2015 FOOD PLOT'S

I bought a bag of seed at Rural King the other day. It's that throw and grow no till mix with clover and some other stuff mixed in. I'm planning to take a rake and clean off a good stretch of my main road on top of the ridge in front of my best stand. It gets pretty good light. It will only be about 15 ft wide but I'll make it about 100 yards long with the stand at the "50 yard line". Anyone have any experience with that type of seed? Does that sound like it will work if I scratch the ground up pretty good?

Woody, I've planted Eagle soybeans before and they have done well, a lot better than regular crop soybeans. But, you have to find a local dealer - as far as I know, they don't ship direct.

I would agree with some of steinys comments, but disagree with part of it. Personally I do not use eagle beans in my food plots. As steiny mentioned, unless your deer density is ridiculously high there is no measurable benefit to the higher cost of them compared to regular ag beans. I plant a late maturing(group 5) bean in my plots most of the time. If you can't get them in till late in the year, go with an early maturing bean( group 1-2)..yields will be less, but better than not having pod production in time for hunting season.
As far as "buck on the bag" seeds.....yes there are a lot of them that use fillers, and yes a lot of it is the very same seed as what you can get from a co-op. However, not all of the food plot seed companies are that way. There are an elite few that really do a lot of research on their seed. There are plants that have been specifically developed for food plots that take into account palatability, attractiveness, yield, cold/drought tolerance, even the region of the country it is planted in. The worst thing you can think is that all seeds are the same. All clover seeds are not equal, neither are all turnips, oats, chicories, etc....different varieties have different traits. They may look very similar to us humans, but deer can tell a difference. Will deer eat any seed you put in the ground? Probably...but that doesn't mean they would prefer it if given a better option. Deer will eat fescue if nothing else is available. If no one else around you is planting food plots, you probably will have success using generic co-op seed. I hunt in an area where there are lots of guys managing the habitat. In order for me to be successful, my food has to be more attractive than the neighbors food. If my neighbor and I both plant brassica plots, I need to give the deer a reason to pick mine over his. I do that by using premium seeds specially selected (or developed) for deer. I have tested this on multiple occasions on my own land with side by side comparisons. I'm just pointing this out so as to encourage people to not write off "buck on the bag" seeds as a whole without doing some comparison

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I would agree...where the seed was produced makes a difference. Whitetail institute for example, has regional blends. What you buy here will be different than what you would buy in the southeast. They have seed production facilities all over the country for that exact reason. Fillers are a big problem for me as well. What perturbs me even more is that in addition to using "inert matter" fillers, lots of companies use annual ryegrass as a large component of their blend. Ryegrass is nothing but a filler IMO. The advice to read the guaranteed analysis tag is spot on.

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I planted RR Eagle beans a couple years ago in a 1 acre plot , the deer over browsed the plot so it never did reach full maturity. , spent a lot of $$ on seed & round up for a plot that farmers have planted all around me . I now buy seed to create my own blends for summer & fall annuals with a couple acres that stay clovers & chicory. As far as seed with Buck on the bag or any thing you plant for wildlife is not wasted efforts ! I still read & learn on wildlife plots & projects so I can improve my land . Good luck to all this season!

Getting out the kubota tomorrow and tilling the plots on my buddies new farm. Got some biggins on cams already.

Yeah. Looked at what I got after reading the thread here and sure enough almost all ryegrass. I plan on stopping a couple places on the drive down to my place to see if I can get some clover or chickory seed to put down, but thought it over and will plant what I got even if not.

I figure something is better than nothing and at the very least will be good planting practice. I'm on call every other weekend so my opportunities are limited and running out of time for this year. Live and learn I guess. Also, courtesy of the posters here (have I mentioned I really like this forum?), I've got some places I can get better seed for next year.

Yeah. I thought about holding off a bit until I get something better, but I figure give it a try. Work may get crazy here for me so end of the month could be too busy for putting a plot in.

I'm also still just learning so better to experiment with grass than the pricey stuff. Trying to take the long view. Even if it doesn't pan out this year, do better next year.

As far as the forum, everyone has been very nice and helpful. Almost can't believe it's the Internet.

Anyway, goodnight all. Gotta get some rest for tomorrow.

Do you see any problem with or recommend mixing the mostly rye seed with the other?   I have a gentle slope, but no real erosion problems.  I did kill a few moles and one snake, well the lawn mower did.

I think one of the little cheap bags had like 60% and one had 80% rye.   They are very small bags, but say they cover 1/4 acre. If seeding grass it might cover 30sq feet.