Food Plots Food plot transition zones and feathered edges

[BSK]

Different "trends" in management practices come and go as new ideas hit the management world. A really big trend for a while was creating "ecotones" or feathered edges around food plots. Basically, this just means creating a transitioning set of habitat types that produce some cover around the edges of food plots. The goal was to increase daylight use of these food plots under the theory that deer are more likely to step out into a plot in daylight if they have some type of thick cover right up against the edge of the plot. Looking at observation data from my own property, food plots that have thick cover directly adjacent tend to produce higher deer sighting rates than plots that are surrounded by big open hardwoods.

In the past, I never had "food plot acreage to spare" when it came to producing such transition zones. But now I do have some to spare. I've been considering leaving tall-growing summer crops standing around the edges of the plots. This coming spring, I plan on planting a mixture of beans and sorghum in my summer plots, and come fall, leaving at least one or two bush-hog widths of the sorghum standing around the outer edge of the plots. Has anyone tried this and do you believe it was effective in getting deer to use the plots more in daylight?

 

[puppy]

One of our best food plots for daylight usage and buck usage, as you can see in the background it is a jungle. When I was trying to bush hog it some places were over my head sitting on the tractor. Shaped it like a long shinny "Y" with a tripod (no trees big enough for a stand) sitting at the bottom of the Y looking down both forks. Only issue when hunting is deer "just" appear with no warning at random locations in plot, sometimes right on top of you other times 100 yds away.

 

[megalomaniac]

Like you, most of my plots dont have room to spare. But I do have one 2.5ac plot I plant in sorgham, millet, beans in the summer, yet only plant about half if that in the fall and leave the standing cover all around it. It gets a fair amount of use in daylight, but I think that's because of lack of pressure more than anything.

I do have another half acre plot surrounded by near clear-cut 4y ago, so it has incredible bedding cover with narrow roads through the cutover leading to the plot. Now that plot gets an insane amount of daylight activity. It's not unusual to get pics of does/ fawns just bedded in it at 2pm. But again, very little hunting pressure (only been hunted once this season)

Posted this before, but pic of the 2.5ac plot

 

[BSK]

I do have another half acre plot surrounded by near clear-cut 4y ago, so it has incredible bedding cover with narrow roads through the cutover leading to the plot. Now that plot gets an insane amount of daylight activity.

We see this same exact thing. Two of our big new plots are directly adjacent to a 20-acre 3-year-old timber cut. Those two plots see the most daylight activity. And the deer definitely use the web of skidder roads leading to the plots (they were log-loading decks during the logging) to enter and exit the plots.

 

[RS]

I've had really good luck just letting a 15 to 20 foot strip go fallow around the edges and letting it grow up in broomsedge. I bush hog every 3 to 4 years before any sweetgums get too large.

 

[BSK]

Very cool plot feathering RS!

 

[DoubleRidge]

As for edge feathering...I cant speak from experience but can say our plots near thick areas get more daytime use than those we had in years past that were near open timber.
But the concept of edge feathering makes good sense to me and no doubt there are numerous benefits for a variety of wildlife.
Actually in the next year or so we will be implementing edge feathering over a significant distance...or atleast we will have the opportunity to do so.
The Cumberland gas line project will run parallel with the powerline that runs through our family's property. The gas line will have a permanent easement as well as a temporary work easement...we've negotiated the permanent easement be planted in native warm season grass blended with a pollenator wildflower mix...except for the areas where it crosses our current clover plots....those areas will be planted back in clover.....As for the work easement area...one portion is under the current powerline...the other side is into the timber and we have the option of planting trees, letting it grow up or explanding food plots...were leaning towards letting the work easement portion grow up and bush hog once a year or every other year....this would essentially feather the long edge between our timber and various food plots on the powerline....as well as add more diversity to the property.....its funny what I thought was an ugly "grown up mess" 15 years ago...I now think is beutiful.

 

[deerhunter10]

We do it for all of our. The only ones that have openings we have a few on the edges of ag fields. We have been doing it for 8 to 10 years. And it's been a game changer for us.

 

[PickettSFHunter]

I would love to have enough flat areas to really do that.

 

[diamond hunter]

Plus more towards the center of the plots the sunlight is better for the plants.

 

[BSK]

I would love to have enough flat areas to really do that.

I'm using about every flat spot on my property and still only have 8 acres of plots out of 500 acres!

 

[BSK]

Plus more towards the center of the plots the sunlight is better for the plants.

This is especially true in drought years. Standing timber will suck the moisture out of the soil around the edges of the plot to the point NOTHING grows. I can easily see how far trees' roots extend underground into the plots after the last two drought falls. Not even weeds are growing in these areas.

 

[Popcorn]

I've had really good luck just letting a 15 to 20 foot strip go fallow around the edges and letting it grow up in broomsedge. I bush hog every 3 to 4 years before any sweetgums get too large.
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This (soft edge) has been my preferred method and is accurate to some degree on all but 2. I have 2 clover plots in hardwoods that are (hard edge) plots so the timber can be watched / hunted at the same sit as the small plot. Often bucks will wind check these plots from cover or timber without ever entering them. The soft edge of thick growth disperses scent and sound and encourages those bucks to come have a looksee. We also find that there is a doe presence in that soft edge many more hours of the day. They will feed then bed against or in the cover only to get up and browse more later.

 

[BSK]

I have 2 clover plots in hardwoods that are (hard edge) plots so the timber can be watched / hunted at the same sit as the small plot. Often bucks will wind check these plots from cover or timber without ever entering them.

The only hard-edge plots we have that see a lot of daylight use are the really tiny ones - 1/4 to 1/3 acre.

 

[BSK]

I think a plot like this - one of our larger plots - would really benefit from soft edges. Big hardwoods directly adjacent.

 

[Popcorn]

I think a plot like this - one of our larger plots - would really benefit from soft edges. Big hardwoods directly adjacent.

I think you would really like the results of that being a natural soft edge 15 to 20 ft wide in places. Briars, broom sedge, honeysuckle, poke even just rag weed and maybe some native wild flowers.
Manage it like CRP mow 1/4 to 1/3 a year in broken succession. If any one species becomes too dominant just till or disk and open the seed bank. Fertilize in it will get wild!

 

[Antler Daddy]

I think a plot like this - one of our larger plots - would really benefit from soft edges. Big hardwoods directly adjacent.

I would also allow some type of strip in the middle that decreases visibility making the plot seem smaller.

 

[deerhunter10]

I would also allow some type of strip in the middle that decreases visibility making the plot seem smaller.

We do this sometimes as well. We are lucky we aren't limited with acres, or terrain. But letting our edges grow up and sometimes stripping our plots have increased our daylight activity by a lot. Also we don't bushhog our fields but once a year in February or March. And then just bush hog strips and walking trails.

 

[Ski]

I'm a little jealous of yall with flat enough ground for plots. I have virtually none but a couple very narrow bottoms that get no sun, and some high shelves below ridges. My widest plot is 25yds across.

 

[dogtown]

I sometimes put a 15 foot wide ring of sorghum, sunflower, and iron clay peas around my soybeans. Some of my best plot use is in years when the ring grows high. In dry years the deer hit the plots early and the ring may get overbrowsed.

The clay peas get hammered after the soybeans start to yellow, but die at first frost.