Food Plots Opinions on summer plots

[yellalinehunter]

Located in west Tennessee. My property is surrounded by ag fields. Corn and soybeans are planted during the summer. I've thrown around the idea of putting in a summer plot and or starting a clover area. With the surrounding food availability would it be worth the time and money? Currently have a brassica and cereal grain plot to help the deer through the winter till green up. This spring I plan to do some hinge cutting and open the small wooded spot I have.

 

[wildlifefarmer]

Located in west Tennessee. My property is surrounded by ag fields. Corn and soybeans are planted during the summer. I've thrown around the idea of putting in a summer plot and or starting a clover area. With the surrounding food availability would it be worth the time and money? Currently have a brassica and cereal grain plot to help the deer through the winter till green up. This spring I plan to do some hinge cutting and open the small wooded spot I have.

IMO if you have the ag fields around you don't need anything else other than adding clovers to your mixture.

 

[Popcorn]

I like your plan

 

[BSK]

Will a summer food plot be very helpful when surrounded by ag fields? Probably not, but it's a good idea to get deer used to feeding in your plot in summer so they will depend on it as a resource come fall.

 

[BSK]

I'm somewhat in the same situation (surrounded by ag fields as well as a lot of early-stage regrowth browse). I'm going to plant my summer plots, but more as a way of maintain them in summer rather than as a major food source. I'm not going to do anything too ground intensive. Just throw and mow a mixture of beans and sorghum. Some of the sorghum around the edges will be left standing come fall planting as a means of feathering the edges of the plots.

 

[yellalinehunter]

I plan doing a dove field in the middle again with millet, sorghum and sunflowers.

 

[yellalinehunter]

I left some standing last year as a screen and I think with our coyote population it made the deer leery for not being able to see as well. I bushhoged all but 3 sides after that observation. Seems deer started to utilize the plot more after doing that

 

[7mmWSM]

I think if I had ag fields all around me I'd focus on putting in more cover to hold them. I'll take cover over food anyday. Unless you're fortunate enough to have enough land for both. If not then in my opinion I'd take cover to hold them all season long.

 

[yellalinehunter]

I've been thinking about doing some throw and mow Egyptian wheat. I can least the broom sedge grow but want something that can add value

 

[puppy]

I have a 3/4 acre plot in winter wheat right now that is ate down almost to the dirt, I would like to do something this summer to:
1. Provide nutrition through the summer
2. Keep weed growth at bay over summer
3. If possible transition into a perennial clover plot but I have never started a perennial clover plot in the spring. Frost seed and double the seed rate? or wait until fall as usual?
Anyone with frost seeding success in E TN care to share best process? If this is a bad idea what is a good summer plot that doesn't trash up the soil and make getting firm seed bed in fall harder?
TIA
Aaron

 

[348Winchester]

I have a 3/4 acre plot in winter wheat right now that is ate down almost to the dirt, I would like to do something this summer to:
1. Provide nutrition through the summer
2. Keep weed growth at bay over summer
3. If possible transition into a perennial clover plot but I have never started a perennial clover plot in the spring. Frost seed and double the seed rate? or wait until fall as usual?
Anyone with frost seeding success in E TN care to share best process? If this is a bad idea what is a good summer plot that doesn't trash up the soil and make getting firm seed bed in fall harder?
TIA
Aaron

Frost seeding has worked well for me. If possible, take a leaf blower and blow your plot well. It will not only remove leaf litter and other debris it will fluff up the existing planting and make a little more room for seed to soil cotact. I have had good success with red and white clovers as well as chicory. This is a good time to lime as well. I usually frost seed in late February to very early March. This is in northern Morgan County.

 

[Boll Weevil]

I've been thinking about doing some throw and mow Egyptian wheat. I can least the broom sedge grow but want something that can add value

If broomstraw, plan on liming right now...your soil is likely acidic and needs the pH adjusted. Lime is cheap. Fuel, time, seed, and fertilizer are not.

 

[deerhunter10]

Clover is always super hard to beat.

 

[yellalinehunter]

If broomstraw, plan on liming right now...your soil is likely acidic and needs the pH adjusted. Lime is cheap. Fuel, time, seed, and fertilizer are not.

Yea definitely acidic

 

[megalomaniac]

Purpose of summer plot...

#1 Suppress weeds so fall plots are better

#2. Improve soil so fall plots are better

We need to get away from the concept of feeding deer during the summer. They aren't going to benefit from small (.5ac to 5ac plots).

Summer plots are CRUCIAL!... But not for feeding deer. Well planned and planted summer plots keep healthy microbes active in your soil, produce more organic matter for your soil, and thereby produce superior fall plots versus plots allowed to go fallow all summer long.

 

[DoubleRidge]

One option for a summer plot that suppresses weeds and produces allot of organic material for the soil is buckwheat. Also if you let it go to seed the turkey and dove love it and the deer will eat new growth but not mow it down. Grows fast and will tollerate less than perfect soil.

 

[BSK]

One option for a summer plot that suppresses weeds and produces allot of organic material for the soil is buckwheat. Also if you let it go to seed the turkey and dove love it and the deer will eat new growth but not mow it down. Grows fast and will tollerate less than perfect soil.

All true, but wow that seed has not only gotten expensive, but hard to find. I ordered buckwheat last year and it never came in.

I blame all those Yankee Youtube land managers who all - for some reason - jumped on the ONLY PLANT BUCKWHEAT! bandwagon about 2 years ago. Now you can't find the stuff.

 

[DoubleRidge]

All true, but wow that seed has not only gotten expensive, but hard to find. I ordered buckwheat last year and it never came in.

I blame all those Yankee Youtube land managers who all - for some reason - jumped on the ONLY PLANT BUCKWHEAT! bandwagon about 2 years ago. Now you can't find the stuff.

No doubt....last bag i priced was $83....so great point....cost is a factor.....and Im pretty sure I know which yankee youtube personality your referencing. Lol. So for smaller plots buckwheat may not be to bad...where several acres could get costly.

 

[BSK]

The strange thing about Buckwheat on my place is deer virtually ignore it in a summer plot. But they tear it up in a fall plot (until the first frost kills it).

 

[bjohnson]

We have 50 acres of row crop on our property and we still plant summer plots for all the reasons mentioned above and additional food sources.