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Food Plots and Inflation

I spend most of my summer and fall planting food plots for deer, doves and ducks. The local Coop now wants $24 for a 50# bag of Triple 13 and $1000 a ton for bulk ammonium nitrate. Off road diesel is approaching $5 a gallon and glyphosate is $125 plus for a 2 1/2 gallon jug. I'm curious what strategies, if any, some of you plan to implement to defray some of the extra expense. Bite the bullet and continue as usual? Plant fewer acres? Ignore soil tests and try to get by with as little fertilizer as possible? Other comments or ideas? Even if you can afford it, it is getting harder to justify the cost.

Regenerative practices. I haven't done a soil test or bought fert for many years. Rotate legumes with cereals. No till, let microbes release the nitrogen that's locked in the soil. Create a layer of duff that shields your soil. Feed the worms. Etc. I sound like a hippy saying all that but I have great plots without spending much on fuel and zero on amendments. My biggest expense is always seed, otherwise it's very low cost to do plots this way.

I will say that making plots is almost as much fun as hunting. I don't even hunt my plots but damn sure enjoy making them. To me they are certainly worth some time and money invested.

I also rotate corn/soybeans and clover/cereal grains in hopes of not only reducing fertilizer costs, but also weed competition in my plots. I don't believe I could make a good stand of corn without adding a little nitrate along the way. I would love to give no till a try but i have yet to find a good, affordable no till drill. I enjoy making the plots as well, and believe me, I do invest time and money in them. But, I couldn't make a living at it, and respect and admire the hard working farmers who can.

I planted buckwheat this spring and used last fall’s wheat crop for fertilizer. The buckwheat should be a pretty good weed suppressor and “my” deer eat it pretty well. No gly, no fertilizer. We’ll see how that works.

You bring up a good point... I'm also selective and don't plant crops that are likely to fail without inputs (such as corn). I don't have a drill so when I said no-till it was misleading. I plant solely through Throw n Mow type methods.

I do regenerative technique as well. No fertilizer and rare Clethodium only. When the soil gets healthy with good worms, microbes and insects the soil pH also becomes less important. My best plot is rocky so never been tilled or drilled. I’ve spread 15-20 different seeds on it and it flourishes with a pH of 5.7.

We let a farmer plant now for free so we get the draw without the expense.

Can someone link anything for reading for "regenerative practices"?

Here ya go Bullbuster... High diversity, beneficial insects, no fert or chemicals, and a pile of worm castings right under that collard. This was cattle pasture infested with brome and fescue 6yrs ago. I've never broke ground on it once.

I've been planting brassica for 20 years. Unless I put down fertilizer, they do poorly.

Beautiful Catscratch.

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