20 Acres | The Plan Goal: Get Deer to Spend More Time Here (604)

This hunter has 20 acres of mixed pine, cedar and hardwoods for deer hunting. However, deer are primarily passing through the property without a specific pattern. Watch to see the plan that will provide attractive cover and food as well as create lots of edge, bottlenecks and great blind/stand locations for better deer hunting!
#deerhunting #TeamOutdoors ‪@GrowingDeerTV‬
It’s a great time of year to be in the woods. Reading sign this time of the year can offer many insights to deer movement, the quality of habitat, and health of a deer herd. Daniel and Clay worked on this property with a diverse habitat. The northern portion appeared to be a mix of pine and cedar with hardwoods on the southern half. During the summer, trail cameras took pictures of several great bucks, but they always seem to disappear once hunting season begins.
Part of the work today was flagging off a perimeter around the northern and western edge to provide a visual buffer from a roadway and neighboring properties. This time of the year is the best time to flag such areas for visual screening because as only a few leaves are on the hardwoods and brush. This allows the maximum view through a timber stand and the exact distance necessary to create a visual screen is easy to determine.
There is no food or quality cover here. As the cedars, hardwoods, and low-quality pines are removed, more sunlight and water will reach the ground and prescribed fire can be used encourage native grasses and forbs to grow and provide critters both native food and cover.
Currently, deer are primarily passing through the property. Once the plan is implemented, there will be attractive cover and food for deer and a reason for them to spend more time here than neighboring properties. Once the native habitat is improved and food plots created, this 20 acres will provide much better hunting opportunities! We added lots of edge, created bottlenecks, and great blind and stand locations.

[@patg2544]

Can’t wait to see the change on this one.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Patrick - Me too!

[@jeremysilcox9362]

Still hunting down here in Alabama. Our rut is about full swing.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Jeremy - I hope you have some great hunts!

[@calebcox6713]

Awesome. I wish I could get you guys to come to South Georgia for my little 15.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Caleb - I'll be in Georgia soon assisting a landowner about 2 hours south of Atlanta.

[@jakesz2831]

I still have a bunch of work to do. We have seen more deer this winter then previously. Got 2 deer already this year. I have not had much time to hunt this year either. But the 2 times I had the time I put meat in the freezer.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

You are doing great!

[@SouthWestIron]

All I can say is I need your help on my place! Great video.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Thanks!

[@terriblycleverchannelname5620]

I’m a simple man, I see a Growing Deer video posted and I automatically like it. You guys are awesome! God bless you!

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Thank you for the kind words!

[@lukeprovenzano5863]

Howdy 🤠

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Hey Luke!

[@stevebrown3408]

Would hing cutting in that buffer help , as my area is small and open . Just starting to cut trees to let sun to ground . You can see over 100+ yds in most of it . .

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Hinge cutting results in cover for a year or two then the limbs grow to reach the sun and create a shaded out, open area below them. I never recommend hinge cutting.

[@jstorm7757]

I'd love to see what you could do on a smaller piece of land. I'm going to try similar techniques on my 10 acres.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

We've assisted several folks with 4-10 acres.

[@alextison9707]

Why use hack and squirt on hardwoods instead of felling them and burning them with prescribed fire, as you guys do for cedars?

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Felling terminates cedars but most hardwood species will sprout which makes a mess. They need to be terminated by using a herbicide.

[@patrickhenry7416]

I can’t get over how amazing this channel is. Thank you so much for all this great info. You’re helping out a lot of folks

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Patrick - Thanks for the kind and encouraging words!

[@wesleyriggs5139]

Thanks! What is the difference between cover and TSI on the map. Wouldn’t they both be regen, after thinning out the undesirable trees and then burning? Some with hack and squirt (hardwood) , some with chainsaw (cedar).

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Wesley - The cover portion will be managed to allow much more sun to the soil than the TSI area. This will result in more early successional growth.

[@wesleyriggs5139]

@@GrowingDeerTV Got it. Thanks!!!

[@scottf3553]

Really good tips, it seems as though the we never get to see the follow up after a period of time, I bet the impact is significant !!

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Scott - We are very busy with assisting landowners but hope to share some follow ups this summer!

[@Ghillie-bp6tl]

Really, Dr W, you and the interns/past-interns, need a follow-up channel. Or a before/after channel.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Ghillie - Like "This old house" - This old property??

[@Ghillie-bp6tl]

@@GrowingDeerTV I think an episodic follow-up channel like that would be perfect. THESE OLD ACRES.

