Food plot ideas

[gretchen]

My brothers and I just bought 125 acres with about 45 acres of fields and we are looking for ideas for food plots.

I've been reading about standing corn,alfalfa,soybeans and would like to know what you guys have found out.

Thanks in advance....

Dewayne Martin

[Iowabowhunter]

Congrats on your purchase! I am no expert, but I would recommend having a good source of cold weather food for them (corn/soybeans/winter wheat etc) to keep them on your land. Good luck and keep us updated on the progress!

[Bow man]

Any thing you do will help to hold deer on the land. You will want to do soil samples to be sure the ground is fertile enough and to see if you will need lime.

You will want a nice big Patch of Clover for sure. Then any thing Else is a bonus. Corn in the field will be a great deer holder for your land

[KevO]

Consult with your local State Wildlife Biologist. He/she should know what the "limiting factor" for deer is in your area.  the information should be free.

[Benjy]

I would plant as much of that 45 acres that I could. I would plant the crops so they provide   deer use at different times during the season. I would also use the standing corn to make edges that come out where the main trails already come through the field. I think that the Drury Outdoors guys use this tactic.

I hope this makes sense!

Congrats on having your own property!

Benjy

[Ray Lyon]

First, I'd recommed Ed Spinazzola's book about deer food plots offered through the Quality Deer Management Association of Michigan. This is a great starter book that covers soil type, testing, various food types and the pro's con's of each.  Ed made a living as a farmer in MI, so he makes it all easy to understand.  

Second, you should seriously consider making a sanctuary on your land.  Something that will allow deer to hang out close to the middle of your property that's about 5 acres. The only time you enter it is to retrieve a wounded deer.

[kennym]

No xpert here either, but from farming and making plots, here are a couple things I've noticed.

Corn- Great food source, but deer will eat most of it in early stages if you don't have a big plot. Needs a lot of N to do well.

Soybeans- Eaten from about 2nd leaf to when they start to turn brown, then again when dried down .
Usually will make decent seed crop with minimal fertilizer.

Milo- Deer won't bother it til ripe, then will eat it very well, will do well less N than corn.

Gotta keep the grass(foxtail) out of it or it won't do much.

Clover and lespedeza- does well with minimal fertilizer, no N needed, clover likes wet years. white clover is great for deer . Needs mowed in summer to keep weeds back.

The buck in my avatar was killed on edge of a 1/2 acre white clover plot.

Lots of fun planning and making plots!

[JAG]

Check with your local Agriculture Extension Service.  They'll have the answers or can steer you to them.

[Forester]

Congratulations Dewayne!  Family hunting property is a great thing to have and care for.

I suggest you speak with someone local that has food plot and habitat management experience as well as wildlife and forestry knowledge.  Getting a plan for the big picture will really help you decide the best options for habitat improvements and food plot choices.  Ideally you could find someone with a passion for traditional bow hunting who would understand your objectives and help tie everything together.

I suggest you consult with this guy:   http://www.arrowforestry.com  
I'm sure he'd be willing to meet with you and figure out some options.  Give him a call and invite him over for some stump shooting.       (He's consulting on a large hunting property in WV this weekend so get on his calendar for April.)        LOL

[Jim Jackson]

First thing is get a good soil test for pH and N,P,K. That is the key for sure.  No sense in pouring money into seed if the soil is in the right condition to support it.  Nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium will respond pretty quick with fertilizer.  Lime will take a year or two to really take effect.  Your local Ag extension service or farm store can lead you in the right direction.

I love putting food plots in and have experimented with a lot over the years.  Having won some and lost some, I basically plant two basic mixes now in addition to the farm crops we use for hay for our cattle:

1. Half of the plots I put in a warm season annual mix of milo, haybeans, and jointvetch. I have a couple shady valleys that only jointvetch works well in. Its an early season magnet.

2. The other half I plant is a cool season annual mix in the fall: Oats, winter peas, a brassica (turnips or canola/rape), and crimson/arrowleaf clover. I mix it up myself, but its also common to find a similar mix at your local feed store in the fall.  I like the arrowleaf clover in addition to the crimson. (it extends the growing/grazing season). Plus its just more fun to figure it out and try different things each year.


I'm by no means an expert. Honestly I just like to do the plantings and see it all come together. All of this I've gleaned from a variety of sources. The best I've found is from the University of Tennessee. They have a big foodplot publication in PDF format available free. Its a big document,    try this link for 40 pages of great information.   PM me if you want more info or if the link won't work for you.

[Michigan Mark]

Check your soil to see if you need to lime your soil to get the pH right. Do not want certain crops to suffer. If you plan on planting clover(s) you may want to plant the clover and a cover crop such as chicory or rape (annuals) to have the clover take hold before the wildlife eat it all up. All different crops have different growth seasons to keep feed around. You might consider a forestry service perform a management plan for wildlife. When you check with them, in some states the DNR share costs for the plan if you sustain the land for wildlife habitat. Cuttings if done right are not a bad thing as many see management of lands (can even make some cash to help your plan come to fruition). A little knowledge not only in food plots but management of the woodlot itself. Check out  www.michiganforesters.com/education.hmtl  give it a look. good endeavors with your journey for wildlife habitat.

[Michigan Mark]

Good links guys! Another one  www.treefarmsystem.org/

[overbo]

Congrats on your purchase.
I kinda lean towards a different direction w/ this attracking deer thing.
Being from Va as well and a few years under my belt playing w/ food plots.I would suggest designating a NO MANS area center of the property(10 acres).Develope that small area w/
1 cover and as thick as you can it.Cut down all no mast trees and fertilize that heck oiut of it w/ 10-10-10.Plant 4 or 5 appletrees on the out skirts of this area so you can take advantage of all winds.Plat a whitepine w/in bow range of each appletree.
2. Standing corn willbe effective if there is a NO mast crop season or very late in the season.If you have bears?Well you all ready know.
3 I would prefer soybeans and alfalfa in that open ground .You can see what's working the area in the summer and early fall months.

[sswv]

congrats Dewayne.  good info here.

FIRST...get a soil test

SECOND...go to the University of Tennessee link provided above

THEN...if at all possible buy your seed local. I learned that the hard way some years back by calling one of those food plot expert companies and spending a load with no results. the local feed&seed and the local agriculture person can be a big help.

have fun & good luck

[Bill Carlsen]

There's is a very good article in the latest issue of Deer and Deer Hunitng. It is done by the Lakosky's who have a tv show on the outdoor channel. I know there are feelings about some of those shows but the whole article is about their approach to food plots and I found it to be very informative. It covers the importance of having food available year round and keeping plots out of sight of roads where hunting pressure could be a problem.

[lpcjon2]

Soybean with clover, If you do corn you will have work the next season getting the stalks up. the clover will only help the soil in the long run.

[Michigan Mark]

I See the 1st link was not correctly posted earlier on page 1 of my post correction  http://forestry.msu.edu/extension/ExtDocs/aspen.html