I am going to be attempting my first food plot this year. I have a small cleared section where I plan to put it. (I have to clear the brush out of it since the farm was logged last year.) I am going to get a soil sample and test it to decide how much lime and fertilizer i need to add when I go to plant. I was planning to plant a mix of red and white clover with rye but was not sure when I need to plant it. When should I do this? Also is the mix I plan a good choice, or should I consider something else? It is only a small plot about 80 yards by about 20 yards. I don't plan for it to be a food source for the deer, just a kill plot hopping they stop in it before they go to the fields and before they go to their bedding area. I am also planning to put a mineral lick in the center around a large stump. Sorry for the long winded story but any help for the first time food plotter would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, HunterC.
Sounds like you have a plan...what advice do you need? It's getting pretty late for spring planted clover and rye. You'll have to decide whether or not to go ahead and try it and take a chance on a cool damp late spring early summer or wait until early fall. If now, you may have to overseed some thin spots this fall (no biggie). Another option is to plant something warm season and overseed with a small seed mix this fall. I like soybeans left standing interseeded withcrimson clover brassicas and wheat or you can overseed it with perennial clovers come fall.
Well basically I was wanting advice on what I should look at planting and when I should plant it. I would like to get something in the ground now if possible and if I need to replant in the fall that would be fine. Between school and work, this weekend is the first weekend I have been able to do anything up at the farm. I have finals this week so starting this Saturday I will have more time to work on it. When you mention over seeding is that simply throwing more seed out over top of what is currently there or do you have to re-till everything up? I have to do this with hand tools and a troy-built rototiller so I don't want to have to seed something and then have to re-till it up and seed again.
Overseeding would just be throwing some seed on top in the thin spots before a rain or maybe raking it in. Most small seeded crops will do okay just thrown on top with a 20% higher than normal seeding rate. If you want to plant something with the clover, I'd try getting some spring barley rather than the rye this time of year.
