Discuss the Bowsite Food Plot 2009
Contributors to this thread:Whitetail Deer
From: ironhunter
10-May-09
Lots of work for you guys. Weeds and grass intrusions are my biggest problems also. Rape has always been a failure in my immediate area.Low deer density and too many other more palitable options for the deer to eat may be the reason?
From: gobbler
10-May-09
Have you tried weed and grass herbicides to kill them out,or at least supress them so they don't outcompete the clover. I've tried them for a couple of years they don't kill all of it, but helps knock them back. My biggest problem now is canadian thistle. I think i've killed it, then it comes back. And if you till it under it just comes back stronger from the roots that you cut up.
From: tadpole
10-May-09
Where did you buy the Tecomont Monster Mix? I thought they were sold and out of business. I always had better luck with the Monster Mix than than the Imperial clover...my soil is sandy, too well drained and very high on a ridge.
From: Sagittarius
11-May-09
The new plot, was a soil test done? Results?
In the picture I see 5 bags of 5-10-10. In total thats about 12.5 lbs of Nitrogen, 25 lbs of phosphorus, and 25 lbs of Potassium. Just wondering if that would be enough P or K on that new ground?
.... Considering the original soil test on the other plot (March 15, 1997) recommended 180 lbs of phosphorus and 190 lbs of potassium.
http://www.bowsite.com/bowsite/features/misc/food-plot/soil-tests.htm
From: Foodplot
11-May-09
Keep mown the broadleafs down.I spot spray for the thistles.I also use select to kill the grasses and just bushog for the broadleafs.I am getting where I plant mostly Alafala on my farm at my house.Then leave standing corn and beans.
From: tadpole
11-May-09
Food plot: Insted of Alfalfa, have you ever considered planting the birdsfoot treefoil?
From: Foodplot
12-May-09
No I have never tried birdsfoot treefoil.I also bail my alfalfa.
From: Big Nine
12-May-09
Why use the same seed, why not try someting different...vareity, something that may be palatable to the deer during late season? I like to have spring, summer, and fall plots....
From: archerynut
12-May-09
On our hunting property in Pa we have tried alot of differnt things and the what works best for us it the premium perennial from biologic. And the maxium from them also. We have tried whitetail products and the only thing that works for us is the no-plow and we sometimes mix that with the maxium in our smaller plots. The broad leaf stuff is the biggest weed problem but the thing is it grows so low to the ground you cant mow it cause youll cut the clover to low. and the roots are big and deep so it hard to spray and kill.
From: LW
14-May-09
Pat,
I appreciate you sharing this with us. I also commend you for calling your plot exactly what it is. Good luck with your results!
From: Butternut40
01-Jun-09
Thanks for the update. Spent this last weekend preparing and planting a sorghum/sunflower plot. Later on in August will be the winter rye planting. A lot of work but worth it.
From: celt
11-Jun-09
Being a bowhunter on the other side of the Atlantic I would have a question, it is a question not an attack of anykind on you all. On Youtube I am regularly confronting anti-hunters on all kinds off issues. One of them is Whitetail hunting where the anti-hunters proclaim that the hunters are responsable of the artificial growth of the Whitetail population due to farming techniques. That on the other hand triggers more colisions with vehicules because there are more deer and that leeds to more hunting. I would like to have some answers who go further then "they are morons or idiots". I am looking for info to use on this issue against those claims on the net so I need proven facts or interesting ideas. Thanks to you all for the feedback, Ivan.
From: PA hunter
11-Jun-09
They are morons and idiots! why waste your time trying to change them, they will never change any more than you will ever see their view point.
kill'm and grill'm
From: scentman
11-Jun-09
Mow , mow , mow, keeps weeds in check, and deer love the fresh growth it leads to.
From: celt
11-Jun-09
PA HUNTER: The objective is not to trying to change the antis but to present alternatives to young people who go on popular sites like Youtube. People who post anti-hunters video are never challenged or confronted by interesting arguments that put there comments into the right perspective. The perspective is that they are mostly fanatics and that the solutions they propose are mostly not realistic at all. Personly I find it a big mistake that hunters and there organisations are not more on the web to protect and inform neutral non-hunters about hunting. JTV:Even if I do not agree with your political and religious concepts I find your comment on the destroying of the habitat interesting. The point about doing something on the terrain for the animals is a dangerous one because they will always tell you that you are doing it not to help nature but only so you can shoot more game.
From: Phantom
14-Jun-09
I planted alpha rack plus this spring on 3 acres. we have had only an inch of rain and the broad leaf weeds, primarily thistle, are growing too fast. The clover has been minimal just sprouting. I mowed the weeds once already to set them back, but I maybe wasting my time. The chance of rain this week is anyones guess. Do you think I need to wait it out, keep mowing back the weeds, or start all over in August with something else? I have $400.00 in seed, and fertilizer/lime, on this field. ?
From: tadpole
15-Jun-09
Had some nasty canadian thistle growth...this year I spot sprayed with Tordon RTU (ready to use) MIXED WITH 2-4-d , 1:1. Knocked the bijebbers out of the thistle. I plan to resead the dead spots now and if the seed doesn't take, hit them again this fall with more seed. This field is planted in the Extreme seed from Whitetail.
