bypasskiller

Im planning to plant 2 food plots. They will be about 500yds apart. The total property is 90 acres. The one plot will be approx 2.5 acres the other can be anywhere from 2-10acres. I want something that will draw them early in the season and late in the season. It opens sept 15th and ends jan 31st. Im new to food plots and need all advice i can get. I know ill have to get soil test and add recommended lime and fertalizer. I just dont know what and when to plant or how to plant. A detailed start to finish blueprint would be nice. Lol. Ive got access to a nice tractor, mower and disc. Thanks in advance!

gregrn43

I'm from alot futher south than you are, North Arkansas, but for fall and late season I would go with a cereal grain like winter rye or buck forage oats mixed with rape turnips and some clover in there. It sounds like your acreage is gonna be plenty big enough to handle quite a bit of deer traffic on it. There are a ton of different seeds out there to plant these days, but I just mix my own its much cheaper that way. I do buy the buck forage oats because they are cold tolerant, I have planted seed oats and bobs oats but they turned yellow after a hard freeze and deer quit eating them. Like you said make sure you get that soil test done.

haystack

Bypasskiller--With possibly 12+ acres to work with, your options are many. But in order to recommend what seed selections are feasible, we really need to know what your soil test reveals.

Most likely there is grasses growing there now that will need to be eradicated. This could take a while and might impact how soon you could have...say a lush clover field that is pulling in deer by Sept 15 of next year, in addition to soil PH and fertility issues.

Late season food plots such as corn and soybeans will possibly be an option planted this spring. Brassicas could be planted late July-mid Aug, as well as late summer/fall planted cereal grains such as Oats, Wheat and Winter Rye.

I purchase a lot of my seeds, chemicals and fertilizer from Southern States Coop. Looking in one of my catalogs, there is one located in Preston, MD. Most of those coops will custom spread lime and fertilizer and rent out no-till drills. And if there are other farm supply, feed and seed stores in your area, do a little price checking.

Also a good book or two could be invaluable. One I would recommend is Wildlife & Woodlot Management by Monte Burch.

And we'll be glad to help any way we can...feel free to ask!

Here's a few things that work for me.

Brassicas, Winter Oats and Corn.


Winter Rye, Winter Oats and Austrian Winter Peas.

bypasskiller

thanks for the ideas. im getn soil test as soon as the weather breaks and ill go from there. keep the ideas coming as to what pulls the deer in the best for you guys.

farm hunter

Keep in mind that what works for one - might fail for you -
The soil - climate and terrain have a lot to do with everything.

Generally up north -

Clovers are tough to beat to start with for year round activity-
Soybeans Can be great summer/fall and even winter if you plant enough
Corn is king in winter

With nothing to back up my Opinion - In MD - I like Soybeans Summer-Winter - especially if not everyone one around you is planting them.

With 12 acres to work with - I'd plant a variety and let me observations lead me on.

FH

halfbakedi420

i would recommend , if ya don't already know, that you do some research on the digestive tract of a deer..

that being said and assuming you do this before you read on..it dont make sense to plant beans if the area you live in is mostly corn crops...

ask the farmers in your area what part of the crops the deer eat the most of..and 2nd..and 3rd..

then figure the time of year for each..maybe you will use 3rd place, but it will be 1st place at that time of year..

sounds like you got the soil test stuff down , as it is the most important of all....and when you get your fertilizer , make sure you are meeting the requirements of the seed you are applying.


hopefully you have access to farm equipment?

if not, better cut the acreage back on your intended plan.cause manual labor is brutal for that much land..me and my buddy took out 2 large hand steered tillers...bad azz ones..in sand....6 feet wide...150+/- feet long... all day to till , as most of the time is spent digging the vegetation outta the tiller, which we did not expect...also including a 2nd and 3rd round for mixin in the seed and fertilizers..

i would say that 2nd in line behind the soil test is water!!!!!
we took a rented gas powered water pump with 300 feet of hose, and pumped it outta the spring fed creek to water it for 3-4 days in a row when we planted it..i think it was about $100 to rent on a friday and bring back on a tuesday, (after labor day)

don't go planting seed in hopes that it will rain..if it doesn't rain, you have wasted all your time and money!!!!! make sure there is water..


good luck

bolton22

HayStack- How big is your Brassicas plot??

haystack

Not quite a 1/4 acre.