I have a summer mix of sixteen different varieties of seeds with half perennials and half annuals. These will address deer needs as well as quail and doves. These are drought tolerant too. My .02
Chicory is deep rooted and Yuchi Arrowleaf Clover complements it well. However when it it is established good, you won't want to work it up as it reseeds itself.Ok, I’m making plans now for next years planting for deer at my OK place. I’ve spent a small fortune this year on dairy pellets, and I’m done with feeding protein out of a sack. I’ll still feed a little corn in my feeders, but that’s it.
What’s everyone planting in the summer?
There’s no crop land around me, so if I can get this figured out and done, I could have the only natural (planted) food source other than the refuge (which is still a couple miles east). I’ve been thinking soybeans, but at this point, I’m open to suggestions.
My wheat food plot is really lush this year. Put a good mix of fertilizer on it right after it germinated, and got a perfect rain on it to set the fertilizer.
Here come the does!
Here come the does!
I planted iron clay peas one year here in TX, and the deer liked them really well.
I’m not sure how many acres yet, but if I’m going to do it, I want to do enough to make it really worthwhile and have a legitimate long term food source. I spent about $2k on dairy pellets this year (actually in 5 months), and the deer loved it. However, that’s not a sustainable food source, because of the lack of my ability to keep the feeders filled and PRICE.
You aren't far from river or creek bottom, I wonder how alfalfa would do. The chicory/yuchi arrowleaf clover seems to have endured the drought as well because it was already established. Another beauty of the chicory/YAC is if you have a grass problem, (bermuda, johnson grass, stickers etc.) spray it with clethodim and it will knock the grasses out. It should last a couple years as the clover reseeds itself if it isn't grazed down. I mowed mine down to about 6-8" tall after it seeded out. New growth is what deer prefer. It even came back out after 15 head of escapee cattle grazed it down heavily.
How big are your plots? Do you think more is better?
My clover/chicory is about .75 acre. I couldn't do peas in that small because the deer would nip off the leaves before they could sustain themselves. (Without fencing it) Only problem I see if the plot is too big, you will want to mow some of it to promote new growth. The issue with that for me is I have to rent of borrow a tractor and brush hog. If I had the tractor and brush hog, I would expand it to 3 or 4 acres, and mow it in rotation so that I would have some of it in fresh growth and some maturing to seed. Once the non mowed area seeds again, I would mow it and allow the other are area to grow up to seed out. Probably could mow each half once per season and it would be good.
My winter plots, I have about 2.5-3 acres of oats/rye/turnip mix.
Good info! Thanks!
I’ve got a tractor and mower that’s staying in OK now, but I’ve got to haul my overseeder back and forth.
I’ve got a tractor and mower that’s staying in OK now, but I’ve got to haul my overseeder back and forth.
On another place I don’t hunt anymore I got a few bags of seed milo given to me so I planted 17 acres wit it. Amazing foot plot for everything. The deer would eat the heads with some seed falling to the ground that pheasant and quail ate.
By December, the deer had completely ate every head off each stalk.
So if you have a lot of deer and want to go milo, your going to have to go big.
By December, the deer had completely ate every head off each stalk.
So if you have a lot of deer and want to go milo, your going to have to go big.
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