How to plant a Deer & Wildlife Food Plot
The secluded little plot in the photo lies between and old channel of a mountain stream and its present flow. I cleared and planted this particular one and a half acres several years ago and it continues to attract deer, turkey and all sorts of other wildlife. I plant it and some others in early fall Each year and in a month or less it is transformed into a lush green meadow. Deer and turkey can regularly found here now when they only wandered through the area before it was developed. At dusk you can hear the deer hitting the water of the small stream, coming in from the far side bank to feed on the plants I've seeded in for them.
Whether you want to make a food plot to attract deer and/or other critters for hunting, photography, study or all of these you can do it. It took me awhile to make this one since I had to fell and clear the timber but now that it's established I enjoy hunting over this beautiful place and spending hours just soaking up the beauty. Why not make your own little mini paradise?
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Things You'll Need
- A tractor or an ATV with implements sized for it.
- A set of disks for the tractor
- A harrow
- A 3 point hitch seeder or other seeder such as a wheeled hopper push type.
- A soil sample & testing kit
- Seed
- Fertilizer
Instructions
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Mow the area that you intend to plant. There's no need to disk under heavy vegetation and have to wait for it to decay before proceeding with soil preparation. When pressed for time I often skip the mowing process and use the bucket of my tractor front end loader to push off high growth. This saves time and fuel. After mowing use a harrow to drag the cut vegetation from the area you want to plant. Burning the vegetation is a possibility but it potentially dangerous and must be strictly controlled to avoid losing control of a fire. It is safest to just mechanically prepare the soil for planting.
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Take a soil sample and get an analysis. Take a little soil from scattered places around your site and send it to your county agricultural extension agent for testing. These government offices will be listed in your local phone book. You can usually get information booklets and soil sample envelopes free from the county agents office. They will analyze your sample and make recommendations on supplements, such as lime, that need to be added to your soil.
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Disk your site well about three or four weeks before you intend to make your planting. Disk it again about two weeks after the first disking. On this second tilling go over it several times, working it up to a relatively fine consistency. A three point hitch, PTO driven tractor tiller can be used to work up the soil but is a little more costly in fuel usage.
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Harrow your planting site. Drag your harrow over and over the site combing out all grass roots and other debris. After it has been well harrowed place a six or eight foot long heavy timber behind the harrow. Attach this with a couple of pieces of chain or rope so that it will level out the soil behind the harrow. Go over the entire site until it is smooth and vegetation free. The plot should be now ready to seed.
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Estimate the acreage and purchase your seed accordingly. Some references as to planting zones, types of seed to plant and etc. are shown as links at the end of this article. Since about 25 percent more broadcast seed is required than when using a grain drill be certain to buy more that the seed company tables show. Check prices before buying. Your local farmer's association store often is a good place to start. Now spread the seed. Apply seed and fertilizer to the entire site. A three point hitch/PTO driven seeder will be a lot easier than any type of hand cranked or push type seeder and a divided seed hopper on the seeder will allow you to distribute several kinds of seed and fertilizer at once.You don't realize how big an acre is until you seed it with a push type seeder! By the way, an acre is 43560 square feet. That is a square with each side being 208 feet 5 1/2 inches or any geometrical shape that contains 43560 square feet.
Winter wheat, winter rye, Austrian winter field peas are just a few of the varieties that can be planted. Winter wheat is a basic in all plantings and is more on the economical side while the Austrian winter peas have shot up in price from $20 to nearly $50 per fifty pounds in just a few years.
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Now harrow the seeded field so that the seed is worked into the soil. A divided seed hopper on the PTO seeder will allow you to distribute several kinds of seed and fertilizer at once. After seeding the plot compact the soil by running over the entire site with your tractor or ATV tires. If easily drivable, then a pick up truck can be used also. This action helps firm up the puffiness of the freshly worked earth and firms it around the planted seeds. Now it's just a matter of waiting until the seed germinates and the field changes into a green buffet for the waiting critters!
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Your food plot will continue attracting deer and other wildlife on up through the summer months, depending on what is planted and available moisture. These does have three fawns hiding in the growth,
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Tips & Warnings
Be certain to plant your site early enough in the fall to get a good stand of plants before winter sets in. Refer to planting zone charts referenced in links.
The premixed wildlife food plot seed that is available is good, but very expensive. To save money, especially when planting several acres, it is better to buy specific seeds of different varieties in 50 pound bags.
Buy seed as early in the summer as possible. When the rush comes for planting it's amazing how quickly the seed sells. Be certain to check prices since they vary widely.
Plant the seed thicker than the table recommendations. A percentage of it will not get covered, will get eaten by birds etc.
Resources
- Photo Credit Frank Jennings
