Louisiana Sportsman
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lincg88 Profile Photo
Deer Hunting in Lake Pontchartrain / Northshore in Southeast Louisiana

Small Food Plot Ideas

I need some ideas on how to keep my food plot up all year.
Here is the story
Cleared a small maybe 1/2 acre area to plant two years ago. I seed and fertilize and the plot comes up great. Usually, I have a great october bowhunting the plot, but it never makes it all the way to rifle season. The deer have it mowed to the ground by the time november hits.
Any tips on different things I can try and plant, fertilizer techniques, or anything else I can try to get my little plot to last all season.
Thanks for the help
July 25, 2012 at 10:53am
12 Comments
true_cajun_hunters Profile Photo
Posted July 25, 2012 at 11:32am
Seeds

Biologic maximum and tecomate and also to let the seeds come up before the deer eat them all i use some yellow caution tape and drive some t post around the plot and put caution tape around the plot and when it comes up u can just take the tape off and pull the t post out and they will eat. Also i would recommend using some deltag to help it grow better and fast.

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Mike Guerin, Louisiana Sportsman Field Reporter Profile Photo
Posted July 25, 2012 at 2:16pm
idea

Plant as normal in Sept.

Then in late October broadcast some rye grass seed.
Repeat in November.
Repeat in early December.

AllisonXR-01 Profile Photo
Posted July 25, 2012 at 3:32pm
kinda like Mike suggested

I continously toss some winter wheat seed about as the deer hit my little area hard.

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lincg88 Profile Photo
Posted July 25, 2012 at 4:08pm
Thanks guys

Whats in the biologic maximum mix?
I tried the rye grass additive last year but i only added it in september when I first planted. Gonna have to keep me a little bag of seed for the whole year and try that this time. Where yall fertilizing every time yall added rye grass or does that work just kinda throwing it on top as the plot gets thin?

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SamuGames Profile Photo
Posted July 25, 2012 at 7:37pm
Nitrogen

Another trick that i have used on small plots in the past, is to go out right before it rains *few minutes to a few hours before...try not to be too soon and make certain it will definitely rain* and hand broadcast a bag of high Nitrogen fertilizer. This trick will work with any fertilizer but works best with Nitrogen *30-0-0 is what i usually get*.
The purpose is that the Nitrogen once wet, will cause the grass *or whatever you have planted* to grow very rapidly for a short period before returning to its normal cycle. However, you do not want to do this if it doesn't rain because it will obviously burn the grass and kill it.

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AllisonXR-01 Profile Photo
Posted July 26, 2012 at 6:48am
rye vs wheat

My trail cams showed me that the years where I planted Rye, the deer ate it, but not really as a food source. The Winter Wheat was grazed on, seemed more attractive to them.

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lincg88 Profile Photo
Posted July 26, 2012 at 11:05am
Winter Wheat Maintenece

I kind of noticed the same thing you are talking about with the rye last year. It seemed like they would just eat it when it was in the way of other things I had planted. The areas of heavier rye lasted a while longer.
Winter wheat sounds like a better alternative. How much maintenence does the wheat usually require?, compared to rye grass which i would say is basically none.

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AllisonXR-01 Profile Photo
Posted July 26, 2012 at 11:19am
basically same a rye

My plot is a swampy area, each year I'll wait till the typical river flood waters in August recede, plow a bit usually adding a little pelletized lime as my ph is still off and sow the wheat seed same as I did rye. Set back and watch it cover. I add clover, some turnips and little rape and let it do it’s thing.

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Mike Guerin, Louisiana Sportsman Field Reporter Profile Photo
Posted July 26, 2012 at 3:19pm
wheat

Wheat is as easy as rye grass. Better for the deer if that matter to you as well. But rye grass is the hardiest foot plot seed around.

It is very shade tolerant compared to any other seed I know of. I never would have known but you can grow rye grass and you don't even need a food plot.

As long as you have dirt you can have a rye grass plot. So if your lease doesn't allow you to put in food plots you can still rake the ground to expose the soil and plant rye grass there and if the canapy isn't super thick you can have your food plot right under neat the trees!

Leaf blower might come in handy as the leaves fall. So it doesn't get covered up. But it works!

lincg88 Profile Photo
Posted July 26, 2012 at 4:55pm
Good Stuff

Thats some good info there. Winter wheat seems to be the right call for me. I like the leaf blower thing too. I got pine needle issues, so whatever does try to come back usually gets drowned out by the pine needles. My plot is a realitivly high area with a few big pine trees and the rest is underbrush that is low enough to not make a canopy. I'd say it gets 4-5 hours of sunlight during midday. Is that enough?

Do you guys fertilize every other time you cast more seed? or every time? or even more than that?

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spikey Profile Photo
Posted July 26, 2012 at 7:57pm
Bow hunting tip

Try this if you are a bow hunter.I usually add cow peas or iron clay peas to my winter wheat and oat plots.The deer dont give the peas a chance.So every hunt i bring a pound or two of any kind of beans or peas that i can find and broadcast them in front of my stand.I find if you soak them in water the day before they pop open and sprout quicker.This keeps the area in front of your stand active.

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lincg88 Profile Photo
Posted July 27, 2012 at 11:39am
Clay Peas

Clay Peas is a lot of what i plante last year. They actually almost made it to knee high but then the deer found them. It took about three weeks and they were gone. Watched them pass up corn to get eat them things. Wish they lasted longer.

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