Small Acre Hunting Podcast

On this episode I delve into a topic I spent a lot of time discussing with hunters at the Midwest Sportsmen Classic in Shipshewana, IN - mock scrapes & all their uses. I also touch on frost seeding in the beginning as well.www.smallacrehunting.com for more information.

I sit down in this episode of The Small Acre Hunting Podcast to provide updates on my season, the Benor Hunt and dive deeply into something a viewer and I noticed watching the Benor shot sequence. I end the podcast discussing some offseason plans and look forward to telling you more about the story of Benor on Christmas over at Chasing Giants TV

Let's discuss the many things that routinely I see foolish hunters do...and hopefully cause reflections of actions by myself and all who listen.

I sit down and share some things to consider if you are like me and find yourself with no target buck just days from season.I also share a few products I use and have loved like the Redline Guru rest by AAE, the Mathews Bond Grip System and the Comica Boom XD Pro mic setup.

I finally check in with everyone, provide update on family, property and life. Discuss the sorghum and pea planting and if I will ever do that again in the spring...plans for the fall...bucks currently MIA and more.The outfitter mentioned is https://tuscaroracanoe.com/

On this episode I delve into a discussion prompted by quite a few messages and the ever increasing world of habitat consultants out there. What good are they? How do you make certain your consult, if you choose to have one, works out??What is the biggest key to guaranteeing your consult ends well??www.smallacrehunting.com

In this episode I reflect upon the recent show I attended, respond/discuss my arrow build as it came up multiple times and I share a story of a younger man from PA and how I pray no one gets discouraged because of what they don't have - instead embrace what you do have and get to work.

The short video I posted last week had a lot of feedback and many wanted me to unpack it some...so here it is. Never let deer presence dictate your locations more than sound entrance and exits.

This episode I just share essentially my entire thoughts on clover...establish clover plots, reading their seed tags, knowing the differences between various seed types....

The last episode came with a lot of great messages and comments on changing our confidence or shot decisions, I touch on that a little bit but not before delving into the poaching case involving CJ Alexander (scum). I also discuss the struggle small property owners have to deal with in the bedding vs cover decisions we face yearly on our properties.

On this episode I delve into a brief summary of how my 2024 season went, but focus primarily on an encounter with one of my main target bucks and the reflections which came from it.

Part 10 of a 10 part series tackling the realities and mindset needed to chase, hunt and manipulate the habitat on small properties in a pursuit for the top bucks in your area. This episode is one I struggled to make as it is a non-hunting topic for many but one which I feel directly ties to you as a hunter and whether or not you're a hunter I desire to have be part of the hunting community. Small property owners have to have high ethics and morals IMO because the temptation to not is going to be higher.

Part 9 of a 10 part series tackling the realities and mindset needed to chase, hunt and manipulate the habitat on small properties in a pursuit for the top bucks in your area. This episode is a tough one for many and is something I've had to learn over the years...just as I say sometimes the best shot is no shot...sometimes the best hunt is no hunt. Guarding our small properties is a must if we want it to meet it's best potential.

Part 8 of a 10 part series tackling the realities and mindset needed to chase, hunt and manipulate the habitat on small properties in a pursuit for the top bucks in your area. Today I keep it brutally honest about you likely won't have a stand for each wind...and some properties may very well be a single wind type direction spot.

Part 6 and 7 of a 10 part series tackling the realities and mindset needed to chase, hunt and manipulate the habitat on small properties in a pursuit for the top bucks in your area. Today I keep it brutally honest about intrusion each time we visit our property, regardless of the activity AND we discuss how Pops and I hunt in order to have as much success over the years as we have.

Part 5 of a 10 part series tackling the realities and mindset needed to chase, hunt and manipulate the habitat on small properties in a pursuit for the top bucks in your area. Today I keep it very short and sweet on a topic I've talked about a lot...NOT worshipping mature timber.

Part 4 of a 10 part series tackling the realities and mindset needed to chase, hunt and manipulate the habitat on small properties in a pursuit for the top bucks in your area. This episode touches how on a small property we HAVE to focus on being their daytime destination not their destination food source.

Part 3 of a 10 part series tackling the realities and mindset needed to chase, hunt and manipulate the habitat on small properties in a pursuit for the top bucks in your area. Today is all about the does and just how crucial they are to your properties hunting come the fall. I share why and/or how I harvest does IF I do and provide some items to ponder about when and how to take those antlerless deer.

Part 2 of a 10 part series tackling the realities and mindset needed to chase, hunt and manipulate the habitat on small properties in a pursuit for the top bucks in your area. Today is all about the bucks...and how more often than not you will be faced with losing a buck than those not on small properties. This is something some just aren't capable of accepting and small property challenges will ruin hunting for them.

