Spring Planted Food Plots
Spring planted food plots can essentially be the heart of your year round food on your property. Many popular options include - clover, alfalfa, corn and soybeans. In this blog we will give a breakdown of each and how they can be beneficial to the wildlife that call your property home.
Clover is the most widely planted plot by hunters of all expertise levels in the country. Because of its ability to grow in a wide variety of soil conditions and durability from weather and forage makes clover a favorite among hunters and conservation enthusiasts. A cool thing about clover is that it does its own nitrogen fixation! In simple terms, the clover plant pulls the available nitrogen out of the air and absorbs it into the root system making it available later for other plants. Normally at the end of the life cycle of my clover plots I like to seed Brassicas in which use ALOT of nitrogen.
I typically like to plant a blend of Ladino Clover, Crimson Clover and Medium Red Clover in my mixes, this gives excellent diversity in the maturity levels of an established plot. For best results when planting, start with a clean weed free seed bed and broadcast or drill the clover to the prescribed rate in your mix.
Alfalfa is largely used for hay production in the Midwest, but if you have ever scouted deer in July and August and noticed an abundance of deer out in the green hay field in the evenings, more than likely that “hay field” has a good stand of alfalfa in it. Alfalfa has grown into my favorite spring planted food plot, not just because of the nutrition value, but its durability and drive to grow. Like clover, alfalfa prefers a good clean, compacted seed bed when planting and can be either broadcasted or drilled.
If someone paid me $1 for every time I heard corn is king in my life, I could probably buy half of Amazon. Corn is the staple crop in the Midwest and I would challenge you to drive 5 miles in any direction and not find a corn field, especially in Iowa and Illinois. Deer are extremely attracted to corn for three reasons, its nutrition value, the abundance of it, and the ability to hide in it. I shy away from planting corn on my own properties for two reasons - the cost of inputs and I am surrounded by it. Personally I don’t recommend corn plots smaller than 4 acres. The damage deer can do to it all the money invested in the spring and summer growing corn can be gone before your season even begins. If you hunt in the Midwest, more than likely there is a corn field within 1/2 mile of you anyway.
Soybeans are a favorite food source of mine if you can plant an adequate size plot and maintain damage control. Typically in late may soybeans can be picked up pretty cheap and sometimes free which is even better. They provide a great nutrient value for deer in the late fall and early winter. If you can maintain a stand of beans in December and January, that’s where I would be hunting.