# Food Plot Prep work



## Hardtop (Nov 24, 2004)

I am going to take a first stab at a small food plot (1/2 acre), but the area has never been cultivated. It is a meadow with kneee high grass and weeds, and I don't have access to farm equipment. My initial plan is to burn the dry material off, then spray with roundup after the new groth sprouts , then rake if nessecary, till it up with a garden sized tiller and then plant. Any one have advice or better ideas...? Thanks HT


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## ironman172 (Apr 12, 2009)

sounds like a lot of work....I tried one on top of my hill(still in the woods) it did ok, but the deer didn't really eat it, and keep it cut short....then tried clover ,that was almost a waste of time....so I just stayed with corn in the feeders after that ....good luck with it 
still waiting on the apple trees I planted to do something too....maybe one day before I am dead


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## big red (Feb 4, 2010)

before you burn,make sure you have available water source to control or stop it if it gets away from you.doesn't hurt to notify the local fire dept of your plan.

if you can get a quad in the area you may be able to get a small rider mower in there to mow down the weeds and grass.after that is done and the new growth starts you can treat with round up.wait about 3-5 days and then go in and till.wait for about another 2-3 weeks for any new growth to show and retreat again with round-up.while waiting to second treatment do your soil sample to see what else the soil is needing/lacking.a good food plot takes some time and care to be to good results in the end.


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## M.Magis (Apr 5, 2004)

big red said:


> before you burn,make sure you have available water source to control or stop it if it gets away from you.doesn't hurt to notify the local fire dept of your plan.


This is very important. In fact, I'd advise NOT burning this time of year. It's just too dangerous in my mind. I've had minor fires get out of hand in a heartbeat, and it's a scary thing. Other than that, your plan sounds good.


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## Darron (Oct 17, 2006)

no need to burn...spray this month, spray next month spray in june, spray in july and broadcast a mix of rye/red clover in August. By august the thatch should be rotted away. Been doing this for years in areas on my farm that are heard to reach or if I just feel like being lazy.


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## ironman172 (Apr 12, 2009)

what area of the state is this going to happen?


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## treytd32 (Jun 12, 2009)

I totally suggest burning...kidding lol this was what a small fire in a fire pit not intended to burn down a field can do in roughly 10 minutes, without the fire dept. this would have been a couple homeless families and 2 miles of ash. Burning with everything dead is not the best idea


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## Hardtop (Nov 24, 2004)

Thanks for the input guys.....our place is in Perry Co, and I have been in contact with the townshipe trustees, and the VFD...which sits within 1/2 mile of the spot. This time of year they have a restriction on when you can burn ( 6pm-6am) so that the vounteers are home from work & available to fight fires. The spot in the meadow is 1/4mile from any timber, and we will not burn if there is any wind. I have been down that road as well and we won't take any chances. Water, shovels, and rakes on hand...!
I wouldn't burn either if there wasn't so much thatch and I had equipment to disc it up instead, but with a rear tinned tiller, you can't have a bunch of material on the ground or it just becomes an tangled mass.


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## M.Magis (Apr 5, 2004)

Something really handy to have on hand is a 12v sprayer full of water.
Also, do you have a riding mower available? They'll do the job as long as you take it easy. It's nice to get that thatch incorporated into the soil if possible, but it's not necessary. One other thing that you may have already checked into, some rental centers rent out pull behind mowers or tillers. May save some work, or at least wear and tear on your stuff. After breaking new ground for a variety of plots, doing so with a garden tiller would be real low on my list of things to do. Even once the grass and everything is gone, the root masses are still there.


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## wildman (Sep 3, 2008)

I have done this before and had success.. But I used a 4-wheeler.. 

I would burn it if you feel ok doing it and have taken the steps to make it safe.. After burning a week or so later spray it with roundup. I then took an old 3 ft disk that I had laying around and added weight.. After using a 1,000 gal's of gas doing circles and figure 8's! LOL I will then use a broadcast spreader and spreadededed 200lbs give or take of lime.(or get it tested to find out) I let it sit for a 2 to 3 weeks depending on rain fall and temp's and how much new growth. When the new growth was 5 inch's tall I sprayed the the field again with round up.. I then brought down a 4X6 post with landscape nails driven though it. The nails stick out 3 to 4 inchs. I then placed it in the middle of a piece of 9ft fence then folded it over and running a fence post though the two end weaving it though the holes. Add a few rocks and then drag away..... it brakes up the ground a little better.. I then disk it. Let it sit a few weeks then spray a third time.. a few days later I drag the 4x6 and then plant. then pack in with the 4-wheeer tires.. Throw alittle light fertilizer..

Plant a clover/oats/chickory mix Easy and it grows well and most of all deer like it. You can add winter peas or green beans to your mix but your beans will get eaten first. Thats what happened to me..

You will get some weeds but so what, most of it will come in well. I also take a string trimmer when things get to tall. Even in the spring it has turned out well.

Doing this has worked for me and has turned out well.


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## supercanoe (Jun 12, 2006)

Do you have any equipment at all? You would have to be really hard core to till 1/2 and acre with a garden tiller. Rural King sells a decent disk for $600-$700. We bought one a year or two ago, it works well. It works better than a tiller attachment on a bobcat that we always used. It has a 1 7/8" ball on it. I pull it with a 23 horse tractor, but an atv would work as well. Disk it, then drag it with a weighted chain link fence. I wouldn't burn this time of year. Mow it before spraying to get good material-plant contact. Mowing also helps the plant material work into the soil, otherwise you will have big balls of vegatation everywhere when you disk and drag. Spray it when actively growing, it's too early for good uptake right now. Spraying too many times will leave you with a mess of round up tolerant weeds. Clover is always a reliable food plot, jumbo white ladino is better than red generally due to it being a perienial, red is an annual. If you really want to put out some tonage, then go with turnips. Plant in early August with a mix of clover. Don't buy name brand, premixed seed. Go to a seed store and you will save a lot. You won't need much. One pound of turnips and 4 pounds of clover will do for a 1/2 acre. The clover may not survive due to the amount of deer traffic created by the power of turnip attraction, but it may come back in the spring. Our plots are nothing but hoof pounded mud after the winter, but then you can frost seed on bare dirt thanks to the amount of deer traffic. Send me a PM with your phone number if you want to discuss more.


