Gobbling Buck

Does anybody have any good tips on hunting planted pines? That's about all we have on the 2 different leases I'm in. There are so many down here, the last deer I shot didn't leave a blood trail...........but I still got him by following the sap.

JagMagMan

Hunting pine plantations can be some of the toughest hunting you ever do! It can be productive though!
What age is this plantation? Also are there different age sections, clear cuts, or creek bottoms?
I need a little more to go on

rambopacker

We use to drive the pine plantations in the middle of the day since they are good bedding areas. That is of course the boughs are to the ground and offer cover for them. Also are there any lone taller trees you can stick a stand in? I also remember finding the scrapes on trails thru these areas and would sit near them but that can be tough. The best place might be on the edges of these stands as they usually don't offer good food sources and the bucks will come out/go in in the morning /late evening.

Gobbling Buck

I have 2 different leases. On the first, the pines have been thinned and you can see for days. I can get a climber on some of the trees but its normally at the smallest adjustment. This lease is on very hilly terrain and there are usually hardwoods left in the draws. There is also about a 600acre clear cut that adjoins the pines and it was planted last year. There are numerous roads and fire breaks on the property. Also, another point worth mentioning is this club is predominately run with dogs and I prefer to stand or still hunt.

The other, I'm not sure of the age of the trees, but they are about 25 to 30 feet high and very thick and not big enough for a climber. We have several ladder stands and shooting houses, but they are all on the roads. I took a doe during bow season from a hardwood creek bottom, but all the acorns are gone and with the hunting pressure the deer seem to just hold tight to the thick stuff. Any tips on getting in there with them? It is not legal to bait in Alabama, but we can and do have green plots. Any suggestions? Thanks..........GB

JagMagMan

The first property that you have sounds a lots like I have. The best thing to do is just like anywheres else, look for the funnels! Look for the "edge factors" too, fence lines, fire breaks, and old logging roads, where two or more different terrains come together. Deer love these places! If you can set up along the edge of a clearcut, where it joins a tall plantation, or a hardwood creek.
One of my best places was overlooking, an overgrown clearcut. I mainly had only two shooting lanes. One was part of an old logging road and the other was just a lane that was cut through the new pines. There was a narrow strip of tall pines and a few hardwoods that ran trough this clearcut. My shooting lane ran along side a portion of this strip. Across the logging road was a tall pine plantation, with a creek bottom on the other side of the plantation.
If you have any areas like this they would certainly be worth looking into! Find where they are crossing and you should have a good setup!

As for the second place, thick pine plantations like this are very hard to hunt!
You almost have to hunt the logging roads and fire breaks! Everything else is just too thick! Look at some aerial maps and topo maps to find whats around the plantation, this should help you figure out where the deer are comming and going to.
For thickets like this its your best bet to find their travel zones and set up there.
One thing I had to get in my mind is "you can't setup to see everything!" But it is better to hunt one or two shorter lanes in a good area, than to hunt an area that you can see a whole lot of nuthing! Good luck!

gulfcoasthunter

Everything here is planted pine. If you have food plots hunt them in the evenings and the resr of the day hunt trantition zones, where the pines meet the hardwoods ect. Old fire breaks or logging roads are good also.

Gobbling Buck

Sorry it took so long to get back. Thanks for the advise though. I scouted a good bit the other day and found a real good crossing on a creek that runs through one of HW bottoms. It's thick in there, but a lot of promising sign. I think the wind will be wrong to hunt it (if the weather man is right), but I'll be right back in there as soon as the next North wind comes. Once again, THANKS.

JGeBaide

I have quite a bit of experience hunting planted pine here in Florida and some great advice has been given but I wanted to add a little more.

Planted pine can be thick with undergrowth and hard to hunt. If you have access and run a bush hog through natural travel areas prior to opening season the deer will use the nice trail you made them as long as you keep it at 4 or 5 feet wide and they feel safe.

You can always find an area of trees missing that is getting sun. They make great food plots, and deer will come. Note, soil test are a must due to PH levels in pine.

Natural funnels and edges are always the #1 things I look for but 3 foot tall chicken wire a foot off the ground can make the funnel where you need it inexpensively. Hey, I am a retired Marine, you are setting up a linear ambush, same principal.

There is nothing more important than preseason scouting and understanding their movements and what they are feeding on at different times of the year. They will not be eating the same thing during early bow season and late rifle season. Call your local biologist and pick his / her brain.

Pick the right stand, one type will never work in all situations. You can never have enough stands out and scouted.

Game cameras prove or disprove what you think is going on without you having to sit for days.

Mojotex

Lots of good info already posted. Let me add that the advice on bush-hogging a few "shootiong lanes" in the big pines is a good idea, but be cautious not to turn the place into "Central Park". The deer will tend to still ease through cover as they travel. Get it too open and you may deter them from easing through. You get high enough up and you should be able to see them moving ... then maybe you can get a clean shot as they cross.

As for planting a food poot in the pines? Unless you have an open spot that gets plenty of sunlight, you will be fighting a losing battle. Also the pine tree root system will be competing with the food plot for moisture. Not to mention the acidity that you will be dealing with. The soil under the pines will likely be very acidic. So soil test and correct if you decide to go this route.

The thick, young pines ? Tough to hunt "under". But deer where I hunt like to bed up in this sort of stuff. Scout the edges of these thickets and see if you can find trails in/out of these thick pines. Hunt these trails.

Good luck !

aralyn072

Thanks for nice post