There has been some discussion on this forum about the areas that seem to consistently produce trophy whitetails at a higher rate than other areas of the black belt.
Some of these "superior" areas mentioned have been Fitzpatrick, Portland Landing, Boligee, and etc. Are the soils and genetics in these areas that much better, or is there just a higher concentration of property in ideal habitat/management conditions? A higher concentration of large well managed plantations would in turn equal a higher percentage of well fed older age class bucks therefore making it seem as these areas are superior. There may be some areas that get an additional 5-10 inches because of the soils and genetics, but is the black belt really not that much different when comparing apples to apples? For example, Portland Landing area is a consistent top producer but there are a lot of big properties spending big dollars to get these results. Whereas in Lowndes, Montgomery etc. maybe there are not as many large plantations committed to maximum production on growing big bucks for one reason or another therefore making it seem less when really they don't have the concentration of large managed plantations like Portland area does. We have established that a good habitat and management plan would be the cornerstone to success anywhere, but aside from that is it really just a higher concentration large plantations in some areas (or no it's soil& genetics)? Thanks