New to deer management looking for advice

[One Big Buck]

I recently took the plunge and bought a 40 acre farm. I'm excited to get started making improvements but I was wondering if you all would be willing to give me some expert opinions. Attached below you will see several pictures from Google Earth. The colors on the pictures represent the following:

Red - Property boundry
Green - Soybean field boundry
Orange - Old Railroad right of way
Blue - Creek
Yellow - Potential sanctuary

The first two pictures are a direct overhead of the property, one is the property itself, the other shows a wider view with surronding property. The next four pictures show the topography from the north, south, east and west. The final picture is a snapshot of the potential sanctuary.

Now to my question, since I just bought the property I believe I will have to wait one year before I can enroll it in any programs. Is there anything I can do this year to start establishing the sanctuary? As you can see from the photo the sanctuary was not planted last year, I'm assuming because it was too wet. Would switchgrass be an option here? If so, what would be the best method to clean up the area (mowing, discing)? I'm open to any suggestions for the property, what would you do?

Overhead (Property)

Overhead (Surronding)

Topography (from north)

Topography (from south)

Topography (from east)

Topography (from west)

Potential Sanctuary

 

[iowaqdm]

Are you concerned about income from the tillable ground or are you more concerned with trying to make it a hunting property?

 

[One Big Buck]

I'm interested in making it a hunting property.

 

[dbltree]

bought a 40 acre farm. I'm excited to get started making improvements

That's awesome...and exciting but one thing you will need to start with is patience...

If you haven't already, take a look thru the threads in dbltree's corner for lots of ideas and "how toos"

Dbltree's Corner

Native grasses like switchgrass may work well in the open fields but if you take time to read the thread you'll see that the first step is to kill all of the cool season grasses that are there. That is best done in late summer and early fall and then the seed needs to be frost seeded in February of next year.

In your case the best method of preparing is to plant (or have someone plant for you) RR soybeans so that you can kill the sod and have a perfect bare soil surface to broadcast switchgrass seed into next winter.

Take a look at the edgefeathering/hinging thread for ideas on how to thicken up your existing timbered areas and look in the tree planting thread because shrubs and conifers are the ultimate plantings to create safe secure bedding sanctuaries.

Contact your IDNR forester and start learnig about your timber, get a Forest Stewardship program in place, read the thread on Timber Stand Improvment and apply for cost share to do TSI.

Amazing how much you can accomplish with a chainsaw...:way:

 

[One Big Buck]

Thanks Dbltree. I have been reading your threads here as well as on the QDMA. In fact I just read through your hinging thread on outreach outdoors earlier this evening. Definitely sounds like a good first step for me. I've read about the frost seeding of switchgrass technique outlined in your corner. I guess my question was is it even feasible for me to think about frost seeding this year given the current state of the field? How should I go about preparing the site for RR soybeans? Is plowing the best option? Or maybe mowing? Also, just want to thank you for your contributions and knowledge sharing. I don't have a farm background, so I have a lot to learn. I have to admit I've had to google several terms I've come across but I've learned an incredible amount in the last three weeks.

 

[ironwood]

Sweet looking property. I have beeen luchy enought to have walk this spot and the possibilities are many.

 

[bukket]

What are you entry points? It looks to me like you'll have to approach any stand from the west...probably from that dead end gravel road.

If that's the case you'll be blowing scent into that sanctuary (with a prevailing west wind) from the time you step foot on your ground.

Have you thought about moving the sanctuary a hop to the south where that field curls back into a corner? That would keep your core bedding area off a fence/border to your property and also allow you to plant a little honey hole food plot in that sanctuary area you're considering. You could hinge cut a funnel from the sanctuary to the south right into that little corner to the north.

 

[dbltree]

How should I go about preparing the site for RR soybeans? Is plowing the best option? Or maybe mowing?

One thing you haven't shared with us is what your capabilities are? Do you have your own equipment or a neighboring farmer that can do field work for you?

Not knowing for certain at this point what you can and can't do I'll throw out a couple of options.

My first choice would be to mow the field in early spring, spray the re-growth with roundup and then have it no-till planted to RR soybeans.

No tillage required nor needed unless the field is very rough.

If no-till is not an option I would stil start with mowing and spraying, then till it up and either broadcast seed or drill it in.

Keep the beans sprayed with glyphosate as needed and there is more on that subject on the Corn and Soybean thread.

I strongely encourage you to NOT plant switch this year, to allow you time to kill the grasss that are there.

I love NWSG but it is not an instant cureall for your habitat short comings, it's only one tool and it will be a useless one if not properly established....

 

[One Big Buck]

Bukket-
You are correct, the only entry point is the northwest corner. I've thought about the wind direction issue, but there is quite a bit of elevation difference from the sanctuary, so that may mitigate that to some degree. Placing the sanctuary along the fence does concern me. There is an existing stand across the fence, so I thought about some sort of screen to help minimize that issue.

 

[One Big Buck]

Thanks dbltree. I don't own any equipment. I do have access to a small (28 hp) tractor with a 4 ft. mower (3 pt. hitch). Should I be thinking about locating the sanctuary in a different spot? I'm not oppossed to changing the tillable if that's the best option.

 

[dbltree]

Thanks dbltree. I don't own any equipment. I do have access to a small (28 hp) tractor with a 4 ft. mower (3 pt. hitch). Should I be thinking about locating the sanctuary in a different spot? I'm not oppossed to changing the tillable if that's the best option.

A sanctuary is a safe secure unmolested area where deer can bed, browse and loaf so here are some thoughts ot consider.

