Winter Projects for Next Season

The winter months can be long, but it’s also a great time to get out and tackle some winter projects to help improve your hunting grounds and deer habitat. Here are some projects to take on this season to get out beat some of that cabin fever.

These are some ideas and tips from the video shared from the National Deer Association

Forest improvement

If there’s not a ton of snow on the ground, this is a great time of year to remove some of the less desirable tree species on your land. Taking out some of those larger pieces of timber or trees that you don’t want around can help open up the canopy so that you can get some of that more under-growth going. Forrest improvement like this can really help to transform your woods over time and enable other more desirable growth

Prescribed fires

This is also a great time of year to get some prescribed fires going to burn off some of those dead leaves in your area as well as help to promote new vegetation, like native grasses. Prescribed fires are a great tool to help put nutrients back into the soil and also keep some hardwood encroachment at bay. This is a great way to help improve deer habitat on your land, especially during this time of year.

Getting rid of non-native invasive species

Non-native invasive species can simply be a pain in the ass, but again, if you have some nicer days during these winter months to get outside, this is a great time of year to get after some of those invasive species in your woods and fields. I know in WI, buckthorn is an invasive shrub species that is the bane of many under-stories of forests and wetlands. This is a great time of year to target those less desirable species and clean up your woods and hopefully promote some more native species. The sooner you get after these, the less likely birds and other critters can help carry the seeds off to further promote growth.

Food plot improvement

There are a few things you can do during during the quiet months of winter to help improve your food plots. This is a great time of year to get some soil samples in and hopefully quick turnaround getting ahead of everyone else. This helps you to start to get your plan together for the spring and summer planting. As far as promoting growth, you can also start to get some lime and other fertilizers onto the ground this time of year to help lower the pH if needed with some top dressing. You can also hit some of your perennial clover spots that are bare with some seeding, which is great to time before the freezing and thawing in the spring. 

All in all, the winter months are a great time to get out and enjoy some fresh air, beat back some of that cabin fever and make some progress and improvements on your hunting lands.