Clover Thoughts.......

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Boone 58

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Food Plot
i have planted over the years vantage..ie ladino....and durana....the gold of clover in price..upwards of 500 per # and of course crimson, and this last year i planted yucchi arrowleaf.

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The arrowleaf did really well but now looking back i have found one major drawback. it is currently standing 3 foot tall and so thick it is going to be a major pain to bush hog and clean up the mess....
Conversly speaking on the fields where i have the ladino clover it is still about 4 to 6 inches tall and the deer are killing it and it is beautiful. Still providing nutrition and doing well. The arrowleaf is absolutley useless to the deer at this point. i will rethink the use of it and focus on what my goals are for clover.
 
Yep thats what arrowleaf is supposed to do as a annual. Mine is useless as well right now but was great for the deer and turkey in early to mid Spring. Out of what I have planted on my place as far as clovers go, durana is my favorite out on the clover side of the house but lord is it ever expensive.
 
I like arrowleaf because it don't freezeout in the winter like ladino. Ladino is the best choice if you like it to stay 6 to 12 inches tall,. red clover, crimson, arrowleaf is gonna grow tall. The advantage to tall,. it ain't pretty,. but deer will bed in it also.

Clean up is easier if you let it completely die and go britle. If you think thats a mess to clean up,.. stay away from summer annuals like powerplant,.. that stuff gets up to 6 ft tall!! What you could do is bush hog and leave it lay and overseed in buckwheat. BUT,.. the buckwheat will grow 2 ft tall also. BUT,.. is much easier disced under in september. Plus,.. the arrowleaf has burn up by then you bush hogged ,. and is easier to incorporate back into the soil for a reseed.
For me,.. that has been the advantage of red clover. Red clover this time of year is providing huge forage,.. easy to maintain, don't burn up as bad as ladino.
 
Good points steven and chaser......It is a little of a mixed bag of sorts.....you are correct about its hardiness in winter. i did notice that and i am happy with that aspect since i focus on the usefulness of the winter food plots in jan,feb, and march.
The deer benefit most these three months and get a great start on spring with those benefits.
 

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