# How do you practice QDM on your land?



## Buckacc (May 19, 2002)

I started practicing QDM on my property about 4yr ago. Ive 
cut trees to make security areas. I've planted food plots and 
switchgrass. This year I'm working on planting food plot in area 
that take advantage of wind direction and my tree stands. 
I also have anybody on my property only shoot bucks with
racks wider then their ears. We also try to take a lot of does
each year.
We have chances to shoot at mature bucks every year now,
but can"t seem to make a dent in the doe population. Seem like
the more we kill, the more we see the next year.


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## trapstercarl (Oct 2, 2001)

sounds like you have a good plan. where abouts do you live in eaton county? (not specific) I live just north of potterville. carl


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## Buckacc (May 19, 2002)

Carl :
I live north of Bellevue. How do you manage the property
you hunt on?.


BUCK


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## Whit1 (Apr 27, 2001)

> _Originally posted by Buckacc _
> *This year I'm working on planting food plot in area
> that take advantage of wind direction and my tree stands.
> *


Excellent idea! Although wind is preached about over and over as a key element in the taking of deer all too often it is a neglected cog in the ambush plan. Hunting in "iffy" winds may sound okay to some, but in reality it won't work and can only cause deer to change their patterns.

How much property do you own?


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## trapstercarl (Oct 2, 2001)

I have seen some really nice deer between charlotte and bellevue. on the right side of southbound 69 theres a big alfalfa field thats was always full of large deer up until they started digging for gravel in that field.I don't own the land I hunt on so it's kind of hard to manage it the way it should be.I have made foodplots and thick bedding areas but still haven't talk the other people who hunt the land into practicing qdm. carl


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## Buckacc (May 19, 2002)

Whit1 :
I have 80 acres , about 30 acres is grass fields , 20 acres is woods and the rest is scrub brush. I also agree ,in using the wind to the hunter advantage.


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## Swamp Ghost (Feb 5, 2003)

Managing native vegetation, clear cutting's, planting of various shrubs, re-establishing native grasses, food plots, adequate harvest of does and protection of immature bucks with an 8 point and 15" spread restriction.


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## Jeff Sturgis (Mar 28, 2002)

Sorry this is so long, but it's complete!

We are actually trying to reach our carrying capacity of the land, due to extremely low population numbers still carried over from the several hundred thousand deer killed in the 95,96, and 2001 winters.

According to some experts, John Ozoga and Mark Thomas, I have yet to reach the carrying capacity of the land, but doe fawns are still a harvestable target, as they have a 50% chance of perishing in an average winter, and up to a 90% chance in an extreme winter. Our buck:doe ratios so far have been very exceptable, and the age structure is improving with a strict "no yearlings" 8-point rule, which protects over 90% of all yearlings. Since I am the only one that hunts the property, 95% of the time, I follow a "no yearlings" rule, as opposed to an 8-point rule.

My management plan is intensive and not for everyone, but it's working! In fact, I could care less if I harvest a deer on the property, I just love managing the property, benifiting the wildlife, and seeing the vast improvements. If a nice buck or fawn doe comes my way, fine, but if not there are many other rewards.....

Let me paint a picture for you. 120 Acres covered with pockets of older-age spruce, cedar, pine, soft maple, and fir, blended in with a substantial portion of tag-alder creek bottom, and clear-cut openings from the early 80s, full of a variety of young pine. Soils consisting of primarily a sandy loam, with pH levels in the 4.7 to 5.2 ranges. Little to no mast crop, fruit crop, or farmland growing within 20 miles. A population of less than 5 deer frequenting the property on a daily basis, contributing to less than 5 total rubs from the previous year, and no evidence of any scraping activity. 

So how do you see it, five-year dream or nightmare?

In 1998 it became a dream, and in July of 1999, when the 120-acre parcel was added to our adjoining 10 acres and home, it became a reality. It also became the acceptance of year-round management, year-round stewardship, year-round planning and year-round work. But not all work is created equal, and after three and a half years of molding and shaping, the results of hours of fun-work, have been extremely rewarding.

The Molding and Shaping:

In 1999 I joined the QDMA, and through them, I was introduced to Ed Spinnazola, President of the Mid-Michigan QDMA branch, now a board member of the national QDMA. It turned out Ed was a food plot expert, not to mention full of generosity in both time, and even a little seed. As was stressed in most publications at the time, Ed re-affirmed the importance of liming, as well as variety in planting, including both warm and cold-season forages. Along with Eds advice and information obtained largely from the QDMAs Quality Whitetails book and Quarterly Whitetails magazine, I formed the basis for my plan.

