Food plot costs

[catskillkid]

   I recently calculated all the costs to plant my food plots. Considering the tractor, implements, chainsaw, dozer, barn, lime, fertilizer, seed and land purchase, I must be out of my mind. I'm thinking of going back to basics and hunt as  I did when I was younger. I also think that I shot just as many deer every year. This food plot thing is getting out of hand! Although it is nice to sit back and look at the fruits of your labor and watch the deer and turkeys benefiting from all the hard work.

   Has anyone ever added up the costs of your plots?

 

[moog5050]

glysophate, a sprayer and spreader, seed and fertilizer is all one really needs.  (I will estimate $200/yr per acre)  I don't include the ATV costs as that is more of a toy even though I used it for plotting.

[corydd7]

Yeah but I understood what I was getting into. For me it's a hobby that saves me money, if I wasn't doing food plots I would end up with some other costly toy or hobby.

[land 1]

u do it because you enjoy it, hell if you added up the cost of hunting you may not want to do that either

[landtracdeerhunter]

You could be doing other non productive things with your cash. I guess it all depends on how you look at it.

It's a way of life with me. I love the soil. I enjoy the success from the fruits of my labor. Beside, the radish are tasting very good in the coleslaw, these days.

[G-Man]

over 10k 1st year plotting writing off equipment in 1 year , but if your gonna do thay add up shotgun shells tags turkey calls ,decoys ect  damn bird is 200bucks a lbs. same for deer 25 plus a lb.. add in taxes and buying property 2500.00 a lb  

i enjoy growing things and it does help all wildlife. ill continue to plot

[LET EM GROW]

I knew it would be an expensive hobby. And a hobby it is! I spend way more than I should thats a given. But I like seeing the fruits of my labor, i love being able to do these things to make my wifes and children's hunting even more enjoyable when they can only get out once or twice a year. I pass more deer per year because of these things, and i have no problem sitting back and watching them enjoy the things I have done to help, or the things that mother nature gives on her own.. And running trail cams(batteries, sd cards, etc..) adds more to the bill.. Its a PILE of fun, especially if you get family involved! 

That being said, I run on average 4-6 plots per year.. in a total of around 4.5 acres.. 3 of these plots are spring, summer, and fall planted.. I dont even want to add .. Id probably cry. lol.  

I will continue to do these things for as long as possible.. 

 

[wolc123]

The sky is the limit when it comes to what you can spend on food plots but they need not be so expensive.   I never include the cost of tractors, mowers, etc because that stuff is needed anyhow for basic property maintenance.   I just add up the input costs directly related to the foodplots, and that consists of fertilizer, fuel, and seed costs.  I also do not include any allowance for my time, because that is not really work for me, since I enjoy all of it.    I measure the output in pounds of boneless venison taken on or adjacent to the foodplots.   On a good year, the cost is under $ 1.00 per pound.   The last time I got below that was 2016.   We use to raise beef on our farm years ago, and we never got close to that cost, even when you allow for inflation.  Basically, food-plots can produce "organic" venison "dirt-cheap" if you use a few simple tricks.

Trick #1: get your seed for free.   Get to know some local farmers.  They almost always have leftover seed at the end of normal planting season, and most seed stores well and germinates ok for years afterwords.   

Trick #2: Get most of your nitrogen for free by using crop rotation.  This also saves you from needing lots of lime (and $) to maintain soil ph because synthetic fertilizer acidifies the soil.

Trick # 3: Get a row planter, to allow for minimum seed and herbicide usage.

Trick # 4:  Get a pre - tier 4, turbocharged, 4wd diesel tractor for optimized fuel economy.

Trick # 5: Realize that maximum yield per acre does not equate to maximum attractiveness to deer.

Trick #6: Take out the competition: That can mean things like raccoons (trap) and weeds (roundup).      

[Uncle Nicky]

On ‎9‎/‎18‎/‎2018 at 4:11 PM, catskillkid said:

   I recently calculated all the costs to plant my food plots. Considering the tractor, implements, chainsaw, dozer, barn, lime, fertilizer, seed and land purchase, I must be out of my mind. I'm thinking of going back to basics and hunt as  I did when I was younger. I also think that I shot just as many deer every year. This food plot thing is getting out of hand! Although it is nice to sit back and look at the fruits of your labor and watch the deer and turkeys benefiting from all the hard work.

   Has anyone ever added up the costs of your plots?

 

It has to be a labor of love only.

I got sucked into the whole food plot thing when I bought my camp. Tried doing it myself with an ATV, soon found out that was a mistake. So I hired guys with tractors to do the work, it was costing about $1,000 an acre at the time, about 15 years ago. Some years the plots worked, some years the weeds overtook everything. In a good year, everyone would find out about the plots & hunt them when I wasn't there. And honestly, the deer were there before I started the plots, and were there after. Now I just hunt the trails heading to the neighbors corn fields, LOL.

 

Edited September 20, 2018 by Uncle Nicky

[steve863]

It amazes me that there are hunters out there who don't even realize that there was no such thing as food plots for deer not too far in the past.   It seems like many think that it isn't possible to kill a deer without food plots.  I've got some news for these folks!  Although they probably won't want to listen.  LOL

 

 

 

 

[land 1]

Some of that is true steve but I think most of us do it to improve the over all quality of habitat on lands we own or hunt . I use to hunt southern edges of adirondaks and loved it no plots just big woods and lots of still hunting, but to each there own I just enjoy doing the work and yes i see more deer now and ccould kill deer without plots if it was just about fillin tags i would never have bought land and built a camp. I would just hit the state land like in the past and fill those tags

[grampy]

My wife costs me much more than the plots. I've kept her around for decades.   

It's something you love. So money well spent. No matter what you do, for something you love, or any hobbie, it will cost you dollars. Well worth the price for the happiness gained IMO.

[WNYBuckHunter]

I dont figure equipment costs in other than implements that are specifically for the plots. Id have my tractor, etc anyway. I just put fuel, seed, fert, spray materials into the cost. I have less than $300 into my plots this year.

[G-Man]

1 hour ago, steve863 said:

It amazes me that there are hunters out there who don't even realize that there was no such thing as food plots for deer not too far in the past.   It seems like many think that it isn't possible to kill a deer without food plots.  I've got some news for these folks!  Although they probably won't want to listen.  LOL

 

 

 

 

i also have seen heavy winter kill on my property. i havent had it since ive been planting feed fields 20 years ago. nor do i think i would be taking an average of 18 deer a year off of the property with out them