How should we manage our hunt club food plots in an area that is heavy timber?
Filed under: Ask Grant, Deer Management, Food Plots, Habitat Management, Hunting Tactics
I’m a member of a hunting club that owns 700 acres of strictly timber ground in northern Pennsylvania. We have the necessary sanctuaries and we are adding 12 acres of food plots in the center of the property. What is the most profitable food that will hold deer and increase harvest opportunities?
Also, have you ever tried to no till brassicas in late summer into clover plots?
Keep up the great work!!
John
John,
The 12 acres is only 1.7% of the property in food plots. If the remainder of the property is closed canopy forest, then clover might be the best option. Do the existing plots receive a lot of browse pressure? If so, more palatable crops such as forage soybeans would most likely be over browsed unless they were protected by a food plot fence.
I have used a no-till drill to seed brassicas into an existing clover stand. This technique works well if the clover is dormant from drought conditions. The brassicas will struggle if the clover is lush and blocking the sun from reaching the soil.
No matter what you plant, it’s critical the crops are as productive as possible given the food plot to timber ratio. I recommend you do a soil test annually and request the lab base their recommendations on a maximum yield.
Finally, I also recommend using a utilization cage in each plot so production versus utilization can be compared.
Growing Deer together,
Grant
