The Best Food Plots
Posted By
Bill Winke
at
4/24/2009 12:00:00 AM
Filed under:
journal
Now is the time when everyone is thinking about food plots. I'm going to keep my advice simple, but I'm going to tell you a little secret. My best spots are small food plots isolated inside the timber. These aren't my best late season spots, often they get wiped out before winter sets in, but they are dynamite during the rut. The deer, and the bucks, stage in these small plots in the afternoons and these are the last places the bucks check before they bed down in the morning.
These small plots turn into hubs. You can see the trails all converge on these small plots from every direction. Bucks make scrapes all the way around the plot and whenever a buck is just out cruising anywhere in the area, he always seems to end up walking right down the middle of the plot just to see what is happening. They become the social focal point for all the deer in that area.
WHERE
I prefer to place these plots up on ridges in locations that I can get to easily without alerting deer. In other words, they end up being near roads where I can sneak in with ease. As long as the plot is surrounded by cover, the deer will use it even if it is fairly close to a road.
HOW BIG
Half an acre seems about right for these plots. Most times you can find or make a plot that big in the timber - a natural clearing or possibly you can use equipment to make an opening or make an existing one slightly bigger. I did a couple of short video pieces on the website last year depicting some of CAT's equipment performing these jobs. You can watch them here and here. The cool thing about CAT products is that you can go to a CAT Rental Store and rent everything you need for a week of work and it won't cost you a fortune. Go to CAT's Rental Store website where you can learn more about that cool program.
If you keep the plot rectangular or oval shaped, you should be able to shoot across it at any point and get a shot at nearly any bucks that enter the plot.
WHAT TO PLANT
I think you have only two options for these small plots: clover or brassicas such as turnips - or a combination of both the first year. Clover can take the heavy deer pressure that you will get in these small plots all summer and still have enough forage that it will still be attractive come fall. Use all the proper practices when setting up the plot, including a soil sample, proper lime and fertilizer and good clover seed. I prefer white clover because it is highly attractive to deer and has good protein and digestability levels.
THE PAYOFF
Even if you are just hunting on permission you can likely set up a small isolated plot back in the timber where you are sure to get lots of action. I love these spots; when the rut comes, they are my best locations. Now is the time to get out there and set up a couple of these honey holes for yourself.
