Habitat Improve your hunting land!

Whether you're planting your first food plot, working on forest stand improvement, or preparing for a prescribed burn, the NDA has the information you need to help you be successful. We rely on the latest research and experts in their field to bring you the most reliable, up-to-date information on managing your land for the benefit of white-tailed deer and other wildlife.

Habitat

Food Plots, Feed or Fire: The Real Costs Per Pound of Deer Forage

Jan 18, 2023 Dr. Marcus Lashley and Jordan Nanney

Prescribed fire is one of the most useful deer habitat management tools. In our experience, members of the National Deer Association are well-versed at this point in prescribed fire’s benefits. However, there are still some…

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Habitat

Is Craig Harper’s FSI Cocktail Safe for Non-Target Trees?

Jan 9, 2023 NDA Staff

You can quickly restore sunlight to a closed-canopy forest to fuel deer forage production – a technique called “Forest Stand Improvement” (FSI). We recommend girdling and spraying select trees to kill them standing using an…

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Avoid Brassica Food Plot Failure With These Simple Steps

Aug 24, 2022 Mark Turner

Approaching the food plot, I was shocked by what I saw: an entire field of yellowing turnip and radish leaves. I wondered if I had skimped on fertilizer. Or perhaps I had applied soil-active herbicide…

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15-Acre Fixer-Upper: What I Learned the First Year

Jul 27, 2022 Brian Grossman

It’s hard to believe a year has already come and gone since my wife and I closed on our new home and 15-acre property in west-central Georgia. We’ve accomplished a lot in those first 12…

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How to Create a Heat Refuge for Deer

Jul 20, 2022 Zack Vucurevich

When you hear the phrase “thermal cover,” what’s the first thing that comes to mind? If you are like a majority of deer hunters, you likely pictured a south-facing hillside gathering winter sun, or a…

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How to Defeat Herbicide Resistant Weeds in Deer Food Plots

Jul 6, 2022 Mark Turner

Weed control is one of the most important considerations to produce high-quality food plots, and herbicides are the most effective and efficient tool to reduce weed competition. Unfortunately, several weeds have developed resistance to some…

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How to Tune a Chainsaw Carburetor in Less Than 5 Minutes [2022]

Apr 28, 2022 Kip Adams

This article was updated on April 28, 2022 In a recent blog I referenced the Game of Logging courses I attended and described all the new things I learned about safe and efficient use of…

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Food Plot Sticker Shock: How to Deal With Rising Herbicide and Fertilizer Costs

Apr 27, 2022 Kip Adams

Given the continued impacts of the pandemic, April snowstorms and foreign wars, spring food plot season is a welcomed return to a little normalcy. My family and I are getting equipment ready, planning what we’ll…

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Deer Diet Breakdown: What Do Deer Eat?

Mar 30, 2022 Matt Ross

White-tailed deer are absolute plant-eating machines, but understanding what foods they prefer to eat will vastly improve your knowledge and effectiveness in both managing and hunting them. A deer needs to consume about 6% to…

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Planting American Jointvetch for Deer

Mar 16, 2022 Mark Turner

Don’t overlook this browse-tolerant, easy-to-plant summer forage just because its name isn’t “soybeans.” Annual warm-season food plots are commonly recommended to address nutritional limitations when bucks are growing antlers and does are lactating. Warm-season plantings…

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