Wildlife Habitat Improvements
Food plots, shooting lanes, trail systems, and habitat improvements designed to hold deer and grow healthier game — by a landowner who hunts his own work.
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A thin food plot does not hold deer. Across Northeast Louisiana the causes repeat: seed thrown on unbroken ground, no lime on sour soil, planting into September heat, or a plot put where the truck can reach instead of where deer already travel. The seed bill gets spent and the plot sits empty in November.
Big Cypress Land & Game prepares and plants food plots across Rayville, Monroe, Ruston, Bastrop and across Northeast Louisiana as one job: bush hogging the old growth, disking a clean seedbed, spreading lime and fertilizer to the soil test, and seeding inside the LSU AgCenter window for north Louisiana. New plots start with clearing or forestry mulching, and every plot is sited inside the larger habitat plan, with the lanes and access trails that make it huntable.
Most failed plots in this part of the state fail before the seed goes down. Richland Parish splits into two kinds of ground: silt loams on the Macon Ridge to the east, and very fine sandy loams with waxy clay pockets on the Boeuf River floodplain to the west. Both can run acidic, and old pasture or new ground cut from pine timber often tests well below the pH most forages want. The LSU AgCenter recommends a soil test about three months before planting, because lime takes three to five months to change the soil.
Timing is the second killer. The AgCenter warns against seeding cool-season plots before October in north Louisiana unless the ground has been worked well first. Its window for a prepared seedbed runs roughly September 15 to October 10. Plant into early September heat and you invite armyworms and blast on the young stand. Skip the disking and the native grass outcompetes your oats in three weeks.
We start in summer. Soil samples go to the LSU AgCenter Soil Testing and Plant Analysis Lab in Baton Rouge, and results come back in about seven to ten working days with the lime and fertilizer rates for your plot. We mow the old growth, let it start back, then disk. Where lime is needed it goes on with the first pass so it has time to work. Seedbed depth matters on our soils: small grains go no deeper than an inch or two, clover a quarter to a half inch, so we finish the bed smooth and firm.
Then we plant to the calendar and the forecast. Oats can take warm early fall weather; wheat and cereal rye carry the plot through the cold; clover goes in with the grain and comes on later. We plant ahead of a forecast rain, because late summer is the driest stretch of the year at the Monroe airport gauge. Placement follows the deer: plots go against bedding cover with quiet stand access, long and narrow inside timber so a stand covers the whole plot, and tied to the trail system so you can slip in and out. On larger tracts a drone flight lays the plots out from the air before the tractor rolls.
Richland Parish sits in LDWF Deer Area 1, where archery opens October 1 and the first still-hunt firearms split opens November 21 for the 2026-27 season. A plot prepared in August and planted in late September is green and drawing deer for both. The payoff carries past the season: green plots feed does through winter and bucks through antler growth, and established plots with lanes and trails are one of the first things a buyer of recreational land looks for. Habitat work that shows in the stand also shows at the closing table.
Free, no-obligation site evaluations across Northeast Louisiana.
(318) 235-7597Real footage from our own jobs and flights, in Mike's own words.
“This is an old video of me planting food plots on my own property.”Mike Martien
In-cab footage from the tractor while disking and planting a food plot.
See More From the FieldMike owns and improves his own land — adding roads, ponds, food plots, and habitat. We treat your property the way we treat ours: practical, durable, and built to last.
Led by a nationally recognized land specialist with America’s Land Partners ($52.5M+ sold). Every improvement is made with usability, marketability, and long-term property value in mind.
Hands-on USDA and NRCS habitat experience — food plots, shooting lanes, and deer management designed around how game actually uses your land.
Part 107 certified aerial imagery, property mapping, and drone-based deer herd analysis — insight few land-improvement companies can offer.
Based in Northeast Louisiana and licensed across LA, AR & MS with America’s Land Partners — deep regional knowledge of the land, the soil, and the market.
Fully insured for your protection and peace of mind — your property, your project, and your investment are covered from the first pass to the final grade.
Mike plants and hunts food plots on his own Richland Parish ground, and his NRCS conservation work on that property was featured by USDA-NRCS Louisiana. He holds a B.S. in Agribusiness and spent three decades in agriculture before becoming a land specialist with America’s Land Partners, so a plot gets planned like a crop and sited the way a hunter would site it.
From the first call to the final pass, here’s exactly what working with us looks like.
Fill out our quick estimate form or give us a call. Tell us about your property and what you’re trying to accomplish.
We walk the ground with you, assess the conditions, and talk through the best plan for your land — clearing, improvements, habitat, and access.
You get a straightforward plan and a free, no-obligation estimate — viewed through the lens of usability, wildlife, and long-term value.
Our crew arrives ready to clear, shape, and improve your property with the care of a fellow landowner — and leave it ready for what’s next.
Common questions about food plots across Northeast Louisiana. Don’t see yours? Give us a call — we’re happy to help.
Food Plots is one of the specialty services inside Wildlife Habitat Improvements.
Food plots, shooting lanes, trail systems, and habitat improvements designed to hold deer and grow healthier game — by a landowner who hunts his own work.
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Brush, trees, and years of overgrowth cleared and reclaimed — turning unusable acreage back into open, accessible ground that is worth more.
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Building pads, grading, leveling, and drainage shaping — stable, well-drained ground ready for construction, agriculture, or recreation.
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Access roads, gravel driveways, interior trails, and culvert crossings — all-weather access that makes your land usable and more valuable.
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FAA-certified aerial imagery, property mapping, and drone-based deer herd assessments — a clearer view of your land for planning, marketing, and management.
Learn MoreReal words from clients who’ve trusted Mike with their land as a land specialist with America’s Land Partners — the same care and work ethic he brings to every Big Cypress project.
“Mike Martien secured my real estate sale through very difficult circumstances. He went above and beyond what would be expected of any agent. Anyone would be in the best of hands letting Mike work for you and with you.”
“We’ve known Mike for over 30 years. His work ethic and knowledge are exceptional. He’s passionate about helping others, trustworthy, and puts his client’s needs first. We highly recommend him to anyone working with land.”
“Mike has lifelong experience dealing with land management and development. His experience shows in researching current trends and values. For the most appropriate valuations and ease of sales, he can’t be beat.”
How often to bush hog Louisiana pasture and hunting land: a seasonal schedule, nesting-season no-mow dates, and when a field is past a rotary cutter.
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Clearing land for deer hunting in Louisiana: opening the understory, cutting shooting lanes, and prepping food plots on Delta bottomland, from a fellow landowner.
Read more →Ready to improve, enjoy, or get more value out of your land in Northeast Louisiana? Reach out for a free, no-obligation consultation — and put a fellow landowner’s experience to work on your property. Buying or selling? Mike wears that hat too, as a land specialist with America’s Land Partners.