It was also in 1999 that I was privileged enough to meet fellow central U.P. area resident and nationally known white-tailed research biologist, John Ozoga. John is not only an expert in local herd research, but has been an invaluable reference for local scientific insight and herd structure.

In august of 2001 my continuing plan was reinforced, as I hired Mark Thomas, also a national board member of the QDMA, to evaluate my actions, and make any recommendations of improvement. Mark and I spent approximately nine hours of walking and talking on the property, while I did my best to absorb the countless insights that Mark shared with me. 

The information gleaned from Mark, John, Ed, and the QDMA, has lead to what I believe has been the successful foundation of the start a journey of many years to come.

The Food Plots:

Entering the 2000-hunting season, I had been able to hire a bulldozer to help create two food plots totaling 1 acre. Two years later, by the start of the 2002 hunting season, and approximately 22 tons of lime later, I had a total of 4 ¼ acres of food plots. During a warming trend around Christmas of 2002, I had been able to start another ¼ of an acre of food plot, with the remaining portion of that particular area being added, limed, and leveled in the spring of 2003, as well as the completion of another adjoining ¼ acre area. Additionally, two other ¼ acre harvest plots are planned for the summer of 2003, bringing the total of food plot acreage entering the 2003 hunting season to a projected 5¼ acres, with each 40 acre parcel offering various sizes of food plots. Each year the effects of lime have been dramatic, from unfertile, almost useless soil, to a productive clover field in just one-year!

The Strategy:

What to plant, how to plant it, where to plant it, and why? Access roads, safety zones, treestand locations, and native plant management. What deer to harvest and how many?

In general, Ive tried to build everything to accommodate a stealth approach, an approach in which my hunting and daily activities can be carried out with little human to deer contact. All aspects of the property revolve around a centrally located large non-hunted food plot, and a high percentage of safety-zone land. This is where the planning comes in. When shaping a piece of land, mistakes can be costly and irreversible, and because of this I decided to make the investment of hiring an expert, as my efforts were becoming quite extensive.

Mark Thomas came to me highly recommended and with a wealth of field experience, education, and knowledge. Overall, Mark reaffirmed the direction my plan was taking, and had a couple of key suggestions. First, Mark saved me from a recommendation of a local state forester to build a pond in a particular area of the property. After seeing this portion of the property for the first time, Mark immediately suggested I do very little with the site, which meant no food plots, and especially no ponds. Mark informed me that this particular area held the best variety of preferred native vegetation and browse species on the entire property! It would have been a costly mistake to build a food plot in this location, and even worse, a pond. Marks recommendation wasnt exactly to do nothing, but to lime and fertilize this area to further enhance the attractiveness the area already possessed. 

The second aspect of Marks recommendations was an interspersion index feature. This feature is basically a harvest plot, with various planted spokes heading into different directions to resemble a crows foot, from the air. The long narrow spokes, always close to cover, promote increased daytime feeding activities, as well as increased viewing and harvest opportunities. I have incorporated this with my food plots in that they have various spokes or irregular indentations, and most are primarily long and narrow.

Mark also confirmed two other aspects of property strategy. First, a harvest goal I had developed in talking to John Ozoga, in that doe fawns would be an appropriate harvest target, as well as bucks at least 2.5 years of age. And secondly, a recommendation to leave the timber and young growth on the property just the way it is, with excellent screening, bedding, thermal, and escape cover already present.

Finally, another important piece of the stealth approach strategy is the trail system and tree stand usage. My access trails avoid crossing food plots, and the majority of the food plots are rarely hunted, with the bulk of the hunting activities taking place on travel routes to and from bedding areas. Some have suggested I plant a portion of my trail network, but I have chosen to stay away from this practice due to the fact that it greatly increases the human to deer contact frequency. My treestands are numerous and not overused. Some treestands are hunted only once per season, in the perfect situation of wind, time of year, and time of day, and most are hunted less than three times. 

Some may find my stealth strategy a little extreme, but on limited acreage it has been my experience that it takes very little human to deer contact to effectively damage the comfort level of an entire local deer herd. I may eventually chart my findings of my established camera locations, but I have found that deer may completely avoid an area for 2 to 3 days, previously being visited multiple times per day, after just one intrusion of stand set-up, construction, or even heavy ATV use. My strategy is an intensive one, but I feel my efforts are already beginning to be rewarded.

