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Food plots that will hold deer?

JUNIOR

JUNIOR

Active Member
Alright, my grandfather purchased a piece of ground about 3 years ago that was covered in cedars, This coming spring will be the first time the place has had food on it in 20 years. My grandfather and I have worked our butts off to clear about 20-25 acres off. We plan on planting crops on the 10 acre bottom we have, and alfalfa on the remainder, but we also have some small spots that i would like to put in food plots to help feed and hold the deer, whats the best food plot that will hold deer? any info on food plots would be great! thank you
 
If it had a bunch of cedars cleared I would definitely lime the ground good, probably already thought of that though
 
Also planted about 2 acres of soybean this spring on it and they grew about 4 inches tall then died..... probably cause no fertilizer but we wanted to see what would happen
 
To hold deer you should have left cedars, I have all the food a deer could want but not enough cover. Most deer only come at night or when really cold.
 
Hoffman said:
To hold deer you should have left cedars, I have all the food a deer could want but not enough cover. Most deer only come at night or when really cold.
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We have 35 acres of hardwood timber and another 15 acres of cedars. I mean the property holds deer well but they leave for food
 
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Check out dbltree's corner for the best foodplot info out there. His suggested mix is outstanding
 
Take a multisystem approach to hold the most deer. Your timber should be providing lots of browse and screening cover as is. Good screening and thermal cover is needed to hold deer when bitter cold hits and you would be surprised at how much they hit woody browse in winter even with "food" available.

Sparse cedars on a south facing slope are ideal bedding in winter. Deer can lay there and soak up the sun. Very dense cedars are not when temps hit single digits. They block the sun and can actually be colder, especially on north facing slopes.

Attracting deer with food only works as well as the cover provided since cover is the real limiting factor in the Midwest....

For food plots, plant dbltree's mix as DZ stated.
 
letemgrow said:
Take a multisystem approach to hold the most deer. Your timber should be providing lots of browse and screening cover as is. Good screening and thermal cover is needed to hold deer when bitter cold hits and you would be surprised at how much they hit woody browse in winter even with "food" available.

Sparse cedars on a south facing slope are ideal bedding in winter. Deer can lay there and soak up the sun. Very dense cedars are not when temps hit single digits. They block the sun and can actually be colder, especially on north facing slopes.

Attracting deer with food only works as well as the cover provided since cover is the real limiting factor in the Midwest....

For food plots, plant dbltree's mix as DZ stated.
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Have a hill of cedars that faces west and a hill of cedars that faces east timber runs in between it along with fields.
 
JUNIOR said:
Have a hill of cedars that faces west and a hill of cedars that faces east timber runs in between it along with fields.
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Congrats on the purchase too!! Nothing like owning your own place...

How thick are the cedars?

I keep mine thinned out where native grassed and shrubs can intermix between them to provide thermal cover, food, hard and soft mast all in one spot.
 
letemgrow said:
Congrats on the purchase too!! Nothing like owning your own place...

How thick are the cedars?

I keep mine thinned out where native grassed and shrubs can intermix between them to provide thermal cover, food, hard and soft mast all in one spot.
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he owned 80 acres before this one but my grandmothers brother wanted to sell out so it ended up getting auctioned off and now we have this one! But back to the question, its thick enough that you can't shoot. Anything 10-15 yards away, but its not to thick where it makes you crawl to get threw it, most of it has shrubs and nature grasses in it
 
JUNIOR said:
Have a hill of cedars that faces west and a hill of cedars that faces east timber runs in between it along with fields.
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Don't mess with the east Cedars! Deer like to bed in them to be warmed by the rising sun. JMO
 
You really need a mix. A small clover plot is nice, but no way I would only rely on clover. You won't have anything for late season. Turnips are a must, the more the better in my opinion. You can produce a serious amount of forage that way. Granted you need some summer rains, but even this year with as little we got our turnips look awesome. And they are shed magnets.
 
I'll echo the Dbltree rotation. And ya, with a lot of cover like that, you'll be battling deer destroying things so simply do enough area to deal with them.... With the rotation, I bet 3-4 acres would be good. With grains, you better be talking 10 acres after deer become accustomed to it. I would be doing everything possible to enhance your remaining cover. Like others said, not too thick on cedars but those sure are great to have (I usually am planting them). TSI & adding shrubs, native grasses & really anything other than fescue/brome.
 
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