# Lets talk foodplots



## mbarrett1379 (Feb 23, 2012)

One of my hunting spots is a small 4 acre property tucked between a good area of timber with a lot of agriculture fields surrounding it (corn and soybeans mostly). I just got permission to plant the 3/4 acre field in the back of the property with whatever I want. I was thinking of planting Eygptian wheat along the front edges of the field to make it seem secure and away from the road and then fill the field with Imperial Clover in the Spring. Then come fall, maybe seed over an annual winter mix over part of it. Has anyone every broadcast a seed over a clover plot without tearing it up before hand?

I considered putting in some soybeans or some standing corn, but I felt that the deer would eat them too fast, thoughts? Also, does anyone plant sunflowers in their plots in small amount to maybe get a dove hunt out of?

Curious to hear everyones thoughts on small food plots?


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## fireline (Jun 14, 2007)

Last year I put a 1/2 acre clover plot in and the deer used it all winter, it should last several years with minimal work. weeds were the biggest problem and after I got the right spray they really took off.


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## Muddy (May 7, 2017)

You can broadcast cereal rye in the late summer/early fall with no soil prep.


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## mbarrett1379 (Feb 23, 2012)

I have access to equipment to till and prepare the ground. I am looking at killing weeds and grass and tilling them up to do the best I can to control weeds from the start. Then a heavy dose of imperial clover mix in mid April


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## miked913 (Feb 29, 2008)

Keep it simple, we've been doing about 22 acres total for 15 years now. At the beginning we had all the latest fad crops in and spent more time and $ than I care to talk about. Now it's clover, once established, mow it! Then mow it after that mow it! That's the key to keeping weeds down, around labor day I'll over seed oats or rye, then mow it and let the clippings mulch it and hunt it all fall & winter, feb/March over seed again with more clover, usually during an afternoon during turkey season we'll throw some fertilizer on it. Did I tell you to mow it?


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## mbarrett1379 (Feb 23, 2012)

When you seed over the clover, are you simply just broadcasting it over the established clover and waiting for rain?


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## miked913 (Feb 29, 2008)

No you want to do it in Feb or March and you are actually "frost seeding" the surface of the soil will open and close with the freeze and thaw action of the moisture in the soil. We learned the hard way in SE Ohio with less than optimal top soil that you can till too deep and bring the bad dirt up into your nutrient rich top soil and really mess things up, just kill it come spring, spray it a couple times if you have to but Don't till too deep 1" is plenty for clover, we do tons of plots with just a pull behind disc, you only need good soil contact. Not depth.


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## mbarrett1379 (Feb 23, 2012)

Thats really good advice. The field is currently overgrown with grass so I will probably just kill it, cut it down as much as possible and disc and rake as much of it as possible to get to the soil


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## miked913 (Feb 29, 2008)

If you can get in there early before green up go ahead and try and knock it down with a mower or even a weed eater if you have to, the reason being you will have too much dead standing "straw" for lack of a better word, if you can get it on the ground it will begin to decompose if you just kill a tall field of grass or whatever it's too much dead dry material to try and disc or rototill it will just pile up and plug up all your equipment.


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## fastwater (Apr 1, 2014)

miked913 has given good advice on planting clover. 
Did he mention mowing?
One of the biggest reasons for mowing is clover really doesn't play well with others so to speak. It doesn't compete well with grasses that will smother it out. So get your field ready, planted and when your clover gets about 10" tall, mow it to 6-8"s. Repeat as needed. This will keep the grasses/weeds that usually grow much faster and taller mowed down.
I especially like to time my mowings when the clover is budding. Knocking the tops off the clover at this time helps in the reseeding process.

If you think you are going to have this plot for a few years, it will be worth doing a soil sample as well. Guarantee if it's in Ohio, its low on lime. Also, your soil sample will tell you the best and amount of fertilizer to put down. 

