Brushing a duck blind can be a lot of work. However, we all know the importance of concealment when it comes to getting ducks into shotgun range. If you have a new duck blind or you are looking for some new tricks to better conceal your blind.
The majority of our duck hunting in the past has took place on public water. Believe me, a properly brushed duck blind is an absolute must on most public waters in Louisiana. Based on our experience hunting public lakes in Louisiana, blinds must have brush on just about every square in order to be successful hunting ducks. We have a five step process we use to brush our foaming blind. You can also use this process for other types of blinds as well.
Getting Your duck blind brushed
Every homemade duck blind is built with different materials and different designs. The Five step system we use will work great for just about any type of duck blind. If your duck blind has ply wood attached to the frame, you can easily attach net wire around the body of the blind using staples. If your blind has camouflage mesh or other material to cover the frame, you can place net wire over the body cover material.
Our blind is a floating design. We did not attach any type of covering material, like ply wood on our blind, because we did not want to deal with the extra weight. We totally conceal our blind by sticking various types of brush into the net wire which is attached to outside of our blind’s framework.
Step 1 Create a retaining system to hold brush on your blind.
We built our floating duck blind back in 2008. When we finished constructing the frame, our next step was placing net wire around the entire blind.
Net wire is a great material for holding brush. You can easily stick or wedge various sizes of brush, shrubs, grasses and countless other types of vegetation into the wire spaces. We simply unrolled net wired the entire length of our blind, then secured the net wire using tie wire. Basically, we wrapped net wire around the entire blind except for the boat door/entrance.
Step 2. Base layer
Once the net wire is secured to the frame, begin placing a base layer of brush onto the blind. There are countless types of natural vegetation you can use for this step. However, our base layer usually consists of switch cane and long grasses.
Bamboo or “switch cane“ is long and can usually be cut to the height of a blind. Cypress weed and long grass, such as “Johnson Grass“, fill the spaces in between the the bamboo. Some hunters prefer to avoid using bamboo because bamboo will often begin to turn yellow after a couple of weeks after being cut. However, I think a wide range of colors improve the natural appeal.
This process will require a substantial amount of time and material. If you have a floating blind, this process is much easier to do before you place your blind in the water. If you live in an area where Bamboo is scarce, you can use other material like cat-tail reeds or regular reeds found along the edge of lakes and creeks.
I suggest you begin this step in the process a month before duck season opens. You will need plenty of time to collect the material and plenty of time to place the material on the blind. Try to cover as much of your blind as possible, in a consistent base layer of brush. By doing this, the rest of the brushing process will be much easier.
Step 3. Fill the gaps
Once you have a solid base layer covering the majority of your blind, take a step back and observe the gaps in the brushed base layer. Look for areas where you can see through the blind. Look for cracks of daylight and openings between the brush.
Once you see the areas where the base layer is thin, fill in the gaps. Use large bundles of grass, reed bundles and small pieces of brush to cover all the gaps.
Grass bundles and reed bundles work great for filling cracks between Bamboo. Small pieces of brush such as, pine limbs, cedar limbs and small shrubs, are very effective for covering large sections of your blind.
I recommend you place, grass or reed bundles, before you place small shrubs and limbs on your blind. Brush is heavier than grass and reeds, brush can protect the lighter grass and reed bundles from powerful lake winds.
By the time you complete step 3, you should no longer be able to see into your blind. There are many different types of duck blinds. Some blinds are covered with materials such as plywood. If the outside of your blind is covered with plywood or other types of material, you should no longer be able to see the external material covering the frame of your blind. In other words, your blind should look like a pile of brush once step 3 is complete.
Step 4 Placing large pieces of brush on the blind.
Placing large pieces of brush on the duck blind will enhance the natural appearance of the blind. Larges pieces of brush increase cover and add a natural appearance.
For this step, cut small trees tall enough to cover the blind from top to bottom. Place the base of the small tree at the very bottom of the blind then use tie wire to secure the base. Once the base is secured to the bottom of the blind, lean the trunk of the small tree against the side of the blind. Secure the trunk to the side of the blind so it will remain in place standing somewhat vertical. I like to cut at least four small trees taller than the total height of the blind and place them on each corner of the blind. I believe by doing so, your blind will replicate the look of a small island with brush piled in the middle. Small trees, such as oaks, are very effective.
Be sure to use native vegetation for step 4 of the brushing process. Native vegetation increases the natural appeal and can typically be easy to acquire. Once you have completed step 4 of the brushing process, you can now complete the finishing touches to you duck blind.
Step 5. Repeat Step 3
Step 5 is the final step to properly concealing a duck blind. By the time you complete the previous steps, take a final look at your blind and add brush wherever it is thin.
Based on my years of experience, you cannot put too much brush on your duck blind. We constantly add brush through the season. Why? Through duck season, the original brush looses its leaves due to weather and age.
It is good practice to spruce up your brush job every chance you get. We typically bring a load of brush with us whenever we are not hunting. A good time to do this is during splits in the season or during afternoons when you go to the lake to scout.
Step 5 basically consists of maintaining the brush on the blind by adding new brush throughout duck season.
Summary
In order to trick duck into coming in range, a hunter has to be concealed. If you fail to properly brush your duck blind, you can be in for some frustrating experiences on the water. Brushing a duck blind takes time and a lot of hard work but, if done right it is worth the trouble.
I hope this five step process helps you guys improve your duck blind concealment. If you would like more helpful tips and tricks for duck hunting, subscribe to Americanhuntjngsafari.com. We share tips and tricks for many different types of hunting, fishing and wild game cooking at Americanhuntjngsafari.com. Visit our home page then select what you are interested in learning about in the great outdoors.
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