Should I protect a food plot in northern Wisconsin until hunting season?
Filed under: Food Plots
Question
Grant I\’d like to say your site has the best whitetail information of any Iv\’e seen.
This past season I hired someone to help me put in a 1/2 acre plot. He planted Brassica (mostly Turnips) the 1st of July. I live in northern WI. By the 1st of Oct. the plants started turning yellow, and by the end of Oct there was very little greens left on them. My local feed store told me they where just mature and not lacking any fertalizer.
Baiting is legal in WI so I put out some corn in the plot to keep the deer coming starting the 1st part of Nov.
I did take a nice 10 pointer heading towards the plot with my crossbow Oct 31 right at the tail end of a rain front. The second day of rifle Nov 22 I shot a nice 8 pointer at 1st light. I feel I\’m a good hunter and know where and how to set up, and when to hunt.
So all and all I had a great season, but saw very few bucks on my cameras day or night. Mostly lots of Does.
One of my neighbors has a large food plot a 1/4 mile away which I\’m not sure what he has in it. Other hunters in the area put out corn. There are also some red oaks in the area (not many acorns this year).
This next year I\’m going with Eagle beans and than broadcast Broadside on top of them the 1st of Aug (1st frost here is mid Sept.), just as you suggest.
My question is, am I better off keeping the deer out and let the beans form beans so when I start hunting the very end of Oct
I have more food and more types, or do I want the deer to start coming before that. If I don\’t keep them out at all I\’m sure they will eat everything up.
Thanks for all you do for us hunters,
Mark
This past season I hired someone to help me put in a 1/2 acre plot. He planted Brassica (mostly Turnips) the 1st of July. I live in northern WI. By the 1st of Oct. the plants started turning yellow, and by the end of Oct there was very little greens left on them. My local feed store told me they where just mature and not lacking any fertalizer.
Baiting is legal in WI so I put out some corn in the plot to keep the deer coming starting the 1st part of Nov.
I did take a nice 10 pointer heading towards the plot with my crossbow Oct 31 right at the tail end of a rain front. The second day of rifle Nov 22 I shot a nice 8 pointer at 1st light. I feel I\’m a good hunter and know where and how to set up, and when to hunt.
So all and all I had a great season, but saw very few bucks on my cameras day or night. Mostly lots of Does.
One of my neighbors has a large food plot a 1/4 mile away which I\’m not sure what he has in it. Other hunters in the area put out corn. There are also some red oaks in the area (not many acorns this year).
This next year I\’m going with Eagle beans and than broadcast Broadside on top of them the 1st of Aug (1st frost here is mid Sept.), just as you suggest.
My question is, am I better off keeping the deer out and let the beans form beans so when I start hunting the very end of Oct
I have more food and more types, or do I want the deer to start coming before that. If I don\’t keep them out at all I\’m sure they will eat everything up.
Thanks for all you do for us hunters,
Mark
Mark,
Congratulations on tagging two nice bucks!
If the mission for the food plot is to attract deer during hunting season then using a Hot Zone fence to protect it works great! I typically create a gap in the fence about a week before I plan to hunt the area.
If the local oaks have a bumper crop next year I wouldn’t open the fence until most of the acorns have been consumed or have rotted.
I like your plan and look forward to learning about your results!
Enjoy creation,
grant
December 10, 2015
