The area I'm hunting is surrounded by corn and bean fields. I'm planning on putting a series of small food plots in, but I don't necessarily want deer to hang out there all the time. Would they still mostly go to the farms, or would they always be found at the plots? I'm new to the management end of hunting, so any advise is helpful. Thanks in advance.
The plots can be a decent secondary/ transition/ staging place if you have them in the right location relative to those fields.
It's really hard to say as it's situation dependent. Some people will experience deer walking right through beans to feed on their clover or brassicas (or ANY mixture, really), while others won't touch them until well after the beans have browned. Deer know what they want and are good at mixing their sources to balance their mineral intake, protein, carbs, etc., So while they may hammer the beans, they are still going to be eating other food sources. With that being said, if the beans are the ONLY other ag crop near you, once they brown and/or are harvested, they may find their way to your plots more often than not. As far as planting this season, cereal grains are your only option, and even then it's not great. Rye will get a start, oats will as well, but one hard frost and they're likely toast. Are you planning to plant this year yet? Or is this a plan for the future?
Since your in illinois, the only things you can still plant would be winter rye and winter wheat. They will be green into late hunting season and work real well for kill plots. Surrounding soybeans and corn fields will come into play but remember there is factors like cover, water, and hunting pressure that all will influence where deer feed, travel and bed.
