Small farms can hunt as good, or even better, than large properties. Big deer oftentimes live on smaller pieces of land.
October 16, 2024
By Josh Honeycutt
The right small- to medium-sized property can be better than a large one. Of course, not everyone has the access or means to hunt larger properties. For these hunters, it’s important to look at how they can make small farms hunt bigger than the acreage on the deed. If searching for land, it’s important to know how to find a property that already does.
Here are three phases (with steps) in maximizing the potential for a small hunting parcel.
Phase 1: Setting Up The Property The first phase of this process is about setting up the property. Complete important steps that assemble puzzle pieces which help build the foundation for a better hunting tract.
Create “Communities” Within the Property A big first step in completing this objective is creating different communities or hubs of deer action. This maximizes each acre. Furthermore, it spreads deer out, and gives mature bucks opportunities to get away from other deer, especially older bucks.
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Provide More and Better Food Provide deer with common food sources that they know and want. However, offer unique things they can’t get elsewhere, too. The more food, the more deer likely to be there. In some areas, grub is the limiting factor. If so, using more acres to provide that is a significant way to pull deer and hold them close to home. Think about what the landscape already offers. Then, reinforce these things, or provide sources that fill gaps.
Establish Good Bedding In other areas, good bedding cover is the limiting factor. Deer need more places to crash during daytime hours. Fortunately, hunters can provide that. Use one of numerous methods to establish good bedding cover in areas it doesn’t already exist. Creating these additional bedding areas can attract and hold top-end deer.
Add Water Sources Other properties lack water. Even if water isn’t lacking, it’s not present where hunters are likely to see bucks using it during daylight. Placing these on the fringes of bedding areas encourage deer to use these lines of travel.
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Offer Diversity Deer are edge animals. This means they prefer edge habitat, which is where different habitat types meet. This comes in the form of diversity, and hunters shouldn’t overlook the power that creating such diversity has on the deer.
Maybe that’s resetting the biological clock and prompting early successional growth. Perhaps it’s planting numerous food plot plant species. (Include some proven winners and some unique options deer aren’t likely getting elsewhere.) There are a lot of ways to accomplish this.
Maximize Every Acre Regardless of the plan, make every acre count. There can’t be any wasted acres on the farm. Wasted acres that don’t provide cover or food are useless, and should be assigned to something that benefits deer and deer hunting.
Phase 2: On The Hunt Part of the burden falls on the hunter … during the hunt. Certain tactics can preserve the quality of hunting from short- and long-term perspectives. Making good on-the-hunt decisions certainly still matters.
Understand the deer lines of movement on your hunting land. Use Good Stand Locations Proper stand locations that are in ideal locations can make properties hunt bigger, too. For example, hunting around the fringes of a property, rather than in the middle, allows for more viable stand locations.
Deploy Hard-Sided Hunting Blinds A hard-sided hunting blind is ideal for those who hope to preserve the quality of hunting on the property. Air-tight hunting blinds (with windows closed) prevent scent from escaping into the surrounding environment. That can prevent a lot of deer from smelling you, which is important for those who hope to continue hunting an area.
Take Quality Access Routes The quality of entry and exit routes also preserves the quality of a hunting property. Choosing blind and stand locations, and routes to and from these, that don’t alert deer to human intrusion is an important part of making small farms hunt bigger. Because if deer begin catching onto you, they’ll start using less of the property, making a small tract hunt even smaller.
Make Good Tactical Decisions Making the right hunting decision isn’t easy. The right tactical call might not be apparent. It’s crucial to make good tactical decisions. For small properties, you can’t afford to pressure deer, and that usually requires implementing low-impact tactics. For example, in most instances, calling and rattling, or pushing deeper into cover, might be a poor choice.
Phase 3: Long-Term Propert Maintenance Those who hope to preserve the long-term quality of a hunting tract should do what they can to maintain it. Conduct long-term property maintenance projects. These come in many forms, but the following tasks certainly qualify.
Prioritize Low-Pressure Hunting Continue focusing on low-impact hunting styles. Don’t use high-risk methods, such as deer drives and hunting interiors of bedding areas. These aren’t small-property tactics, and shouldn’t be implemented except for rare instances. Prioritize low-impact hunting to improve or maintain the quality of the ground.
Moderate Deer Density Too many deer can be a bad thing, especially for small properties. Bedding cover and food sources become more limited. Also, it makes it too difficult to enter and exit the property without spooking deer.
Of course, reducing the deer density is the only option. After conducting a deer population survey, fill an appropriate number of doe tags. If the buck population is too high, consider bringing guests to pull down numbers.
Remove Problem Bucks and Does Some hunters might need to remove more does. Others might not need to remove any at all. Over time, it might even be important to remove “problem” bucks and does. Maybe there is a doe that saw you in a blind or treestand, and it busts you each time after, effectively ruining your chances at other deer. That’s an issue a filled tag can solve.
It might also mean shooting more bucks. For example, while culling “inferior” bucks doesn’t improve the herd’s overall antler genetics, it does accomplish something else. It makes room for potentially larger deer to move in. This is especially a good practice if you have old bully bucks that push other (possibly bigger) deer around.
Make It Happen Those who follow the above plan aren’t guaranteed to kill a big deer on small acreage. But they just might. And without question, odds of accomplishing that task increase when hunters apply positive practices that fit their specific property and situation.
