What is the best food plot for deer in Louisiana?
7 min read
Asked by: Cynthia Sullivan
Ryegrass grows best in soils maintained at a pH of 6.0. Wheat is a cool season annual small grain that is widely used by deer in the early stages of growth. It, along with ryegrass, is a staple food plot item that represents some of the most used food plot ingredients for white-tailed deer.
What is the best thing to plant to attract deer?
Plants that typically attract deer include red clover, chicory, and orchard grass. Certain high-protein crops, such as peas, soybeans, turnips, alfalfa, sorghum, kale, or corn, are also attractants that the animals enjoy feeding on. Deer like the nutritious nuts that come from chestnuts and acorns as well.
What can you plant for deer in Louisiana?
quality grazing from June through November. Soybeans and cowpeas are among the most preferred food items that deer will use where available. Their high use potential is evident by the fact that small plantings have almost no success for establishment on areas with high deer densities.
What is the easiest food plot to grow for deer?
Red clover is the Easiest Food Plot for Deer. Spread the seed and spray the grasses to act as a mulch for the clover, or spray in the fall and frost seed in late winter right on top of the snow. The freeze thaw patterns of spring creates cracks the seed falls into to germinate.
How many deer will a 1 acre food plot support?
three deer
Both Fort Perry and Gary Schwarz’s El Tecomate support 3.5 deer per acre of food plot, but both programs intensively farm and include a supplemental “safety net.” A reasonable across-the-board rule of thumb with a bit of a cushion is, an acre of food plot will support about three deer.
What is the cheapest thing to feed deer?
An inexpensive way to feed deer is with corn. Deer love corn and many hunters rely on it for supplemental feeding. That being said, corn is not an excellent source of protein, which is essential for antler growth and the nursing of fawns.
What’s the best food plot for whitetail?
Clover such as Imperial Whitetail Clover is probably the single best food plot seed, but there are many others that serve important roles for the food plotter. Brassicas are a strong second choice, such as Plant Biologic’s Maximum.
Is crimson clover good for deer?
Like other clovers, crimson is highly attractive, nutritious and extremely digestible to deer. Although an annual, it often reseeds itself and can persist for several years in this manner. While crimson clover is more forgiving of poor soils, it still prefers a well-drained loamy soil.
When should you plant food plots for deer?
To give your plants the best chance of success, plant with adequate soil moisture; typically early spring and fall planting will be the most successful. You can frost seed or plant in the spring when daytime high temps start to reach 63-65 degrees. Fall plantings should be planted prior to the onset of autumn rains.
Can you plant oats and clover together?
2. White Clover and Oats. It’s hard to beat the oats-and-clover combo. This green-on-grain duo is perfect for planting in tight corridors.
Can you plant a food plot without tilling?
No-till planting equipment like seed drills can be very expensive, but it’s possible to do no-till food plots with very minimal, low-tech equipment. As the video explains, QDMA has grown successful no-till food plots using only a mower, a backpack sprayer, an over-the-shoulder seed spreader, and an ATV cultipacker.
How long does it take for a clover food plot to grow?
When clover seeds are planted correctly on prepared soils, they can sprout in two to three days in the summer. Also, clovers take less than a week to germinate and sprout when temperatures are around 59 degrees Fahrenheit.
How big should a deer food plot be?
In general, plot size of 10 – 50 acres is advisable. Small acreage plantings may provide enough green forage to attract deer for hunting, but will probably not provide a significant amount of additional forage or nutrition. Pay attention to soil types. Choose the very best soils available.
Is 5 acres big enough to hunt?
Depending on where you are, that could be somebody’s backyard or a highway.” For two hunters or more, Messerschmidt says the ideal minimum size land for rifle hunting deer is about 50 acres, but one could manage on as little as 25 acres if the property is in the right area.
Can you have too many food plots?
It’s just the nature of whitetails, but if you have multiple food plots scattered across your property it could mean losing track of a buck as it adjusts to the upcoming rut. If that’s not bad enough, your green thumb could make bucks become hard to pattern.
Is a half acre food plot big enough?
In my experience, half-acre plots are common and allow for the perfect mix of feeding and hunting. Assuming your spot has four to six hours of sunlight, proper soil PH and solid rainfall, this is the right route for you.
How do you attract big bucks?
For variety and winter cover, you can mix in a few pines or cedars.
- Provide minerals. Maybe you’re fortunate enough to have a natural mineral site on your property. …
- Add water. …
- Create or enhance staging areas. …
- Add shrubs and vines. …
- Build big buck bedding cover. …
- Create a thermal refuge. …
- Plant oaks. …
- Give them fruit.
Will a food plot grow in the woods?
With the ability to sprawl, grow great in shade, and take a beating from browsing deer, clover makes the ideal species for food plots in the woods. Of course, cereal grains like winter wheat and rye can take the attraction beyond the limited timeframe of clover but be cautious as this will limit your herbicide use.
What should I plant in my 1 acre food plot?
Brassica blends establish quickly and can usually shade out competing weeds, reducing maintenance costs. For most hunters, clover is a go-to for small, tucked away plots. Clover in a one acre food plot is going to require maintenance throughout the summer to mow, spray for weeds and possibly fertilize.
How small is too small for a deer food plot?
A small food plot is what I generally refer to as anything under 1 acre in size and usually even smaller than ½ acre.
How do you start a little food plot for deer?
How to Plant a Micro Kill Plot for Deer
- Step 1: Choose the Right Location. …
- Step 2: Spray for Weeds. …
- Step 3: Soil Samples, Fertilizer and Mowing. …
- Step 4: Work the Ground. …
- Step 5: Sow the Foot Plot Seed. …
- Step 6: Plant a Plot Screen. …
- Step 7: Ensure Seed-to-Soil Contact.
What is the best small food plot seed?
The best species for small food plots is white clover (Ladino or Durana). Either Ladino or its small leafed, but more aggressive spreading cousin Durana clover, are the king of small food plots. They are shade tolerant, heavy browse tolerant, extremely attractive, and are easy to establish.
What type of clover Do deer like best?
Pure Clover
If you are going to go with just one type of clover for your plot, white clover is the right choice. Gillium pointed out that White Dutch and Ladino are some of the best white clover for deer and both do very well as pure stands.
Is red clover good for deer?
Red clover is a high quality, productive and palatable cool-season forage for deer and other wildlife species including turkey and rabbit.
What can I plant in the woods for deer?
Allow Natural Deer Food to Grow
Openings and edges may allow natural deer sustenance like greenbrier, raspberry, honeysuckle and plum to grow. You can power-charge these and improve their ability to draw deer with a few quick steps. First, if other trees are shading these plants, cut them back so they get more sun.
How do you keep deer on 10 acres?
Down the west side. And then down the south side and back into that cover so it's almost like a sea of food plot with the amount of cover on the inside.
