What Hunters Should Know About Nuts to Take Buck Deer
Day 5: Larry Norton’s Bowhunting Strategies for Hunting Fertilized Nut Trees for Deer
Editor’s Note: Because of the success of that hunt for deer near nut trees (see Day 1) I’ve been nuts for bucks ever since. If you know how to hunt nut trees, you consistently can pattern and take deer year after year in the same area. A man who has far more knowledge than myself and spends most of his time in the woods hunting nuts is avid deer hunter and guide, Larry Norton of Butler, Alabama.
  Hunt Alone:
When Norton hunts with a bow, he tries to find two acorn trees producing a good number of acorns 50-yards apart. After fertilizing both trees, he sets a tree stand between the trees to take deer that come in to either tree. Norton places his tree stand 25-yards from the bases of both trees he wants to hunt. Using this system of fertilizing and tree stand placement, Norton doubles his odds for arrowing a buck.
Hunt With a Buddy:
Norton mentions that, “I can take twice as many deer by being unselfish and hunting with a partner than I can if I hunt alone.” Norton will fertilize a nut tree on the edge of thick cover and take a stand about 30-yards from the base of that tree on the edge of the cover. Then he can arrow a deer from his stand 30 yards to the base of the tree that has been fertilized or 30 yards on the other side of his stand down the edge of the thicket to cover 60 yards of territory from his tree stand.
“If I put a hunting companion on the other side of the fertilized tree from me, he can shoot from his tree stand 30 yards toward the fertilized tree or for 30 yards on the other side of his stand,” Norton says. “Using this tactic, the two of us can cover 120 yards of territory with our bows.
Both of us consistently will bag more deer by hunting together than either of us will take by hunting alone. When we buddy hunt, we have four sets of eyes looking for deer instead of two. We use hand signals to communicate when either of us sees a deer. Often my buddy will spot a deer I never see and never will have gotten a shot at had he not alerted me to the deer’s presence. I’ve been buddy hunting for more than two decades. I’m convinced that if more archers hunt together, they will be more successful than either archer will be by himself.
  “Another advantage to using this system of buddy hunting is if a deer comes in to range but is turned wrong for you to get a good shot, many times he’ll present a broadside shot to your partner. Instead of your not getting a shot or being forced to take a bad shot, your partner may have a perfect shot. Also hunting with a partner means four sets of eyes can look for blood when you’re blood trailing instead of two, and you’ll have four arms and legs to drag the deer out instead of just two.”
Hunting the nuts and studying nut trees in your area will produce more deer for you in upcoming seasons. Once you begin to see the benefits of hunting fertilized nut trees, then you’ll understand why fertilized nuts are best for bucks.
To learn more about deer hunting, you can get John E. Phillips’ Kindle eBooks,
“How to Hunt Deer Up Close: With Bows, Rifles, Muzzleloaders and Crossbows,” “PhD Whitetails: How to Hunt and Take the Smartest Deer on Any Property,” “How to Take Monster Bucks,” and “How to Hunt Deer Like a Pro,” or to prepare venison, get “Deer & Fixings.” Click here on each, or go to www.amazon.com/kindle-ebooks, type in the name of the book, and download it to your Kindle, and/or download a Kindle app for your iPad, SmartPhone or computer.
About the Author
John Phillips, winner of the 2012 Homer Circle Fishing Award for outstanding fishing writer by the American Sportfishing Association (ASA) and the Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA), the 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the year and the 2007 Legendary Communicator chosen for induction into the National Fresh Water Hall of Fame, is a freelance writer (over 6,000 magazine articles for about 100 magazines and several thousand newspaper columns published), magazine editor, photographer for print media as well as industry catalogues (over 25,000 photos published), lecturer, outdoor consultant, marketing consultant, book author and daily internet content provider with an overview of the outdoors. Click here for more information and a list of all the books available from John E. Phillips.
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