The Rewards:

In 2000 I was able to find less than 5 rubs on the property from the previous season, and one small scrape. It was quite evident from track counts found on the property, that there were less than 5 deer using the property on a daily basis. It was actually common to be unable to find a fresh deer track for 2 to 3 days at a time on the propertys 1.5 miles of trails and 2-tracks! By the beginning of the 2000 hunting season I had been able to have a bulldozer establish two separate food plots totaling 1 acre, and a third ¼ acre food plot was established with Ed Spinnazolas recommendations of multiple herbicide treatments, and a spring-toothed harrow. Although the initial food plot quality was low, deer began using the property on a daily basis, and my viewing opportunities within bow or rifle range increased dramatically. I also received my first buck picture on the property, a small spike, and later captured a 2.5 year old 8-point on a migration trail in December. The rub and scrape counts stayed about the same as the previous year, but it was obvious the daily deer activities were increasing, and the positive steps, although baby steps, were encouraging for 2001.

During the 2001 season, with the addition of a tractor, I was able to increase the food plot total to 3.5 acres. With established mineral stations and food plot funnels in place to effectively monitor daily activities, it was easy to create a camera census of the daily deer population using the property. Mark Thomas toured the property in late August and stated he thought about 15 deer were using the property on a daily basis, based on track count and sign. After the hunting season, while scouring numerous game photos, I was able to make the following population determination: Six mature does, 4 yearling does, only 1 fawn (due to an extremely harsh late winter/spring combination), and 3 yearling bucks. In addition, I was able to harvest a healthy 2.5 year old 8-point that had been residing on the extreme edge of the property, for a total population of around 15 deer. Mark couldnt have been any closer in his estimation, and this offered further evidence of the validity and expertise of his suggestions. Last but not least for 2001, were the over 40 rubs and over 20 scrapes found throughout the property boundaries! My baby steps for the property were getting bigger, and although I love passing the winter months scouting, while listening to my beagles run the numerous snowshoe rabbits that now benefit from the increased food supply, I couldnt wait for the upcoming management season of 2002. 

2002 was a great year in many ways. By the start of the 2002-hunting season, I was able to establish another food plot totaling ¾ acre, bringing the total food plot acreage to 4 ¼ acres. The game camera pictures were coming often and in John Ozogas opinion, they were mirroring the five-peaked daily activity rhythm feeding patterns of the white-tailed deer. On several locations, including the ¾ acre field I had just established, feedings were occurring consistently at mid-morning, mid day, late afternoon, and twice during the night. My own personal observation suffered as I spent 5 prime hunting weekends away from home, while hunting whitetails in WI and PA. But by the end of the season, the game cameras confirmed the movements of six different 8-points, of 2.5 to 3.5 years of age, 6 to 7 mature does, and 8 fawns! The game cameras also supported the findings of limited fawns the previous year, in that just 1 yearling was captured on film, a fat and healthy spike. Although there was less scraping activity within the property boundaries, both rubs and scrapes had increased in size and intensity.

Looking Forward to the Future:

There are indeed limits as a result of owning a smaller piece of property, but while staying within those limits, and establishing realistic long-term management and harvest strategies, a property of restricted size can experience dramatic improvement in both quality and attraction. Our property has several limiting factors that have been taken into consideration, including: Size of property, substantial amounts of bordering public lands, low soil quality, and the migration patterns and yarding characteristics of the resident deer population. Staying within these limits, I still feel that I have achieved the best 120 acre parcel in the area. With the tips and tactics I have been able to incorporate into the property, many from information Ive learned directly from the QDMA, or the QDMAs Quarterly Whitetails magazine, I have been able to produce a solid foundation of strategic management philosophy. This foundation will insure a successful future for the long-term attractiveness and productivity of the propertys habitat. The management of the property will be a never-ending tale of fun work, but as the 4th season of management activities approaches, the property is well on its way to becoming the property I started dreaming about almost 5 years ago. It all starts with a five-year plan of setting priorities for each year and being diligent, but not over-worked in your actions. In the end of your hard work, and as the realization of your dream takes shape, you will find that not only have you increased the level of enjoyment and productivity of your property, but you will have experienced the rewards of being not just a hunter, but a Manager.


