QUESTION: The deer concession next to me has been clear cut...hardly a tree left. I am thinking/hoping those deer will be coming to my green fields this year. What can I plant that will provide lots and lots of forage for an increase in deer? Do I double plant what I have used? Is there another suggestion? — Bart L.
ANSWER: I can’t be too specific without more detailed information on your area but I can offer some general suggestions. The first is: give deer more of what they need.
Habitat consists of food, water and cover. If your neighboring property was clearcut, that suggests much of the cover and possibly the food has been eliminated - temporarily. Depending on how that land is managed in the future, that could change. With more sunlight, cut-over areas could quickly grow back into dense cover with plenty of woody browse and natural herbaceous vegetation.
You want to get those deer over on your property and conditioned to being there before that happens. The more dense cover you have, the more time they’ll spend bedding there. If that type of cover is currently limited, you could create more with some hinge cuts, CRP or light thinning.
You hinted that you already have some food plots (green fields). If possible, try to put at least 25 percent of your property into food plots. Also make sure you have a good mix of warm and cool season plots so you are providing year-round nutrition rather than just fall attractants. If your neighbor cut hardwoods, you may also gain an advantage if you have older mast-producing trees like oaks. You might consider thinning around some of the younger ones to remove competition and promote growth. You could also plant hard (oaks, chestnuts) and soft (apples, pears, persimmons) mast producers.