re: Summer food plot advice

LINK /

Check this group out for ideas

quote:

---

I didn't do a great job of shooting does this year as it was pretty much just me hunting. We've killed as many as 10 does in a year on 290 acres and didn't see any decrease in numbers the following year. I plan on harvesting 8-10 does next year.

---

How is that going to solve your problem if it didn’t the last time?
I just don’t understand how that philosophy works. So what if you have bucks during the summertime? They will split up come October. Bucks are territorial and typically you don’t get a bunch of bucks living in one small area during the winter/breeding season. Only way I can see that working is if you have 290 acres of thick stuff and they bed on you for the most part and not your neighbors. Are you not planting cool season plots either? What is the difference if you are?

Best bet is to get your doe numbers down by killing them and convince your neighbors to do the same.

It’s best to do it in November, but it also works late winter. Fall discoing tends to produce about 70 percent return of forbs and legumes where late winter is closer to 60 percent.

We did it in 3 years ago in early may at my Dads place in southern Missouri. Ragweed, pokeweed and others grew very aggressively. The deer ate them just as aggressively.
I’ve been in discussions with a wildlife biologist with Mississippi Wildlife and Fisheries. His boss along with Dr Craig Harper are the ones who proved the percentages stated above.

Yes, vetch and soybeans produce more poundage per acre but they also cost quite a bit to plant and fertilizer properly. This method is free, minus fuel and time.

As for burning, it’s usually late summer from everything I’ve read and been told by the biologist. His recommendations are for me to burn in July. I’m going to start that this year in my old field areas.

quote:

---

As for burning, it’s usually late summer from everything I’ve read and been told by the biologist. His recommendations are for me to burn in July.

---

Is it not too dry to burn in late summer?

I burned my place last spring prior to anything greening up

My biologist says historical burn for my area in Mississippi is mid summer.

I’m primarily going to be burning old fields to help produce the quality food.

As far as too dry, it’s actually been too wet the last two summers. June/July in 2021 was 3-4 Rains per week and it was the same in July/August of 2022.

I’m taking advantage of the Mississippi burn Management certification class next month. I’ve done quite a few late winter burns in my life with family/friends, but I want to make sure I have all the proper training.

Do you have pine trees?

Look into hinge cutting instead. Create cover and plenty of browse.

quote:

---

much of it is not digestible.

---

Need a link backing that up.

While I don’t trust a thing the NDA says and don’t want to click that link for fear of benefitting them in some way, I do plan to plant some vetch for the first time this year.