Drury outdoors, DNR roung table....great job

[Hardwood11]

In MN we are going to have to burn all the big cattail sloughs and all the large timber areas, because in the winter all the deer concentrate in those areas. My 40 borders 700 acres of timber and every deer within a 3-4 township area is in the timber from December to March, regardless of food plots or not.

We probably should remove all the cover then, because I'd hate to have one sneeze on another and spread some germs

Guys, c'mon food plots help deer, they do not hurt deer!

 

[Cooter]

Just giving my opinion take it however you want. I am not jealous I have places I could plant food plots and I am not holy.

 

[Sligh1]

Please answer previous question- do u hunt deer going to and coming from corn, bean or alfalfa fields? Hunt on them? Choose ur spots based on where deer are feeding and which of those food sources is good at the time?

 

[Cooter]

Ag waste is total different from a food plot. Something that is planted with the intention of never being harvested.

Already answerer that.

 

[THA4]

Pretty shallow argument, dude. What's the difference between TSI or CRP implementation and food plots??? there is actually no difference.... its all habitat and wildlife improvement

and the difference between a food plot and bait piles is immense, however you still gotta hunt em at the right time. Food plots are just a part of the game and make the chase more interesting while offering the deer more nutritional value to their feeding. They are strategically placed and all the conditions that would affect a hunt that is not over a food plot must come together, still.....

To say you are against food plots, yet still hunt in Iowa is flat out hypocritical.... one and the same.....

if you owned the land and had the money/time I know you would put food plots in too... thats the bottom line.

 

[Hardwood11]

Cooter--Do you ever hunt over an oak tree (acorns). How about near a creek (water source). Do you feel it is ok to plant oak trees and/or apple trees for create a farm pond?

Just wondering you draw the line.

 

[dedgeez]

So in essense what your saying is that........ If a farmer plants it, it's A ok to hunt over, but if a deer hunter or land manager plants it, it should be off limits? Hmmm, seems a little odd. And to further dig into your theory of "farming for wildlife" what is the problem with that? With your way of thinking there should be no CRP, no TSI, no wildlife management areas, etc. What about QDMA, RMEF, Pheasants Forever, DU, Ruffed grouse society, Delta waterfowl, etc, who are all for the benefit of our game birds and species, and work at improving habitat and food sources for that identified species? I suppose you have a problem with what Teddy Roosevelt established with our National Parks and wildlife restoration areas? I could go on and on about National wildlife organizations that are stewards of our land and wildlife, but I suppose you hate all of them as well. I guess because we do all this work on our land and then enjoy it by hunting it that we are just GREEDY as you say. I apologize for my greedy ways

 

[SaskGuy]

I love these threads and take each comment with a grain of salt as I hope people take mine. We all see things differently and it gets even moreso that way when personal attachment to the "thing" in ? is being discussed.

I'm not against food plots either. I stated earlier that in many cases there are huge benefits. I also stated that like the commercial I spoke of showcased they also are a way to manipulate the land to maximize one's success, unfortunately at the expense of others that do not have the land, time, $ etc to do the same on the property they hunt.

I also see the merit in Skip's thoughts about helping in hard times when deer are over carrying capacity but then if they are over capacity maybe there are too many animals? I know winter takes care of what it deems too many up in these parts.

I also have openly stated numerous times that I personally do not see the difference in a food plot and a bait pile. I know most people here think differently especially those that plant their own plots. When i see a video of someone sitting on the edge of a standing bean field in January with a smokepole in hand in Iowa I liken it to seeing Shockey sitting in a brushy, semi open area in Saskatchewan with a weird of pile of deadfall scattered out in the middle. (Where the bait is hidden from the camera). In both instances deer are flocking to food, their survival instimct makes them. You know the deer are coming, it's matter of if they do in the daylight. I'm no expert but I'd also guess those who are successful at baiting strategically pick their spots too. Am I the only one who sees that the bait pile doesn't take away from what is natural wildlife habitat but the plot is done on a chunk of tillable dirt that was taken from what was a natural vegetation place? Yes the food plot is improvement for wildlife but is placed on what was removed from wildlife......not sure if that makes sense.