[@thesouthernlife4061]

Daniel came and never left he looks more and more like grant everyday lmao

[@harrybrown6570]

How do I contact you for a chat or vist?

[@GrowingDeerTV]

If you wish to use our consulting services email us at [e-mail] and include where the property is located and how many acres. Thanks!

[@johnathonarnold9070]

Me and my 3 boys went and took down our stands and blinds and put them in the shed today...kind of sad lol. Ready to start getting excited about this fall now!

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Johnathon - Sounds like a great day with the family!

[@ryansharpe6320]

How would someone get more info about getting help from you guys with habitat improvement plans?

[@williamstevens9609]

I'd like to know this too, I recently bought 54 acres and am definitely interested in your help

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Ryan - Write us at [e-mail] and include where the property is located and the acreage. We'll reach out to learn more and share the cost.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

William - Congratulations! Write us at [e-mail] and tell us where your property is located. We'll study a bit and share the cost to develop a habitat and hunting improvement plan.

[@dylandixon6818]

How could I go about getting you guys to come out and show me what to do on one of my properties? Or even just try and help virtually by map!

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Dylan - we help landowners by both boots on the ground and by studying a HuntStand satellite image of their property. Boots on the ground is always best. There is a fee for our service. To learn more send the size and location of your property to [e-mail]

[@timothymcglothlin4534]

Hack and what technique? I’m from the south, we talk slow around here lol.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Hack and squirt - a technique of using a few milliliters (drops) of the appropriate herbicide in the tree's cambium (circulatory system) to terminate it standing. This is much faster, safer, and less expensive than felling with a saw. In addition felling green trees usually results in scarring the residual trees - busting branches, knocking the bark off, etc.

[@timothymcglothlin4534]

Thanks for the quick response! Y’all’s videos are great! The only problem is they make me want to own way more land than I can afford lol.

[@wadesparks9383]

Come to my property please 😎

[@robertdulin2097]

How do you feel about forestry mulching under growth instead of cut and burn or hack and squirt?

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Prescribed fire stimulates the growth of many native grasses and forbs. Mulching, like in a garden, will limit growth of grasses and forbs (or weeds).

[@The_Judge300]

I really don't understand why you don't want to do some hinge cutting to create some proper cover for the deer on this property. Native grass, forbs and flowers do not make much cover as soon as the growing season is over. The result of hinge cutting does. I would hinge cut lots of trees on that property. That will create lots of cover, increase the sun light to the ground, give the good white oaks better conditions to produce their acorns and create deer funnels if you do it the right way. I could easily have made a hinge cutting plan that would both increase the cover, increase the brows production for the deer, increase the white oak acorn production, make deer funnels to and from those white oak trees to set up stands on and make funnels for moving deer and cruising bucks to also set up stands on. And the owner would get lots of chances to see and shoot deer if he did his part to not spook the deer. I think just hack'n squirt+fire on this kind of property where it is very open and close to flat all over the place, is the wrong solution. But what do I know. I am not a doctor in science and do this for a living.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Bjorn - I've yet to tour a property where hinge cutting worked unless it was the only cover in the area. You might consider Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Canada, etc., where deer survive tough winters in excellent condition while bedding in native grasses without no hinge cutting - or how deer survived for centuries with native habitat and no hinge cutting.

[@The_Judge300]

@@GrowingDeerTV I am sure you are right, but when it comes to deer surviving for centuries with no hinge cutting, I have to disagree with you in some degree. In a natural habitat, you don't have monocultures, like we humans tend to create. In nature, trees fall over or break in a storm and are left there to create openings and cover for deer. In most old natural woods with little to no human interference, I have seen plenty of natural "hinge cuttings" and other natural non grass covers for deer to bed by. We humans tend to remove these trees and other things, as we tend to like it tidy and symmetrical around us and nothing could be worse for deer and other wildlife. My experience is that deer always prefer to bed close to some very thick brush, a fallen tree, it's trunk or root, over bedding in some native grass if given the choice. I have seen hinge cutting working well on many properties, but it must be done correctly and with a proper plan and not do as many do, by just blindly hinge cut lots of trees and think it will do miracles. To blindly hinge cut without a proper plan and not knowing how to do it correctly, is worse than doing nothing on a property. As I said earlier, would I do some hinge cutting in the Hardwood area because it is so very flat. It really needs some structure on the ground to break up the wind better than what the native grass do in the late autumn and the winter, in my opinion. If the area had not been so very flat as it is, I wouldn't have said anything about hinge cutting at all. But I am not the professional here :)

[@usernamehere6061]

@@The_Judge300 I'm 5 months late but the only 2 things I can appreciate about your comments were both times you told us you're not the professional. We wouldn't have known that unless you told us, thanks!

