New fall food plots

[Nytracker]

Still have a little clearing to do but I'm planning on planting a fall plot of about an half an acre and two more smaller plots of 1/4 each.

   Rocky and thin on soil . 

I have been studying  the subject and have settled on a 3 year plan of  cereal rye and clover. Suppose to build soil and give somthing for the deer to eat. Have also thought about adding radishes  to help break up the soil . 

I have tried smaller plots but the deer wipe it out when its 3 inches tall .

I have access to a  brush hog sprayer, and disk. Next year I hope to have a rototiller. 

I'm picking up lime and fertilizer  next week.

What do you guys think .

[landtracdeerhunter]

Sounds great.  i have always been a big fan of cereal grains and radish planting. A past member ( growalot) got me started on radish quite a few years ago here.  Radish planted the end of July. Oats and Wheat in late August. I like to think of it as a payback to wildlife, for all the deer  harvest we have made.

[Nytracker]

From what I have been reading  cereal  rye  will germinate in colder weather  and is much more tolerant  to low ph . Let it grow through the spring  go to just before  seed mow it down . Breaks down  for soil  feeds the clover. 

[G-Man]

8 hours ago, Nytracker said:

From what I have been reading  cereal  rye  will germinate in colder weather  and is much more tolerant  to low ph . Let it grow through the spring  go to just before  seed mow it down . Breaks down  for soil  feeds the clover. 

Cereal rye will grow on concrete If you keep it watered.. , rye, buckwheat, annual clover for a few years to help organic matter into soil. You really dont need a tiller with a disk. Your not planting anything that need to be over 1/2 inch deep. 

[Nytracker]

Not sure when to plant . Radishes are suppose to go in in july but the rye can go in later . Then add clover to the mix . I'm really not sure when to plant what . Or should I plant them all at once. Any info would be helpful.

[G-Man]

16 minutes ago, Nytracker said:

Not sure when to plant . Radishes are suppose to go in in july but the rye can go in later . Then add clover to the mix . I'm really not sure when to plant what . Or should I plant them all at once. Any info would be helpful.

Rye will germinate down to 37 degrees . . I'd plant radish and clover together and over seed rye later only.need it 3 or 4 in high by end of October ,let.come up next.spring. I like mine to go to seed as poults and hens seem to like it. Or you can mow and.clover will fill in

[LET EM GROW]

Sounds good, I would add some annual clovers like balansa or crimson to your blend, and radish as you mentioned. I would also shy away from tilling or disking your plot after your initial planting. Unless you plan to pick rocks, If you can incorporate the right seed blends into your plantings, then a rain and a lawn roller will sow your seeds for you so you dont have to dig rocks. It will also aid in soil health since each time soil is disrupted its  nutrients get depleted by the sun, the wind and lack of worms and such. If you have to scratch soil, I highly recommend only a light scratching, no bottom plowing or beating the heck out of the soil, especially if you have a soil building plan.. 

When do you plan on planting?  

[Nytracker]

Mid to late july 

[stubborn1VT]

Unless you are very far north I would plant turnips in late July/early August.  In 3-4 weeks I would broadcast rye and clover.  Personally I would mix in some oats too.  3-4 weeks after that I would see if there are any thin spots or bare dirt and broadcast rye again.  

Check out Jeff Sturgis on food plots.  I don't agree with him on all things deer hunting and deer management, but he has his food plot stuff dialed in.

[Nytracker]

5 years ago I belonged  to a large lease we planted alot of turnips 8 acres . The stuff grew great.  Softball size and bigger . The guys that hunted those plots shot deer chasing  does  but not a one feeding . It was January  before I found evidence of deer feeding on the turnips . And it was very sparse.  Come spring it was a slimy stinky mess . It was turned under and planted into clover rape and radishes . The deer  were in those plots all the time .

I dont think the deer had a clue they should eat the turnips. We planted strips of turnips  for 2 more years and still no sign  the deer were eating it . 

My reason for choosing radishes is the deer will eat the tops ...  the roots will break up and amend the soil .

[Pygmy]

For a gun season murder plot ,  do the deer have a preference between  wheat, oats and rye..?   I have planted wheat and oats and had about equal luck with them, but never tried rye...I do plan to seed perennial clover along with  whatever cereal grain I decide to plant....

[Nytracker]

My uncle swears  by winter wheat .  He did a bunch of buckwheat one year and they ate it until is frosted turned brown . They would run through the buckwheat to get to the winter wheat . By the time hunting season was on buckwheat was done .  Then it was all about winter wheat. Now all he plants is winter wheat  clover .

[Pygmy]

Thanks, Mike...

[stubborn1VT]

I have found that deer prefer oats, but all cereal grains are similar.  The biggest difference is that oats die off, while winter rye or wheat will stay green and regrow in the spring.  It's great when it is the first thing to green up, but it also competes with the clover. Oats make a better nurse crop for the clover.  Mixing the oats and winter rye together is the best of both worlds IMO.  

