One Buck Kill Plots: Work Backwards to Tag Out

One of the biggest blunders private land hunters make is executing land and hunting adjustments too quickly. Whether you own, lease, or have permission, the temptation is to set plots, stands and decide how you will hunt with limited information, which is a recipe for failure more often than not.

The idea that you can manipulate a mature buck to use, travel and spend his time based on your schedule may be a bit naïve, but it’s the mainstream way of thinking spread by many YouTube land management “experts” these days. Yes, you can make land improvements and encourage deer to do certain things with some success, but forcing your will upon a wild animal is just, well, difficult. It’s as if a big old buck actually has a mind of his own. But what if there was a much easier and better way to reach the ultimate goal of shooting a mature whitetail by actually just letting him tell you how to do it?

This past year I was talking to my friend Ty Easley of Heartland Bowhunter on the Deer IQ podcast about tactics he uses successfully, including the intriguing idea of a one buck kill plot. The premise is simple. Instead of the typical forward approach of manipulating the land in extreme ways to force all the deer to do what you want, with the one buck plot, you sit back and observe what a particular deer likes to do and then make him a simple offer he can’t refuse — a small and precisely placed plot.

This backward approach has worked a handful of times for Ty on old whitetail bucks and is a detail-oriented tactic that can elevate your hunting game from just hoping, to surgically removing a buck from the woods. Let’s look at how.

Step 1: Hurry Up and Do Nothing

I call this the “discovery phase,” and it is honestly the hardest part because it feels like you’re not making progress. But trust me, you are. Most hunters want to immediately jump in and get to work when they secure a new hunting property or locate a target buck, but resisting this urge is critical.

Without sufficient knowledge of the deer and how they use the land, your first year or two should be just getting to know two things: how deer generally use the land, and how the top one or two bucks use it specifically. Sure, you can hunt it as part of this process, but land manipulations should be put on hold. This intel gathering is key for a particular buck you want to shoot, and should be looked at as an active, long-game process. Focus on deer over 3 years old if you can, because some bucks can change their patterns once they eclipse the 4-year-old mark. I’ve found it’s almost like they are a different animal.

According to Ty: “At this age (3-plus), you can usually tell which ones have the best potential to get big. Once they hit 5 years old, I typically have at least two or three years of knowledge that I’ve gained from trail cameras, scouting and hunting.” Try to pinpoint where your target buck travels, when he does this for time of day and time of season, where he likes to bed and when, and any other quirks or “tells” he divulges. The key is getting to know him, what he likes and how and where he feels safe traveling in daylight on the property. Patience is vital in this stage, and like a classic symphony arrangement with strategic instrumental pauses, great music is made in the rest.

Step 2: Build the Right Thing

When you focus too much on hunting, the most important thing gets overlooked: relationships. If you do not own the land where you hunt, focusing on building honest trust with the landowner is vital. All good things flow from this, even the end result of shooting that Boone & Crockett buck. If you lose the lease, or lose permission, this all goes down the tubes. It seems like a no-brainer, but I’ve heard way too many heart-wrenching and tearful stories of loss to prove otherwise.

Providing you’ve fostered a good relationship with the landowner, putting in a small, low-intrusion food plot to enhance wildlife habitat shouldn’t be a big ask and can easily be couched as a win/win.

And if you just purchased new ground, try focusing on neighbor relationships those first few years as you gather your deer data. Getting on the same page with fencemate landowners, as far as harvest goals go, can be a huge factor to long term success on your land. If a certain neighbor is a loose cannon, you want to know how to handle this variable. Relationships should be a critical part of your comprehensive land and hunting strategy.

Step 3: Establish His Patterns

Dr. Bronson Strickland of Mississippi State University discussed the different personalities of bucks with me recently, as well as their potential implications for hunters. According to a MSU Deer Lab collared buck study, whitetail bucks can be lumped into two general categories: sedentary and mobile. Data from their study revealed that around 70 percent of bucks have one core or home area (sedentary), while around 30 percent travel potentially large distances between several (mobile).

As you might guess, it appears that unpredictable or mobile bucks are hard to kill and probably why many hunters get caught in a trap of “chasing a buck” all season, only to eat tag soup. This is good information to know about bucks before deciding to hunt them.

Just like in Vegas, you want to put your money on the highest odds bet. “Most of these bucks with the smaller core areas are there because they have good cover and water nearby. But it more so is dependent upon the deer itself,” Ty says. “They are all unique in how they live their lives. Some bucks on a farm might travel a long way, where others have a small core area. If you find a deer with a small core area and figure out where he beds, these are the bucks you want to target.”

