lets see your plots!
 

Lets see those plots! Post of pics of any plots you have made!

RE: lets see your plots!
 

Here's a little one we did. This is year #3





FH

RE: lets see your plots!
 

wow farm hunter! thats a great looking food plot! what type is it? what did you do before you planted (lime, fertilize, till etc) and what do you do to maintain it now?

RE: lets see your plots!
 

That little plot is a farm roadway that I expanded in 2006. The first year I disked it and planted a clover brassica mix - but had lots of weeds - so I just kept it mowed back - then in 2007I got a little more serious with it - and made it a clover mix plot (white clovers):

Mow and 2 weeks later spray it with a Hand Sprayer with a 1 quart/acre of 41% Glyphosate (roundup - or a generic version like Big N Tuff from Tractor Supply).

Let it die back (takes 2-3 weeks) - then over seed your clover product. It would be nice if you could expose the soil a little more by dragging something aground 1st - then fertilize & overseed. Finally drive over and over it to press the seed into the soil as best possible. Most little seeds like Brassicas, Chickory, clover -etc Should not be covered with soil and will do best if pressed in - and planted JUST BEFORE a Decent Rain.

In Most areas - a Bag or two of LIME can only help.

Looks Like this when you are ready to plant it (July 2007):



2 months later - (September 2007)



November 2007



in May 2008 - it was growing back strong with a fair amount of weeds.



I only mowed it one time in 2008 - in late June I think it was -
It didn't need as frequent mowing as my bigger plots - I think because the deer keep it browsed back pretty well. Mowing the one time helped to control annual weeds.

Here it is in Sept 2008.



It came back strong - and makes a nice "kill plot" or "sanctuary plot" like we use it this year.

It also makes a nice plot for a trail cam because you can put the camera on narrow sections -
We've take quite a few pictures on this plot -


FH

RE: lets see your plots!
 

Awesome plot!

RE: lets see your plots!
 

Nice! In that first picture of your second post (just before planting) did you just throw the seeds down on the leftover grass? Is that leftover grass a big deal, or can u just throw the seed over it? Im thinking about doing powerplant next spring and then next to it winter greens in the fall. Any reccomendations?

RE: lets see your plots!
 

The left over grass is OK as long as its really dead. I use a set of disks to rough up the soil - and a cultipacker to press the seen into a firm bed. You really want a firm seed bed -(not fluffy soil) for clovers. The chaff can work to help keep moisture in - just make sure you seed heavy enough because some wont get down to the soil where it needs to be for good germination.

My son Helping Culipack.


The little plots are fun - the bigger plots can be a lot of work - but the rewards are maginfied.
Its better to start small, until you have some good success - and then get bigger, and bigger.

Here's a couple pictures of one of the larger clover plots I maintain from this and last year.

2008



2007


FH

RE: lets see your plots!
 

wow! once again, you have some really good looking plots! where abouts is that in ny? the ones i will be planting are in schuyler ny, its inbetween herkimer and utica. unfortunetly i dont have lots of gear.. im hoping to get a cheap tow behind disk for the quad to till up the land... its not the most level or even field so will see how im gonna deal with that.... there are lots of little ditches and water bar type things.... any advice?
thanks
Mike

RE: lets see your plots!
 

Powerplant is a heavy Nitrogen user. My recollection from the mix is that it is Milo/Sourghum, Sunflower, some type of climbing bean and probably some clover/brassica as well. Its advertised to grow up to 6 ft tall, and can with LOTS of nitrogen, and the right Ph. I've not used it, because I like straight plots of beans, or corn, or clover, -etc instead of a mix. But all these plots on the market have their place, and for some poweplant if probably a good choice.

I have used Winter greens before - and liked how it grew and it had Winter attraction. For me - it was used most after hunting season - in January & February. But........... it was ate to the ground. Winter greens is mostly Kale & Canola (no turnips) - it likes a lot of Nitrogen too.

Sept 2007 (planted in July)


April 2008 (what is left after snow melt)


FH

RE: lets see your plots!
 

damn.... thats another awesome looking food plot! so what would you reccomend for me to plant, I want it for spring attraction but also for hunting over it in the ny seasons... i will not be able to maintain too much since i dont have lots of equipment so....idk

RE: lets see your plots!
 

WHat do you mean "water bar type things"?

You can do a lot with a small disk -especially with small seeds (clovers, brassica, chicory - even oats / wheats)
but the key is really to have a good spray regiment. In food plotting - Weeds are your ememy - and they WILL win, its just of matter of WHEN.Grasses are ENEMY #1 since they are perennial, will dominate, anddeer do not use them at all.

