I recently checked on one of my hunting area which butts up against some Conservation ground. Much to my suprise they had done a controlled burn of a large portion of the Conservation ground right up to our property line. One of the areas they burned contained a bedding area. Has anyone had any experience with this? How did it affect patterns?

First, I have never hunted any ground that been thru a control burn. However, I have done some reading on this, and studied it a bit when I was in Montana. What they have found is that a controlled burn really helps with the natural habitat and provide tons of new forage. While you may have lost a known bedding area, they have provided you with a new food source. All the new tender growth is like a buffet for them. It may take you a while to figure out the new pattern, but I don't believe this really would have hurt you at all. Spend a little time getting to know the ground again and I am sure you will be back on them in no time. Good lukc!

I havent experienced this before either but what kickin said above is true. They will find somewhere else to bed (most likely timber or other tall overgrown areas). All the burning should create some healty growth for them to feed on this summer!

They burn the public ground I hunt a lot and it really does help the folage and undergrowth. It doesnt seem to effect the deer that much in my experience. But it is a good thing.

We've used controlled burn a some of the fields before to stimulate new growth or change crops and there is definitely new growth where they burnt on the Conservation ground. It may end up stopping the deer short of the fields depending on if the bedding sites change.

The cameras are going up soon so I hope to start putting the pieces together again before Sept.

Here in the south controlled an out of control burns are common--Keeps the deer out of that area for a short time, But after a few rains and the green shoots start popping up they will be back--I have killed a few deer with Black stocking feet --walking around in the burned arealooking for the tender new shoots!