When do you guys plant fall food plots?

[Jjalmy88]

I am waiting on the weather to dry up I have 5 plots of clover and alfalfa coming back from last year putting in 7 new ones was just wondering when you guys do your fall planting ? Thanks new to the site btw

[Cabin Fever]

Are you sticking with clover and alfalfa or planting something different? It's bone dry in my area! Even the swampy areas in the woods have dried up!

[Jjalmy88]

Well I live where it's wet at hell have standing water in plots I have ready tilled and limed ... I'm planting turnips sugar beets mix with winter bulbs (biologic) and biologic full draw and I got a mix pack antler king plot start kit ... Last year I did turnips and WTI bow stand with winter greens I planted them late like last weekend of august came up good but was gonna try to get them in earlier this year and was wondering how early I can plant

[Jjalmy88]

The turnips this year I'm using WTI tall tine tubes 1/2 acre deer crushed the winter greens last year before the frost and after the frost thanks for the input

[Pygmy]

I planted rape, turnips and radishes in one plot and clover and oats in another plot on August 19th last year.. They did great, but I was lucky having a fair amount of rain.. Good luck.

[Jjalmy88]

Yea that's about when I planted last year worked great

[G-Man]

i am planting turnips now(the bulbs just get bigger..) i have planted in august and lacked the moisture needed.. now i plant 3-4 weeks earlier .

[Meat Manager]

A couple weeks ago I mowed/tilled 1 of my buckwheat/peas plots and planted WGF Sorgum, Soybeans, FM Peas and Annual Clovers:

http://huntingny.com/forums/index.php?/topic/22241-First-Plots/page__view__findpost__p__306856

It's greenin up nice might have to hit it with some milorganite:

I'll be mowing/tilling my other buckwheat plot this Friday in prep for anticipated rain:

Planting it in BF Oats, PT Turnips, Sugar Beets and Annual Clovers.

Good luck to all!

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Edited July 9, 2014 by Meat Manager

[growalot]

Nice plots..today I sprayed the lower beans and the SF/con road screen....it was taken over goose foot weed...there was corn in beans that survived the first spraying...so I am hoping...SF are a bust in that area....I have 3 more plots to spray and disc for fall planting...upper beans have good growth and are now getting hit...lower beans have been nearly wiped out...but there is a lot of regrowth turnips and hog radishes going in....thinking maximize in part of top with clover in another part...

[Fantail]

I've heard people here mention Labor Day as a sort of deadline. Weekend before works out better for winter rye where I am being woodland plots. Once I clear out enough for a soy plot, well, I really don't know yet.

[virgil]

Just curious.  Do you all plant these plots specifically for hunting purposes? Or, do they serve other uses as well?

[growalot]

The work I do never started out as improvements just for wild life...the land we bought had been plowed then left...over the years much reverted back to woods but the farmers son mowed a small area ..this was like a wash board and what I called a kidney buster and tore up mowers...I swore to level all mowable land...doing so brought up rocks...... so that became an issue to clear up...I am nearly done...woodland plots came about because having two bad knees and two bad ankles........ trails needed leveling so I would cut down on injuries...figured why not plant things while I work the problems out...Now we eat the turnips and the fruit and nuts from trees planted...in past have fed some crops to livestock...

 

Well planting things is a hobby...like my garden180x80 feet.....5 1/2 dozen tomato plants...3 dozen peppers...55 broccoli 30 brussel sprout....3 different types of muskmelon 2 of watermelon and that is 5 hills for each 4 hills of pumpkin 10 101ft rows of sweet corn.... 3 dozen cabbage...3 types of winter and two of summer squash...ect   ect..many others plants......2 ppl using it...it's an addiction....

Edited July 9, 2014 by growalot

[Meat Manager]

Exclusively wildlife harvest plots...there is a lot of ag around my lease to serve as nutritional plots though.

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Edited July 9, 2014 by Meat Manager

[virgil]

Thanks.  Really interesting stuff.  As someone who doesn't know anything about farming,it sounds like a ton of work and a pretty fair expense.

[philoshop]

A labor of love. If ya don't love doin' it, it's just labor.

[Fantail]

Just curious.  Do you all plant these plots specifically for hunting purposes? Or, do they serve other uses as well?

 

If I had to pick I'd say for hunting. But I've seen allot of deer up close in the plots that I never draw on. Doe with yearlings etc., younger bucks. Not to mention what the cams show. They need forage I'm fine with them using the plots partly because I hope they will be back, there's no farms close by, its also good times being in stand undetected with them around. 

One time last year though the stars were out before I got out of my stand and back to camp, they wouldn't leave the plots. Tossed down my umbrella, shinning a flashlight on them .. thats the way it goes.

[Jjalmy88]

All my plots are deer plots only ... Just started doing plots last year and man last season I could see a big difference ... I saw deer almost every hunt ... Passed many deer in hopes that they make it to this year only shot one deer off our land seems like a switch hit one night and they started to elude me but I could see them just never a quality shot ... It's really not that hard of work if u love it like stated above . Advice to someone with equipment would be weed wack a small plot spray round up wait two weeks rake dead off spray again rake again and stir dirt up good buy some winter rye at agway seed it use a board to step on and press seed down and spread some triple 15 and see what happens may be a little late to add lime takes months to really work just my .02 cents thanks for the responses ... Has anyone ever done winter peas in upstate ?

[Cabin Fever]

Has anyone ever done winter peas in upstate ?

I planted Austrian Winter Peas and 4010 Winter Peas a couple of years ago. They grew great and the deer loved 'em! I remember seeing a nice buck out feeding in them, and whenever he picked his head up, he had long vines draping out of both sides of his mouth! The downside was that the shipping cost of the peas! It cost a lot more than the seed did! Then of course, they died with the first frost... 

[Jjalmy88]

Only gonna try a small plot of them to see how deer react 1/2 acre hoping to keep them off it till it comes in good

[SplitG2]

I've done winter peas and i wouldn't worry if the deer will like them...they will love them.

With that said I wouldn't do it again because of the price.

[bubba]

First I planted 3 acres of forage turnips today. I got them out of Maine not that expensive 70 bucks 15 pounds shipped.  They are pretty much ready by the end of September when I start hanging out more

 

 

Second My plots are for two purposes.  I have about 12 acres of alfalfa and clover and the 3 acres of smaller plots.  the 12 acres I mow at least twice and hopefully three times for the beef cattle I raise.  The deer also like them. The turnips are more of a winter feed for the deer. I am surrounded by agricultural land that the deer feed on also.     

[Jjalmy88]

This is my clover plot from last year coming back in good

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[growalot]

In for a break...Eegads...rototilling between the corn around the cucumber, pumpkin and melon plants is about wiping me out...I will spread TTT around vining plants and leave corn open until the cobs set and then walk WR in the rows...the rest of tha area I will disc today and plant TTT....just need to finish ferilizing it first

Next I need to spray to small clover trails and one plot to put tunips in...not as much mast and if we get another winter like last...I want plenty of late food for themThe corn/ SF I just spayed will go into maximize this year...clover will help replenish nitrogen corn has taken....

[Meat Manager]

Just planted my other plot this morning:

http://huntingny.com/forums/index.php?/topic/22241-First-Plots/page__view__findpost__p__309010

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[growalot]

Your doing a great job MM..be proud of the hard work put forth....