NWSG provides awesome screening and cover but deer generally don't seek it out if burshy more natural habitat is available. Mature bucks love the solitude that NWSG provides but they will usually seek out areas on the side of a ridge or at least a rise where they can face approaching danger, yet escape over the ridge.

Low areas such as you have pictured are first of all, wet...not the kind of place where one wants to bed unless on a hot summer day perhaps.

Secondly they tend to feel "trapped"...think of battle fields, no commander is going to position his troops in a hole! He wants them up high for the exact same reason deer choose, to face attack and have time for a retreat using the high area as cover as they do.

EVERY piece of your property is useful but use it in the right ways to maximize the habitat benefits.

You will need food sources...have you thought about renting some of the ground to a local farmer in turn for leaving some of the crops standing?

What is the timber like? I would focus my attention there because you can create the beginnings of a sancutary there within hours and deer will begin using it overnight!

Think brush and trees before NWSG and think about the best use for the open ground and what portions may be best for NWSG?

Remember you should be able to sign up for REAP cost share for tree planting, TSI and native grass plantings to ease the cost and allow you to do more/better habitat improvments...

 

[One Big Buck]

Thanks dbltree. That helps me. Yes I do have a farmer to cash rent the ground. I like your analogy of a battlefield, that makes sense to me. I do have some timber areas in mind for sanctuaries, that seems to be my first logical step. I'll just need to determine what makes sense for the open areas. Maybe farming the whole thing isn't such a bad thing?

 

[dbltree]

Maybe farming the whole thing isn't such a bad thing? <!-- / message -->

It might not be a bad idea to start with and then eventually if you find there are some areas better off in NWSG, the "sod killing" will be out of the way.

Farming it for three years (unless the rules have changes) you give you a chance at some continuous CRP programs and more cost share programs.

Leave a 5 acres of corn standing and see where alll the deer are in late fall...talk about a sanctuary!

Leave a few acres of soybeans standing and you'll be over run with deer in December.

I like a combination of corn, soybeans and alfalfa if you have a neighboring farmer interested in planting all three. At worst there should be a farmer willing to plant corn and soybeans and leave some standing in lieu of the rent...:way:

 

[BigTypical]

Looks sweet !!! A great looking farm to get the big boys cruising through and then let your friends give them a dirt nap. Congratulations you dirt farmer!

 

[One Big Buck]

I like a combination of corn, soybeans and alfalfa if you have a neighboring farmer interested in planting all three. At worst there should be a farmer willing to plant corn and soybeans and leave some standing in lieu of the rent...:way:

I like the idea of providing two or three crops, that hadn't occurred to me as a possibility. What do you think of putting alfalfa in the "proposed sanctuary" and then making the long finger of the soybean field into half corn and half soybeans to leave it standing? Can you plant beans on beans? I know corn on corn requires special preperation. Should I think about forage soybeans, or would RR soybeans be a better choice.

 

[One Big Buck]

Looks sweet !!! A great looking farm to get the big boys cruising through and then let your friends give them a dirt nap. Congratulations you dirt farmer!

Thanks, I'm anxious to get you and Wally down there to take a look! What are friends for, right. Of course, it might be more of an earn a buck program paid with some sweat equity! Lots of potential, only nine months to the rut!

 

[dbltree]

I like the idea of providing two or three crops, that hadn't occurred to me as a possibility. What do you think of putting alfalfa in the "proposed sanctuary" and then making the long finger of the soybean field into half corn and half soybeans to leave it standing? Can you plant beans on beans? I know corn on corn requires special preperation. Should I think about forage soybeans, or would RR soybeans be a better choice.

Alfalfa might be a good option close to cover where deer are likely to put the most pressure on any food source.

Generally farmers are going to rotate corn and beans and any field can be split or two fields rotated so there is no real reason to go back to back corn or beans.

That being said, modern Yieldguard seed can be used and crops can be planted corn on corn for years if need be,

personally I don't reccommend forage beans because they are summer/early fall forage beans and then frost kills them right smack in the middle of hunting season and deer often won't touch them for 2-3 weeks during that dry down period.

We want dried down bean pods to be available during November thru January at which point the whole place becomes a deer magnet.

I like regular early maturing high yielding soys that will dry down in late August/early September...this allows you to broadcast winter rye into the standing beans and double the attractiveness of your beans. :way:

 

[DarkArcher]

DBLTREE - Will the winter Rye grown if just broadcast into a soy bean field in late August/Early September or do you need to get it into the ground? Will this take away or cause any issues for the farmer harvesting his soy beans? This seems like a great option for a few farms I hunt.

 

[dbltree]

DBLTREE - Will the winter Rye grown if just broadcast into a soy bean field in late August/Early September or do you need to get it into the ground? Will this take away or cause any issues for the farmer harvesting his soy beans? This seems like a great option for a few farms I hunt.

Winter rye is commonly over seeded into standing soybeans or even corn that will be chopped for silage, often via airplane. With decent rainfall if wil germinate and grow with no tillage whatsoever.

If you look back in the cereal grain and brassica threads you'll see where I overseeded it last fall into heavily grazed brassicas. There is also a post showing WR growing in soybeans in the cereal grain thread.

In the case of soybeans, broadcast WR at 100-150#'s per acre into standing soybeans 2-3 weeks ahead of leaf drop. Usually about the time they start turning.

The rye will only get 3-5" tall so it won't cause any issue's for harvesting :way:

 

[goatman]

Sweet looking forty. Ever think about buying the rest of the timber to the creek? Would really set you up even in the rut.