So it's that time again.... Food Plots!

[Chuck R.]

It's that time of year, when I put on my farming hat, and work on my plots in support of my deer engagement area.

I mowed two of my plots last month and sprayed round-up a couple weeks ago. I'm picking up seed this afternoon on my way home from work.

Going to hook-up the 3PT tiller tomorrow after dove hunting and at least go over them once. I plan on keeping one plot just clover and the 2nd "kill" plot is going to be the usual mix of oats, turnips, and brassica's.

Another note, this year I'm up to 3 whole chestnuts on my 8 chestnut tree orchard! It was going to be a banner year for pears, but then the ^%&** racoons came and made short work of it. My Arkansas Black tree has apples and the coons haven't decided they're ripe enough yet, so maybe there's hope...

So what are you putting in?

 

[MacAR]

I planted turnips (for me, not the deer) yesterday evening. However, you may rest assured that when they start getting greens on them the deer will be all over them. The plot is 56 yards from the back corner of the house; Winchester 94 is sighted dead-nuts on at 50 yards. As long as I can get a good rest off the corner of the house, I'm almost guaranteed meat in the freezer. I also have some sunflowers for the doves that the deer have been browsing, and a few acres of corn for chicken feed. It's been my experience that once I pick the corn (end of October), the deer will browse that field pretty hard. It's a little farther, 190 yards to far end of it. The 243 is sighted 1/2" high at 200, so should be able to take care of whatever walks into the field.

Mac

 

[Patocazador]

Last Monday I disked, planted, and fertilized 4 food plots. I tried some cow peas and oats. It doesn't get very cold until December so I chanced it on the cow peas.
Drove up early Monday, worked, and drove back that evening to beat the hurricane. 400 mile round trip and work in 18 hours. The storm produced lots of rain so the food plots should be good.

 

[JDeere]

Plant anything around here seeds are live you're wasting your time. It will die are not come up. It's going to take some serious rainfall to catch back up and it will some day...Good luck with the plots...

 

[Anchorite]

I’m glad Alabama finally allows us to bait now. It’s far easier to prep for deer engagement season.

 

[alsaqr]

The daytime temperature seems stuck at 103-110F. After a good rain, with more rain forecasted; the plots will be planted.

 

[buck460XVR]

I’m glad Alabama finally allows us to bait now. It’s far easier to prep for deer engagement season.

...with CWD being discovered there last year, that may change in the near future.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Like Alsaqr said, temps are terrible and the lack of rain here even worse. Can't plant the clover until we get some good rain.

 

[Choctaw]

Like Alsaqr said, temps are terrible and the lack of rain here even worse. Can't plant the clover until we get some good rain.

Hopefully next week we will finally see a change in the weather pattern in our part of the world.

 

[Chuck R.]

I'm also stuck for now, dryer than heck, with nothing forecast till next week.

 

[Anchorite]

...with CWD being discovered there last year, that may change in the near future.

I think it’s been here for awhile.

 

[Chuck R.]

For once it looks like it worked out..

Got the plots in yesterday, and now it's raining and supposed to keep going most of the day.

My new "harrow Drag connected to a boom pole" technique worked GREAT! No more dragging in wide turns, just lift the 3Pt and turn. Made putting in my smaller plot a breeze.

 

[md7]

Right now breaking up ground is about like breaking up asphalt around here. Little rain and high heat pretty well baked the ground hard.

Will plant around some rain. Maybe in another couple weeks.

Until then, corn.

 

[PapaG]

Son one and I put ours in a week ago last Thursday. About five acres total. Trying something new our seed dealer had. Instead of Buck Forage oats we put out something called Super Twelve which has the oats, rye, beets,turnips and a few other things. Bag looked like a bag of birdseed.
Son was down there yesterday and it is beginning to sprout.

 

[crestoncowboy]

I’m glad Alabama finally allows us to bait now. It’s far easier to prep for deer engagement season.

We have always been able to bait deer in nc Shoot them with corn in their mouth if we choose. Turkey and bear not so much . Lol

...with CWD being discovered there last year, that may change in the near future.

I got a paper saying we have to submit all deer kills for testing in NW NC. Baiting is prohibited up until sept-1 till jan-1.

Calling it a mandatory testing zone

CWD Surveillance Areas and Special Regulations

North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission

www.ncwildlife.org

I think it’s been here for awhile.

Still laws change as they find it. Up until this year we called a number and tagged in our deer. Didn't have to take them anywhere. Now they are setting up freezers at the gas stations that are for us to dump deer heads in. We had unlimited doe tags too trying to thin them down. Now nature may do it for us

 

[Patocazador]

Last Monday I disked, planted, and fertilized 4 food plots. I tried some cow peas and oats. It doesn't get very cold until December so I chanced it on the cow peas.
Drove up early Monday, worked, and drove back that evening to beat the hurricane. 400 mile round trip and work in 18 hours. The storm produced lots of rain so the food plots should be good.

I was back up and the peas came up fine but were nipped off immediately. Just a bunch of short little stalks sticking out of the ground where the deer had destroyed them.

Since the forecast was for 70% chance of rain for 3 days, I planted the largest plot with oats. My "luck" held and we only got 0.15" of rain. However, there was an upside. 4 quail were seen feeding repeatedly on the seed that was exposed.
I'll do anything to help bobwhite survive.

