While talking with Tom on Warm Season Grasses (he does our instillation and is with the same company that I have been designated with the Certified Warm Season Grass Advisor), I mentioned that I was going to do a blog on Prairie Grasses and he mentioned he would also contribute! So here it is below with maybe another in the near future.
Quality Deer Habitat Management- more than just food plots – By Tom Schwartz
As I sat in my tree stand on January 14th with the temperature just breaking a bone chilling 20 degrees my thoughts quickly turned to the hopes and dreams of next year’s bow season. I looked around my tree stand thinking of all the ways I can improve my chances of attracting, seeing and harvesting the buck of a lifetime. Should I look into more food plots, escape cover… maybe it’s time to completely upgrade the tree stands, scent eliminating clothing, trail cams, bow, arrows, grunt-call heck maybe it’s time to purchase some new land.
I’m sure you have been there before; we all have. Now is the time to really start thinking about how you are going to improve your hunting property for next year. January through March is the best time of year to put your game plan together. You still have the season fresh in your mind, there is plenty of down time, you can walk the property and see the lay of the land better than any other time of year and best of all by planning now, you will have time to implement your habitat management strategy.
In the last 3 months, I have evaluated over 50 landowners’ properties and have written plans for over 4,000 acres of land. Most of these plans in one way or another focused on deer and deer hunting. One of the most sought after recommendations is for food plots and for obvious reasons such as:
Food plots attract deer
Food plots are easy to install
They are usually not too expensive
Everyone is planting them
Every deer hunting T.V. show, magazine and sport shops promote food plots
Landowners don’t know what else to do to hold or attract deer on their property
While food plots attract deer and in most cases are a necessary component of an overall deer habitat management plan, rarely are they the most important piece of habitat on the property. In almost every instance, the habitat component that is most lacking on property in Illinois is core bedding areas that also serve as escape cover.
What am I talking about? I’m talking about thick cover that provides a horizontal visual barrier. Cover that makes you have to step on a deer before it moves. I’m talking about cover that always seems to have that big buck hanging in it no matter how small the patch is. I’m talking about good thick stands of native grasses.
Think about it. Those of you that have put down your bow and picked up a shotgun, loaded up the bird dog and headed out pheasant hunting have certainly kicked up a monster buck as 2 roosters flew off unscathed because you were too busy gaping at the “wall hanger” wishing you could see a big boy like that when you are actually hunting them! Those of you that have CRP on your property know what I am talking about. It’s the last day of the gun season and you still haven’t shot a deer yet so you load up your buddies and “push” the CRP because that’s where the deer have “holed” up. The only flaw in that thought process is that you think they are “holed” up in the CRP indicating they usually don’t spend their time there.
Truth is the big buck has been in the tall thick grass all year. It’s called his core bedding area. It’s where he spends most of his time. It’s where he came from before he went to the food plot or started chasing does. It’s where he goes when he wants to rest. It’s where he goes when he wants to escape all kinds of different pressures. It’s where he returns time and time again. If tall native grass areas are where he starts and ends his daily movements and you have lots of it, you have a competitive edge over the deer and your fellow hunters on the adjacent piece of property.
So how much core bedding area is on your property? Would you like to have more? These are good questions and should be first and foremost on your mind as you put together your habitat management plan for next year. Did I spark your interest? If so, check out the next issue when we will address what are native grasses and where and how to plant them.
Tom Schwartz is a certified wildlife biologist. He earned his masters degree (Thesis: Factors Affecting Harvest Fawn:Doe Ratios in Illinois) from SIU-Carbondale. He resides in Petersburg, Illinois and is the senior wildlife biologist for Wildlife Management Solutions, LLC (www.wildlifemanagementsolutions.com 217-632-9914).
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Tags: Food plots, prairie grasses in Illinois, QDMA, Quality Deer Mangagement