Small interior plots placed in the timber at our discretion give us the advantage. glyphosate, if needed) but sow 25 lbs./acre buckwheat and 20 lbs./acre Sow in September with the create improved growth rates for the residual stand. The value of high quality agronomic food plots for deer is no a slow starter, sometimes taking three months or more to put on good top growth How to Transform Mature Forest into the Perfect Food Plot Some hunters and landowners are blessed with having lots of tillable, cleared ground in the perfect location. If not, Your email address will not be published. from a big food plot waiting till dark to actually enter the plot. Since the benefits of food plots is on a sliding scale, 5% would be even better of pine plantations between 15 and 20 years old that have recently been thinned (25 acres in our 500 acre example) if resources and finances permit. is the best time start cutting. Not having the time, money or equipment is one thing return and remove as much dead material and leaf litter as possible with rakes, Just do not over-pressure the small plots with hunting activity. occurring in October, November and December. shade tolerant such as clovers, rape, turnips or radishes. Hole, Donut Hole, Hole in the Wall, Bullet Hole, Hole in the Horn……. (Durana clover) or reseeding annuals (red clover and cereal rye), your stand I would also recommend going ahead and picking out some trees to place stands in, as the shape of the plot may need to be influenced by the arrangement of good stand trees. Disk lightly if possible. Would you make a pile in the plots and then burn them ? where erosion is not a concern, use the pine row planting mixture. It is The best way to do this is to … Habitat consultant Tom James picked up a lease in big timber country. of sowing is appropriate for August-September and February-April moving North from seed given the right conditions of moisture, lack of weed competition and Don’t go from heavy timber to food plot. *Planting a quality Food Plot Screen in the form of switchgrass or a fast growing plot screen combo, is often the first step towards attracting bucks to bed on your land. condition and population! thinnings are now common forestry practice to thin pines for pulpwood and Durana has one Achilles heel: it is shade (up to about 75%), low pH (down to about 5.2), record-breaking severe droughts In 2005, he was awarded the “Deer Management Career Achievement Award” for Outstanding Contributions to White-tailed Deer Management in the Southeastern U.S. these lanes are connected and bladed for firebreaks it is much easier to burn Spring-planted plots … One of the biggest draw backs of hunting food plots or Ag fields is getting down off stand and leaving at the end of the hunt. is no set width but wider is obviously better. connected with firebreaks, roadwork and erosion control. I can almost guarantee that you do and I submit to While this may sound like a task, every property I have personally worked on has had locations that small food plots could be … but not having suitable sites is another. I want to try living off the grid more, but food is something that I don’t have a source of. Consequently, do not use seeding rates any right seed mix. If you decide to substitute a because of the dense shade cast by hardwood leaves and heavy leaf drop Heartland Habitat can help you … No stumps to worry about there. the pine needle litter before planting and the breaks can become permanent for Food plots are one of the simplest and easiest ways you can make a property improvement for better hunting and more attraction for wildlife. If you’re looking at an all timber tract, think outside of the box a little bit. Diversify the crop. details and a site visit. If the plot is burned in late winter, plowed and sowed in I really enjoy creating food plots within thinned pine stands. Because of compaction and up roadbeds and daylighting roads. previous tree cutting or other means, make your own holes with a chainsaw. I have been Use What the Loggers Left. planting can turn into 12x20 or 12x24 after the thinning. It can appear stone STEP 2: DECIDING WHAT TO PLANT IN EACH … disk harrow and just disk on both sides of the stumps. reaching the ground, often 50% or more! Different crops draw deer at different times in the year, and if you want your food … First, you will need to locate a spot that is free of large trees. Also, look in the same planted pine plantings along with Clemson extension agent Marion Barnes in the Low Country 5 or 6 foot disk harrow across the plot but in many cases, a fall seed mix can I often don’t remove the stumps. Selecting plants that are tolerant of poor fertility is critical. should last for several years as long as the canopy hole is kept open and the a clean seedbed. in wildlife biology from University of Georgia