After you do your mow, total kill and just before you disc, you can put down your lime. Then disc, seed, fertilize. Just know that if you use regular Ag. lime, what you put down this year, really won't pay off until next year. Pelletized quick lime will work the same year you put it down but can be expensive. 
After, the plot is established the first year, the following year do your frost seeding in Feb/March as miked913 suggested.

FWIW, have used various types of clover but IMO, there's no better than Ladino clover. Deer/turkey love it and it's very high in protein.
Also, I get my ladino clover from our feed mill. It's cheaper and often more fresh than buying commercially bagged clover that may set bagged in a warehouse for a long time.


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## OutdoorMediaCo (Sep 6, 2016)

Mow ASAP or use a weed eater whatever you have. At greenup let the vegetation get a foot tall, spray off your Plot area. Come back again in June and spray again. Should be mostly dead by this point. First year plots can be terribly weedy so multiple sprayings will help kill the full seed bed. Do a final spot spray Mid July. Come Aug. 1ish when a rain is coming broadcast rape, crimson or red clover, and a small amount of cereal grains either rye or wheat. Come back Sept. 1 with the rest of the your cereals grains and overseed any thin or over browsed areas and the whole plot in general. No soil prep needed and that seed blend will do great feeding and attracting deer. It will grow without any amendments and make a nice kill plot for you. 

Now if you want a long term foodplot there, one focused on tonnage per acre that will feed deer deeper into the season, the first time you go in to mow or spray take a soil sample and ship It out. Get bulk lime by the pickup load if you can and get your ph right. Address your P and K deficiencies. Keep a legume in your mix to keep producing Nitrogen. Put lime and ferts on whenever you get a chance. Into a crop is great for fertilizer. I never till to plant or mix amendments. That seed recipe is planted every fall and left until the following summer. They will hammer it all spring as cereal grains and clover regrow. What I do now is leave it till July 1 and go in and spray it all off and leave it standing. Come back at planting time and broadcast the mix into the dead standing vegetation, then spot spray with GLY, then roll the whole area with a lawn roller to press down the vegetation over the seed. Next crop comes right up through the mulch. Easy stuff. Find a local seed and feed and get your own mix. Stay away from pricey seeds, you REALLY don’t need them. Rape is $1.50 a lb, crimson is 1.50, red clover is 2.50, rye or wheat $15 for a 50 lb bag. I plant a half acre for under $25. Adding a little tillage radish is a good idea for nutrient cycling if your deer let them develop. Plots are fun and you can completely alter wildlife activity by adding one. Put a water hole near by and think about the perfect access plan to get out if deer are feeding. I use Egyptian wheat for this in a lot of cases. 

Don’t assume you have more deer around just because your plot gets destroyed. Don’t slaughter does in the name of saving your plot. I’ve never heard of someone hunting 4 acres or planting a plot on something that small but whatever works as long as the neighbors are cool.


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## OutdoorMediaCo (Sep 6, 2016)

You can do a lot with a weed eater, backpack sprayer and bag seeder.


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## mbarrett1379 (Feb 23, 2012)

This is all super helpful advice. I originally thought I was going to need to have a tiller or disc to prepare the plot. Do you think its possible to do the weed killing all April and plant clover by May and then overseed again in the fall? Or is it better to wait till fall?


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## OutdoorMediaCo (Sep 6, 2016)

I personally wouldn’t bother with planting anything till you get control of the weeds on a new plot. You get different weeds germinating throughout the summer. Knock out all the waves and add cheap clover to your fall plot mix. As mentioned above you have to mow clover regularly as it’s getting started especially. A lot of times you have to spray it too.. planting in the fall with a mix and letting it go till the following summer when you start over is the easiest option. There is less weed competition in fall. Also until you get a grip on your soil PH you will have weed problems in perennials like clover. Native plants that are more adapted to the soil conditions will take over your forage plants. Spend the summer getting weeds killed and adding lime. If you can get a atv or truck in there make a makeshift drag to spread the lime out a bit. I get a buddy who needs a place to hunt and we throw it with shovels. Raised PH from 5 to 6.5 in 6 months just spreading on top. Use cereal grains as your base and add other stuff for diversity. If they slam your plot cereal grains will take browse pressure and keep growing all winter with warm spells. 
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I love blends because you get a layered growing effect. As one crop is eaten another is coming on like this.


