Hello, Everyone! I just wanted to check in as it's been a while since I did a post here. All of my Iowa clients have applied (or should have!) for their non-resident deer tag by now, but they still have two weeks left give or take. This is also the window to purchase a preference point to use in future draws. If you have always wanted to come to Iowa, now is the time to get that super important preference point.
We've had trail cameras soaking on most of the farms for two weeks now, and we will be checking them over the next two weeks to see what type of growth we have on the racks. Some should be approaching the G3s now (give or take). I am excited to get my first card pulls of the year done. Antler growth is supposedly better here when it's a wet spring, and we have had semi-wet to wet conditions going on thus far. So, they should shape up well. Now is when we want a lot of rain, not October/November. If you haven't yet, add two or three towns in southern Iowa close to our farms to your phone's weather app. I would do Bloomfield, IA and Chariton, IA for reference.
I am planning some brassica plots yet, working on design, calculating the acreage for materials needed: seed, fertilizer, urea/nitrogen, and planning the time to do it with some help and tractor/tiller/brush-hog. It is a very fun time to go out and be a "farmer" for a few days without worry about commodity prices or the current markets.
I am anxious to get to work making some hay bale blinds and putting together some tower blinds (Radix Hunting Monarch Elevated Blinds). Then, stands come next. That means I will have a chance at catching west nile with all of the mosquitos that will be biting my rear. Talking about bugs, the ticks are horrible this year! We will definitely see a lot of ticks on the deer on camera. This is one of the worst tick years that I have personally seen in the last 10 years. Thank God for a wife that checks me for ticks! Ha!
That's all I have for an update at this point aside from COVID-19. Iowa opened back up on Friday, and thankfully, life is going to start getting back to somewhat normal over the next month. It's a very strange time. Hopefully, all of you have been staying safe. Get out, get some fresh air, and stay in touch!
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