Episode #267 - Spring Whitetail Habitat Projects - Is it Go Time?

Published: 2025-04-06
Episode page
Duration: 75 min

In this episode

blind

• Terry announces Don received the new Chasing Giants Edition ASIO 360 Blonde hunting blind via freight this week. 0:46
• Don says the new ASIO 360 Blonde is hands-down the best blind on the market. 1:02
• Don didn’t realize the blind had a rubber floor mat instead of carpet until he got inside. 1:33
• Don noted that from outside the blind’s windows look completely black so no one can be seen inside. 2:11
• Once inside the blind, Don found the windows offered daylight-clear visibility despite looking black from outside. 2:17
• Don plans to make the new Chasing Giants blind’s location the number one hub spot on his farm. 17:11
• Don plans to move a blind onto the new field’s edge where the deer come out. 19:03
• Terry asks Don whether he’d plant Miscanthus or conifer trees to screen the new blind location. 39:37
• Terry asks how close Don plants conifer trees to a blind when placing them. 40:41

chasing-giants-tv

• A new Chasing Giants TV video comparing grown-up cattle pasture as deer bedding dropped this week. 15:21

conifers

• Kirk Willard asks Don for his top three conifer species for whitetail habitat plantings. 35:44

crp

• Don says he pays far more in taxes than he ever gets back from government programs like CRP. 54:12
• Don says he would gladly give up every dollar he gets from government programs to pay a third of his current taxes. 54:22
• Jordan Bashford asks how state-funded CRP and tree programs differ from taxpayer-funded wind and solar subsidies Don criticizes. 51:37

education

• Trump reportedly wants to eliminate the federal Department of Education and send control back to the states. 58:05

expertise

• Terry says when experts like Strickland or Gains speak, he needs to listen more than argue. 12:28

family

• Terry says without their wives’ support, neither he nor Don would have the deer or the businesses they have today. 22:29

farm-plan

• Terry plans to plow under a five-year alfalfa field to convert it to corn ground, but not until after a planned turkey hunt. 60:07

feeding

• Trace Burkholder asks if feeding deer straight corn mixed with molasses is healthy or causes issues like hoof problems. 26:14

fruit-trees

• At 61, Don says he still plants fruit trees every spring for future benefit. 30:44
• This spring Don planted 30 apples and pears in a new orchard plus more elsewhere and a dozen persimmons. 31:02
• Don says the best apples he’s ever had came from Mike Mitchell’s Oak Hall Valley Orchard near Sullivan, Illinois. 32:18
• Don says he only recently realized how critical micronutrient sprays are for fruit production, after learning from Mike and Andy. 33:42

health

• Don used to snack on Snickers candy bars in the stand before switching habits about a year ago. 34:09

homeschool

• Don observes that homeschooling is growing rapidly compared to when he was a kid. 57:45
• Terry says if he had young kids right now, given school problems, he would homeschool them. 57:00

land-purchase

• Don is in the process of purchasing the field behind where Terry shot the King David buck. 18:54

marriage

• Don tells young guys that without a supporting spouse they start out with two strikes against them. 23:07
• Don jokes he never has to give up the best stand since his wife doesn’t hunt. 24:50 (light moment)

mentorship

• Don says he has never thought of himself as an expert and considers himself a lifelong student of the whitetail. 14:15
• Don recalls Alan Foster being a major influence on him when Don was in his late teens. 13:51
• Don credits Aaron Gaines and Bronson Strickland among the teachers who shaped his whitetail knowledge. 14:33

mineral

• Don says he and Aaron have been in frequent contact and are aligned on views regarding mineral supplementation. 11:03
• Don asserts there is no way some marketed deer products actually do what they claim. 11:38

miscanthus

• Don advises customers not to wait until the last minute to order Miscanthus because supply is running tight. 4:02
• Don explains Miscanthus can be dug as much as needed until it breaks dormancy, which closes the digging window. 6:05

podcast

• Don jokes he’d volunteer as cohost if they ever start a third podcast on marriage counseling and politics. 61:57 (light moment)

politics

• Don argues taxes could be cut by two-thirds if government only funded its core constitutional duties. 52:33

scent-control

• Don explains eating an apple can help mask hunter breath odor, a major source of scent that spooks deer. 34:49

scrape

• Don plans to set up a rope scrape with a hidden trail camera in front of the new blind. 17:43

second-podcast

• Terry announces a second podcast is in development after listener requests, with some people offering to help fund it. 61:26
• Terry says they are giving the second podcast idea serious consideration after people offered support to help fund it. 61:36

stand-work

• Terry asks Don what percentage of his upcoming farm projects are bedding-related versus food-related. 15:59