As I age I worry a bit less about what other's view as right or wrong I just worry about hunting the way I have been successful, and yes that is using 160 acres of alfalfa against miles of timber to my personal advantage.

I do find it a bit bizarre that so much concentration is done to take care of whitetails but we leave all other species of big game to pretty much take care of themselves.

 

[dedgeez]

I do find it a bit bizarre that so much concentration is done to take care of whitetails but we leave all other species of big game to pretty much take care of themselves.

No offense Kaare, but I disagree with this statement. See my above post for examples. It's just that this is a whitetail forum so that is the subject that is most likely to be discussed. My bro lives in Wyoming and believe me, the landowners out there are just as passionate about their animals as we are in the midwest. Easy example is to look at how intense the Ranchers are about the wolf population and the effect it has had on the Elk around Yellowstone. I think world wide that all sportsman overall are pretty passionate about the quarry they pursue. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think so!

 

[THA4]

Kaare, Pheasants Forever and Ducks Unlimited are far larger organizations than Whitetails Unlimited. IN fact, if it weren't for those two organizations its hard to say where our ducks and cock birds would be today. They have had tremendous impacts on all the species fitting into their genres.

Not arguing, just stating that there is a lot of other efforts being fronted to preserve and grow other species that are very comparable, if not more prevalent than whitetail conservation. Here is my opinion when comparing a bait pile to food plot.
Bait Pile = Pile/short term
Food Plot = field/long term

The deer will ultimately end up at the bait pile, thus concentrating their movement to a specific spot. A food plot leaves where they choose to feed entirely up to the deer... in range or not. A smaller food plot might be more like a bait pile, but in most cases they are substantially larger than a small pile of bait.

In addition, food plots help relieve stress on wintering animals as the food is available throughout the cold season, or until the food is fed out. A bait pile offers no longterm advantage for the deer because as soon as a deer is shot or the season ends, it is not stocked anymore. I know a ton of food plots that have helped sustain lots of deer through the tough winter conditions that are known to be associated with late January and February.

I used to be dead set against baiting until I hunted in areas where it was necessary, or you just don't shoot a deer. There is a time and a place for baiting, just not in Iowa IMO.

Again, not to be argumentative, :grin:
:way:


Back to the primary discussion:
Both PF and DU create havens for their animals through habitat improvement, but those guys don't blink an eye killing a duck over a small pond or a pheasant out of an acre of CRP. Just sayin'

 

[Sligh1]

I assure you (not bragging up my abilities here) I would shoot the same amount of mature bucks each year with our without the plots on my land. 1-2 max. I could shoot 3. Who is being greedy? If it was just about greed and killing all these bucks, I'd take 3, take a few more with party hunting gun tags, have my buddies kill a few and a few kids I know - we'd have 15-20 bucks down each year. Instead, I limit myself and allow a few close family & friends to shoot a select # of mature deer. Opposite of greed if you ask me. I also say I make my neighbor's land a heck of a lot better. They in turn have bigger deer, more bucks and bigger bucks. I know for a fact their hunting is better. I am happy about that too. I also have had neighbors that destroy their land with cows, don't put a drop of sweat into improving habitat or the neighborhood and have a group of guys gun-drive it every day and take 15-20 bucks out in a season (yes, you read that right). Who is the one that's "GIVING" to a neighborhood and who is "greedy" according to that logic?

Cooter- you still haven't answered my question.....
Do you hunt corn, beans or alfalfa? Do you hunt deer traveling to and from them? Do you adjust your hunting based on what they are going to for food of these sources?
**OK, I see your answer and I see it's been responded to. OK- if I plant 50 acres of corn & beans- BAD. If a farmer plants 50 acres of corn & beans- it's ok to hunt over and hunt deer utilizing. OK- got it, we're clear. I just needed to know where that line was drawn and needed to understand how that logic of that line is derived. Got it.