 

[gwpercle]

My wife just put up our Humming Bird Feeder ... does that count ?
Gary

 

[Chuck R.]

My wife just put up our Humming Bird Feeder ... does that count ?
Gary

So do you pluck them, or just breast them out?

I got my two plots in a couple weeks ago, checked yesterday and they are coming up!

Spent the afternoon yesterday fencing and putting "bunny guards" on my little trees. Last winter for the 1st time I had an issue with rabbits chewing on my apple and chestnut trees. My big old persimmon that 's about 75yds from my stand is loaded again this year.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Well, the September rains came and went. We received less than 2" in the last 2 weeks (after 2 months with no measurable rainfall). I am not planting a food plot for deer per se, but part of my hunting property burned during the heat wave and was planning on reseeding with some red clover as ground cover (which the deer will like) but planting is going to have to wait. We need rain.

 

[buck460XVR]

I think it’s been here for awhile.

According to "Outdoor Alabama"......

Alabama's first known cases of CWD were found in two hunter-harvested adult bucks killed in Lauderdale County during the 2021-22 hunting season.

 

[crestoncowboy]

According to "Outdoor Alabama"......

KNOWN cases. But not a lot of deer took random invasive testing voluntarily either.

I know 10 years ago the tva said that their dam had seen several cases of it in deer dying beside the water. I'm pretty sure that was workers getting cwd and blue tongue confused though.

I figure if its that close to me then my deer have had it. Lol.

I haven't had any desire to hunt the past few years and I almost hit deer EVERY morning. Yesterday I went into a 2 wheel skid on my motorcycle because of a stupid doe. We can kill 100 a year with depredation permits and still see 30 in a day in the same field.

Something has to come along and control them. Cars/trucks amd big rigs can't do it all and hunters only kill the bigger bucks and no doe. So they (hunters not the deer) are getting exactly what they deserve.

 

[BushMaster-15]

South 40 has #3 food plots ,saw a # of Pheasants along with Grey Partridge and ( first time I've seen these around our place Grouse roaming around ) .

 

[Atavar]

I discovered by accident that a great thing to plant is pumpkins. Hardy, trample resistant and the deer love ‘em. One seed covers a lot of ground.
The deer love the gourds but don’t eat the prickly vines.
Found this out making jack- o- lanterns at the hunting shack and throwing the pulp in the woods.

 

[buck460XVR]

KNOWN cases. But not a lot of deer took random invasive testing voluntarily either.

True, major part of the problem with monitoring the disease.

I know 10 years ago the tva said that their dam had seen several cases of it in deer dying beside the water. I'm pretty sure that was workers getting cwd and blue tongue confused though.

Most of the time it's epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) that drives deer to water. while CWD does promote excessive thirst, deer are usually too weak or disorientated to go far. Lots of folks get CWD and EHD confused. Part of not being really informed. Part of what drives misinformation promoted on social Media. EHD and CWD are transmitted differently. That's why measures to reduce the spread of one does not affect the spread of the other.

I figure if its that close to me then my deer have had it. Lol.

I figure lots of deer around me have it. Part of why I'm concerned.

Something has to come along and control them. Cars/trucks amd big rigs can't do it all and hunters only kill the bigger bucks and no doe. So they (hunters not the deer) are getting exactly what they deserve.

I tend to agree for the most part. This includes the use of salt/mineral licks and feeders to lure deer for easy shots. As does the not shooting of does and small bucks or even allowing others the access to do so. Every one wants to see 100 deer a day while on stand. The increase in Wolf numbers around here is directly related to the high density of the deer population. Folks won't shoot does and allow them to get to un-naturally high densities, yet cry like babies if a wolf takes one down. everything is just great til the prion mutates..........

 

[crestoncowboy]

Most of the time it's epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) that drives deer to water.

EHD is also called blue tongue. The TVA was saying cwd but I'm pretty sure it was the former. That was probably 6 or 7 years ago around butler dam that they spread that. Before any cwd really around here.

Years ago at Biltmore estate they made you kill 2 coyote before you could kill a doe. Then a doe before a buck. That was probably 30 years ago.

I wish they would make you check in 2 doe before giving anyone their buck tags here. When they first issued depredation permits here for tree growers, people said the deer population would plummet. But again I've seen over 100 deer culled from a single field year after year and we have more and more deer. So many that they gave us unlimited doe tags. In my 7 mile ride to work the other day I counted 70.... and I was on a motorcycle and not really looking. Bear are also increasing and far worse on Christmas trees than deer.

A lot of the older guys coming into my shop have commented how they used to never see deer in or beside the road at mid day but now it's constant.

We have no wolves. We do have coyote but honestly their population seems to stay pretty low. No increase in my game cams or eating my chickens over the past 30 years. Really the only things I've seen in that time is deer exponentially grew and grouse went from pretty common to almost extinct. They turned loose a pair of red wolves probably 5 or 6 year ago but nobody ever got so much as a picture. They probably got shot before they left the field.... around here. People shoot and poach at will. Lol. We just assume they are shooting cans or groundhog or coyote but whatever. We lose at least one beef a year. Many farmers do. So the rednecks spotlighting may be keeping the coyote in check at least