Oscar and Samuel agree on some things. Samuel says, “We both thank God each day for our health, and we thank our 97-year-old father for our hunting skills and success. We also thank Whitetail Institute for the quality of our deer and turkey.”
In fact, Oscar and Samuel Barclay are two of the Whitetail Institute’s original field testers, having first tried Imperial Whitetail Clover in 1989. One way they’re different is shown by how they came to be Institute field testers in the first place.
“When we have a decision to make, Samuel is the one who usually says no, and I’m the one who usually says yes,” Oscar says with a smile and a chuckle. “1989 was the first time we saw Imperial Whitetail Clover in the store, and I wanted to try it. As usual, Samuel said no because he thought it probably wasn’t any different from any other kind of clover, but I bought it anyway. We planted it in the center of a food plot between two other varieties of clover. That season, the deer walked the two other varieties of clover flat to the ground just to get to the Imperial Whitetail Clover and eat it. Well, that sold Sam, and we have been planting Imperial Whitetail Clover ever since.”
The Barclay brothers hunt mostly on the 150 acre farm they own in Coosa County, Alabama, and on another 450 acres they lease in Talladega County. Although more often mentioned for its high deer numbers, Alabama also has the genetics to produce some very respectable bucks. The key to fulfilling that potential is the same as it is in any area: deer must be allowed to mature, and they must have access to highly nutritious, palatable food sources as they do so. The photos Oscar brought with him when he recently stopped by the Institute show that the brothers have achieved great results by taking a long-term approach to both.
When it comes to providing deer with high quality nutrition, Oscar’s photos showed that the Barclay brothers definitely know what they’re doing. The photos show food plots situated next to thick cover and with lots of linear edge to help deer feel safer using them.
The Barclays are equally diligent about what they plant in their plot sites. “At first, we just planted Imperial Whitetail Clover,” Oscar explains, “and that’s still the backbone of our whole food plot system. Now, we also use other Institute forages such as Alfa-Rack Plus.” The forages shown in the photos also appear lush, healthy and vigorous, which is a tribute to the Barclay brothers’ diligence in selecting the correct forage for each site and planting and maintaining it properly.
Even with the “green thumbs” Oscar and Samuel obviously have, they haven’t stopped with just food plots. “We try to give our deer everything they need so we also put out 30-06 and 30-06 Plus Protein on both the properties we hunt,” Oscar continues. “Since we started using the minerals we have noticed that rack sizes are heavier.”
In addition to providing their deer with high quality nutrition the Barclays also allow their deer to mature before harvest. “Another reason our deer have larger racks is that we are selective in the bucks we take,” Oscar explains. “We have a general rule that we don’t take anything smaller than a 6-point, but really we judge things more carefully than just that — we also look at the spread and judge how old the buck is so that we don’t take young 6-points.”
With all their successes, though, Oscar says that he and Samuel still find time to give something back by introducing new hunters to the sport they love. “Our harvest rules apply to us, but we let young hunters take whatever they want for their first deer. One thing Samuel and I both really enjoy is taking kids out for their first hunt. We love the excitement of seeing a child take his first deer, teaching them about safety and just helping them learn to love hunting as much as we do.”
Success in any endeavor is measured by results. In the case of Oscar and Samuel Barclay, those results are easy to see. It’s there in the trophy buck mounts on their lodge wall. It’s there in the beauty of their land and the nutritional quality they have added to it. And it’s there in the wide smiles of the youngsters they introduce to hunting.