Once you find a buck that fits this criteria, and you know where he predominantly beds, then you can formulate your exact plan to kill him.

Step 4: Build the Plot

I’ve found that the one buck kill plots that are most successful are 1/2 an acre or less, and very close to where your buck beds, say within 100 to 200 yards max. Basically, you want to be as close as you can get without him knowing you’re there. This is so he doesn’t have to work much to get there in daylight. You also must be careful not to go too deep into the bedding or sanctuary area, because the more you intrude, the more chance peripheral deer will catch you, blowing your whole plan.

The No. 1 thing to determine is your entry and exit to these plots before you build them. You need to be able to get in, hunt and get out without this buck or any deer knowing they are being hunted, so don’t overlook this. Once you’ve found “the spot,” you’re basically going to set a super enticing, safe and irresistible snack right outside his bedroom. Think about it like this: which are you more likely to wander into at dusk, the Waffle House on the far side of town in a sketchy neighborhood, or the one built next door where you can smell the greasy goodness constantly?

Ty employed this on a Booner buck he named “Dreamer.” After extensive scouting, he knew this buck bedded heavily in two different thickets that were split by a hedge fence that ran east to west. Ty then built the food plot on the east side of his bedding area and set up a stand on the east side of the food plot, so he could hunt it with any wind except easterly. This allowed him to slip into and out of the stand with minimal disturbance. Your tree should have good cover for all times of year, even when foliage is down, and you need to remember that your buck may be bedded very close. So, having adequate cover as you climb up and down needs to be considered. The same is true for your entry and exit route.

The layout of the plot is also important. Plan for 90 percent of the plot to be shootable at all times. Ty suggests starting a year before you want to kill a buck by clearing and spraying to kill vegetation, then discing, and finally planting a cool season annual crop that first year. Then, if a perennial plot is preferred (such as clover or chicory), follow up with frost seeding that winter. There’s really minimal gear needed for this: an ATV/UTV or small tractor, a disc plow and a basic hand spreader for planting work quite well.

Step 5: Know When to Strike

Patience is key on big bucks, and deciding exactly when to strike can’t be overemphasized. The best, most consistent hunters know that you can’t wear out a spot, so hunting less is always best. Stats from my hunting history reveal that over 84 percent of my successful hunts are first sits, so this should be your goal, too.

Again, this is not about when it’s convenient for you, but when he lets you know he’s killable — when he’s proven he’s daylight active in your special-made plot. Cell cams are your best bet here, and Ty hedges his bets on certain weather conditions, too. “If I am not getting any daylight photos of my target buck, then I will wait until I do,” he explains. “The only exception for this would be if you have a really good cold front come through that could potentially get them on their feet early. If not, wait until the buck tells you when it is time, and always make sure the wind is right. It only takes one mistake, and all that hard work can be for nothing.”

Timing is the crucial component that I believe is the final make or break factor to success. In my opinion, you’ve just got to get it done the first time, or maybe the second time, hunting a spot. My backyard kill plot is a good example of this. In 2020, I got a picture of a tank of a 10-pointer with exceptionally long eye guards on October 30th. The problem was, he only proved I could kill him if I hunted at 4:47 a.m. — which obviously was impossible.

A rookie move would have been to pressure the area by hunting it, tipping my hand to him and any other deer frequenting the plot. This counterproductive move has been the death knell to many a hunter, and one you must avoid. I hunted some nearby public land while I waited for the last crucial bit of intel I needed, trying to catch up to another buck on my list. On Nov. 7, the 10-point let me know I should hunt him when he showed at daylight in the plot to check a scrape.

That next morning, my first strategic sit, he walked just two yards from my ground blind and gave me one of the most exciting encounters with a mature buck I’ve ever had. It was also his last encounter with a human.

Jumping the gun to set up your land is tempting, but it’s a mistake. When you give it time and let that mature buck tell you where to put a small, one-buck kill plot, your chances of actually taking him jump several levels. But don’t let the name fool you. If one buck chose that spot for certain reasons, there’s a good chance the next big buck will do the same, making your plot made specifically for one, good for many to follow.

About the Author

Adam Lewis has over 30 years of experience hunting whitetails successfully on both private and public lands around the country. He’s an award-winning writer, and creator of Deer IQ, aimed at educating and equipping hunters through podcast, blog and services found at: deeriq.com

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