#Forest Stand

Great deer habitat has tremendous value for other wildlife species. A great example is when you girdle and spray a low-value tree to admit sunlight into the woods, also known as Forest Stand Improvement. The dead tree, left standing, produces enormous value for cavity-nesting birds and small mammals, plus cover and food for reptiles, amphibians and insects. While you might be thinking of venison and antlers when you’re working on deer habitat, deer are only the beginning of a long list of species you’re helping! #foreststandimprovement #deerhabitat #wildlifehabitat #deer #nationaldeerassociation

#foodplots #hunting #nationaldeerassociation #foodplot #bigbuck

Steering Deer - High IQ Food Plot Strategy #deerhunting #foodplots

Our good friend Daniel Mallette from GrowingDeer TV makes a great point in this video 👀 If your deer numbers are too high, it doesn’t matter how good your food plot looks on paper — the herd will wipe it out. Managing deer numbers and increasing available food go hand in hand for a healthy herd and successful plots. This season is all about balance: smart harvest decisions, quality habitat, and the right food on the ground. What’s your plan this year — managing numbers, adding acres, or both? 🌱🦌 #PHOutdoors #GrowingDeerTV #DeerManagement #FoodPlots #HabitatManagement

Edge feathering is one of the best ways to improve adjacent bedding locations, improve daytime travel and use of larger food sources. When you cut trees on the edge, you’re creating: • Immediate and future food • Security cover • Thermal cover In addition to that, you are influencing bedding and daytime travel. By adding a primary layer of cover on the edge of a large open area, you will pull your doe bedding closer to the food, allow more space for bucks to bed nearby. Pro tips on edge feathering: 1) edge feather in the winter. Cut the trees and leave them lay for the deer to feed on for a few weeks prior to pushing them into piles. 2) cut the big trees first. Small trees after. 3) use your cut trees to create barriers or openings to make larger food sources hunt small, forcing deer to enter/exit in defined locations. 4) consistently monitor edges for invasive plants- that’s where they start their assault. If you need a good plan… I know a guy… #edgefeathering #chainsaw #deerfood #whitetaillandmanagement #holisticlandmanagement

Most Midwest properties I visit are missing the most important ingredient for holding older bucks. Cover. Not open hardwoods. Not “park-like” timber. Not clean and easy to walk through. Security. If you can see across your woods in late winter, an older buck doesn’t feel safe there during daylight in October. The fastest way to transform an open woodlot? A chainsaw. Open the canopy. Let sunlight hit the ground. Let stem counts rise. Let nature do what it’s designed to do. Within a couple growing seasons, that open timber becomes bedding. And bedding changes everything. Movement. Daylight activity. Property value. Hunting opportunity. Location of that bedding matters, a lot, but we’ll get into that later. If you’ve walked your woods this winter and realized it’s too open… this is your sign. It’s time to fire up that chainsaw!

Turning this ridge into a dream foodplot one day at a time! #deerseason #foodplots #wildlifehabitat #deer #logging @woodlandmills @maverickblinds

I’m not clearing woods… I’m growing deer habitat. This area had plenty of trees but almost no food or cover at deer level. A closed canopy blocks sunlight, and without sunlight the forest floor goes biologically quiet. By removing low-value saplings and mid-story trees, sunlight reaches the ground, tops become instant browse, and thick bedding cover begins to regenerate. ❄️ Winter is one of the best times to do this work — frozen ground, minimal stress on the forest, and groceries immediately available for deer. No herbicide used in this clip — just strategic cutting to start the process. (Invasives nearby are treated separately.) Habitat improvement isn’t about cutting more trees. It’s about growing the right forest. Follow along for real-world land management and habitat work. #HabitatManagement #WhitetailHabitat #DeerHabitat #LandManagement #ForestManagement WildlifeHabitat HabitatImprovement DeerManagement LandStewardship ChainsawWork HabitatWork WhitetailDeer OutdoorEducation PropertyManagement OhioOutdoors MidwestWhitetails

When legal, should I bait or supplementally feed deer on my hunting property? Question Answered! #farm #deer #habitat #outdoors #hunting

FOREST STAND IMPROVEMENT IS AN INCREDIBLE TOOL! With the exception of OAK STANDS, Big Woods are a Deer Food Desert. Great Article @deerassociation #whitetailhunting #mobilehunting #whitetailhunter #saddlehunting #padeerhunting

Yes, that’s right- “Whitetail Land Management” is failing you, your land and your deer herd. When a “whitetail consultant” brags that he walks 100+ properties a year throughout the country, do you think he is actually solving problems, or is he just selling products as bandaid solutions? Is he educating you, or telling you to “trust” his ideas? If you think that whitetail land management is positive for your deer herd, then why are our herds so weak? Habitat loss, herd imbalance, and increasing disease rates across the country, but you should probably plant more corn… yeah, that will help your hunting. Seriously folks, be wary of who you take advice from. Some of the biggest names in the industry have been leading you astray their entire career. What is their actual experience and education? Is a former high fence deer farmer a good person to make ecological decisions? How about a former used car salesman? How about a guy who bought and sold a few properties? Just because some kills big deer on their farm, doesn’t mean they are qualified to give you advice about yours. Everyone eats, but not everyone is a chef. With holistic hunting land management, we never assume- we have a process to collect data and solve problems and ALWAYS strive to learn more. We build resistant systems that save you money and make your hunting better, and make your land better for you and your family. And we kill as big or bigger bucks in the process! #holisticlandmanagement #theuntamedambition #whitetaillandmanagement #foodplotsfordeer #habitat

Deer bedding made simple. Create pockets, drop mature trees, and replant with Red Osier Dogwood cuttings for fast, thick cover 🦌🌱#fastgrowingtrees #redosierdogwood #deerhabitat