Part 1 of a 10 part series tackling the realities and mindset needed to chase, hunt and manipulate the habitat on small properties in a pursuit for the top bucks in your area. Today is all about the biggest hurdle that some just aren't capable of accepting and that is the challenge overall that doing all this on small properties present...it isn't for everyone - is it for you?

I sit down for an update of where I am preseason and also something which I think many can relate to - the mindset of the hunter we are. Do we spend far too much time focused on what we don't have, and miss the opportunities infront of us?

Honestly, it's that time of year where so many are tricked into wasting tons of money on junk seed....when there is no excuse to be ignorant.

Folks complicate everything these days...food plots do not have to be one of them. I share five quick thoughts on this episode that all should remember this fall food plotting season: Pay for seed and just seed. Don't overthink this...we are not scientists...pedologists... You don't need twenty plant types to be successful... Don't overuse or overthink fertilizers and consider foliar. Know your frost date and seed accordingly. *Think about tossing soybeans in as well is touched on.

Let's delve into the second of four items I shared in an October social media posting - that small property owners should above all else prioritize.

This episode (and three more) were triggered by an October 2023 posting which shared that there are four things that despite all the unique traits and situational difference properties can have; these four things will never fail a property owner in finding success should they focus on these four. This is especially crucial on small properties.

Let's revisit a social media post I made about a mistake I see many hunters make early season, and why I don't think it deserved nearly the blowback it got.

Few days prior I shared a short video requesting everyone ask themselves one question whenever they hear someone in the hunting industry speak on a product, tool or thought - "Is what they're saying being influenced by money?" Such a simple thought, yet some were quite riled up thinking I was discussing them specifically and wanted to know why I didn't just private message them.  Let's unpack that some and I share some of my plans for 2023 as I begin an overhaul of the 22.

In this episode I discuss one of the yearly topics which gets emailed in, or prompted on various platforms across numerous locations...."How do I go about killing a good buck in the early season?"

This is Part 6 of 6 planned podcasts discussing the "perfect" property pyramid. This pyramid lays out what 5 aspects/traits of a property I feel I've seen in or on every property I know has yielded sustained success for hunters chasing not just whitetail deer, but bucks that sit in that top 15% or so of their localized deer herd's age bracket. This episode we will discuss THE MOST IMPORTANT THING above all else for properties: SECURITY. If you fail to strive and achieve a property with security for the deer, NOTHING ELSE MATTERS. 

This is Part 5 of 6 planned podcasts discussing the "perfect" property pyramid. This pyramid lays out what 5 aspects/traits of a property I feel I've seen in or on every property I know has yielded sustained success for hunters chasing not just whitetail deer, but bucks that sit in that top 15% or so of their localized deer herd's age bracket. This episode we will discuss Entrance & Exits (one of the bottom parts of the pyramid), which happens to be arguably the #1 thing I see destroying properties the most.

This is Part 4 of 6 planned podcasts discussing the "perfect" property pyramid. This pyramid lays out what 5 aspects/traits of a property I feel I've seen in or on every property I know has yielded sustained success for hunters chasing not just whitetail deer, but bucks that sit in that top 15% or so of their localized deer herd's age bracket. This episode we will discuss the "middle" of the pyramid: Limited & Designed Pressure...and full disclosure I'm quite open with some of the issues which fit into this section...and I'm also going to be brutally honest about who the #1 limiting factor for your property might be: YOU.

This is Part 3 of 6 planned podcasts discussing the "perfect" property pyramid. This pyramid lays out what 5 aspects/traits of a property I feel I've seen in or on every property I know has yielded sustained success for hunters chasing not just whitetail deer, but bucks that sit in that top 15% or so of their localized deer herd's age bracket. This episode we will discuss the top of the pyramid: Layers & Zones...and my approach or mindset to this aspect is no foreign concept to those that follow the minds of guys like Jake Ehlinger or Tony Lapratt; utilizing every square foot of the property.

This is Part 2 of 6 planned podcasts discussing the "perfect" property pyramid. This pyramid lays out what 5 aspects/traits of a property I feel I've seen in or on every property I know has yielded sustained success for hunters chasing not just whitetail deer, but bucks that sit in that top 15% or so of their localized deer herd's age bracket. This episode we will discuss the top of the pyramid: food...and my approach or mindset to this aspect of a property doesn't fall in line with many in the industry.

This is Part 1 of 6 planned podcasts discussing the "perfect" property pyramid. This pyramid lays out what 5 aspects/traits of a property I feel I've seen in or on every property I know has yielded sustained success for hunters chasing not just whitetail deer, but bucks that sit in that top 15% or so of their localized deer herd's age bracket. This episode we will discuss the one item left off and briefly provide an overview of the five aspects or traits which did make the cut.

On this episode I discuss some of the most common food plot failures many run into and things to keep in mind as promised in the previous episode.

