raw soybeans for supplemental feeding

Good afternoon,

Just wondering if anyone else has tried to feed raw soybeans to deer to help with nutrition and how it has helped with antler growth. I hunt on a large lease in north Florida which is about 90,000 acres. It is mainly hardwoods with not a lot of nutrition. It is a dog hunting club which I too dog hunt. Many guys and myself have tried planting food plots of with iron clay peas or soybeans to help the deer get better nutrition. The problem other than it being flooded or a drought is the fact we don't have enough clear land to really plant a food plot big enough to make a difference. I have five feeders and was looking to feed raw soybeans to help increase the health of the deer. A lot of my fellow hunters feed corn but that is just during hunting season to bait them up. Any ideas on how much I should feed per day or any other tips would be appreciated. Our turkey season is going on right now so I can't put my feeders out until the first of May.

Thanks

 

Deer slayer 14,
Any plot size will make a difference. If you can try planting clover and brassicas in the fall say around Sept. Those little plots can be golden if there is sparse food. Do a soil sample and once you have the ph right and at least 4 hours of sunlight you should get some growth and vistors. Apply liquid fertilizer if you can once its 3 inches or taller.


Soybeans should be good but you have to try and keep them dry as much as possible else they will go bad just like corn. You can try building tube feeder out of PVC pipe to keep it off the ground. A tube will maybe last you a couple of days to a week depending on how much action your feeder sees. Good luck and let us know how your experiment goes.

 

We have a high density of deer so the soybeans don't last long at all. Last year we were just throwing them on The ground to bait deer instead of corn because We have a bad bear problem down here. The deer would eat them all before they got a chance to
to go bad. We can't think out the does and really can't kill small bucks so we have way more deer than the woods can provide for. That's the reason I'm trying to do something to help even the odds so to speak.

 

I want to do a 50/50 mix with corn in our feeder but I can't seem to find soy beans anywhere except online. I'm unsure about buying something like this online but I may have no choice.

 

Look up Horn Corn is a Roasted soybean and corn mix that's what I use for supplemental protein during the growing season any feed store should be able to order it.


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When I Google Horn Corn I find a lot of discussion about it in other forums but I can't seem to find the manufacturer or places that sell it. I think this is a Texas based supplemental feed. I will have to ask if Tractor Supply can order something.

 

A lot of my family and friends farm so I get my soybeans from them. Its a lot cheaper than buying it from a feed store. If you can find a farmer who has some extra that would be worth a shot. We buy about 400 pounds for around $80.00.

 

Yeah, that would be ideal, tracking them down will be the hard part. I will have to do some door to door.

 

I'll ask around at my feed store and get you a supplier to contact


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The issue I had with raw soybeans in a feeder is they tend to sour of mildew


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Yes, I feed a 50/50 mix ration of raw soybeans and the deer love it as do turkeys. (and coons) This is only the second year we've been feeding and only month 5 of including beans into the ration so it remains to be seen how much effect it has on antler growth. I can certainly testify that the deer's physical form is far superior than usual coming out of winter. Deer and turkeys don't have to have the beans roasted to utilize their protein content for feed, roasted beans will have less pass through nutrients than raw beans but the difference is fairly minimal comparing prices between roasted and raw.

Damn...I wish I could sell beans now for $12/bushel! Market price now is about $9.40.

I would imagine any local elevator would have soybeans? They're grown clear up into Canada.

Be sure your feeder is leak free but that should go for corn too, any grain will mold and mildew in a feeder that draws and holds moisture. I've never had a problem in the bossbuck feeders we run.

 

Another good supplement bean is black eyed peas you can get feed grade in bulk.


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That's what my main concern was they were going to mildew. I only have small feeders that hold around 30 pounds. I was looking to feed around 2 pounds a day. Will that be enough to make a difference? I don't want to put too much out in case it rains and I don't want them to rot on the ground.

 

I was surprised not to find them at the 3 feed stores that I checked in my area, I know how popular soy beans are and figured it would be easy to find... Since I'm so close to Kentucky, we're in horse feed country so there's tons of places that sell horse feed, but unless I go further east there's not as much for deer or cattle.

 

I also use a pen using 8 hog panels if you have cattle on your place but I use a free choice feeder and it helps with the mildew issue because the feed doesn't stay in the drum so long that it can be effect by condensation, what ever feeder you choose just make sure it's sealed tight


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Feed stores don't typically carry soybeans as far as I've ever seen. Look for an elevator that buys bulk grain from farmers. They should be able to set you up.

 

You learned me. I'm finding places now.

 

I do a alfalfa pellet and corn mix. I get the pellets at Tractor Supply or really any feed store.

 

I just checked the nutrition facts of alfalfa pellets, I had no idea it had twice the protein as corn. What it lacks in crude fat it makes up for in protein and fiber. I have an alfalfa bail that I have a camera on, if the deer seem to like it I will definitely be trying the alfalfa pellets mixed with corn in the feeder. If I can't get my hands on some roasted soybean the alfalfa could easily replace it.

 

Soybeans easily run protein levels into the 30% range. There's also some research that suggests feeding beans increases conception rates by up to 10% as well as higher birth survival. Those studies are for beef cattle, I don't find any studies on deer.

http://www.buckmanager.com/2010/01/28/feeding-soybeans-to-supplement-white-tailed-deer/

http://www.aces.edu/natural-resources/wildlife/supplementaldeer.php