Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

The farm I hunt has two huge soybean fields that have held deer all summer. I mean every day they were there. But within the last week the soybeans have turned yellow and the deer aren't there much anymore. My stands are set up between the bedding area and the soybean field.

My question is this: will the deer still feed in the soybeans this fall? Or should I forget about that as a food source and find another spot? The only other food source is acorns (red oak, not white oak).

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

I have seendeerleave a soy bean field once they have turned brown. but to return late season. if the beans are still there? if u have plenty of acrons still on the ground, Id hunt the oaks if i where u.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

No corn?

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

Go to the oak trees, I have watch deer stand on their hind legs just to get an acorn before they fall. When the acorns start dropping look out.
Hunt the oaks.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

the deer feed on soybeans when they are green and then focus on another food source when they are turning yellow, but will be back in force when they turn brown. Try and find their other food source while the beans are yellow and hunt them there for a while.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

Your deer have changed food sources. Most of the deer in ks don't feed on mature soybean plants. Deer love the younger tender shoots.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

in my experence the deer will go to the acorns until they're gone and then they will hit the beans again to pick out the beans and what ever else has started to grow. i prefer late winter beans over corn. If you have enough stands leave the ones on the beans and hang a couple on the oaks

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

In my area, our soybeans aren't completely browned yet. We still have some young plants and green growth in areas. The deer are still hitting the soybean field pretty hard, but like the guys said earlier - acorns will be the flavor of the day, so if you have any access to trees that are dropping, that might be abetter plan.

I'd recommend that you just go out there one night this week and glass the soybean fields - just see what kind of activity they're getting. It's possible that the deer might continue eating beans for another week or so, until the mast really starts coming down. We have a few oaks dropping acorns, but they're still hanging pretty tight. It all depends on your area. See what kind of acorns are coming off, and glass those beanfields. That should make your decision really easy. If your oaks are dropping a lot of mastcrop, and the ground is littered with empty green caps, I'd hunt the oaks. On the other hand, if your beanfields are still getting heavy deer traffic, that might be a better option for the first evening. One evening of scouting should answer your questions.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

Usually where there are beans, corn is at least nearby.

If the deer will eat dry beans off the ground in late season, they'll eat them off of a standing plant. Standing corn is easier to get and offers more security.

I've found that in the real early season(warm), a lot of feeding goes on at night, so I'll move back on the trails a little bit in the evening.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

If you have seen deer there this long they should still use the beans when they are ready to be cut. I have seen plenty of deer eat beans that were brown during the season. My advice is to stay in that stand.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

If the bean are brown then they should be ready to be picked. Once they are voluntary beans will sprout as long as the field is plowed under. I'd stay in that stand.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

I'd stay in the stand too.

The fields that I see on my way home from work are (50/50) yellow/brown.

No deer in the morning.

Loaded with deer in the evening (5:30 PM -6:30 PM).
Earlier (5:30 PM if it is overcast) Later (6:00 PM if it is clear)

I will be in a bean field stand on Oct. 6.
The beans will already be picked (if the weather stays dry).

The deer love to suck up the beans that missed the picker.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

Good thread, I was going to ask the same question. The stand I have for opening day isalso on a bean field that will not be harvested. Hopefully it works out!

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

Deer will still hit the field in late season just not as often or as long. I'd be in the oaks

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

Gzg,

I dont know if this will help, but this sounds a lot like my alfalfa field hunting scenario. It always dries up about 2 weeks prior to my opener. The bucks I am filming and watching all summer and into early August leave the dwindling alfalfa for other preferred food sources for example here: Fruit orchards, clear cuts and thickly dense browsing areas. I have had very little luck hunting the brown dried alfalfa and spend most of my hunting focused in on the hot foods instead... good luck.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

It has been my experience that a Bean field is a great place to hunt when they are green, and when they are completely brown, but around me anyhow - I don't have any luck in them when they are yellow.

That is just my experiences though. Apparently others have had better luck than I have with Beans.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

IMO they are awesome to hunt over until they start to die. In my case there is a soybean field that was planted in a cut wheat field in mid July. These beans will still be green the first week or two of the season. It should be a great spot to set up on. After they start to die the deer will leave them until late in the season when they will come back to find the left over soybeans.

RE: Opening Day Strategy - Soybeans
 

Thanks guys. I've never hunted near soybeans before. Last year it was all corn. If I had white oaks around it would be an easy decision. I'm just not sure if deer would prefer RED oaks or Yellow soybeans.

The good news is that the red oaks are very close to the soybean fields. I'll probably set up in the oaks.I think the deer willstage here prior to entering the soybean field.

I also did not know if the deer would still eat yellow soybeans and brown soybeans. Sounds like they will. However, the neighboring properties still have standing corn which could screw up everything for me until the corn comes down.

I glass the beanfields almost every night on my way home from work (around 1 am). I used to see 6 or 8 deer every night. Now I'm lucky to see 1 deer now that the beans are turning yellow.