A backpack sprayer is all you need, but be patient - and spray 2x if need be to get a total kill. Use 41% glyphosateand apply at the rate ofup to 1 quart per acre. There is no hurry to fail - and not getting a handle on the weeds is a sure way to fail.

Schuyler NY is a nice area - probably you are upland more than the Mohawk River area - so your soils are thin, maybe rocky Trust me - not many soils are worse than mine were 15 years ago. I still struggle to get Ph over 6.0.

If someone hasn't already told you - a soil test isnice to have so that you have a base line the go from. I haven't tested in 4-5 years - but probably should again (it'll just tell me to add lime!).

FH

RE: lets see your plots!
 

by water bar type thingsi mean little ditches and drainage type areas with little mounds and stuff.... kinda hard to explain. yah, ive heard testing the soil is very important so im going to get a test kit from cabelas to do that first thing in the spring...canI spray with roundup BEFORE the weeds really start growing (april maybe?) to keep them from growing or stop them (so this way i can get an early start on working on the food plot and disking and stuff)? thanks for the help! i will have more questions for you if you dont mind!
Mike

RE: lets see your plots!
 

I cut my teeth on clovers - and I do not have too much bad to say about them (white clovers - not Alsike or Red). When done right, they last for several years (you will have to mow 1 or 2x per year though to make them last).

Clovers can do it all - and make a good 1st serious plot for most people - thats what I would suggest.


For hunters that just want a plot to hunt over and/or around - I suggest Rye often - planted around Labor Day in NY. Its a hardy green plot - High in carbs - and not bad in protein. It will attract deer in Bow season and on into Gun Season in NY as long as the snow is less than 1 ft. It will winter overand be green in May - but will Bolt to seed heads 3-4 ft tall by the end of May. It has no nutritional value once it starts to grow fast in the spring - and must be mowed/and re-planted every late summer.

Fall Planted Rye Field


May Rye Field (foreground - starting to grow fast)


Hope I helped you some -
FH

RE: lets see your plots!
 

Roundup ONLY kills actively growing plants. It kills by stopping Photosynthesis - so if a plant is dormant (like sometimes in early spring) - it won't give you a good kill.If you spray a field with a lot of berry bushes - even if the grass is green& growing - if the blackberrys are stillnot budded yet - andif you spray - you mightkill the grass - AND make it a perfect area for the berry bushes to thrive.

Its the same with spraying a mowed field. If you mow - you should wait till it starts to "green up" before spraying with Glyphosate.

I like to wait until Mid May in NY to spray.

FH

RE: lets see your plots!
 

so, it does not like i will have time to plant in the spring considering all the stuff i have to do to the field early on.... i dont think i could finnish it all before the clover planting dates. so if I plant it in the fall what should i expect?

RE: lets see your plots!
 

farm hunter- where can you get a disk that big for an ATV?? i have been looking and I can't find one that big. They are all rea lsmall and I have about 10 acres I want to do..

Thank you very much.

Brandon

RE: lets see your plots!
 

wow nice looking plots

RE: lets see your plots!
 

outdoorsman4life_103

We don't use a 4 wheeler to disk - even with a small set - its HARD on a 4 wheeler.


We use an 8 ft set pulled behind the tractor. They pull plenty hard, and you couldn't do it with a 4 wheeler - not on our heavy, rockysoils.




A poster on another forum made a set - that I though was pretty neat - and I saved a picture of it.
I cannot say how well it worked - but it looks like it could.



I got to tell you though - disks pull HARD, especially on moist soil. One year, I had a 1/2 set of an 8 ft set of finish disks, (the 2 front sections) - and I pulled it around with my jeep - to finish the plots - while a buddy pulled the 8 ft set with the tractor. I overheated, and was genuinely worried about my transmission.

FH

RE: lets see your plots!
 

bigwhitetailbuck -

If you fall plant clover - you cannot expect a whole lot to hunt over that year. Some guys mix in oats or winter oats - so there is some fall attraction..................but a fall planted clover plot will flourish the following spring if all its conditions are satisfied.

Fall planted clover plots are generally more weed free - because the dormant weedseeds germinate - and many many of them are annuals, and die back before they can ever drop more seeds. All this adds up to a more weed free field in the spring when the clover takes off.

Us hunters are an impatient lot......... and fall planted clover plots are tough to do because we like to hunt around them that first season. If you can be patient (don't mix in a lot of other stuff that will haunt your clover plot the next years) - then its a good plan.

Lastly - In some areas - you can plant clover in the summer and do well. Granted - you probably cannot get away with it in south Texas or Georgia - but in the Northeast for example, where we get 4" of rain in July many years - clover can do just fine. Sometimes I July Plant with Brassicas.

FH