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## M.Magis (Apr 5, 2004)

Be careful with buying seed from the local seed store. As with anything, have a good idea of what it should cost when you inquire. The local feed store here sells purple top seeds for $6/pound last time I asked. That's ridiculous, I can get them shipped for about 1/3 that. 
Of course, what to plant is a whole other discussion.


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## Darron (Oct 17, 2006)

M.Magis said:


> Be careful with buying seed from the local seed store. As with anything, have a good idea of what it should cost when you inquire. The local feed store here sells purple top seeds for $6/pound last time I asked. That's ridiculous, I can get them shipped for about 1/3 that.
> Of course, what to plant is a whole other discussion.


Typically though you will save money buying from your local co-op vs buck on the bag seeds. I always use welters seed as a price base when I go to my co-op. My seed store carries jumbo ladino for 2.95/pd and medium red clover 1.95/pd. Can't beat that with a stick. 

However, turnip seed for $6 is unreal. No need to pay over $3/pd for it.


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## wildman (Sep 3, 2008)

Darron is correct, I go to my local seed store and it i s cheaper..

I don't like and have never had very good luck with turnips.. Some people do, and some people don't.. Try it and see, is all I can suggest..

I If you do buy a name brand mix. I suggest either Heartland rake maker + and I also just seen Lucky Bucks seedmix that had a lot of good stuff. Clover mixed with some other stuff..


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## Hardtop (Nov 24, 2004)

The "controlled" burn went real well guys, thanks for the advice. The matted grass was really dry, and it was all two guys could do to keep even small 3'x3' fire under control. I had hand tools ,buckets of water, and most important, a 6 gallon back pack sprayer. As we burned, we developed controled areas working in respect to the light breeze so that the likely direction of spread had only a limited amount of "fuel" available. We burnt a 50'x100' area in about 3 hrs of tense work, knowing it could erupt and be out of control if you truned your back for15 seconds.
All the comments here about the danger were very accurate, and I wouldn't advise this to anyone who has not participated in a successful efort prior. Our grass was compacted to the ground by winter snow, and no more than 4-6" deep, we would not have done this if it were much deeper or full growth"knee high" vegitation. While scary....it did a remarkable job of clearing the ground, right down to the dirt. We will go back next weekend, and spray..........HT


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## M.Magis (Apr 5, 2004)

Glad it went well. The local volunteer fire department seems to be making trips past my house nearly every day it seems. Lots of spring cleaning getting out of control I guess. I don&#8217;t think anything goes up in flames faster than snow packed grass.


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## ironman172 (Apr 12, 2009)

brush burning should be planned when snow is on the ground to control any mishaps.....no pictures of your efforts, glad things went well for you


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## big red (Feb 4, 2010)

glad it worked out for you. 

before you spray next week,take your soil samples first.take about half dozen scoops from different areas and send them in for a good accurate test. the small price paid for this will benefit you for a better food plot.


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## M.Magis (Apr 5, 2004)

Forgot to mention, I&#8217;d give it a few weeks before spraying. The warm weather will have some plants growing, but to maximize effectiveness I&#8217;d hold off a few weeks. When you&#8217;re mowing the yard at least once a week is a good time. I&#8217;m not sure what you&#8217;re planting, but corn and beans are the only things I can think of offhand that need spring planted, and you still have plenty of time for them. 
Also, I don&#8217;t want to move your thread in a direction you didn&#8217;t intend, but to be honest I&#8217;m not sure how much help it&#8217;s going to be to spray before you till. You may have a nice clean field to plant in, but as soon as you disturb the soil, you&#8217;re going to have a green carpet within a couple weeks. It&#8217;s most effective to till, let sit for two weeks and spray, and then till/ plant. Of course, this isn&#8217;t so easy when you&#8217;re working with a garden tiller. Just thought I&#8217;d throw that out there.


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## treytd32 (Jun 12, 2009)

to those who have more experience than I..

We frost seeded the field that blew up after the smoke cleared earlier this year. The clover/chickory mix seems to be coming in decently well but is getting its ass kicked compared to the orchard grass that is coming back with it. Any suggestions besides spraying with something that will kill the grass out of the clover?

Think if it is mowed down that the clover could beat it back up and eventually shade it out?


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## M.Magis (Apr 5, 2004)

Mowing usually does a good job of keep back the broadleaf weeds (for a while) , but it won't help with the grasses. Kind of like your yard, if mowing supressed grass, yards would eventully be nothing but clover. Give it some time and see how it does, but spraying with something like clethodim is typically the only solution.


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## supercanoe (Jun 12, 2006)

My yard is almost all clover. I think it's white dutch, it grows pretty tight to the ground. The more I mow, the better it does. I shake my head sometimes on how hard it is to grow clover in food plots, but it grows like wildfire on it's own in other areas. I've been to several newer houses with near 100% clover lawns. The first thing I ask is if they planted clover on purpose for the deer. They usually say "no, we can't get rid of it".


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## treytd32 (Jun 12, 2009)

I'll wait it out and see what happens in the next month or so. Its funny that clover is actually all over within the tree line but not as easy to establish out in the cleared fields. The farm has a ph of 7.5 to 8 throughout


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