[@The_Judge300]

@@usernamehere6061 A really grown up comment. Maybe you should mature a bit before making comments stupid like this. If you disagree with close to everything I said, you are clearly totally clueless about deer and natural habitats. Maybe time for you to read and learn? And go out and experience real wilderness sometimes.

[@usernamehere6061]

@@The_Judge300 I do disagree with you. Hinge cutting is good the first year or two. After that the hardwood regeneration has typically grown higher than deer can comfortably forage. At that point it is left to continue growing and producing shade which means there is now a dead zone beneath the hinge cut tree where natural browse and cover could occupy. Deer also prefer thermal cover unequivocally. Bedding under a cold damp shaded hinge cut will NEVER be as effective as tall native grasses. Perhaps instead of calling me immature and trying to preserve your ego you should take a step back and realize YOU have a lot to learn. Have a good day.

[@collegeguy14]

Y’all ever recommend planting chestnuts on places like this. Back up behind his house around the pines in some of the open spots

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Only if the landowner is interested in maintaining trees. They take a long time to mature and don't produce as much food per acre as quality food plot crops.

[@Eastky23wildlife]

I’ve done a 40 acres hack n squirt on beech and maples

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Teflon - Wow - that's a lot of maples.

[@russellstanley8100]

It’s great to see a video on how to improve small properties. We are blessed to own a small 24 acre property which has lots of deer travel through it and we harvest a couple of deer from it each year. Like most property owners we want to improve our land for deer but are afraid we could may cause more harm than good. You have given me confidence to try some of these techniques. First step bye bye Cedars! Thank you all and may God continue to bless you!

[@joerome8882]

How do I get in contact to get my property looked at. Shannon county mo

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Joe - write us at [e-mail] and include the number of acres and closest town. This will help us bid on your project. Thanks!

[@johnrehkopf7970]

Great video. I am curious though how stand access comes into play?

[@GrowingDeerTV]

John - Daniel laid this plan out knowing the landowner could approach from any side of his property. How to approach, hunt, and exit is a very important part of any plan!

[@popejohnson5378]

Hi nice vid l love watching your videos

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Thanks Pope!

[@huntwarbukz4117]

Awesome info guys thx

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Thanks for watching!

[@travisethridge4062]

Very nice. Mineral hole, water hole, mock scrape between food and bedding and you got a deer or two spending a few more mins a day. Good luck buddy

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Thanks Travis!

[@mel_2506]

Yep, moving stands around and keeping feeders full and doing a little chainsaw work. The work is never done...

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Longhunter - Enjoy!

[@handlaidtrack]

I hope you do a follow up next year

[@stevebrown3408]

I'm starting to do a hardwood spot now and am interested in screening on 2 sides have logging roads on the line . Will cutting trees and letting stump sprout work but how long will that take ( all woods both sides ) Any other ideas ??

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Steve - unless the tree stumps are perfectly spaced I suspect there will be holes in the screen. You'd have to cut trees for some distance into the property.

[@stevebrown3408]

@@GrowingDeerTV What else would you try , being woods I do not think anything will grow ?

[@thesouthernlife4061]

Make a clear cut lane on both sides that the sun can reach the ground and native grasses will grow 4 or 5 feet within a year or so

[@maxtkach1186]

Anyway y’all could do a video on when to plant and what to plant at those times. Kind of a dummies guide to food plots. Awesome videos and a huge fan!!!

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Max - We'll be sharing a lot of that type of information soon! Stay tuned and/or checkout our past episodes on the subject. Checkout the food plot group on this channel.

[@thesouthernlife4061]

Trust me they have covered this before with over 500 videos just weed through and watch all the food plot videos u will learn alot

[@richarddean3154]

great video.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Thanks Richard!

[@keithday5290]

I would rather cut the pines to get sun on the ground and leave the cedars for cover,

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Keith - Deer will use cedars as cover when there's nothing better but the native grasses and forbs that will grow where the cedars are cut and burned provide better cover and way more food.

[@samuelpatton5148]

I’ve never understand how cedar thickets aren’t good cover, looks like the best possible cover to me.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Eastern Red Cedar shades out the ground so nothing grows below the canopy. Native grasses and forbs produce much thicker cover and food!

