Needing help with first food plot.

That would be way to much money to spend to only get 50% success. They like to pick the clover that is in the fields already. Would that be a good way to go with something like big an beasty?Or something like that.

 

That $300-$700 depends on what bean seed you'd buy, would be for a heavy enough seeding to get a decent stand. Basically that's a doubled seed rate. Can be done cheaper if you find a cheap seed source. Also if you have a drill or planter you can use less seed.

Without researching it I'm not familiar with what's in the Big and Beasty blend. If there's existing grass and clover then that would need to be terminated first before you plant most anything else. There's not much you can successfully seed that can compete with existing pasture species. You could frost seed clover into it before spring and thicken up the clovers in it. You'll want to come back in later after the clover comes up and spray the grass with clethodim or something similar to give the clover room to grow.

Most anything else will require chemical or tillage termination of what's there now. You'll have to decide on some kind of a plan for what you want to accomplish. Cool season plants vs warm seasons, timing for your goals, etc...

 

Big and beasty is a cool season species blend so it wouldn't go in until like Aug, mid to late here. If your goal is to provide replacement food for the 20 acre field of soybeans to hold deer in the area and hunt then a blend like that would work interseeded in standing beans in fall but wouldn't do much for you over summer. If the beans across the road improved the hunting there over the pasture you already have there then the pasture alone is going to perform like it did pre-bean field.

I could probably recommend a mix of stuff you can buy and mix yourself and broadcast and harrow in if that's the only equipment you have to do it with. I need to know how you're going to seed it (equipment) and what kind of cost per acre you're comfortable with.

 

I really appreciate all your help. I never knew there was so much to think about when doing this. I'm really blown away with all this. Ill just need to do more research on this and find out what I'm going to do.
I am basically wanting something to hold the deer there. There is not much agriculture where I'm located. So any food is better than none.

 

Ok that would be great. Ill get back with you when I find out what all he has.

 

Well, it can be as complicated as a person wants to make it. Guys that are used to a process make it look easy and it can be. They just understand their considerations and kind of figure it out in their head as they go. Someone that doesn't know what they want for sure, don't know what they don't know. Those are the guys that jump in feet first and then complain when they have a bad first experience with trying to do food plots. They find themselves at deer season with a lot of work and money invested and a crappy looking food plot.

There's plenty of room for problems without facing poor planning from the getgo.

If you have a drill or planter and want beans then it's as simple as spraying, getting the seed and planting it or working the ground and planting it depending on the drill/planter. The drill/planter will have to be set for the population you want.

 

How high of a population are you planting?

 

To broadcast seed beans, about double the normal population.

 

Gotcha, I thought you were talking about planting. I was going to say holy crap!

 

ROFL
Yeah that'd be a bit high for a planter, most planters on 30's I think plant about a bag per acre (140K). Though I have drilled beans on 7" rows before up to 220,000 and had good yields, fantastic yields actually. The agronomists claim that beans can self regulate to hit most of their yield potential with a minimum of 100K population or they can deal with a high population density as well. I call BS on the 100K part. Worst problem if they are too thick is lack of rainfall will stress them much faster if it gets dry.

With my planter on 15" rows, I target 160,000 population. I generally get at least 130,000. If my population drops below 110,000, I strongly consider a replant or interplant.

 

Varies a little but we're always shooting between 140 and 160. I would never go below 130 here, especially not down to 100!

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What kind/brand of beans do you all grow for just a food plot. I'm thinking I may be able to rent a seed driller from my farmers co-op so I can plant beans.
(CoveyMaster) there may not be any way I can do it. But I would like to stay around $75 a acre to get this plot in. So around $400-450. That may be far fetch Idk.

 

Most everyone uses roundup ready beans now but you can still get conventional, non-GMO beans. They are cheaper. As far as brand names, I like Willcross beans but for food plots whatever is okay as long as the germ percentage is good.

You can get something decent for that kind of money. For beans, you'll need to find some reasonably cheap seed and watch what chemicals are used. If you can get by with roundup alone then you're good. You'll have to figure out if you're going to use herbicides to keep them clean and how you'll make the applications as well. If you are going to try to keep them clean with herbicide and don't have any spray equipment then you'll have two options.
1. Get some equipment and learn how to use it
2. Custom spraying for hire. Local coop or a neighbor.

There's a whole other discussion on that stuff. If you hire someone to do the spraying then it will simplify it a lot if they know what they're doing.

If you do something other than beans, after the initial burn down, it'll probably be kind of a quick and dirty mix but you can work the ground, broadcast the seed and harrow it in. It'll have weeds come in but should largely out-compete them. You're going to be in that for $30-$50/ac. and it'll be more of a natures mix type of thing. It will be full of different species and look like a rats nest but it'll be full of grains and greens and deer and birds should use it hard.

There's advantages and disadvantages to both and obviously I'm not familiar with your climate and soils so I'd base it off the assumption your area is similar to mine for a mix. Beans will be easy if you have local help for the spray and can get a drill, they will likely push your budget hard with spray cost, drill rent, etc.... The mix will be more of an initial prep, plant and forget as long as you get a good stand initially and some decent weather. (decent weather required for beans or a mix) You can get a simple soil test to test for PH, if PH is 5.5 or over (up to 7) you're good, I'd spend the rest of the budget on whatever triple 13 or triple 20 it'll buy and broadcast it over the top after seeding and harrowing. Whatever fertilizer fits your budget will be okay more than likely (for the mix).

Your other option is to do the plot in half and half and see which one works best. 2.5 acres of each isn't a bad compromise and if I'm giving you crappy advice then you should still end up with something usable, lol.

 

Ok. Thanks ill look into that as well. Now would corn be cheaper and yield more food than beans?

 

No, not likely. The only part of corn that supplies much food is the ear, with beans you get the benefit of tonnage of forage per acre from the foliage. Milo is a better choice than corn.

 

You act like you're a farmer??

 

I'm good at acting. I've had a lot of practice acting on the internet from years in my parents basement, playing on forums.

 

Sounds like a Brad Paisley song..................