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Iowa Sportsman April 2025
This Issue Brings You:
- Thriving Bird Habitats in Iowa
- Fishing Iowa – Walleye Tackle & Tricks
- Whitetails 365 – Growing Giant Whitetails
- Maximizing Native Warm Season Grasses
- Turkey Seaso – Getting Youth Involved
- Equipment for Managing Your Own Acreage
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WHAT TO TARGET FOR MARCH
By Ben Leal The month of March is characterized by rapidly rising daily high temperatures, with daily highs increasing from 41 deg to 56 deg over the month. Southern reaches of the State will likely have open water by the end of March, if not sooner. Central Iowa will have fishable ice, depending on the […]
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Five Ways to Bring a Pond Back to its Prime
By Lane Rumelhartc A well-maintained pond can be the heart of a landscape, providing a serene retreat for nature enthusiasts and a thriving habitat for fish and wildlife. However, as time goes by, ponds can lose their luster. Water quality may diminish, fish populations can become unbalanced, and invasive species may take over. Restoring a […]
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Leveraging Prairie to Improve Habitat
By Kent Boucher As I write this I am winding down for the evening after surviving an ice crusted day of freezing rain. A unique phenomenon my friend Luke Fritch and I have noticed on such days is the presence of pheasants near our houses as the ice glazes over all of the surrounding area. […]
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Step-by-Step Guide to Creating a Spring Food Plot for Deer Hunters
By Aaron McKinney Spring is the perfect time for deer hunters to start preparing food plots. The plans for deer season 2025 start now and a well-planned food plot not only improves hunting opportunities but also contributes to the overall health and nutrition of the local deer population. Creating a food plot takes preparation and […]
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10 Killer Big Buck Bow Hunting Ambushes
Why do top notch hunters shoot quality mature deer year after year? Sure they scout, don’t shoot young bucks, maintain their land, pay attention to the wind, plant food plots, are in big buck country, ect. Yes all of those and many more reasons can attribute to better chances of shooting bigger bucks consistently. However do you know the most important reason why people shoot big deer year after year? Because they place their stands in locations where big bucks like to frequent…it really is that simple. They are in the right place at the right time. You will never consistently shoot mature deer if you are not putting your tree stands in the proper locations.
Whitetails are creatures of habit and instinct, they do everything for a purpose and that is actually a good thing for us hunters. If we know what they like to do, what they don’t like to do, and how they navigate their day then we can key in on certain geographical locations on our properties and ambush an unsuspecting bruiser.
Created By Iowans, For Iowans
The Iowa Sportsman website and magazine are Iowa’s only privately owned media sources catering to hunters, anglers, and outdoor enthusiasts here in Iowa. Simply put, we are unlike other Iowa outdoor media sources: All our staff is from Iowa, from our publisher to our writers. We actually follow through on what we advertise; we provide knowledgeable content from people who know the industry or sport discussed.