# Four Season Food Plot Pics from 5/28



## Jeff Sturgis (Mar 28, 2002)

This is a very exciting time of the year and my seven year quest to provide the most food, for the most months of the year, while peaking at the most critical times has come a long way and I'm happy to tell you about it and hopefully you too can experience the success it has brought to me.










All the plots start with a beginning like this. Sandy loam and soils in the low 4's to 5. This plot was cleared in early May, limed, and is now seeded with buckwheat followed by a good cultipacking.










This is an early fall picture of the grain and clover blend...this particular picture was on 10/4 at 6:37 pm, only 2 months and a day following the creation and liming of the plot in sandy loam soil and a ph in the mid-4's. It becomes a highly attractive, no-nonsense plot for hunting season while the clover and chicory is established. If conditions are just right..decent soil, moisture, etc., then I establish the entire blend the first late summer. You can be very successful by starting in the spring on your new plot, and your plot should be then ready to plant by late summer.










Generally the first fall planting consists of rye and oats, but occasionally if things are perfect the clover/chicory blend will be added to the rye and oats as well. This plot is now at the beginning of it's 2nd full year. The plot was planted in mid-August with oats/rye/clover-chicory, and then had 5 pounds per acre of the Mid-MI QDMA brassica mix cultipacked into the right 1/2 on May 19th, preceded a couple days by a Poast spraying on the rye. After 2 years of marginal results while frost-seeding brassica, I found cultipacking to be at least 10 times better for germination and can highly recommend it. Even just broadcasting works great during spring rains, and much better than frost seeding...where the brassicas are concerned. Because the clover was planted at a late enough time for grain(mid-August around here to Labor day in Lower MI), the clover was not allowed to grow too much, and the fall hunting season held an excellent hunting draw with the rye and oats. You can see the dead oats in the picture, as well as the dying rye, but the rye served a very useful purpose while giving the deer good green forage well before spring green-up occured and a few weeks before the clover exited winter dormancy. Without the rye, and only instead in clover, the plot would not have been able to provide much needed food in the cold months of November and December, or the first few weeks of spring after the deer return. I believe the rye gives the deer an additional 2-3 months of forage during the most critical months of the year in late fall and early spring. