The real field of dreams.

This is a forum to duscuss your Food Plots and Supplemental Feeding

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ario
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The real field of dreams.

Post by ario » Wed May 27, 2015 2:14 pm

Plant it and they will come.
Last month I began work on the first food plot. I relocated one of my stands and the feeder to a location were I wanted to plant soybeans. It is now four weeks later and I have soybean plants from 4 to 12 inches tall. This last week I went back up and continued where I left off. In 5 days I was able to plant 3 other food plot



Plot no.1, 4 weeks after planting. Had to reseed the empty spots.
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Plot no. 2
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View of plot 2 from the stand
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Plot 3
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View of plot 3 from the stand.
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Plot 3 before. By far this was the most challenging. This plot is on the side of a mound of pine tree cuttings. I had to remove a dead pine tree, a bunch of vines and the area was very overgrown. I would say the mound has been there for at lease 14 yrs.
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Breaking ground at plot no. 4.
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Plot 4 from the stand.
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I found this patch of plants in the area of plot 4. It appears the deer like this stuff. If you look closely, you can see all the tips of the plants eaton. Looks as if someone ran a mower over them.
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I have one more area that I would like to plant. I'm thinking of planting Red Top Turnips. By the way, has anyone tried planting black beans as a deer food plot? I can't find any info on the net about this. They grow very similar to soybeans.

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treefarmer
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by treefarmer » Wed May 27, 2015 3:32 pm

Hey Ario,
Looks like you're having a great time getting ready for the upcoming season!

Your comment about the deer eating the tops of certain weeds just goes to show that weed patches are an important thing in a deer's life. The problem with most weed patches is they tend to be mature by hunting season and aren't as enticing as they are in the spring and early summer. But they do provide cover if they have a little height.

I don't see why black beans wouldn't work, they are a legume just like blackeyed peas, zippers, soybeans, etc.. they all attract deer. The Iron and Clay variety of peas seem to be a good plant for a food plot. They tend to run or make vines in the vegetative state before they put on the actual peas. Used to be planted as a hay crop now mostly as deer feed. My biggest problem with peas or soybeans over the years has been that unless it is a large food plot, the deer never let them mature. I've had several plots wiped out over night, especially when planting a plot that was used the previous season. Seems like the deer remember and expect you to provide a nice salad bar for them. For food plots and gardens, Iluv2hunt, here on FOHAF, recommended a product called Milorganite. Spread around the perimeter of a pea patch or food plot, it does a good job of repelling deer and allowing the crop to mature and then be used to hunt over.

I'm not familiar with red top turnips but purple tops are pretty common around here. They are a cool season crop and would need to probably planted later in the year to produce enough roots to attract deer.

Your pictures look like you have a great place to hunt. Let me suggest you keep posting your food plots progress through the season. Hopefully you'll have a great season. All my food plots have been successful, whether I kill a deer or not. Success is even experiencing a crop failure or an overnight foray that devastates the plot, this is how we learn.

Keep us posted!
Treefarmer

ario
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by ario » Wed May 27, 2015 5:33 pm

Hey treefarmer, thanks for the input. I have heard of Milorganite but, I have to keep the cost as low as possible. So I am trying the cheap mans method, "Irish Spring". I have cut bars of Irish Spring and have surrounded the plots with it. I am going to try the black beans somewhere on my lease and as for the turnips, your wright they are purple top turnips. What time of year should I plant them?

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Iluv2hunt
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by Iluv2hunt » Wed May 27, 2015 7:34 pm

Good work, sir. I enjoy the work and prep as much as I do hunting. It's a reward to get pics or kill a deer in plots that you made.

If I were you, I would invest what money I could on lime. I have learned over the years that lime is very important, and quite honestly the key to a great plot. Without doing a soil analysis, I can pretty much almost guarantee you that your soil is acidic. I would apply it at a rate of 2 tons per acre. Don;t let that number scare you, though...if you were to measure out your plots to the exact measurements, you may only need a few bags. And it's pretty cheap. Rural King or TSC usually have it on sale for $2.99-$3.50. The bags make it easy and convenient for small plots like we have. I can't stress enough to get lime down and tilled in. Remember to do it sooner than later as it takes a few months for the PH of the soil to change

As far a peas of any kind go....small pea plots are almost a waste of time. A couple deer can wipe out a small plot of peas in one night. Last year I had the bright idea of planting peas on Labor day for bow plots. When I walked in the woods on opening morning daylight came to show me bare dirt plots. They had eaten every pea to the ground

You are on the right track. Good work and keep it up!
I don't hunt turkeys because I want to, I hunt them because I have to. ~Colonel Tom Kelly

ario
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by ario » Wed May 27, 2015 9:32 pm

Thanks iluv2hunt, I did apply lime on all the plots. I use up three 50 lb. bags between all the plots. I also applied 10-10-10 fertilizer. I probably could have used a fertilizer with less nitrogen.

