Vet Judy

A client asked today about deer food plots in South and Central Florida. I thought I would share some easy to use resources.
The first is a great resource on plants to choose from in the area and the how to’s specific to the region. The second two are state businesses that may be helpful resources. Feel free to check them out and see if they are helpful to you.

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/UW/UW26200.pdf
http://www.wildlifeseedblend.com/
http://www.allseasonsfoodplots.com/

The most often overlooked part of whitetail deer food plot success is weed control. Here are some additional facts that you should know about weeds in your food plots.

Broad Categories of Weeds

1.  Grasses( includes sedges and grasses).

     *Seedlings have one leaf narrow and upright  *Roots are fine and branching*  Sedges differ from grasses: some have triangular shaped stems rather than round or oval.

2. Broadleaf (plants, shrub, tree seedlings)

       *Two seed leaves that are broad with netlike veins *Root system coarse *Often has strong tap root

        * May be herbaceous (plant does not regrow from wood tissue above the ground) or woody (brush, shrubs, trees) *brush and shurbs usually have several stems and generally no taller than 10 feet.

Other Classification Systems are based on life cycle:

                Annuals, biennials, and perennials

1.       Annuals most common in cultivated crops

a.       Lots of dormant seed

b.      Grow fast

c.       Produce high numbers of seed

d.      Can be either winter or summer annual weeds

       Summer annuals: germinate in spring or summer, but die before winter, remain dormant  in soil for the winter or in some cases for years before emerging again

Winter annuals  germinate in later summer or early winter, they overwinter in their vegtetative form then in spring or early summer they flower, set seed and mature  and die. Seeds are dormant in summer months.

These weeds are the most concern in fall seeded crops (ex winter wheat and alfalfa) which go through winter dormant period. Note winter annuals can live 2 seasons but the life cycle is completed during one year

Biennial: life cycle lasts two years. First year plant forms basal leaves(rosette) and a tap root. In the second year the flower comes, matures and dies. No biennial grasses or sedges

Perennials: live more than one season. Some seem to go on forever. Have persistant resprouting roots, rhizomes, stolons, tubers, plant fragments etc. difficult weeds to control.

To avoid this problem it is important not to let the seedlings become established.

Spread by two routes: simple or creeping

 Simple: resprout from crown buds on tap root and spreed from seed.

                        Roots are fleshy, may be large (dandelion)

 Creeping: reporduce by creeping roots(canadian thistle, field bindweed), or above ground stems (runners or stolons) (bentgrass, bermudagrass) or below ground stems(rhizomes)(quackgrass, johnson grass). Also reproduce by seed.  ****once established most dificult group to control. May require cultivation repeated, herbicide, mowing.

Adapted from Washington State University Weed Management Principals. You can purchase this guide here: https://cru84.cahe.wsu.edu/ItemDetail.aspx?ProductID=14331 

A client of mine recently sent me an email asking the following questions:

What do you proposed for a seeder ?  I want one that would give me  the possibility of planting anything. I have seen broadcast spreader, pendulum  spreader, drop seeder, complex all in one food plot machines.

There are probably a few others starting out in whitetail deer food plots, that have asked the same question. I thought I would post the question and the response in case it helps someone else out.

 Most simple broadcast/drop seeders all operate the same way, just a fanning action to spread it around in a radius around you. These are all fine for most of the food plot seeds you will use, most of them can be dialed using a control which depends on seeds size: most are for fertilizer lime or small grass seed and wouldn’t work for larger seeds but not because of the product itself but because the seed has to go deep (1-3 inches). (same with soybeans, awp also for the most part-some exceptions)

 The aerator seeders are generally smilar to broadcasters, except they have small discs underneath the drop spout that put a little trail in the soil where the seed goes. The idea here is that the seed would theoretically be in contact with the soil more precisely. Most plots have to have a properly prepared seedbed anyway and this offers no advantage to just broadcasting and then dragging after or in some cases you don’t even need to drag. If they had a little roller or drag behind them might be ok, but have to watch seed doesn’t get too deep either. (usually no deeper than 1/4 to 1/2 inch for most things)

 The idea behind the pendulum spreader is “precision” which would be more important for orchards and so forth than for food plots. It is an expense I think you could pass on. The big selling feature here is less edge concentration and overlap and ability to apply fertilizer precisely to rows of plants etc. Not really necessary for the type of plants and planting you will be doing.

 To do corn, soybeans, awp ideally you would need a drill. Some people broadcast these too into finely tilled soil at a higher rate, expect losses so seed heavier/acre and then drag and use a roller in fine soil and hope it gets 1-3 inches deep for corn. If you buy a drill, make sure it has attachments for smaller seeds. Most are made for larger seeds and have to have an adapter with them so you can change between them.

Check out the blog www.vetjudy.com and see the videos on food plotting,  all these plots were done with atv and minimal equipment. 

As far as the all in one goes. See these two links and then see my comments too

http://www.theplotmaster.com/plotmaster.html

http://www.theplotmaster.com/index.html

 In the second link you will see the guy is on basically turf type underground. So it would likely be ok there. But in a new food plot it is not likely to be very successful on first pass: like it suggests it could be. In the article : http://www.diydeerfoodplots.com/articles/5-steps-to-successful-fall-planting-of-whitetail-food-plots.html  you will see what most food plot sites start out like, and by the time the soil is prepared properly enough for this unit to be successful, then we no longer needed an all in one. Most people in the forums  are not that impressed with them for the cost. In certain circumstances they are viable, just be cautious that it may not be as great as you would originally hope for.  

