stubborn1VT

Good looking site. Good variety and descriptions. The prices on their 5 tree "bundles" are really good, but the shipping costs eat up any savings. Of course, it is all the way across the country.

Lots of good suggestions. We planted what was locally called "conservation mix" for hay. Timothy, fescue, clover, and orchard grass. It makes nice hay, and if it's mowed weekly, makes a decent lawn. I'm sure you could find something like it pre-mixed from an Ag/seed store. Doc is right. Most plants, other than grass, won't stand up to weekly mowing. I'm all for Dutch clover as a lawn. It won't get tall, handles any amount of mowing, keeps blossoming for the bees, and deer like it. Not real expensive either. Good luck with getting the deal done. Then the fun starts!

Depending on how far north you are, it should start to grow in April/May. The problem with late summer/fall planting clover on its own is winterkill and in your case overbrowsing. If the deer didn't kill it before it got established, then you should be all set. Definitely wait and see if the clover grows. It could save you alot of time and effort. Raking or blowing the leaves off wouldn't hurt. Chopping them up with a mower or brush hog might also work. Even if the clover is thin, I would stick with it. It is a better food source than No Plow. With that said, No Plow is sometimes a good choice for a brand new plot. Good luck!

I may have to give that a try. How big a plot are you planting?

Good idea to mix AG and forage together, I imagine. I get AG beans for free, but I think forage beans would fit my needs better. I don't have alot of acres, so the forage would stand up to browsing better. $70 isn't a bad price at all. I'm curious how they will perform for you. Deer sure love beans!

It just takes practice. I grew up with domestic turkeys, so I had some idea about how they are supposed to sound. I bought a "starter kit" with a couple diaphragm calls and a CD that had turkey calls on it. I practice with my diaphragm call while I'm driving. I've coaxed in many turkeys with a cheapo slate call and the softest feeding clucks. They make push button yelp calls that will get the job done. It's important to remember that not all turkeys sound the same. I'm no champion caller, but I kill birds every year. It's more about patience than calling IMO. One of my friends has killed well over 100 turkeys, and he gave me the best advice. "You'll go out and make every mistake in the book, and get your butt kicked. You'll wonder why you're getting up so damn early with nothing to show for it. Keep getting up and going out. Some mornings the turkeys will be the ones making mistakes, and then you're all set. But you have to get up and GO!"

There's tons of different chokes out there. The tricky part is matching up a choke with your gun. My 870 likes the Remington brand turkey choke. I've had decent luck with Undertaker chokes. My buddy swears by his Jellyhead choke. Any extra full choke should do, especially if you don't shoot beyond 40 yards. Half the fun is getting them close! I use Winchester turkey ammo in #4s,5s & 6s. I shot alot of birds with the #4x6 Duplex loads that Culvercreek mentioned. Good luck!

This is probably a silly question. If you are frost seeding an existing clover plot, do you need to use inoculated seed? The bacteria needed to capture nitrogen is already in the soil, right? Maybe I'm just being cheap, but I have inoculated seed on hand but I wanted to use that start a new plant. I wanted to buy some cheap "raw" seed for frost seeding an existing field and a powerline ROW that was planted in a clover mix a couple years back.

Thanks Helmut. I wish I could say I made it myself. I think it shows just how big a tom turkey looks in full strut. I'm a big fan of their colors too.

Seems like you would be better off with a plain old soft point bullet. Save you some $$ too. Over the years I have had great luck with Core Lokts, Silvertips, and blue box Federals. The cheapest!

I have been able to write a "year in review" since 1994. It gives an overview of all the outdoor stuff I pursue: deer, turkey, small game, and fish. It highlights successful hunts. I also try to keep a daily log that is just 1 line about where I went, what I saw etc. I always mean to keep a hunting log, especially during bow season, to record conditions, wind direction etc, but I never finish out the season. Asked a really good hunter I know about this idea, and he showed me one of his notebooks. It was in some kind of coded shorthand! Totally agree with Coach about looking back over the years and revisiting the details. It's nice to read about past success, especially by a woodstove on a cold day in February.

Nice. I'm pretty much across from Willsboro. I get out on Converse Bay 1 or 2X a year in a buddy's boat.

I looked at boats all last year, but didn't have the $$. I'm only about 7 miles from the lake, but I don't fish all summer. The reason I want a boat is because of the salmon fishing. Oh well. I did get out on some safe ice in the Northeast Kingdom and caught some slab perch. What part of the lake are you fishing Buckmaster>

Congrats on the new land! Sounds like a good mix of trees/plants. You can frost seed clover and rye right on top of a little snow in March or April. For a brand new stand of clover, I would work the ground up a little. You need to at least get the ground bare. That can be as simple as raking the leaf litter and sticks off. I plant my rape/turnips earlier than some folks. I shoot for mid July. Many wait until early to mid August. Hinge cutting can be really important in your hardwoods. You say there is no undergrowth. Deer don't like that. They don't feel safe in the wide open, so areas of hinge cuts or piles tops can make a huge difference. If hinge cutting isn't an option, patch cutting may be a better option. Since you have the hemlocks and goldenrod for bedding, it may not be a huge deal, but the hardwoods aren't providing any browse. Just my thoughts. Good luck!