From: bowhunteral
11-Aug-09
Just about every plot I've planted since 1974 has had weeds in it. In the old days we planted mostly annuals like wheat or rye. We didn't need to worry about weeds, the winter killed the plot before any weeds could compete. Around 1990 we started planting Imperial Clover and the same problem occurred. We mowed in the summer to keep the weeds from producing seed and we were relatively happy. Not having to re-plant every year is nice and our deer numbers went up drastically. The only problem was who got to hunt over the Imperial Clover field. When the selective herbicides became popular we started using them as needed. The Arrest herbicide knocks the hell out of the grass but I haven't found anything that gets rid of the thistle. I pull the young plants in the spring and treat with Slay herbicide early in the spring. It kills my broadleaf weeds but the thistle is still a problem. I'll read up on Tordon and 2-4-D for spot spraying because I know it will kill the clover too.
Tadpole, one thing I can tell you about Extreme is...add nitrogen. I have a 1/2 acre plot and it been in for about 4 years. It was good but after two years somebody told me about adding 200 pounds of a balanced fertilizer in the spring. I use 15-15-15 and a 50 pound bag of 32-0-0 in the fall....with the addition of nitrogen the plot went from good to great. I've seen it make it through two dry summers and stay green and the deer wear it out. The plot is too small but I've run out of area that I can plant. I'm adding an acre of Extreme this fall and I hope that's enough. I've got too many deer and not enough food. What a great problem to have.
Thanks
AL
From: tadpole
11-Aug-09
Al, Yes the Tordon mix will kill everything, including the clover...so just spot spray it on the thistle. Other than the dang foxtail trying to take over the field, the thisltles seem to still be gone!
Anyone know of a good cure for the foxtail weed? It is spreading like wild fire on any newly plowed ground.
Also, anyone know if soybean needs much nitrogen added to soil? Thought I would try that QDMA suggestion on a late planting of soy bean, then topping it over two weeks later with oats plus some 19-19-19.
From: J.E. Travis
11-Aug-09
I have a good stand of goatweed with Tecamote Max Attract and Evolved Habitat Thro and Gro coming up under it...how can I rid myself of the goatweed without harming the plants I want? Other than spending a little time each evening pulling them out by hand. It's a small plot and I could do it...but it's a pain the back.
From: bowhunteral
11-Aug-09
Tadpole, I just read my Slay herbicide label and it lists Foxtail as a controllable weed. What I've heard and now see on the label is the Foxtail must be treated in the early spring before it matures. Once it has the summer to grow, mowing is the only solution. I also called my buddy about the problem and he said to use 6oz of Slay with a crop oil for best control. He knows weeds and he hasn't steered me wrong in 20 years.
Al
From: Doeboy
11-Aug-09
One thing you could do with beans is to use a roundup resistant variety. You can spray roundup and kill everything but the beans. It's a good idea instead of just killing off for a season. Come spring, the beans are gone and you have a blank slate for clover.
From: Butternut40
12-Aug-09
Nice to see the progress. My sunflower/sorghum plot has really taken off and the deer are hammering the sunflowers. They are just about to head out.
From: Butternut40
12-Aug-09
From: Butternut40
12-Aug-09
From: Butternut40
12-Aug-09
Stand on edge of sunflowers
From: Butternut40
12-Aug-09
Try that again
From: tadpole
12-Aug-09
Butternut, That stand is in a beautiful tree with great background...too bad though, you really need some shade over that stand and it would be perfect.
One thing we're doing is using fallen oak branches from summer storms...the leaves are tight and usually stay on for at least a year or two. We nail or tye the branches over head for the shade and great breakup. I'm thinking that after the leaves do drop, I'll just weave in new leafy branches.
From: Butternut40
13-Aug-09
Tadpole, I'll have to do that especially if I hunt the stand in the evening. Morning it will be ok but something to block the pm sun like you suggested is needed.
Thanks
From: gobbler
13-Aug-09
I've had a growing (no pun intended) problem of thistle over the last few years. Whitetail institute Slay dosen't seem to kill it. I've got common thistle and Canadian thistle. Cutting it a few times during the summer at least seems to help keep it from heading out, but I can't kill it.
I've even killed the whole plot with Roundup and Redeem. But when I till it, it seems to chop up the roots and more plants come back. I don't know what to do other than let the plots go dormant for a couple of years and spray roundup 2-3 times a year. I don't even know if that will work.
From: 180_BUCK_HUNTER
14-Aug-09
How long are you wanting to disk after you have sprayed the plot with round-up? Are you mixing the round up strong enough? If you buy the cheap round-up from a coop you should use about 32oz per arce and that should burn down about all of the weeds in your plot, along with everthing else in it. If you really want to make sure you get everything, you should consider going to round-up ready beans and spray the plot twice.
From: gobbler
14-Aug-09
I've been waiting about a week after I spray, and I have been using it at the higher rate. I used brand name once and generic once. I actually used a PTO cultivator/tiller to till the ground. I seem to be able to kill the leaves but can't get the roots dead. I even tilled 3 times spaced about 2 weeks apart, and it seems to regrow from the root fragments.
