How to Get More Bucks on Your Land

More Bucks on Your Land
Hey Bill, I have a small property of 15 acres, 85 Percent of it is wooded, 50 percent of the wooded area is pine trees and is where most of the deer bed on my property. The rest is hardwoods mostly hickory, maple. I have a large doe herd that I see very regularly, but only seem to see bucks show up once the rut begins. What would cause this? What can i do to try to draw bucks to my property, not just during the rut? Thanks for taking the time to read this and for your many years on producing Midwest whitetail, i have enjoyed every episode and learned a lot over the years. Thanks Again!View post →

Creating Permanent Whitetail Habitat

Whitetail Habitat
I have intermittent cottonwood trees growing in a fairly sparse prairie area on my land. Deer don't bed there currently much, because there just isn't enough cover. I'm biting off chunks of habitat improvement with planting trees this coming spring and planting about 10 acres of switchgrass. My goal is to boost deer cover/browse but also habitat for pheasants. I've seen hawks and owls in these cottonwoods (about 20-35' high) so that can't be good for pheasants. The pheasants don't seem to live in that area too, at least in the fall/winter. Probably due to cover and trees. I'm considering hinge cutting about half the cottonwoods to create some low cover for both deer and pheasants. My plan is to do this in summer, hoping the trees keep some leaves for added cover for the fall. Deer do not winter here though. Considering the above, what would you do? My 3-5 year goal is eventually to burn and get rid of the cottonwoods and get more trees and switchgrass in here, but it just isn't possible for the next couple years. Thanks for your time, Bill!View post →

Are Mature Bucks too Easy to Kill?

Bill, do you ever feel like harvesting a buck you go after is too easy? I know some are not easy , like the one you took in 2012, but I am referring to others. To me, it seems fairly easy to kill mature bucks (with a compound bow) as long as they bed on the farm you hunt. There seems to be something special about going after the bucks that are mostly nocturnal and a little smarter than the average mature buck. The chase when he's mature and years of growing a giant seem to be the most fun to me now. I was wondering how you feel about this topic?View post →

What Trees to Cut for Timber Stand Improvement

Timber Stand Improvement
Hi Bill, I am looking to do some timber stand improvement on our family farm here in Iowa. I know that TSI can be very complex, but believe I am up for the challenge. I have been following along on your website here and have already learned a lot and can't begin to explain how helpful your content is. I trying to dig in a little deeper into the topic, do you have any good resources that you recommend? Any books, websites, video series, etc... that you have found the most beneficial over the years? I believe one of the more difficult aspects of TSI is just species identification. Any tips on that? Thanks for your help! LucasView post →

Recommending a Whitetail Guide in Iowa

Whitetail Guide in Iowa
Hey Bill, I am on my fifth preference point for Iowa and have decided to enter into the lottery for this upcoming season. I plan to put in for your old area of zone 5. I am looking for a low key outfit, that doesn't just run guy after guy through. Someone who puts the time in and runs an honest operation. Could you recommend anyone in that area, that you think would fit? Appreciate your time. Thanks Bill!View post →

Where to find a Winke Scent Suit

Winke Scent Suit
Bill , thanks for all the educational information that you have put out there over the years . I’ve been bow hunting for a long time on mostly public land where the deer are always spooky . Best scent suit I’ve ever had was the Winke scent suit . Ever heard of them ? Cabelas discontinued them for some crazy reason. Any thoughts on how I can get something similar or next best thing . ThanksView post →

Pros and Cons of Switchgrass for Deer Habitat

Switchgrass for Deer Habitat
Happy 2022 Bill! I’m a long time Midwest Whitetail/Winke follower and truly love reading your articles on improving deer habitat. I’ve taken your advice and jumped into a “forced savings account” and I am currently in the process of realizing a life long goal/dream of purchasing my very first hunting property. Now that this dream is actually coming to fruition my wheels are spinning with habitat ideas for this new piece of ground. My “farm” consists of 80 acres with a 50/50 split of tillable ground and timber. In addition to food plots I’m also kicking around the idea of adding some additional diversity by setting aside some of the tillable acres for CRP or switchgrass plantings. After reading as many of your habitat articles as possible I get the impression you’re only a fan of CRP if it incorporates some type of tree plantings as well. If my assumptions are accurate what are your feelings regarding multiple small switchgrass plantings and do you have a personal favorite type of switchgrass to plant? It seems like most people favor Cave in Rock or Shawnee switchgrass. Thanks again for all that you do, you’ve personally inspired myself and many others to take the leap. Take care.View post →

Approaching Neighbor with Offer to Buy Land

Offer to Buy Land
Hi Bill, Thank you for these posts, they are extremely informative and entertaining at the same time. I have a question regarding how you have approached neighboring landowners in the past when you have been interested in their property. My family owns a mid-sized hunting farm in northern Missouri and we are interested in an adjoining property. The owners do not hunt or farm (outside of haying pasture) but do lease out the property for firearm hunting. My family lives in the same town as the owners but does not know them personally and to our knowledge the owners have not expressed an interest in selling the property. How have you approached contacting landowners in the past that you do not know personally? Do you send them a letter describing your interest? Would you recommend trying to acquire the entire property or just the portion you are most interested in? I understand that each situation is likely quite different but also understanding the importance of first impressions, any advice you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thank you again for all that you do and have a great day. TrevorView post →