[@samuelpatton5148]

@@GrowingDeerTV so what’s the best option if I can’t use fire and can’t afford to bring in a bulldozer? Just cut them and leave them laying?

[@jeddiajones4570]

@@samuelpatton5148 Cut them up for firewood. If you can't use it yourself, sell it. You could also get a inexpensive chainsaw mill and cut the trees into planks and make some real change or see if there is a sawmill close by that would buy the logs.

[@usernamehere6061]

@@samuelpatton5148 Get a logger to come cut the large ones and make some money which you can use to pay a crew to come cut or doze out the remaining cedars.

[@Idgaf1776]

Cedar is good thermal coverage

[@redman4bills]

Mimicking the guy that normally does the videos makes me cringe. 🤢

[@thesouthernlife4061]

I was thinking the same kind of rides his rear end a good bit cringy good videos though

[@GrowingDeerTV]

Lee - I don't understand your comment. Daniel is a wildlife biologist and worked for the Colorado Department of Wildlife before working with me during the past six years.

[@thomaslehmann5981]

I dont think he is doing it purposely. If you are around someone every day its not unusual for mannerisms to rub off.

[@sport07-o2l]

Common purpose with common information. Plus, they’re family i think. Nevertheless, I think people pick up mannerisms and even speak similarly to each other, in certain circles. As far as mentioning the Creator, it is after all, His creation that He left us in charge of. People that unnecessarily point out the obvious makes me cringe. It’s kinda like trying to find a fault with the freedom they have in getting useful information to us, when we should just accept the way it comes and enjoy it. Safe journeys

[@Cycle4Life12]

Grant should be the only one allowed to do consults, but only because you have to make a living and make content. Your entire 'expertise' is thinking that it is actually a good idea to remove hardwoods (oak trees), from a forest or field, and that pine trees are 'good' for an ecosystem where it is actually invasive species. Maine was the original pine tree state. From West Virginia to Louisiana, you encountered different strains and layouts of hardwoods forest, fields, swamps, and mountain terrain. Greed brought the pine tree species to these states, and state and federal regulation did nothing to stop the spread before it was too late, and to preserve the hardwood forests. The combination of urban and city development, cul-de-sacs, corporations, and population increase has made it impossible at this point for any state to ever return to their ancestral ecosystems and wildlife habitat structures. Pine trees provide zero benefit to wildlife compared to hardwoods, hardwood timber may take longer to grow, but the ROI makes that wait worth it, but not with the impatient greed that runs 99% of the southeast states. Oak trees provide a massive food source every year given that drought, bugs and disease did not wipe them all out that year, but at least one species will produce. The constant burning of forests is a very new concept. Mother nature did not endure massive burns mirrored to what we do today but maybe once or twice every 50-100 years. In the southeast burns make way for gum trees and briars, instill shock and stress to hardwood species leaving them prone to a number of conditions including stunting growth, and delaying acorn crops another year or two. Most of the species growing in pine forests as a result from a burn are not preferred or even eaten by deer and turkey. Wildlife agencies and organizations are corrupt and paid off, forestry companies are only after one thing because they did not want a regular job and wanted that 'lazy' money. You may not disk the fields anymore, but look at everything else you are doing to the land long-term. Congratulations!

[@GrowingDeerTV]

I don't know where you receive this information but you were misguided. The southern states were originally pines on the dryer sites and hardwoods in the drains, etc. Early explorers documented this weill in their journals. They also documented the frequently of wildlife fire. In addition fire scars have been documented by looking at tree rings from long-lived trees. If you would like to learn more, I'll be happy to help.

[@ProjecthuntanFish]

​@@GrowingDeerTV Tall Timbers research center in Tallahassee Florida can confirm everything you wrote

[@johnsobj]

Wish you’d just stick with hunting too and leave the mythology out of it. #turtlesallthewaydown

[@GrowingDeerTV]

What mythology? Are you talking about my sharing about God? If so, I'd enjoy visiting with you. I look forward to your response.

[@jeddiajones4570]

Now explain why when Grant stated in another video that well-managed habit can hold one deer per one to two acres, but Daniel said in this video 20 acres isn't big enough to hold deer.

[@GrowingDeerTV]

I don't believe I've ever said that well-managed habitat can hold a deer per 2 acres. That would be 320 deer per square mile and lots of disease likely. If I did say that, please send a link and we'll correct! Thanks!

[@jeddiajones4570]

@@GrowingDeerTV Perhaps I misunderstood. I will look for the video. Thanks for the reply.