The ultimate food plot destination!
We will assist landowners with our experienced property consultants to help achieve the goals you may have for your property. It is likely we may even expand your vision and help you achieve more than you originally thought possible if you are dedicated to implanting the plan.
EvaluationWe start by listening to your goals and touring your property so we can help you develop a plan that best suits your needs and your property.
Getting boots on the ground is really the only way to truly evaluate a property and put together a comprehensive plan. While looking at a topographical map can certainly bring certain features to your attention and show you where some pinch points could be and potential stand locations, unless you go out and see what the terrain actually looks like, what trees are in those areas, and how deer are currently using the property, then it would be hard to put together a solid plan.
If you want to grow nutrient-dense food sources, then it all starts in the soil. So, step #1 is taking a soil sample to send to a trusted lab for an analysis. After the analysis is complete, our experienced agronomists will make recommendations on what to apply and match the right seed blend to your soil test results. If there are no food plots on the property, we will design them in the right place to allow good access to hunt them with the prevailing winds.
A herd analysis can help you get a good number of how many deer your property is currently holding and the buck-to-doe ratio of your property. This is valuable information and will help you determine how many deer you want to harvest this season. Ask for us to add this upgrade option to your consulting package to really take your land management to another level.
Habitat Planning
We will develop a detailed list of recommendations for hunting blind and stand placements, ideal food plot planting and suggested fertilizers, as well as any maintenance needed on your property.
After evaluating how the deer are currently using your property, we will make recommendations of what to do to influence their movement past the new blind and stand locations.
Placing food plots in the right locations will also help us connect the dots between bedding and food, which will be determined by the best access options for your property. Proper access and low amounts of human intrusion is one of the major keys to harvesting a mature buck. You need to be able to enter and exit your stand locations without alerting deer to consistently harvest mature buck.
Making sure that you have adequate amounts of bedding cover and browse is very important for all hunting properties.
If deer are not bedding on your property, you have a much smaller chance of harvesting them. But, if you can make your property a sanctuary and provide plenty of good browse, you will attract all the deer from the neighborhood and never have a shortage of wildlife.
Like the saying goes: "Build it and they will come."
What, where, and how to plant are all questions we can help you with after seeing what the limiting factors are in your area. With that and a soil test, we will help you choose what to plant to keep deer on your property, as their diet switches from summer to fall and then to winter.
With over 12 years of experience in the food plot industry, we can help you put together a buffet of diverse food sources that can feed and attract deer throughout the entire hunting season.
Again, using the soil test and working with your budget and goals, we will put together a plan of what to apply to the soil to help you grow some nutrient-dense food plots.
By applying Thunderstorm Fertilizer just before the season starts, you can increase forage quality and attraction to your plot. We can make custom fertilizer blends to meet your needs, but also have Nature's Trophy Blend, Cal Turf Pro (lime), and Antler Dirt as good pelletized options for the average food plot needs.
Assessing your timber and mast trees to see if you have a good food source coming from the trees while maintaining the future timber value is an important part of the planning process.
You should look at your woods as a crop that can produce lots of food for wildlife as well as a cash crop for the land owner to help get a return on investment.
Where it is legal to use, supplemental feeding can have a huge impact on herd health, especially in urban areas where you just do not have the acreage to sustain the deer population. This can also be a great way to lure them into shooting range in areas where you cannot plant food plots. Based on your goals and objectives, we will determine if supplemental feeding is right for your plan. Attractants are great for getting trail camera photos and doing a herd analysis late summer. Mineral sites are ways to help supplement trace minerals that can help buck express more of its antler growth potential.
We take hunting blind and tree stand placement very seriously, and believe it would be better to skip a day of hunting than to hunt from a tree stand on the wrong wind. Although each property is different, most properties can be set up with stand locations to hunt on the different winds. All stands will be more towards the exterior of the property with a hunt from the outside in and then have travel corridors influencing movement past the blinds or stands. Hunting blinds have been proven to help contain scent, conceal movement, and keep you comfortable to hunt all day in the rut and gun season. Access to these stand and blinds is an important part of the plan.
Whitetail deer are social, and communicate by dispersing glandular scents at scrapes, rubs, and trails. Placing mock scrapes using the Social Hub hemp ropes and using glandular scent can help you mimic nature and keep an inventory of what bucks are on your property.
Food plots, mineral sites, Social Hub scrapes, and intersecting travel corridors are all great places for trail cameras to keep an inventory of what is using your property and help you pattern your target buck.
You always want to try and face trail cameras toward the north were possible so you don't get direct sun that can trigger the camera.
We would recommend cell cameras on scrapes and close to bedding areas, so we are not introducing human scent which would stack the deck against us.
Delivery
Delivery of your ultimate food plot plan includes detailed property map, a written plan, and a custom food plot checklist tailored to your needs. We also give you an opportunity for a 1 hour call with John Stoltzfus to discuss the plans and answer any questions you may have.
We will design a map with icons showing the placement of all the food plots, stand and blind locations, as well as camera locations and water holes. You will want to look at the written property plan for the stand numbers and wind directions for each stand. Upgraded laminated maps can be purchased to place at your cabin or house to keep the plan in front of you.
Here is where all the details for the map icons are written and what will help you stay on course to accomplish your goals.
All stand locations are numbered, and fine details are listed for the improvements and maintenance of the property.
Here we will list detailed instructions for all the food plot planting and fertilizer recommendations, as well as maintenance needed for your perennial plots.
Soil test results will be included with this checklist, as well as any fruit tree and chestnut plantings that are recommended.
Food Plot Seeds