Is CRP and creating native grasses not ok too? It creates bedding and cover deer are "attracted to" and really- one could set a stand up right on a 5 acre switchgrass planting and do great during the rut.

I have 10 acre food plots for example. ROUGHLY 480,000 square feet. I actually don't hunt on them except for a few times during late season. With food plots or no food plots, I'll be taking 1 to 2 bucks off my place every year.

480,000 square feet that doesn't get "hunted on" very often (more for health, YES- keeping deer on land, improving herd, helping with winters, fawns, rutted out bucks, etc) VS let's say 15 square feet that's dumped down to hunt over and attract that deer to that exact spot. If I sat on one end of my 10 acres it would be 700 feet to the other end. But again, I'm really hardly hunting them (and a lot of folks) and have so many other motives for putting them there - which I'd say a bait pile is a single motive effort. I want to and do help turkeys, quail, pheasants, fawns, does, stressed bucks I don't plan to shoot, etc.


NOT THAT IT MATTERS BUT.... I was just thinking about it..... in the last 10 years, I haven't shot ONE buck over a food plot. Not one. Nothing wrong with it if I had BUT I haven't. I have shot some does over my bean plot and passed hundreds of nice bucks over the years over my beans but actually never killed one. I hope to sometime. I've killed every buck in 10+ years with my bow in the timber. I have killed at least 1 5.5 year old or older buck for the last 7 years - all with my bow in the timber. Just an interesting thought I realized. This year I hope is the year I get a buck with my ML late season, sure is fun to mix it up and be out there watching some dandies outta my warm blind. Absolutely love it!

 

[wernerjd]

Yep!

Bottom line is the anti-Drury crowd is nothing more than jealous... that or ignorant... hahahaha

Its people like you that I can't stomach. If you only knew what Drury's get away with you would feel the same way. I own three hundred acres in Clarke county with no food plots. Don't care to have them. There are plenty of fields to hunt. With the addition to my farm our ORANGE ARMY hunts about 600 acres of private and 600 acres of ground we get by knocking on door. What happens to just plain old hunting a buck like my grandpa did 20 years ago. No food plots, decoys, fancy clothing, and calls. Just plain old out smarting a big buck. Drury's are more shady than what you know. They have tried to run us off ground we hunted for year. That have drove through there fields and our telling us we can't hunt there. When we tell them to call the DNR they turn the other way. If you don't hunt next to them or with in a close distance, keep your mouth shut.
Not saying that plots are good or bad. We have shot several bucks over 150 or even 160. Which I thank are good bucks. Jealous my ass I own my ground and hunt plenty of others. Some of our bucks are of same quality as there's. What more would I want.
You need to get a grip on things and realize your the one that is greedy and jealous. You need every advantage you can to get a big buck whether it mean planting food plots or buying the best clothing or whatever.
And for the less fortunate that don't own land, there are other ways to be successful without being jealous or having food plots.

 

[wernerjd]

Double post

 

[6x6]

So surrounding them with your orange army and herding them like cattle is outsmarting them?

 

[THA4]

hahahaha, ya, whatever.... If I had the Orange Army running by my land, Id be out there too making sure they weren't breaking the law, too. sounds justified to me considering all the shotgun only idiots out there that don't keep the law and fair chase in mind... NICE avatar pic by the way..... hope you're proud of it! You just got a chip on your shoulder... its people like YOU that I can't stomach.... Always out to mar a successful persons image cause YOU couldn't do what they did.... I highly doubt anything you say in this regard holds any water. Just simple jealousy.
:moon:

 

[SaskGuy]

No offense Kaare, but I disagree with this statement. See my above post for examples. It's just that this is a whitetail forum so that is the subject that is most likely to be discussed. My bro lives in Wyoming and believe me, the landowners out there are just as passionate about their animals as we are in the midwest. Easy example is to look at how intense the Ranchers are about the wolf population and the effect it has had on the Elk around Yellowstone