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## dfd189 (Jan 15, 2003)

Great account of your success! Much more of that to come


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## mich buckmaster (Nov 20, 2001)

I dont own the land, but I really dont have to do much to it. It has it all already. We just try not to shoot the small 1 1/2 old bucks. If someone does than its someone that we have allowed to shoot a small buck. Some of us NEVER do!!

Our QDM is to let the small bucks go, and shoot an adequate amount of does each year. 

The landowner is begging


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## Benelli (Nov 8, 2001)

Great account North Jeff!

Im working along those same lines for our property in the TB zone and you gave me some great ideas. Different deer densities, of course, but hopes for the same end result. Patience *IS* a virtue.

Keeping and old tractor running and doing it your self as opposed to having some work done for you has been a challenge

Working on getting the neighbors involved too.

Thanks for the info.


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## NATTY BUMPO (May 12, 2001)

Noth Jeff, Kudos, but a tough act to follow.

1. Habitat Improvement - A property walk with your county forester can pay big dividends in ideas for projects. Some of the things we've done are: "rehabing" old apple trees, daylighting oaks, clearcutting aspen, selective cuts in mature hardwoods, planting conifer blocks for winter cover, planting fruit and nut bearing trees and shrubs, establishing food plots ( clearing, ground tillage, soil tests, lime (lots of lime),planting, fertilizing, and praying for rain), establishing mineral licks, planting logging roads and gating logging roads to discourage tresspassing.

2. Adequate doe harvest. This will vary for each individual property.

3. Protection of yearling bucks.

Natty B.


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## Luv2hunteup (Mar 22, 2003)

Since this is my first post I'll be brief and see how this works out.

The small camp I hunted out of was getting too crouded for my likes. So in 1997 I purchased 160 acres of land about a dozen miles away from that camp. The first thing I did was contact farm services in the Soo and came away with info on the Stewardship Incentive Program. I interviewed a few of the consultants that they had listed and selected a guy out of Cedarville. 

We met up during the end of deer season that year and he put together a plan with my long term goals in mind. With a few minor revisions, on my part, the plan was submitted to the DNR in Newberry for approval. During the same time frame I also signed up for cost share funding of certain activities of this plan. The items I signed up for were funded so I was off to the races.

In 98 I was able to create 3 openings into food plots of about 4.5 acres of Imperial Whitetail Clover. This involved countless hours of work but it was sure worth it. Lots of lime, fertilizer and sweat.

In 99 I added 3 more small food plots and began maintaining the ones established the year before. Tried rape and gulf annual in a portion of one opening.

In 00 I began planting some berry producing bushes and added another small food plot plus increasing the sizes of the ones I already had. The bushes included high bush cranberry, june berry, nine bark, mountain ash, hawthorne, hazelnut, elderberry and sargent crab. The food plot was planted in dwarf essex rape.

In 01 I thought I needed some more food plots so I decided to carve out a 1 acre site along side of one of my ravines/bedding areas. This area is all tag alders and willows. I did not complete this opening due to the wet locations and all the rain we had that fall. I replanted one small opening in buck forage oats. 

In 02 I completed this opening and got it planted at the end of July. I also opened up two more small areas for completion this year. This we give me 12 food plots totaling 8+ acres. The new planting was a mix of IW clover, Biologic premium perenial, rape, buckwheat and canola. This mix was fantastic. It made it to about 8" high then the deer hammered it. 

I've sure learned alot about farming for wildlife and habitat development. Practicing QDM does work. It's about healthy deer in healthy habitat.

Does habitat improvement work? You bet it does. The deer on my land keep getting bigger along with sightings going up. It enables me to be very selective of what I shoot every year.

Habitat improvement and food plots not only help the deer but other critters as well. I see lots of ruffed grouse, as well as sharp tail grouse, snowshoe hare, sandhill cranes and bear in these food plots. I also saw over 20 wookcock at one time in my newest food plot, thats by far the most I have ever seen in a 1 acre area ever.


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## Liver and Onions (Nov 24, 2000)

Luv2,
Wow, you've done a lot in 5 yrs. Did your deer sightings double from '98 to '02 ? Providing healthy habitat for deer and other critters is indeed satisfying.
Welcome to the site.
L & O


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## multibeard (Mar 3, 2002)

I have various food plots and a 10 acre sanctuary that I seldom set foot in. I shoot the first quality piece of venison I see with horns as long as they are at least 3 inches long. I do not shoot does on my property, the neighbors and fruit farmers have taken care of the does and the deer in general for that matter in Oceana county


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## Whit1 (Apr 27, 2001)

Luv2Hunt,
Welcome to the Michigan Sportsman site, one of the finest on the 'net. Thanks for sharing your efforts with us.


