OK have you tried talking to your local state soil conservation officer, and or forester?
if not this would be my first recommendation to you, they can tell you a LOT about what your soil is likely to grow best
and many times they have spring time buys/ or group buys for things from tree's to seeds to?? , might be able to get some deals on tree's
and I also agree, 20 acres sounds like a lot more land than it is, all the more so when you consider safety zones and road frontage, still better than NO acres LOL
I would also make sure you start taking to the land owners bordering your lands and getting to know them, for both personal and legal reasons, many states its illegal to trespass onto another land to recover a deer or other animal you shoot, and we all know some things things can go wrong and deer can travel after being shot!
also good idea to talk to them about what they consider management for deer!
as if your trying to grow big bucks and they don't care , your in for a hard road!
as most deer will NOT live and remain on your land, so, they can be shot rather easy on others, making it very very hard to get older aged bucks!
and also, this will let them know what your like, AS I have found, most smaller plots of land like your, locals THINK they OPEN to the public and it can be generations deep trying to stop them
BUT if your in good with locals and bordering land owners, , many times you can all work together, but better to ask in advance before sinking a lot of time and money into plots!
and I too mean all this in a possessive way, no bashing here, just things I know from experience!
back to tree, again, your local soil conservation and forester can recommend fast shielding tree's and shrubs that will grow best on your land,as that's sort of what they do for a living, in knowing this stuff in YOUR area!
another option till tree's grow, is, to have a local farmer, plant a few rows of corn around your borders where possible , it can sure help on drive by shooters! offering as shield of sorts!
if your a member of the NWTF< and start looking NOW< you can get discounted corn seed from most chapters DIRT cheap, and is perfect for doing things like this!
well worth the 20 bucks a yr to be a member!