No offense taken, we're all just feeding each other food for thought. I understand the situation with the elk, I also understand alot of the issues are a result of the planting of what many consider a non native Canadian wolf, the same argument cannot be made about whitetails in food plot country, at least that I am aware. Yes. some may go on and on about wolves in MN or Wi, but their #'s are a drop in the bucket compared to here. What about Moose, or mule deer, or pronghorn, or bighorn sheep mountian goat etc.....? The anser is simple in that they cannot be "farmed" for lack of a better word like whitetails.

Kaare, Pheasants Forever and Ducks Unlimited are far larger organizations than Whitetails Unlimited. IN fact, if it weren't for those two organizations its hard to say where our ducks and cock birds would be today. They have had tremendous impacts on all the species fitting into their genres

In agree wholeheartedly Thomas but I was just thinking big game. I believe deer numbers in the US and Canada are now far superceding what they were 50 yrs ago. The poplulation boom came before food plots started carrying deer through winter.

You are indeed right that the long term benefits of food plots are more than a bait pile, I do agree with that, but I just do not see a huge difference in what each of them will do during hunting season. What about the guys that "bait" yr round? I know there are people in the southern portions of our province that do as bears are not an issue there. I believe you know one of them. Do those baits provide the same benefits as food plots if maintained yr round.

The deer will ultimately end up at the bait pile, thus concentrating their movement to a specific spot. A food plot leaves where they choose to feed entirely up to the deer... in range or not.

If my math is correct thereare not many places on say a 2 acre patch of standing beans where a cooker buck would be safe with a modern inline smokepole. I agree that IA is likely a place for baiting but feel that during the late season it has the same effect. I could say that I don't believe it should happen anywhere there is agriculture but my personal views won't make the laws change here or anywhere for that matter.

 

[THA4]

Not trying to pick a fight Thomas, let's just try and keep emotion out of these hot button threads.

Fair enough :way: but I'm hardly the first one in this thread to spout off... that same advice should be given to about 75% of the posters on this thread... just sayin'.
:drink1:

 

[Sligh1]

If my math is correct thereare not many places on say a 2 acre patch of standing beans where a cooker buck would be safe with a modern inline smokepole.

In reality- I could do the same thing on a 100 acre ag field. HOW you say?!?!? In reality, with any knowledge of the area- you know where the deer are gonna come out, you know how to set up on a big corn field and any hunter with any intelligence knows where the secluded parts of the field are where the bucks will feed. I think with 2 or 3 nights a guy could pin-point within a few hundred yards where the big buck is gonna be in any size field, especially with a ML or a rifle. Difficult with a bow BUT so is hunting a 5 acre food plot.
Ag field or 10 acre plot, really what happens in the end and how the whole scene, approach and hunt goes down will be almost the same and is splitting hairs.

 

[THA4]

Well said, Skip.

 

[SaskGuy]

Sorry for the above comment Thomas, in my skimming I missed the first stone thrown, not by you.

Skip, what you said is true, but lots of variables obviously, weapon being the biggest one. I realize you bow hunt for bucks but it is not indeed factual to represent that all food plot hunting is bow hunting.

I think with 2 or 3 nights a guy could pin-point within a few hundred yards where the big buck is gonna be in any size field, especially with a ML or a rifle. Difficult with a bow BUT so is hunting a 5 acre food plot.

I would think the weapon of choice would not dictate how easy it would be to pinpoint where a buck would be, it could make the task at hand simpler but not the pinpointing issue as you stated.
At the end of the day we all see things differently. Lots of people hate baits but have no problem dumping one on a food plot. Many people aren't impressed with a deer unless it is killed with a bow, some people hate drives while others have deep tradition and family times rooted there...the list goes on and on. To me a deer is a deer, if it is killed legally who am I to judge the person or the method in which it is taken. If we all thought the same thing what would we have to discuss?