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## Luv2hunteup (Mar 22, 2003)

L & O

I'd have to check my hunting journal for exact numbers of sightings, but from what I recall my sightings doubled each year for the first three years during my habitat improvement.

The winters of 95-96 & 96-97 we lost many deer in the yards. I bought this property during the begining of rebound of the deer population. 

I went from average of 1-2 deer sightings per day to over 50 sightings per afternoon. I'm sure that I was seeing some of the same deer. The highest number of deer was 25 at one time in a two acre IWC food plot. The later in the season it seemed the better the hunting got at my camp. The earliest in the season I've ever taken a buck was 11/20/00. The last two seasons were no exceptions. 11/29/01 and 11/30/02 I managed to that my bucks.

All the deer taken have been weighed dress at camp and aged by the dnr.

97 buck 3.5 yrs muzzle loader season (ml)
99 buck 3.5 yrs ml
00 buck 2.5 yrs ml
00 buck 3.5 yrs 
00 doe 5.5 yrs ml
00 doe 4.5 yrs ml
00 doe 2.5 yrs ml
01 buck 3.5 yrs 
01 buck 2.5 yrs ml
01 doe 5.5 yrs ml
01 doe 4.5 yrs ml
01 doe 2.5 yrs ml
02 buck 3.5 yrs 
02 buck 1.5 yrs ml (antlers broken shot as a doe)
02 no does taken, waited too long and they left for the yards 

I've put in alot of hours at camp but it sure pays off. The harder I work the luckier I seem to get. BTW my neighbors do not practice any QDM but the all raise cattle and do'nt care about age. The are fed well.


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## wild bill (Apr 20, 2001)

so far my primary goal has been adding to the property that i allready have. now that i have done that i am shaping it into my own ideal deer heaven. most of the land is older farm field with grasses and weeds growing. as we have been planting trees we are creating thick bedding areas that are off limits. we are creating funnels that lead from swamp to feeding and bedding areas. we also have started a small orchard that gets a few more trees planted each year. so far we have about 5 acres of food plots with 7 acres more being put in this spring. some are annuals that get rotated in the spring and fall. this summer we are adding a holding tank for a summer water hole.the past 2 summers the swamps have been dry so we are hoping the water hole will help hold some of the deer. the water hole will be in a small clearing near the bedding area and by a food plot. we will also comtinue to use mineral supplements year round.

as far as managing the deer goes, i do not shoot any thing that i feel is young. when i say young i mean 3 1/2 or younger. i dont look at the antlers as much as i do the deer. anyone that hunts my property has to follow my rules or they never hunt there again. the one exception is my girlfriend. so far she has held back from shooting an immature buck but it would not bother me if she did shoot a small buck for her first deer. the last 2 years i have taken as many does that i have a chance at and it seems like more keep coming. part of this is because a lot of the property around me is not hunted or is hunted very lightly. one neighbor is a tree hugging,peta loving freak so that gives me another 72 acres of deer security.

when i started this plan a year and a half ago i figured it would take at least five years to be where i wanted. so far i am right on target. the trees that have made it through the last few dry summers are looking good and my food plots are coming along just fine. last fall we saw more bucks than the previous year with one being a monster and a few good 8's and small 10's. the monster we saw was found dead around new years by my neighbor so he wont be around this fall. all together i am finding more enjoyment in the creating of the land.not to say i dont care for the hunting part but its the personal satisfaction of knowing that you created it. its something i cant explain but its a good feeling watching the deer roam throughout it all.


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## BSK (Apr 10, 2004)

Buckacc wrote:
*...but can"t seem to make a dent in the doe population. Seem like
the more we kill, the more we see the next year.*

That is one of the most common statements we hear from hunters/managers implementing a QDM plan. It usually goes, "I know this is going to sound crazy, but the more does we shoot, the more we have."

Yup, that's the way it usually works.


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## Swamper (Apr 12, 2004)

We practice QDM as follows...nothing less than a fork until 9am on the opener and then anything with horns after. Fill as many doe tags as possible. That is our American spirit QDM and it is working great.


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