Deer Management Program Need Help

T

TrevorMack

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Nova Scotia
So I have recently been given a large piece of land from my step grandfather which I am able to do as I please with it. There are several large bucks with a whole lot of smaller bucks and does/fawns. I have decided to starting after this season do a lot of work to this land and also start a deer management program on the land to "TRY" to produce some big big bucks. I am planting a 2 acre food plot in the spring splitting it into 2 1 acre plots on will be annuals(Whitetail Institute Winter Greens), for the later season and a 1 acre lot of perennials(Whitetail Institute Clover or Fusion) for the early "growing season".
Now this will be my first time growing a food plot so I dont expect it to kick off right away and start producing monsters this will be a long term thing but for the first while is there anything I should do or not do to help grow these deer to their full potential. What deer to take, what deer to leave, anything else I should plant, grow or install?

I am the only one with access to hunting this land, will be me and my father but thats it so the deer that get taken will be very selective. Anyone who does this on their land or help someone would love to hear what you do or dont do. Thanks, Trevor..
 
How many acres? I currently have 300 acres and the deer move off and on often. I tried to produce big bucks by leaving big ones for next year only to have it on someone elses wall.

I prefer peas or corn for my food plots. I dont have the equipment but pay my neighbour to do it. The peas and corn also brings in geese and other critters. One thing I did that was a huge time savor was trail cameras that text me the photos. I have the spypoint mms cameras out there. They are awesome. 20$ a month each with telus tho.
 
Its about 3500 acres total that I have access to, about 100 of that is fields where I am able to plant, the rest is mostly wooded with some swamp a pond and a lake.
 
I'm envious. I'd love to be able to do that. I can't add much, except that if you want to shoot a big buck, don't shoot a small one. It takes a bit of determination to leave a small buck to grow up, and it may mean not shooting a deer at all for a year or two.
 
If the property is in NS, you can't legally keep hunters off of the forested portions, unless they're being actively worked. It'll be difficult to manage the population with all of the outside "help".

Food plots and crop selections for the cleared portions will help the deer over all for sure, and permission is required for hunting on ag land.
 
nexgen said:
If the property is in NS, you can't legally keep hunters off of the forested portions, unless they're being actively worked. It'll be difficult to manage the population with all of the outside "help".

Food plots and crop selections for the cleared portions will help the deer over all for sure, and permission is required for hunting on ag land.
Click to expand...

You can't post your own property to prevent trespassing? WOW! That's news to me regardless of where you live.

Do you have a link to substantiate this?

Cheers
Jay
 
Why not start now ... and posting is a good idea if you're going to do some (cahinsaw) clearing of the forested portions to open up some "edge" ... allowing sunlight to get through the canopy to generate new growth below. Laying down a few maples so the deer can get at the tops to browse over the winter may help a lot too. Winter seems to be the time of their greatest nutritional needs.
 
Jay said:
You can't post your own property to prevent trespassing? WOW! That's news to me regardless of where you live.

Do you have a link to substantiate this?

Cheers
Jay
Click to expand...

Only in Nova Scotia, but for their it is illegal to stop hunters or fishermen from coming on your property to hunt/ fish your streams, creeks and lakes.
 
surplusshooter said:
Only in Nova Scotia, but for their it is illegal to stop hunters or fishermen from coming on your property to hunt/ fish your streams, creeks and lakes.
Click to expand...

That puts a different spin on things. It will be very difficult to manage for size or age with the "brown it's down" crowd in there. I thought Ontario was bad, but it seems the farther east you go the more fruked up the laws become.
 
Look for something called Total Quality Deer Management, they propose culling some does and substandard racked bucks so there is more room for the more impressive bucks to breed. Now as far as I know culling is illegal in Canada but if you invite some friends to tag out on your land with specific instructions about which deer they can take it would work like a cull, but you will have to police your friends and uninvite friends who break the rules
 
