. Awaiting a little help from a friend in the ag/fertilizer business to help decide which route I'm going to roll with as far as plantings and fertilizer goes.

[KactusKiller]

I have done a little saw work but need to do some more.

[DuramaxDude]

So far to date I have grubbed 60 acres of mesquite and cedar. Raked it up into piles with a dozer and will probably start burning brush piles pretty quick. Tried not to take out anything that was beneficial to deer/turkey/quail. When raking I also bladed a fire break around the perimeter. I attempted to reseed those acres with some key grazing grasses as well as some taller grasses for nest/fawning cover and some forbs for deer and upland birds and even tossed in some four-wing saltbush for fun lol. In that 60ac that was reseeded there were 3 separate 2 acre plots that had a pretty diverse mix of forbs for wildlife that made about 40% of the seed mix. Hopefully that will eventually all germinate and establish and potentially be some perennial type food plots. I am fixing to install a cross fence (4 strand barbwire), a water storage tank, pipeline and water trough. Trees are not very tall in our parts but we still have a fair amount of turkey, so I built some roosts out of 2x4x10s and some 4x4x16s and put some 2x4x8s across limbs in taller trees around the place. I grubbed/raked/cleared out a few areas for smaller food plots also but not a ton of acres there maybe 4.5 or so. I am fixing to plant a dove plot or 2 that hopefully do something. I plan to go back through that 60acres that was grubbed for sure and maybe more areas and hand spray prickly pear next year. I imagine I will continue to put out some grass/forb seed mixes annually until I reach the level of diversity and look I want. That and I will always be touching up mesquite and prickly pear with hand spaying.

[KactusKiller]

That’s some solid work. I’m building several cross fences also to better manage grazing in Navarro. Cutting a lot of cedar in some bedding areas to open the canopy a little more.