Here I vent and share how last year was a season that couldn't end fast enough for me. The struggle to find motivation to hunt and let alone make content is also discussed. All of that leads into a discussion of specific things I'll be doing this year in an attempt to not allow this past seasons' "failures" merely repeat again.

In this episode I sit down with Matt Thielking, a hard working common man like you and I that over the past few years has been managing his small piece of land. Over that time he's learned through failures, successes and most recently through some key changes he did a little over a year ago; which have already illustrated to be successful.  Link to the video and his channel discussed in podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-i68aCF98o Aerial not needed to be added as the video above shares it.

Little check in episode where I discuss our plans for the coming weekend, go over some seed purchases (without discount), encourage everyone to make the hunting community a better place and finally provide the audio version of The Potential Is There. The Potential Is There is a write up I did for Real World Wildlife Products and pray it stirs up thoughts in your head and reflection as well. Thanks for swinging by!

Today I take a quick "detour" like trip conveying how fatherhood or Father's Day is something we can learn a decent amount on our hunting/land managing journeys. Little different spin, but I promise it will most likely make sense.

Let's chat on this episode about three things most landowners struggle with accepting they must control if they want to fully commit to success when it comes to a property conducive for daytime deer movement/use.

This episode is an in depth discussion with just a normal guy that dove head first into soil health about 18 months ago. We discuss his journey, no till operations, the life beneath our feet and how when everything is working together it is possible to eliminate fertilizer needs even! Various resources are discussed throughout the podcast and are listed here: Grant Woods - Buffalo System https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fje5eL1oePY A Soil Owner's Manual by Jon Sitka https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Owners-Manual-Restore-Maintain/dp/1530431263 Dirt To Soil by Gabe Brown https://www.amazon.com/Dirt-Soil-Familys-Regenerative-Agriculture/dp/1603587632 Ray Archuleta - My favorite video of his but find more - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEOyC_tGH64 Jason Snavely & Drop Tine Podcast https://droptine.libsyn.com/ The Soil Will Save Us - https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Will-Save-Us-Scientists/dp/1609615549 Dr. Christine Jones in general but here is one of her talks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4uVKIGBk2s Green Cover Seed website https://greencoverseed.com/ Fred Provenza's Book Nourishment https://www.amazon.com/Nourishment-Animals-Rediscovering-Nutritional-Wisdom/dp/1603588027 Growing a Revolution by David Montgomery https://wwnorton.com/books/9780393356090 Midwest Cover Crops Field Guide https://ag.purdue.edu/agry/dtc/Pages/CCFG.aspx Al's Youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuk3TrBkhI8dTtThHYrrhtA

What a treat it was to sit down for nearly an hour and a half and chat whitetails with Jake Ehlinger. It is a blessing we will without question be having a follow up episode focusing more so on how to go about hunting a property once the habitat plan is falling into place. This episode however we touch on everything habitat and dabble in on an in depth scent discussion as well. Trust me a notepad and pen could be a good thing to have handy. Be sure to share every where you can for others to hear!

In this episode we breakdown in a bit more detail some of the work ahead of Pops and I at The22 property; including a few of the trees I have coming for this year. This discussions leads right into perhaps one question many folks want to avoid, but I feel we all need to honestly answer, "Are you growing timber or deer?" I also share the news about Patreon and how everything is revamping at Small Acre Hunting - and I need your support if it is going to stay active and create content consistently.

IT HAS BEEN FAR TOO LONG! In this episode I touch on some of the reasons I've been away and hint at some changes on the horizon. However, we then slip into perhaps one of the most poignant writings I've shared in quite sometime - sit back and listen to the audio version of "Perspective in the Chaos".  God bless and THANK YOU to each and every one of you.

In this episode we discuss just how unprepared I feel heading into the season, real life reflections BUT we also discuss why above all that I am very excited for a promising fall season!!!

Short on time and guests schedules didn't allow...so let's chat quickly about my current situation, and also my 3 main food plot plans for the fall which rarely if ever change.

I'm going to delve into a concept which may seem odd coming from someone whom has consulted on numerous properties....but there is a pivotal piece most consultants don't want to discuss, ignore or downplay that above all else must be in place for success to occur. Let's discuss it.

After quite a hiatus thanks to moving houses, I finally get a podcast scraped together. More to come soon!

Let's finally delve into the discussion of the property itself habitat wise. I paint a picture of a hypothetical property and on this episode we focus primarily on cover. I touch on the basics or overview of where and why I may direct habitat improvements with cover/bedding in mind. ** Also I mention a way you can help me in the development of a new concept call the Small Acre Hunting - Attack Plan...be sure to listen up!

So we have written down the goal of the property. We surveyed the SURROUNDING area of the property to see what strengths and weaknesses exist OFF the property....now we turn to the decisions ON the property. FIRST though...we must have the discussion over the most CRITICAL thing we have to make our property the BEST at: SECURITY.