I do not think there is anything I enjoy more than putting in a food plot (well except for hanging my stands and hunting that area). While constructing food plots for over 12 years now on my place, a few reminders jump forward when Spring rolls around and that urge to plant emerges; first:


Never wait to Spring to begin.[/b][/ul]

Now I always plant in late September and again in late April. And, I never plow under my entire food plot and eliminate the site from feeding.[/i] Simply planting about ½ of the plot now and reserving the balance for the next planting assures that the deer have adequate browse year around. In many cases, over seeding and a cultipacker work to put in that second planting.


Location Location Location[/b][/ul]

Feeding areas. Bedding areas. Safe havens. Where do I begin? Knowledge of the deer habits and an aerial photo of my place and the surrounding areas give me a good appreciation of deer movement and deer safe havens. I always respect this balance and place food plots along the edge of and about 50 to 100 yards from bedding areas and safe havens. [/i]Always respecting this balance, the deer in the area feel less pressure during the off season (when my tractor is rolling) and during season (when human scent arrives).

Mapping out on the aerial photo the location of the several food plots helps, and enables me to relate to the likely stand placements based on prevailing winds in October (archery season) and November / December (more archery hunting for my place, and the pressure of gun hunting on nearby ranches).

After this location and mapping, usually a January project, the work begins. It is time for site preparation……


Soil Sample – NOW![/b][/ul]

Not so fast; the site preparation can wait a little longer. Take time to do your soil sampling. For about $8 to $15 per sample, a number of different sources are available to test your soil for nutrients, organic matter, and acidity. Especially now with fertilizer approaching $600 per ton, spending $12 for a soil sample makes sense.

Yes; you are going to spend the money on fertilizer anyway – why bother? If you are in an area of acidic soil for example, you need more than simply fertilizer. The soil sample will allow you to discover this and more. If the Ph (acidity) of the soil is 5.5, you will need 2 tons per acre of lime and 400 lbs. per acre of K-Mag to get the soil to a more neutral Ph of 6.4 (best for most food plots). At a Ph of 6.4 the 400 lbs. of 16-16-16 fertilizer will give you the effect of 400 lbs. of fertilizer. And, if that soil Ph stays at 5.5, that same 400 lbs of fertilizer will give you the effect of only 40 lbs. of fertilizer. Get the Ph to a balanced level of 6.4 for the best results with your food plot.[/i]

Your soil sample test results will come with a contact person; via phone or email you now have the ability to ask, “what does this mean; what do I apply if I am planting this and that………………


Site preparation[/b][/ul]

I like mine with trees. It takes an extra super Herculean effort to work around all of those trees. And, many would say that they rob your soil and food plot of nutrients and moisture. For me, I am working trees and more trees into my food plot. I like the edge effect that is created, the added shelter and safe haven that the wildlife feel and the added bonus of healthy fruit and seed bearing trees in my food plot area. Let the photos show that I mean a lot of trees. [/i]Yes, occasionally I cuss as I work around all of those trees being careful to keep implements away from tree trunks.

Be patient with your site preparation. Always pull a fire lane of 20’ width or so around your desired food plot area. Burn only when conditions are favorable, and preferably only after a rain. Take extra care to burn as much of the leaves and chopped up brush as possible; till the balance into the soil. The goal is to create good seed to soil contact when you plant.


Don’t bury the seed…….[/b][/ul]

Keep this advice in mind (from my soil sample expert) you do not have to bury the seed. [/i]If the germination of seeds in the food plot seems low, it may be that the seeds were planted too deep in the soil. They germinated just fine; the small seeds just did not have enough energy in the seed mass to grow to reach the soil surface. Plant shallow in a firm seedbed. The most important factor is ‘good seed to soil contact’ followed by adequate soil moisture. Do not bury seeds that are BB size or smaller; just pack the soil with a drag or a rake or a cultipacker after spreading the seed. Only disk in seeds that require seed depths of 2 ½ inches or greater.

Next up – consider taking a three week break from the food plot.[/i] This gives the wildlife in the area enough time to settle down from your intervention. And, most of all, this gives the seeds time to germinate and grow, and turn into a green food plot. If you stay away from the food plot during these first three weeks, you will be very excited on your return.


Give it a 2nd boost…………[/b][/ul]

If you plant in September, consider fertilizing again in February (down south) or April (up north) to grab an early Spring growth spurt in the food plot. And, if I have planted in April (down south), I fertilize again in September to get an early growth boost for Fall. It works.


Make a budget / know the results…………….[/b][/ul]

Your ‘back of the napkin’ or ‘detailed Excel’ budget for a one acre food plot might look as simple as this:

Soil Sample $12
Site Preparation hard work / fun
Lime $150 2 tons of hydrated lime or
Lime $150 or 1000 lbs. of granulated quick release
KMag $100 400 lbs.
Fertilizer $120 500 lbs.
Seed $100 20% to 35% protein goal on the forage

Total $482 per acre

The one acre food plot could generate 10 to 20 tons of digestible forage for your wildlife population; about $50 per ton of high quality forage.[/i] A great investment………………

Steve Pittman
www.myranchsite.com