Have any of you guy's ever figured out your cost per acre for your food plots? Ever since I stopped leasing my 2 1/2 acres to a crop farmer and planting it myself, I've sort of kept track. I also have 5 other food plots out in my woods which are 1/4 acre or less. I also strictly follow the reccommendations of my soil tests to build my soil. I figure it costs me $200 to $300 dollars per acre, depending on what I plant, for my food plots. To me it is money well spent for the enjoyment, exercise and benefit of the wildlife.
What type of lime do you use Greg?Pellet or Ag? Planting is much cheaper this year for me due to not needing lime.Since my food plots acreage will substantially going up starting next year I purchased a 1000lbs drop spreader to properly handle Ag lime.It will pay for itself in short order. This year for me: Glyphosate:~$15-20/acre Seed:~$30/acre Fertilizer:~$80-100/acre So I have about $150 or so per acre without lime.
My figures have a little slop in them so I think they cover the cost of fuel. Actually, my tractor and Rhino don't use much fuel.
I us ag lime and spread it myself. However, this coming Spring, I'm having a co-op come in and spread my big field because it needs such a large dose.
Must be nice to be able to have them be able to get to your main plot. I will have 4acres of plots to lime here next year. Which will be about 12000lbs of lime. I drove 4.5 hours one way for this gal and can't wait to use it.
I don't keep track, probably because I don't want to know I make some some in hay each year, and use that to cover a decent portion of what it cost for the plots. I'm blessed with some quality soil, so I haven't had to do much over the last 5 years in fertilizer, and nothing in lime to this point. I also plot on the philosophy that I'm not producing a crop for harvest, so I don't need to get the optimal output. Just enough to keep the deer happy and coming back.
Ok, Are you adding in the cost of the 4 wheeler / UTV or tractor and attachments? :p My point is it is just like people say they hunt because deer meat is cheaper. Not so much when you think about all the stuff we buy and time we spend harvesting them. My dad always said any thing that's fun is expensive... It's a good thing its our passion.
Even if you hunt public land. The cost of all the equipment and gear combined with the cost of processing (even if you do it yourself) far outweighs the savings in meat.
I agree...no way is it cheaper. However, if I truly had to and needed it cheaper I'd slap on some coveralls, an orange hat and take a scoped gun into the field. For next to nothing I'd be able to put a couple deer in the freezer, if meat is all I truly cared about when it came to hunting. Even though we run just tiny plots, I'd still venture to say I'd hate to know our total average year investment in them. Calculate in time spent as well and yeah...
I average about $150/acre. I already have the equipment for farming. That allows some for inputs and my time and fuel. I can't imagine spending more than that.
Even if I had payments I would have to divide them by all of the activities that my Rhino, tractor and implements are used for. The amount of time spent just plotting would be small enough that my original estimate of $/acre would still cover it.
That doesn't seem too bad. Some of my plots took from 6-12 tons/acre. A couple years back I spread 4 tons on my 1/4 acre clover plot.
I may have to do it a couple years in a row. I'm not sure you want to put it all down the same year for larger amounts. My soil tests have come in calling for 5000lbs/acre
Most sources will say not to apply more than two tons per acre in a single season. I always thought twice that was okay if it was worked in deep but I don't do tillage anymore so...
The place (Co-op) where I get my soil tests done said that the max amount of lime that the soil can take is 12 tons/acre. Then you wait 2 years for another soil test. So I did it all at once. Two years later my soil test went from 4.5-5.5 to 6.7-7.1. No lime was needed. Two years after that (this year) PH was 6.8-7.0. No lime needed again. I was impressed. It seemed like a lot but once I tilled it in, you couldn't tell the lime was there.
I haven't tried to figure it out yet. We just bought a place back in December. We've rented out 17 acres to a farmer. We are planning on food plots in one piece that is 2 acres and some bedding areas in a couple of others. We had plans for part of our place that is in the bottom but the tornado a couple of weeks ago has altered those plans a little.....................At least we are all safe and none of the house and buildings were damaged.