[wolc123]

2 hours ago, Pygmy said:

For a gun season murder plot ,  do the deer have a preference between  wheat, oats and rye..?   I have planted wheat and oats and had about equal luck with them, but never tried rye...I do plan to seed perennial clover along with  whatever cereal grain I decide to plant....

For cerial grains, deer order of preference from a taste standpoint is: Oats (best) Wheat (2nd best) Rye (third best), and Barley (worst).   

I usually go with wheat becasue it is always the easiest to find and the cheapest, and it lasts longer than oats (all the way thru winter).   I have not planted rye in about 10 years.   Unless you got real acidic soil, I dont see the point of planting something that costs more, is harder to find, and deer don't like as much.   I thought about barley once, thinking I could make some tasty beverage from it but after hearing that deer liked it the least, I skipped it.   

The special ingredient I recommend throwing into a fall kill plot mix (of wheat and white clover) is soybeans.   Nothing is more attrative to deer than young, sprouting soybeans, and global warming has resulted in late fall frosts, often letting them last well into bow season (and sometimes all the way to gun season).  

That mix did in this fine 3.5 year old 8-point last fall 2 weeks prior to the gun opener:

Edited June 27, 2020 by wolc123

[stubborn1VT]

As usual, Wolc thinks in absolutes.  Every situation is different.  Oats are more expensive than rye where I buy them.  Everyone has a favorite cereal grain and they are all different.  Many variables determine what deer prefer.  In an area with high deer density oats won't last as well as rye.  Rye grows thicker, faster and in more soils than any other food plot species.  Deer will eat basically anything when it is small and palatable, so when you plant is often more important than what you plant.  Rye grows thicker and provides better weed suppression than other cereal grains.  It stands up to cold better than any other grain.  It stands up to grazing pressure better too.  Oats are great, but they like cooler temperatures and more moisture.  They don't grow as thick, so they make a better nurse crop.  Mixes will outperform any single planting out there.  To each his own.

[Nytracker]

Ok so I just picked up my seed  for the plots .

10 lbs of radish @ $6.99 /lbs

10 lbs of winter rye . $8.99 total

Clover mix  4lbs  $16.00 total

4 bags of trip 19

4 bags of pellatized lime 

30 lbs bag spreader 

 

Grand total ... 320 bucks !

Deer farming is expensive! 

[Nytracker]

Planned on clearing brush ... it's raining... plans for tomorrow was to spray ... that's out ... freaking weather ...

[wolc123]

3 hours ago, stubborn1VT said:

As usual, Wolc thinks in absolutes.  Every situation is different.  Oats are more expensive than rye where I buy them.  Everyone has a favorite cereal grain and they are all different.  Many variables determine what deer prefer.  In an area with high deer density oats won't last as well as rye.  Rye grows thicker, faster and in more soils than any other food plot species.  Deer will eat basically anything when it is small and palatable, so when you plant is often more important than what you plant.  Rye grows thicker and provides better weed suppression than other cereal grains.  It stands up to cold better than any other grain.  It stands up to grazing pressure better too.  Oats are great, but they like cooler temperatures and more moisture.  They don't grow as thick, so they make a better nurse crop.  Mixes will outperform any single planting out there.  To each his own.

What about wheat ?

I have seen deer walk around rye to get to wheat on multiple occasions.

50 pounds of wheat costs $ 8.00 where I shop.  

[stubborn1VT]

Never bought wheat.  Haven't bought much seed to be honest.  I get most of it the same way you do.  I don't have much experience with wheat, so I can't say much about it.  I do know that it is cold tolerant.

[land 1]

last year got winter rye for like 9bucks per 50lb at agway 

[Pygmy]

2 hours ago, Nytracker said:

Planned on clearing brush ... it's raining... plans for tomorrow was to spray ... that's out ... freaking weather ...

I was hoping to finish up dragging my plowed plot today, but that's out also.... Oh well …...we DO need the rain...

[stubborn1VT]

I'm jealous.  Our rain keeps getting cancelled by the weatherman.  Did I forget to pay the bill???

[Nytracker]

So I got up to the property at 9 am . Mowed the driveway  and the food plot . Dis charged everything into 3 big wind rows. Used the loader to push the   clippings into a pile and scooped them up . Moved them into a big pile . Worked better than expected. Then I went after the brush along the drive and edge of the food plot . Used the loader to push over the bigger honeysuckle  and  olive Bush.  As the brush tipped over it lifted the roots half out ot the ground . Back up hook the rootball and push them off to the side .  Worked really well . I forgot the diesel can ran low on fuel  and ran out of time . Only got about half what I wanted to do done .

Good thing I didn't listen to the weather girl . She said it was suppose to rain this morning.

Edited June 28, 2020 by Nytracker

[bruno1]

On 6/27/2020 at 1:20 PM, Nytracker said:

Ok so I just picked up my seed  for the plots .

10 lbs of radish @ $6.99 /lbs

10 lbs of winter rye . $8.99 total

Clover mix  4lbs  $16.00 total

4 bags of trip 19

4 bags of pellatized lime 

30 lbs bag spreader 

 

Grand total ... 320 bucks !

Deer farming is expensive! 

Where are you ordering your seeds from