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food plot help

Old 01-05-2009, 07:19 PM
  #1  
Nontypical Buck
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Default food plot help

i live in southwest ohio and i want to plant a food plot for the upcoming deer season. my neighbors have hay fields so i dont want to plant any clover, or alfalfa. in the pictures underneath the line is where i will plant. the area gets plenty of water and everything. i have never planted a food plot before and i need to know EVERYTHING from how to plant and when yo plant. Can you help me out?




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Old 01-06-2009, 08:47 AM
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Default RE: food plot help

You need to decide wether you want an annual or perennial. If you prefer a annual I would plant a variety. I have 5 plots on my place, two are perennial and the other three are annuals. Buck forage oats and winter rye with someturnips and rape mixed inmake good annualplots for me. I suggest google the seed companys or check out your local co-ops to see what they have, they can tell you what is good for your area. Before planting ALWAYS get a soil test done, these are free at your local county extension office. Are there any row crops around your area? If not and your area is big enough you might consider some soy beans. Remember it take quite a bit of ground for beans or the deer will eat them as fast as they come up.
Good luck
Greg
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Old 01-06-2009, 01:29 PM
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Default RE: food plot help

Plenty to learn, as do I still... We currently have 8 acres in food plots ona 467 Acre section. Soil tests as previously said are a must, it will help you better balance the PH levels and have your plots grow better and to their full potential. As a primary plant, we go to the local Coop andwe buy a mixture of corn, soybeans, sorghum, turnip, and rye (and whatever else they might want to get rid of at the time). We interlace that with a Biologic and Green Patch Plusfrom the Mossy Oak line, and "Wah Bam", you get the extra help of antler development from the BioLogic and the Green Patch Plus, as well as the continued food supply from the assorted other plants. I can tell you with certainty that the majority of the 130+ bucks that have been taken off of the property have been on the plots that incorporate all three of the combinations, I refer to it as the triple threat, they just can't resist it...
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Old 01-06-2009, 03:51 PM
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Default RE: food plot help

i will send a PH test to biologic as soon as the ground thaws out.
and no the closest row crops to our house is 5 minute drive.
so these seeds you reccommend..............how do you go about planting them??
would my area be big enough to plant soybeans?
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Old 01-06-2009, 04:42 PM
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Default RE: food plot help

If you have an extension office or ag office nearby, they can do the soil tests for you, usually for free. We have an Iowa State University Extension office where students who are taking ag classes do that kind of stuff (Just as an option). The Biologic stuff is done basically the same way that you would do the beans or just about any other crop. First we mowed down the grasses then used a harrow, to get down to the recommended depth. Then its up to mother nature and your green thumb to get it growing and keep it growing. As to land size for planting beans, I believe its possible to grow it however big you want it, as long as it gets the water, sunlight and the balance of nutrients in the soil, it should work.
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Old 01-06-2009, 05:16 PM
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Default RE: food plot help

i think the closest one is the OSU university extension. well i dont know how to plant ANYTHING and im kind of leaning toward something different than biologic but im really not sure yet.
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Old 01-06-2009, 05:32 PM
  #7  
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Default RE: food plot help

I have never personally used it, but I hear the Tecomante (sp?) lab lab mix is a good one... The main thing you need to decide next is when you want that food plot to be most effective, the warm season crops are very different from the cold weather ones. Here is a link that might be of some help...

http://ckwri.tamuk.edu/fileadmin/user_upload/docs/bulletins/bulletin3.pdf
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Old 01-06-2009, 05:46 PM
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Default RE: food plot help

iowabuckhunter what do you plant?
im mainly concerned about late season (december-february) becasue ohio bow season go until february 1. but if i could throw in some things for early season that would be nice.
farm hunter got any advice?
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Old 01-06-2009, 09:29 PM
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Default RE: food plot help

If you don't want to be a soil scientist you can still grow a decent foodplot, don't become discouraged. Corn and brassicas (turnips or rape) will grow in almost any soil. You won't make 200 bushels an acre for sure but for a small plot just throw down some lime and a few bags of fertilizer and it will grow. I don't use roundup, what I do is disc the area, then plow, then disc again and once more after spreading the lime and fertilizer. You can use a rototiller for the same thing it juts takes longer. If you really like exercise and back breaking work like the old days just use a shovel and turn over the sod in 12" squares until it is all turned over. After the area looks like a garden I take a ski pole and make holes for the corn about 2" deep in rows 30" apart and space the corn 6" per seed. Or pay a farmer to plant your corn. Just one per hole and then cover with your foot lightly- they will all sprout. Plant the corn when it's warm and the soil is warm, at least 65 degrees. Buy 10 pounds of field corn in bulk, treated, and that will keep you busy for a while and make a good size plot. One acre will feel nearly impossible to do by hand but it's not that hard once you commit a full weekend to it. Once the corn has sprouted rototill pretty shallow between the rows to kill any weeds. Repeat every week or so until the corn is knee high, then you want to fertilize again. After that the weeds won't matter but you can still till it for fun. I would plant some apple trees in that field, that will draw in the deer for years.
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Old 01-07-2009, 01:54 PM
  #10  
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Default RE: food plot help

i dont really understand what you are saying about how to plant the corn?
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