ZERO- TO 150-BOONE AND CROCKETT POINT BUCKS IN THREE
YEARS
How the Process Began
Editor's Note: By intensely managing deer for three
years, Mark Drury, the creator of M.A.D. Calls and co-owner
of Drury Outdoors Adventures saw the 2,100 acres of
land he owned and leased go from having few if any shooter
deer to producing 150-class bucks. His amazing story
demonstrates what quality wildlife management can do
for a deer herd when sportsmen willingly invest the
time and money to produce better bucks. In 2001, Mark
of St. Peters, Missouri, and his brother Terry Drury
harvested five bucks that scored 150 or more Boone &
Crockett points from property almost completely devoid
of deer three years earlier. Could you do this on the
lands where you hunt?
 Mark
and Terry Drury bought and leased some Iowa property
in the fall of 1997. The land consisted of 1,300 acres
of brush and timber, 500 acres in CRP and 300 acres
in grown-up pastures. The deer had plenty of cover,
but they had no agriculture on which to feed. In 1998,
when the Drurys began a management program on their
property, they immediately established 40 food plots.
But, they decided not to take any bucks that first year.
"Initially, we planted soybeans and milo in the
food plots -- the traditional green-field plantings
in that area," Mark Drury  explains.
"We also planted a little clover. That first year,
in 1998, we decided not to shoot any bucks on the property.
We shot does, and we passed up all the little bucks.
I only saw one or two, 2-year-old bucks. All the other
bucks on the property averaged 1-year old. We decided
only to take 3-year-old bucks off the property.
"We also made a rule that anyone who hunted on
the property had to take two does before they earned
the right to bag a buck. Residents could accomplish
this requirement in one year, but non-residents had
to make a three-year commitment because they could only
draw one tag each per year. Most of the people who hunted
with us didn't mind this requirement. Because of the
way we managed our land, today a hunter would have a
chance to take a 200-point B&C buck on this property.
The real secret of good deer management involves  keeping
the deer on the property, providing plenty of food for
them and allowing them to grow into the older-age classes
that you want to harvest. Also, make sure you have enough
food on the property all year long so the bucks don't
have to leave your property to find food somewhere else."
During the 2001 hunting season, Drury saw the results
of his management program. The brothers and friends
their took an 8 pointer that scored 150 points, a 10
pointer that scored 151, a 10 pointer that scored 150,
an 11 pointer that scored 158 and a 13 pointer that
scored 168 B&C points.
To learn more about Drury Outdoors Adventures, call
(800) 990-9451, or go to www.druryoutdoors.com.
TOMORROW: DRURY'S PLANTING REGIMEN
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