One of my fathers friends gave us permission to hunt his land which has a decently sized field. Were probably gonna start doing it in the offseason but we want to get a feel for what were gonna need. Anyone have any advice on how to plow, which kinda plant to use, etc.... Thanks
Do you plan to plant an early season plot, followed by a late season plot ? Do you plan to directly hunt the field ? You can't go wrong with beans. They're super attractive to deer in the early season, then, when acorns fall, they're on them. Then, it's rutting time, followed by late season food source pattern in which beans serve as a highly palatable food source. If I were you, I would do a mix. how big is the field ? My turnips are getting hammmmmmmmmmmered right now. Do a little research. If you call or go to Whitetail Institutes website, they'll send you sample seed packs of the crops they offer. They also have great information regarding which seeds work best in which areas.
I havent seen it yet, but my dad said its a field roughly the size of a football field... Were so new to this we didnt even know there are early and late season plots.
Sounds like an acre or two, you may need a tractor for that. I would mix it up with a few different plants and see what works. Do some homework, start asking local hunters what they use. You want something that is going to last through the hunting season and hopefully beyond. Beans are great, but once their gone their gone. Are you in an agricultural area, meaning are there a lot of farm fields mixed into the area? If so, you can get away with beans, but if that's the only bean field in the area, they will be grazed over and gone before the season starts. If the field is already farmed, you can probably skip doing all the soil tests, the farmer will be able to tell you where its at. You may even work out a deal to use his equipment. Believe me, a tractor with plow and a grain drill is the way to go if you can swing it. Where I live in Illinois, its predominantly farm ground with creek and river bottom mixed in. I compare it to living in a giant food plot. I don't even plant pre- or early season plots because it's futile with all the other food available in my area. I concentrate on mid to late season plots of corn and beans. They are deadly once the harvest is over.
This may be a little help. http://www.bowhunting.com/blog/post...pecifically-to-get-deer-within-bow-range.aspx
Great info. Moose, when you plant corn, what do you do with it when it matures ? Leave some standing, all, none ?? Is it harvested ? Corn is a big hit during the winter. Since we can bait here, in my State. We take spreaders and spread corn throughout the cut crop fields for late season hunting. The deer dont think twice about it, but, its extremely, EXTREMELY expensive. I'm in the same boat as you, Moose, the AG farms in the area provide plenty of early season forage for the deer. So, no need to plant an early season plot(although, we have).
You'll need at least a couple acres for beans if you want to have standing beans in the winter. Especially if there isn't any other bean fields in the area. If all you have is a single two acre field, I probably do half of it in corn, 1/4 of it in clover and 1/4 in buck forage oats. Assuming you have the equipment necessary to plant corn. If I didn't have a corn planter, I might break a two acre field up like this: 1/3 clover, 1/3 buck forage oats and 1/3 in some sort of mix like that secret spot mix. I like to have several small plots scattered around for hunting purposes. Here are the plots I have on my place. - two acre plot in standing corn - 3/4 acre plot in buck forage oats - 1/2 acre plot in buck forage oats - 1 1/2 acre plot in clover/chicory mix - 1/4 acre plot in whitetail institute secret spot mix I also live in farm country so there are two large alfalfa fields near me (10 and 15 acres) and other fields that rotate corn, beans and wheat. Deer have plenty to eat around here.
I would break it up in a few smaller plots myself but it really all depends on when you are looking to hunt it. you could do a corn bean mix but depending on the area brassicas are a good choice it may take a few years for deer to like them if they have not come across them in the past. IF the field is over grown then it limits what you can pull off next year. There will be a ton of dormant weed seed that are going to germinate when you turn the soil. You may want to turn it wait a while for the weeds to grow and spray with some type of roundup to kill the weeds. Its can be a lot of work but its a blast and when you see deer using a field that you put some hard work into its really rewarding. Good luck and keep us posted.
Busted for what? Not being an egotistical hunting forum elitist? I'm pretty sure he was asking how to grow and maintain a food plot. He wasn't asking for your opinion on the merits of it. If you want to start another debate Tony, preach away in your own threads. No need to hijack a thread from a guy taking the time to ask a good question.
We let the corn stand through the winter. In addition to food, it also provides some extra cover for turkey, pheasant, rabbit and deer.
yea i think you misunderstood. I don't think he meant hunting and shooting in the off season....he meant he's going to start working on the food plots (the topic of the post) in the off season. Though yes, it was worded poorly, so I understand exactly why you interpreted it that way.... The beans are a good easy suggestions. Later winter turnips are good i hear....though I've never tried that. I have apple trees and they work awesome but that might not work for your temporary land
let it go bud. It was a thread. I didnt know that you werent allowed to have your own opinion on a forum. I guess i was wrong.