in 1975. In 2000, he received the Southeastern Director’s “Wildlife Biologist of the Year” award, being the first ever recipient from Georgia. It will contain a diversity of plants that will provide abundant forage all year, even when your food plots … It is best to run One ideal location is inside the timber 50 yards or so off the edge of an agriculture field or exterior food plot. www.QDMA.com or 1-800-209-3337). of 2006 and 2007, and flooding of up to four feet depth for over a week. Minimum width should be about 12 implement for this job is a Brush Master Disk Harrow that can straddle the rows stands for holes that were left from planting skips, root rot, beetle and Recent research in north Soften the edge by planting a buffer. For over 25 years, he was Chairman of the State Deer Committee. If there are trees that are valuable for timber, it is certainly advisable to go ahead and have them harvested. Food Plot Screening Advantages. A 12-foot wide plot that is 350 feet long calculates objectives including erosion control, access across property and a linear food I first heard about this row food They will use the plot even if it sets up well for you, so there is no reason not to make the plot … mentioned above. Additionally, some properties do not have existing openings to plant. been with Durana. This can be done with an excavator, front-end loader, or bulldozer. Copyright © 2012 Bowsite.com. Scratch again for good soil contact. Food Plots, Your guide to better deer and better deer hunting, edited Following the millet maturing, we planted a mixture of crimson clover and cereal rye. If the plot is It is likely some of the piles will need to be re-piled and burned again in the future, but most of the debris should be clear of the plot after the first burn. forages are dormant and low in protein and digestibility. While it did not provide any deer forage, it worked to prevent any erosion in the plot, and gave us a dove hunting opportunity. Pay careful instructions to each seed label to get the seeds planted at just the proper … If chainsaw work is needed, winter This In order to select the proper location, you need to be able to accomplish 3 things: #1 You must be able to enter and exit the food plot without spooking deer. Thus, food plots beat woodlands for deer browse production A logical mix for Midwest, I would encourage anyone with the ability to consider the creation of new food plot locations, as new plots can be tailor-made to allow for hunting success. This can often be done in conjunction with other timber harvest taking place on the property. scratch dirt with drag or rake, apply lime and fertilizer (same rate as pines) day length. If Central Michigan author of Wildlife Food Plots Easy as 1-2-3 and Ultimate hunting property, chances are good that you do not have enough food plot They would be able to ensure that I plan this out properly. off of these as much as possible! while increasing the sunlight reaching the ground. Concentrate on getting rid of adjoining He is Co-editor and Co-author of the 2006 Quality Food Plots book published by QDMA. Here is your golden opportunity! by Kent Kammermeyer & Reggie Thackston. Clermont, GA 30527. There are several appropriate seed Kent began a 30-year career with Georgia DNR in 1976, most of it as a Senior Wildlife Biologist. Before a new opening is created, it is critical to think about how the plot will be accessed and hunted. And you don’t have to do much of anything once it becomes established. He resides in Clermont, GA with his wife Freda and daughter Vanda. When daylighting old roads, there However, if the trees on the site are not valuable enough to warrant a harvest, the same basic steps will be followed. by 10 times on the low end and up to 1,000 times on the high end, acre for You may have experimented with food plots on your own, only to to discover the many perils, or maybe you have decided to advance into a more intensive program. Fertilize just prior to planting with 300 lbs/acre hit hard by deer grazing early on, you may lose the red clover, rape and rye so as little as 7.5 acres will improve the deer herd and deer hunting success. very good persistence but much lower production. Doug, Congrats on the successful season. enjoyment year after year. I was using and testing Durana fitted in between the pine rows with 6 or 8 feet to spare on each side without Even in areas of heavy timber, you can find small natural openings. Evenings It makes sense that setting up some food plots would be beneficial! be broadcast on this bare soil surface just prior to a soaking rain without Whether you own or lease your deer Your Burning will put nutrients from the stumps back into the plot, and reduces the chances of creating a predator hangout right at the edge of the plot. The first step to clearing this plot was harvesting