The Protection of Property Act states that it is an offence to do any of the following activities on property without the permission or consent of the occupier:
(a) enter on premises that is a lawn, garden, orchard, vineyard, golf
course, or acreage managed for agricultural crops;
(b) enter on premises that is apparently a tree plantation area or a
Christmas tree management area;
(c) enter on premises that is enclosed in a manner that indicates the
occupier’s intention to keep persons off the premises or to keep
animals on the premises;
(d) dump or deposit material of any kind or causes, or permit material
to be dumped or deposited on premises;
(e) enter on premises where entry is prohibited on the premises by notice;
(f) engage in an activity that is prohibited on the premises by notice.
Upon conviction, a fine of up to five hundred dollars may be levied.
A notice given pursuant to this Act may be oral or in writing and may be given respecting any part of the land of an occupier.
It is an offence to remain on property after being directed to leave by the occupier or person authorized by the occupier.
However, no person may be prosecuted for contravening any notice under the act if that person is on forest land and is lawfully hunting, camping, berry picking or hiking.
“Forest land” means a wooded area, forest stand, tract covered by underbrush, barren ground, marsh or bog, but does not include:
(a) an area which is apparently a tree plantation area or a Christmas
tree management area;
(b) a special forestry study area;
(c) the immediate area where any activity is apparently being carried
out on woodlands for the purpose of harvesting a forest product;
(d) a commercial berry growing area.
For further information about the trespass laws, please refer to the
7
8
Protection of Property Act online at nslegislature.ca/legc/statutes/ protect.htm which is administered by the Department of Justice through local police departments.


As far as I know NS is the only province set up like this, mostly because the province is 75% privately owned, as long as it's straight forest land, you can post it, but a hunter can walk past the signs with 0 consequences.
 
You have 3500 acres under your control? With the very limited information you have provided about the property here's my suggestions as a starter. You are going to need to involve several people to help manage the property if you intend on actually improving the quality and quantity of wildlife on a property of that size.

Please review my educational thread entitled: 8 Management Principles Guaranteed to Boost Your Lands Wildlife Populations...page 5 or 6 of the threads.

Get a Conservation Easement

If you intend on preserving and improving the property for it's natural value and wildlife, you might want to contact Nature Conservancy of Canada - and ask about a conservation easement. They will pay you per acre to put an easement of the property. This is something I am in the process of doing on my property which is 1/7th the size of yours.

An easement is a legally binding contract that is transferable with the title of the property and will restrict certain activities on the property that might be detrimental to it's value for wildlife. For example a no clearcut, no drain, or no break clause. You can tailor the easement to suit your wishes. You can take the money they give you and use it to finance certain activities that benefit the property like gates at public access points or building materials for blinds and tree stands.

You may also want to involve an investor or outfitter to generate income from the property while improving it's ability to retain, attract, and improve the quality and quantity of wildlife on the property. You yourself may want to become an outfitter and hire guides to actually bring people into the property to help you selectively harvest certain deer or bears off the property while generating cash to put back into the property. At 3500 acres, your property will produce far more animals than you can legally harvest and to speed up the management plan your going to need to actually cull certain deer to fast track the genetic you want.

Or don't involve anyone if you don't want to. But remember that there are hunters out there that are willing to help you improve your property with sweat equity. Use these die hard hunters or naturalists to your advantage, they will become assets to fast tracking your management plan as long as you find the right guys to help move things along.
 
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Dogleg said:
If you can't control the access you're beat before you start. Plant some
Lure crops and hope
For The best.
Click to expand...

That'd be my read too.

The amount of work and money you are willing to spend is going to determine your end results.

Are you willing to put in Ag crops or Christmas trees as a means to provide a legal barrier to others walking in? Are you able? Both legally, financially, and physically?

Would a barrier of such, provide you with a legal means to prevent access? Or would it be just another thing the hunters can legally walk through. What conditions are you able to meet the criteria for being able to control access?

What comes to mind immediately, is to fence it with smooth wire or barbed wire, stick cattle out on it, and hope the hunters are willing to respect the fence (good luck with that!). Lesse. 3500 acres. More or less, about a 75,000 dollar fence project. Worth it?

What's the read as far as the lay of the land? Can the majority of the land be isolated from access by smaller portions being put to production? Or is there ready access to all sides? Is it accessible, or geographically isolated? People and deer both, are about as lazy. If it's too much work to get there, they will go somewhere else. Usually.

I live on a slightly smaller sized chunk of land here in BC. Public road runs through the middle, privately owned on both sides, but we are isolated on one side by a river, the Indians have Reserve land on one end, the geography cuts off ready access at the other, so we are pretty much sole access to the top of the mountain behind us (7k feet or so). Cannot stop anyone from hunting on the crown land above our property, but do not need to allow anyone access through ours either, so access in and out is either through the Indian Reserve (treated as Private Property, same essential rules against Trespassing) or over a very steep, high ridge at the other end, a long hike, and not an easy Horse pack trip. Different (very different!) rules about access and property rights for the owner here.

What I know about Conservatory type organizations is three things. They are not in this for you, they are not your friend, and they have more money for Lawyers than you ever will. Do your homework and talk to folks that have been involved with them before you get into a trap.

Cheers
Trev
 
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