Have you ever wondered why everyone talking about deer food plots speaks about cool season and warm season annuals and then further complicates it with north and south, biennials and perennials.

Even more intimidating is the fact that there is no easy separation between these food plot plants in all areas. In other words, you have annuals that can act like perennials in the right areas and can be encouraged to reseed, but in other deer food plot regions reseeding is not viable. A plant may be an annual in one area a perennial somewhere else.

Seeding times may vary and are not as easy plant in the north on such and such a week and in the south do something different. Then there is the deep  south, mid south, regular south, south east, south west, the plains…..yikes. It is no wonder that things are a little confusing.

Mostly all coverage of the deer food plot plants is given in a list of plant profiles which give the technical classification. Occasionally you are lucky enough to have someone say north versus south. But that still leaves out east versus west.  Then you have acid versus basic soils, loamy versus sandy.

So you go online to find a seed mixture and notice that even though everyone is talking annual, perennial, biennial  all of these are in a mix together: now what is going on?

Here are some general concepts that may help you out:

The legume list for deer food plots and small game is the longest.

Legumes are almost always mixed with something else. AS a matter of a fact, in most cases food plots are a mixture of plants. It is important to remember that just because you want different plants in your plot thoughout the year, does not mean they have to seeded in the form of a mix.

 Here is a plot where rapeseed and chicory were planted  one in front of the other.  http://www.diydeerfoodplots.com/articles/5-steps-to-successful-fall-planting-of-whitetail-food-plots.html

My small grains, such as oats  I also do monoculture in some locations. Mixes were created for you to help ease the burden of decision making and improve your success but they are not necessary.

The “something else” that is mixed with legumes are

1.       small grains (oats,rye,wheat),

2.       annual grasses (annual ryegrass) , corn,  milo or grain sorghum

3.       brassicas (rapeseed, turnips, kale)

4.       other:  plants like buckwheat and chicory, vetches,

The legume and “other” choice for the food plots are based on

1.       season planting

2.       soil conditions(upland, bottomland, pH, moisture, wet lands, shady )

3.       when peak growth is preferred

4.       level of browse

5.       weed competition

6.       winter conditions

7.       equipment availability

8.       size of plot

9.       need for quick growth, recover crop, or targeting specific seasonal stresses.  

Although some legumes can stand acidic conditions, shady conditions, wet conditions, sandy soil etc, in general  food plot legumes do better in near neutral pH’s in well drained soil. 

Soybeans  are susceptible to overgrazing and therefore should not be used on small plots unless you have the ability to fence the areas off until they get established as deer tend to eat them immediately after germination and the weeds take the plot over.

Cool season Legumes are generally planted in the fall (Sept-Nov)

Warm season legumes are generally planted in the spring(Feb-June)

Both cool season and warm season plants are mixed together depending on the goals of the plot.

For example: buckwheat, alyceclover, American jointvetch are often combined with rape and forage turnips even though the last two are considered cool season annuals. The mix itself is considered warm season mix because it is predominantly warm season forages. It is planted early summer and will provide feed for early fall before mast is available.

Even perennials mixes often contain annual grains and rapeseed (brassica) because of the benefits of thse plants for protection nd cover while establishing alfalfa and ladino clover

Most legumes grow both north and south but sometimes perennials or biennials can become annuals depending on location and conditions.

The further north or south you go and the more severe temperatures are then the selection of plants can become narrower.

The deep south is the most difficult area because of the heat and moisture stress.

The far north only creates a problem when needing plants to overwinter and become active in the spring. In extreme far north conditions (when there is a lack of snow cover or inadequate cover crop protection, or prolonged severe temperatures) there may be some limitations if wanting to choose perennials or biennials. Successful deer food plotting in some regions is limited to cool season annual with rapid growth phases for late fall hunting or summer annuals for early fall hunting.

Cool season deer food plot forages are generally considered to be those plants that are planted in later summer, early fall or spring. They are great for whitetail deer, mule deer, turkeys etc. The plants  provide fall and winter deer food when the deer are under a significant amount of stress during the rut.  Those plants that are planted in fall but emerge in the spring are great for giving does additional support during lactation.

When considering using cool season deer forage in your food plots  generally all legumes should have a grain, annual ryegrass or rapeseed (brassica) mixed with them.

The cool season grass ( annual ryegrass)  and grains ( wheat, oats, rye)  have multiple functions in a food plot.

*help prevent erosion

*can compete effectively with deer food plot annual weeds

*grow quickly and therefore provide quick food supply for deer

* are a cover crop for the legumes which means they protect the legume through the winter and early spring when frost risk is high and allow for a good stand in the spring.

Commercial seed mixes for deer food plots generally have legumes, small grains, grasses and/or brassicas in them. It is not essential to use a mix. You can buy seed at a local distributor as well and mix the combinations yourself.

Just remember if you are going to use low till or no till strategies you have to stay with the small seeds as these are the ones that need very little soil coverage. With these small seeds the soil coverage is generally 1/4 inch or so, which lends itself to using a rake (if you are covering manually) or a drag behind an ATV. Very small seeds can also be mixed with sand in your seeder to help with even spreading, especially if they are to be planted as a monoculture (by themselves). 

When planting your food plot feel free to premix as mentioned above, mix your own and spread it that way, or plant as single culture patches. The advantage of planting several types of plants together is especially evident when you need a cover crop for your legumes. I have planted both ways though and had success in either strategy depending on the plot and the deer pressure.

The deer don’t care how the feed is presented so much as they care about their safety when getting to the food and also that it is tasty when they arrive.