new farm!

[blueridge]

I have gotten permision to hunt a small farm in a semi-developed area.The farm is ruffly 80 acres minus around 8 for the homestead and barn area.This place has a lot to offer with a creek a 15 acre or so pine and cedar thicket and large enouph hardwoods that were select cut a few years back so the under growth is pretty thick.There is 10 acres of field one 3 and the other 7 the owner bush hogs but thats all and they are in bad shape blackberry,saplings,and weeds.He said I could do food plots.Do I need to kill whats there and start over fresh?What will be of most benefit to grow there?What technique should I use?When should I start?Thanks in advance for any and all info.

 

[Football Hunter]

Sounds GREAT!Get the QDMA food plot book,mread it,then read again.Great info in there.

 

[DOC1187]

good luck and congrats

 

[blueridge]

Thanks Football Hunter thats gonna be helpful for sure.I honostly expected a lot more of a response.Should this be posted in a different forum?

 

[Football Hunter]

No,right forum,just a lot of ques to answer,and the food plot book has the answers,also,get a soil test and do what it says if you can,its worth it.

 

[jmb4wd]

I have gotten permision to hunt a small farm in a semi-developed area.The farm is ruffly 80 acres minus around 8 for the homestead and barn area.This place has a lot to offer with a creek a 15 acre or so pine and cedar thicket and large enouph hardwoods that were select cut a few years back so the under growth is pretty thick.There is 10 acres of field one 3 and the other 7 the owner bush hogs but thats all and they are in bad shape blackberry,saplings,and weeds.He said I could do food plots.Do I need to kill whats there and start over fresh?What will be of most benefit to grow there?What technique should I use?When should I start?Thanks in advance for any and all info.

Congrats on the new hunting ground!! I will throw out a few answers of something you might try. Plan A- Soil Test- best money you will spend. If you are wanting to plant food for summer, I would bushhog the area, apply round up probably twice, and no-till in a crop. By using a no-till method you wont get all those weed seeds on the ground and under the thatch growing over taking your plot. You could put down Buckwheat, or Clover (better to establish in the fall though), Chickory, or the summer annual of your choice.

Plan B, Since most dont have access to a no till drill, you can till the soil and let it come up in natural grasses and vegetation till fall and then spray round up and and sow some small grains (wheat,oats, AW Peas). Unless you are really hurting for food, I wouldnt plant the entire open fields, I would do strips, or go around the perimeter, and leave some of the cover there for deer to feel secure there.

I hope this helped a little and a lot of the other guys here are way more versed in this than me, so maybe they will chime in and offer their opinions.

 

[huntintn]

Leave one field grown up for bedding area.

 

[Lee Creek22]

Sounds pretty well. Good Luck!

 

[rem270]

good luck with it. when we first started hunting our 81 acre farm the fields were about 5ft tall and very hard to get shots on deer. after a few seasons we cut strips but that could make it hard to shoot sometimes to. now we just mow the whole thing and see just as many deer as we did before.