FOOD PLOTS

[Blade]

We have been putting food plots on our property now for about 2 years and it seems each year they do better and better. Originally, we pushed up several acres of pines and when we started the pH was an incredible 4.7. There are 6 plots spread out over 200 acres.

We just had another 5 tons of lime brought in and i suspect that it finally i s wheree it needs to be. Who else is putting in food plots and what are you having success with?

We have had our share of success and failure, but so much of the seed being sold isn' designed for our weather down here. We have had a lot of success with oats in the winter and cowpeas in the summer. We just need to wrok on keeping the deer out until they ahve a chance to get started.

[KwackWacker]

We have had incredible luck with the Mossy Oak bilogic mixes. We also plant a lot of white clover. Oats are okay, but the deer seem to shy away from them until the other plots have been grazed out. We have the same problem with keeping the deer out of the plots until they are established. One trick we do use is to plant some fast growing browse like rye grass around the edges of our plots. The deer will browse the rye grass because it stays tender until it is about 4-6 inches tall.

[Blade]

KW,

I will try the trick with the rye grass, we used plot saver last year and the deer jumped over it into the field in less than a week. It isnt so bad on oats but they plkay hell on the cowpeas. This year for the first time I am going to try some clover. Because our pH is so high a lot of things just don't do well out there, but we are gradually getting it back in balance.

But I do like the idea of planting rye grass around the dege and you can bet we will try that on the next field we plant.