The 2015 deer season has only recently ended for much of the country. That doesn’t mean that it is time to put up all of your gear until next fall. On the contrary, if you want the most successful season next year, the time to start preparing is now.

1. Scout

The first thing you should do this offseason is scout. The leaves are off of the trees and it doesn’t matter if you spook deer now, you can’t hunt them anyway. All of the hardwoods are bare, revealing the travel corridors and living areas of your local deer. Post-season is the perfect time to go into your local buck’s core area. From there look for nearby travel routes and food sources that are likely to be used by the buck while it’s travelling during the day. Rubs will reveal the direction the buck has been moving. Pay particular attention to travel corridors that go through funnels or other pinch points. Mark these down and watch them, as they may end up being ideal spots to hang a stand during the summer.

2. Developing Habitat

Although you won’t be able to start new food plots until it warms in the spring or trim shooting lanes until the foliage comes back in the summer, you can do a few things to improve the habitat for next fall. The first thing you should be doing, especially if the soil in your area freezes in the winter is frost seeding your food plots. QDMA explains the process here http://bit.ly/1PdZKoi saying:

“Frost seeding involves spreading seed on frozen ground and allowing the freeze-thaw-freeze-thaw cycle that occurs as spring approaches to provide good seed-to-soil contact. When moisture in the top layer of soil freezes, ice expands upward, carrying soil with it. This process, called “heaving,” helps work small seeds like clover and alfalfa into the soil, the same way light disking or cultipacking creates good seed-to-soil contact. When early spring temperatures are optimal, the seeds will germinate.”

Keep in mind that this only works with hard-seeded and cool-season plants. So it works great with things like chicory, clover, or alfalfa. It is great for maintaining the existing food plots.

Another thing you can do to improve the habitat is by hinge cutting. Hinge cutting is basically making cover to create bedding areas and/or funnels. It can be used either to create a secure area for your deer or to control their movement based on how it is done. To hinge cut a tree, you cut into the trunk of the tree until it is cut enough to fall over horizontally, still connected to the rest of the tree. If you want to create a bedding area, cut the tree at a chest height, so that the deer can get under the cover. If you are trying to create funnels and control where they move, then you will need to cut it lower, so that the deer cannot go through it. You can then control the direction of deer movement depending on which trees you hinge cut.

3. Predator Control

Post-season can also be a great time to hunt! Coyote hunting has been becoming much more popular in recent years, and it is a great way to help out your deer herd. It is also a load of fun! Coyotes kill more fawns than any other predator and are a huge burden on deer herds. Go along with a buddy who is experienced in coyote hunting, or read up on it online. There are many resources to help you get started hunting predators, you’ll just have to read what the experts are doing and get outside and try their methods.

Trapping is also a great way to control predators. It can also be even more effective than hunting them. It is another skill you would have to learn. The easiest way to learn how to trap predators is by shadowing an experienced trapper. They will be able to teach you the in’s and out’s of how it’s done. Local forums are a great way of finding people willing to show new trappers the ropes and how to control your local predator populations.

Summary

Don’t sulk and whine that deer season is over. February is the time to get back out there and start preparing for next deer season. Whether it is by taking care of food plots, hinge cutting trees, scouting, finding travel corridors and food, or controlling predators, now is the time to ensure this coming fall is your best season yet.