We Bought a Farm: MeatEater’s New Whitetail Series is Available Now

By many standards, our Back 40 is a pretty modest patch of dirt. It doesn’t hold a candle to big whitetail leases or Western trophy ranches. But to us, every single acre here is a chance create something. Sure, she’s a fixer-upper, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make an impact.

At its core, this farm is emblematic of America in general. By and large, our nation is a patchwork of small properties like this one. Places where people share the space with wildlife.

That’s our plan with this property. We want to make it as rich in wildlife as possible—both the tasty kinds of animals that we like to hunt and eat, but also the ones we need to keep the landscape intact and healthy.

This is for everyone who’s seen good habitat get plowed under for development; it’s for everyone who’s dreamed of giving something back to nature, however modest; and yes, it’s for everyone who’s aspired to have a patch of ground that produces some damn fine deer.

Here on the Back 40, we can create our own land ethic. For now, we have to get to work, and that’s the fun part.

Follow along all season and be sure to subscribe to our Whitetail Weekly newsletter for updates. Click here to watch episode one.

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