These poplars are 14" - 18" across. I hung a bunch of them up and had to drop an even BIGGER poplar across them to knock them down. I'd probably have better luck if there was more room to drop them. Oh well. My new plan to is to drop them and skid them. They're nice and straight. I'll take the logs to the farm and have my brother's friend run them through his portable saw mill. Can't have too many boards. I wish I had more hornbeam. It's my favorite wood for really cold weather. Makes great big coals. I'd heard the birds really like the seeds or "hops", but I'd never seen it firsthand. I found a single red oak on top of the hill. The only other one on the property is right on the driveway, and that one was planted from an acorn 40 years ago. They're 1/4 mile apart. I can't figure that one out. I'm trying to be careful with my thinning along the hill. If I open it up too much the wind could get in there and make a mess. Well, time to marinate some wild turkey breast for supper. If it gets cold enough overnight, I might go back in tomorrow.

The ground firmed up overnight, so I took the truck out to the plot to cut some more. Three or four deer had been through. I didn't bring my digital camera to check cards, so I don't know what they were. They wandered around from brush pile to brush pile. Seems like they were more curious than hungry. I didn't see much signs of browsing. I cut a new log road up the hill that overlooks the plot. Took out a bunch of small yellow birch. I tried hinge cutting some poplars, but they were kind of big. It didn't go quite like I had hoped. I started a brush fence to steer them down the hill where I wanted. So much more to do. I should be able to get the tractor to the top of the hill now. That should help with thinning the poplar, taking some soft maple for firewood, and getting some light to the few oaks, cherries etc that I want to leave. Last time I went in, I cut a bunch of small elm and birch. While I was picking them up and big partridge landed in one of the few hop hornbeams (ironwood) and was feeding on seeds in the tree top. I wandered all over picking up wood and dragging brush. He stayed right there, and let me walk right under him. Kind of cool. Season closed here Dec 31. Next time in I will work on the dead cedars and pines along the edge of the hill. I want to use them to steer critters along the hill where I can see them from my stand. There's a TON of work out there, but it's nice to improve our property. Cold weather on the way. I'll probably try to call a coyote and ice fish for perch and lake trout. Good to get outside.

I have owned a couple of Pflueger presidents. They are a good quality reel for the money. Then again, most reels in the same price range are fine. You just want a reel with 7+ bearings. A reel with less won't last. Two rods would be ideal, but it's pretty amazing what you can land when you have a a high quality drag and a fairly fast action rod. You could easily stay under $100 for a combo. I've caught loads of fish with a $30 Ugly Stick rod and a $40 Mitchell reel. With that said, there is a difference between an Ugly Stick and a St. Croix! Most of all, have fun with it. The most important part is to get out there. Trial and error. You can always spend more money on gear later. Tight lines!

As a rule of thumb, do you guys set up where you can see a ways (hardwoods, field etc) or in the thick stuff where the coyote can't see you? I'm hoping to give it a try next week when the temps drop again. Just wondering if I should be bringing the rifle or the 12 gauge.

On the farm we had to have 180 degree water in order to wash the milk pipeline. We would fill a metal trashcan up with that hot water and dunk them for a couple minutes. It starts to cook the skin and helps release the feathers. It's called "scalding". It made plucking go pretty fast, as long as you dunked them long enough. We would hang them up by their feet and my brother and I could pluck one in no time.

We raised both white and bronze birds to 50lbs. Processing wasn't so bad, but they had to be sawed in half to cook. The oven wasn't big enough!

Not sure how helpful this pic is.

Can't say I've ever seen a deer that didn't eat clover. It's pretty easy to grow, adds nitrogen to the soil, lasts multiple years, and produces decent protein. As far as defaults go, it's a good one.

Thanks for the suggestions. I made it with onions, bread crumbs, egg and BBQ sauce. It was ok. It was even better as meatloaf sandwiches with homemade pickled jalapenos. I put some ketchup on it too. I love ketchup. It's one of my favorite vegetables.

Haha! Yes I did.

Almost every spring turkey I have ever shot has had clover leaves in its crop. The only thing that compares for drawing turkeys is a cut corn field. Then again, they like any ground that has been turned over. Last year they got into the brassica plot I planted and dug it full of holes to dust and wallow in. They are all over the trail camera, and I see them whenever I deer hunt, but I've never shot a bird there. Go figure.