So the property I hunt got logged this year and they haven't finished yet. They should be done in they next few weeks and I should be able to finally get some stands hung.(Wish they were already hung but cant do anything till they get done logging). They are a few places I though about planting a food plot for deer but idk what I could do considering it is very late in the year. I have a place about 50 yards long and about 30 yards wide they have cut out and I was wanting to put something in it. I was thinking maybe throwing some grass seed out just to have something other then dirt there. What do you guys think? I will only have hand tools to do it so what would work and be effective this late in the year?
Could try one of the Throw and Grow products...I bought a bag but haven't used it yet, so I can't really tell you if it works good or not. But since you won't have much time and hand tools only, it's worth a shot imo...
There are plenty of products out there that you dont have to plant until august or september. do a little research and you find plenty of good products. i do agree that if you dont have equipment a throw and grow like clover or something like that will draw the deer right in.
Not sure where you are located but I put Evolved Shot Plot in late July early August last year and turnips and I had good growth. It's the perfect time to put in fall and winter crops. I'd suggest maybe wheat, rye and Landino Clover mix. Any rape mix will turn bitter tasting to the deer after the first hard frost and they might start passing on it. If your first frost isn't until late October and you mix some winter crops in then you should still be good. I would suggest getting something in the ground though!! It's the perfect time to try something new and see what kind of results you get. If it works out you have a plan for next year! If it doesn't work out then oh well do something different next year. Sounds like you don't need to do any weed killing - that's one step closer to planting. If you have any weeds get them sprayed then mowed down asap! If you don't have tiller box then just rake ground or use push tiller - it will do the trick just a little extra effort. If you've never planted the ground before might want to put some lime and 12-12-12 down after tilling. Plant prior to a rain and your good to go!
Right now is a great opportunity for you to establish some plots, without having to fight existing weeds. I would suggest you seed all of the main logging trails with clover/chicory mixes to give the deer a nearly year round source of food, plus you can also create food plots on the old logging staging areas ( spots where they piled up the logs for the trucks to haul out) These staging areas should be pretty easy to lightly disc up behind an ATV, and seed with any variety of fall based plants. I would recommend Oats, Winter Wheat, Dwarf Essex Rape, Purple Top turnips, etc. If you are in TN, then you have PLENTY of time to plant stuff for this fall. PS - your clover/chicory planting on the logging roads, may not look fantastic this fall, but if you overseed them next spring, you should have some amazing looking logging roads, that you can just mow a few times each year and lightly spray with round up every 2-3 years. GOOD LUCK!