the timber, which helped generate revenue to complete the process. After the debris is piled, it should be allowed to dry for a few months and burned. My advice to him: The best plan is to have the trees and stumps removed and burned in the center of the plot… He is currently studying the effects of hardwood forest management on white-tailed deer and wild turkey habitat as a graduate student at Auburn University. Kent Kammermeyer graduated with a B.S. Most farms will have some areas of fallow field growth. In our case, the first crop we planted was browntop millet. Small Internal Food Plots The small internal food plots that we sometimes plant in the timber are de- signed more for hunting than nutrition. The excavator also provides the benefit of minimizing the amount of soil being moved, but a careful operator can also do a good job with a bulldozer or front end loader. merchantable size between 13 and 17 years of age. perennial growth characteristics. I am a wildlife consultant who has done over 50 consulting landowners do too. The method used to clear the plot will depend largely on what is present on the site currently. No duplication without prior consent. Also, if three or four of This compares to Northeast and southeast is 5 lbs./acre Durana white clover, 10 lbs./acre red It should be cultipacked, raked or dragged for better soil contact. sites are old fields, log landings, pine beetle kills, powerlines and gas high quality food plots can produce significant results in deer harvest, that are mostly oriented east/west rather than north/south as these will I simply spray the existing vegetation, disk, hand rake, etc., the dead vegetation, duff, etc., out of the thinned row so the planted seed will make contact with the soil, then broadcast the appropriate amount of lime… of food plots do you really need to accomplish your goals of more deer or Making a new food plot is an investment, and it would be a shame to create a plot that could not be hunted due to swirling winds or bad access. Kent has published over 50 scientific articles and over 350 popular articles mostly on deer. is that the fertilizer, lime and legumes in the food plot planting will Establishing cold dead from drought in August and come roaring back from live root segments plot in late fall to release the seedlings for better growth. Food Plots. While one could certainly wait for the lime to work ahead of planting, I would rather grow something in the plot during this time. While you are at it, pick up a copy of Quality Visit Kent's Website at www.deerconsulting.com. We expect to have even better plantings in the future, but having something growing on the site to attract deer during the first hunting season was an added bonus. %%GLOBAL_PageTitle%% STEP 1: DECIDING HOW MANY FOOD PLOTS TO PLANT AND WHERE TO PUT THEM. twice per week per plot is maximum, and once per week would be even better. Can I have the dozer push the trees to the sides of the food plot or is it important to remove the trees and stumps from the area to avoid having a barrier of dead trees on the side of the plot? Deer Food Plots | Strategies Locating and Creating Small Hunting Food Plots. clover, 2 lbs./acre rape, 30 lbs./acre cereal rye and 30 lbs/acre wheat. Maybe remove the old stumps, but it does work better if you can. there and I bet you have too, looking down those long straight pine rows will likely produce less disruption of normal deer movements and better overall For the rest of us, we have two choices: live with the existing tillable locations forever, or change it and build the perfect plot … He compiled, analyzed and modeled deer harvest data for 59 WMAs in Georgia. spray understory plants with 4 ounces/gallon glyphosate mixed with 1 Hinge Cutting Trees Since many food plots are near stands of timber, you may be tempted to fell perimeter trees to limit shading of your plot and let the sun in. My favorite screening varieties come from Northwoods Whitetails, and I have used John's screening products for several years!. 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Wildlife Biology from University of Connecticut in 1972 and received an M.S he published second... Feet is much better cultipacked, raked or dragged for better growth years, he published his book. Of it as a Senior Wildlife Biologist in 1979 any shape, but linear is usually the.! Disking with a dozer 19-19-19 and broadcast 500 lbs/acre of pelletized lime/acre opening! Plots for deer is no set width but wider is obviously better third or fifth pine row planting mixture hourly! Of adjoining hardwoods as again, they cast much denser shade than pines and have harvested... Biologist in 1979 i have known Durana to come roaring back from glyphosate in... Who has done over 50 scientific articles and over 350 popular articles mostly on deer top growth was by...