subsidies

• Don says everybody wants to point fingers at someone else over subsidies while taking payments themselves. 55:37

switchgrass

• Terry states switchgrass availability in the marketplace is lower right now than ever before due to the growing season and seed quality. 5:11
• Local sources reportedly claimed bigger switchgrass fields do not make good bedding cover for deer. 6:49
• Don calls the claim that switchgrass makes poor deer bedding the biggest bunch of nonsense he’s ever heard. 6:57
• Don has personally seen mature bucks bedding in and coming out of his switchgrass fields for over twenty years. 7:30
• Terry plans to put a section of switchgrass into his farm this year, something he never expected to do. 60:26

ticks

• Ryan Ballsley asks Don and Terry if they follow any regimen to combat ticks. 47:03

timber-harvest

• Ryan Higgins asks what to consider when resetting stands and access after a timber harvest on his permission farm. 42:43

weather

• Terry reports significant tornado damage occurred through Arkansas and Tennessee overnight. 9:41

Deer activity

• King David (harvest) 18:52

Listener questions

Question: Terry asks Don what percentage of his upcoming farm projects are bedding-related versus food-related. 15:59

• Answer: Don says he has no bedding projects this year; his focus is entirely on turning good stands into great ones. 16:07

Question: Trace Burkholder asks if feeding deer straight corn mixed with molasses is healthy or causes issues like hoof problems. 26:14 — asked by Trace Burkholder

• Answer: Don says he always discourages feeding straight corn since it isn’t a balanced diet. 27:19
• Answer: Don recommends NutriCrave corn as part of a complete, balanced feed mix. 27:41
• Answer: Terry suggests planting fruit trees like apples and pears near the feeder to boost drawing power. 29:45

Question: Kirk Willard asks Don for his top three conifer species for whitetail habitat plantings. 35:44 — asked by Kirk Willard

• Answer: Don ranks eastern red cedar, Norway spruce, and white pine as his top three conifers, noting spruce resists deer browsing better than pine. 35:58

Question: Terry asks Don whether he’d plant Miscanthus or conifer trees to screen the new blind location. 39:37

• Answer: Don says he’d go with conifer trees to screen the blind, no doubt about it. 40:05

Question: Terry asks how close Don plants conifer trees to a blind when placing them. 40:41

• Answer: Don recommends keeping conifer trees at least 10 feet back from the blind. 40:46

Question: Ryan Higgins asks what to consider when resetting stands and access after a timber harvest on his permission farm. 42:43 — asked by Ryan Higgins

• Answer: Don advises making sure the logger takes every mature tree species rather than cherry-picking valuable ones. 43:03
• Answer: Don says the regrowth after harvest will create thicker cover and likely more, not fewer, deer. 44:03

Question: Ryan Ballsley asks Don and Terry if they follow any regimen to combat ticks. 47:03 — asked by Ryan Ballsley

• Answer: Don says he has no tick regimen beyond showering and picking ticks off. 47:47
• Answer: Don says the Expect Healthy Deer mineral technology has natural antiparasitic compounds that reduce flies on his cattle. 49:07

Question: Jordan Bashford asks how state-funded CRP and tree programs differ from taxpayer-funded wind and solar subsidies Don criticizes. 51:37 — asked by Jordan Bashford

• Answer: Don says he agrees completely with Jordan’s point. 52:12
• Answer: Don says he’d support eliminating CRP and every government subsidy, including his own. 55:04

Prayer Time

Scripture: Isaiah
Theme: enduring grief while keeping faith
Eric Perry recounts losing his father suddenly and how his prayer life quietly weakened during grief; he urges listeners that God’s righteous right hand is always extended to help them endure hardship, pointing to Isaiah 41:10’s promise of strength and support. 69:47

Terry reported Don had received the new Chasing Giants Edition ASIO 360 Blonde blind, which Don called the best on the market despite an unexpected rubber floor and windows that looked black outside but were clear from within. Don urged ordering Miscanthus early given tight supply, and dismissed claims that big switchgrass fields make poor deer bedding, citing over twenty years of watching mature bucks use his fields. Don discussed plans for the blind’s hub location, a rope-scrape camera setup, and a new field purchase near where Terry shot the King David buck. Both credited spousal support and mentors like Alan Foster, Aaron Gaines, and Bronson Strickland for their success. Don also argued for cutting taxes and government subsidies, including his own CRP payments. Listener questions covered feeding straight corn, conifer species for screening, post-timber-harvest stand planning, and tick prevention. Eric Perry shared a prayer about enduring grief after his father’s sudden death.

Unofficial fan project. AI-synthesized from public episodes; may contain errors.