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treefarmer
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by treefarmer » Wed May 27, 2015 9:55 pm

Ario,
Lookin' back at the pictures, I have a question... is the 3 wheeled machine some sort of planter?
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ario
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by ario » Thu May 28, 2015 7:15 am

treefarmer wrote:Ario,
Lookin' back at the pictures, I have a question... is the 3 wheeled machine some sort of planter?
Treefarmer

No, it's a trenching tool. Designed and build by myself. I made it to were you can set what ever depth you need. You can't really use a trenching/seeding tool because of the roots. They wouldn't let a seeder work correctly. For seeding, I took a 3.5 foot aluminum pole (adjust to your height) and attached a small coke bottle with the bottom cut off to the end. I walk along dragging the tube in the trench and dropping seed into the bottle. Works good.

ario
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by ario » Thu May 28, 2015 7:41 am

Here's a closer look. I had to add lead weight to it to give it some weight. Being all aluminum, it was just too light. It's got two weights underneath and one on top.

By the way, if you would like to see more pics. of my lease. You can go to drthuntclub on Facebook.


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treefarmer
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by treefarmer » Thu May 28, 2015 5:05 pm

Congratulations! That's a pretty neat little row maker! Sorta' reminds me of the little Earthway planter that we use in the garden sometimes. We lay off and fertilize the rows using the tractor planters, then for seeds like cukes, squash and okra we use the Earthway over the rows created by the tractor.
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ario
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by ario » Mon Aug 17, 2015 9:49 am

Food plot update.
Well I had some success and some failures. First, plot no. 1 I already have bean pod growing. :clap

Plot no.2, complete failure!!!! I mean nothing. However, I added more lime and fertilizer and reseeded this plot with a mixture of seeds. (We will see what comes up)

Plots 3 & 4. Poor results. Again I reseeded these plots with different types of seeds a month and a half ago. (Clover, Turnips and Beans) I can say the results this time are very different and I am pleased.

I also broke ground and got plot no.5 done this last weekend. (Clover and Turnips)

Finally, I seeded four small micro plots along the main trail that cuts thru the middle of the track. These are small enough that I did them with a rake and spread the seed by hand.

Oh by the way, I also planted several money trees. (Seeds and small 6" plants) They where planted in two locations. Also along the main trail and at a location at the south side of the track where there are 3 or 4 Oak trees that have acorns already.


Beans and Turnips at plot no.3
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New plot no.5 about 4 yds. wide & 60 yds. long.
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treefarmer
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by treefarmer » Mon Aug 17, 2015 1:10 pm

Lookin' good! Keep at it, it'll pay off. I need to post a few pictures, speaking of failures. It's always a learning process.
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ario
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by ario » Mon Aug 17, 2015 6:58 pm

Thanks treefarmer. I am not easily discouraged and your right, it's all a learning process.

ario
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by ario » Thu Nov 05, 2015 4:34 pm

This is a food plot update. It is plot no. 5 and was planted on Sept. 14. It has been growing good or at least better than the other plots. This is purple top turnips and clover. Please let me know, is it good, average or poor growth.

Image

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treefarmer
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by treefarmer » Thu Nov 05, 2015 10:32 pm

Ario,
Looks pretty good considering the weather we've been having. What I mean by that is turnips and clover seem to thrive in the cooler months and we are running about 8-10 degrees above normal here in the panhandle. Hot weather seems to hold back the growth of the brassicas and most clovers. The crimson clover really comes to life late winter and early spring where a perennial like ladino will take almost a year to establish. The turnips look good, can't see the clover in the pictures. That long lean patch will probably draw some customers this season. If you have a good stand of clover and it is a perennial you may be able to maintain it for several seasons. Weed control during the spring, summer and fall is critical for the clover to survive. Just mentioning this, don't know what clover you planted with the turnips, an annual or perennial?

Keep us informed!
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ario
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Re: The real field of dreams.

Post by ario » Fri Nov 06, 2015 8:19 am

Thanks Treefarmer for the info. As to the clover, I planted New Zealand clover plus from Bio Logic. I got it from Wal-Mart not knowing what this Clover was like. The bag states you can get 3 to 5 years of growth from this variety. Its hard to see in the pictures but, it seems to be a small low growing variety. I don't know if it's normally like that or it's lacking something or as you said the weather. I did spray foliar fertilizer two weeks ago to see if it will give it a boost. The Acorns are falling so the deer aren't even looking at this plot. I guess this is a good thing being that it gives the plot time to grow.

A better view of the clover.
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A view from the stand with the Excal. in the ready position.
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Two man stand at the SW side of the plot.
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