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## buckeyebowman (Feb 24, 2012)

Some great detailed advice here. My buddy called some outfit about trying to establish a food plot. There are farms all around him with corn and soybeans. They guy told him it sounded like he was living in the middle of a food plot, and to go for something different. 

Clover was an obvious suggestion, as was establishing a mineral site. It pulled deer, and he killed a big buck off of it the first season. Not big rack-wise, sort of a goofy rack thing, but a great big body! About killed the both of us getting him out of there!


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## fastwater (Apr 1, 2014)

buckeyebowman said:


> Some great detailed advice here. My buddy called some outfit about trying to establish a food plot. There are farms all around him with corn and soybeans. They guy told him it sounded like he was living in the middle of a food plot, and to go for something different.
> 
> Clover was an obvious suggestion, as was establishing a mineral site. It pulled deer, and he killed a big buck off of it the first season. Not big rack-wise, sort of a goofy rack thing, but a great big body! About killed the both of us getting him out of there!


That's an excellent point BB.
If there's already plenty of crops around, a mineral site is a great idea.


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## mbarrett1379 (Feb 23, 2012)

Thanks everyone, all great advice. I really would like to find a way to get it in the spring so I have a plot all spring and summer, but may just have to wait to ensure I do not have a bad weed problem. The field is simply just over grown grass right now (under a foot tall).


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## miked913 (Feb 29, 2008)

Yep definitely don't over look mineral sites, put in a couple for sure, you'll find they prefer some over others then just concentrate on the ones they like. We now use 1 per 100 acres. I don't want to clog up this good food plot post with mineral stuff, do a search there was a good one not long ago. Just remember they are good for the health of the whole herd and you get some awesome velvet pics!


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## buckeyebowman (Feb 24, 2012)

Good point, miked! Don't go berserk with the mineral. You want that to concentrate deer. If you put too many sites out there, the deer could be all over the place. I put out a couple on about 250 acres and they were on them big time! Once the rain soaked it into the ground, the deer would paw holes a foot deep to get at it!


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## Doboy (Oct 13, 2008)

All very good points!
If possible, do a burn to help eliminate those grasses & weeds, before you kill & Till.

I didn't hear, 'mow or cut back that clover, when you see the *seed pods browning or dropping seed.* Like someone else said, DO NOT mow or cut-back too early, & TOO SHORT! 
The 'smart guys' at our club did that, cut too far back, 2 or 3 times during the summer, & killed 5 acres of thick, beautiful hand planted clover!
Also, if there already is corn & beans around, just think 'GREENS',,, turnips, kohlrabi, radish, clover.
IF your food plot is large enough (lol) & you actually planted enough 'food' for your 'HERD', those greens will flower & re-seed on their own.
AND,,, consider a thick planting of sorghum around the outside of the green food plot/ edge. It might take a while for the turkeys, deer & birds to 'find' & feed on it, but if you have a deep heavy late season snow, it will stick up & above, & provide excellent cover & brows.

You know about 'HINGE CUTTING' the small trees & saplings,,,, around the outside of your food plots?


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## Burkcarp1 (Dec 24, 2016)

Everyone get their plots planted?? Planting ours tomorrow.


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## Shaun69007 (Sep 2, 2009)

I got my dove plot in. We didnt do much but about a 50 x 150' with 4 rows of sun flower, Sorghum and climbing buck peas. Deer plot will be this late summer..


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## OutdoorMediaCo (Sep 6, 2016)

Just sprayed a second time and broadcast a 3 clover blend for summer. This is where a bunch of creeks meet in a bottom and the main creek follows the bottom field. Gonna be a slam dunk. I’m putting a couple more fall plots on down the bottom. No brainer spot for a lick and camera. 8 plots to go for 2018.


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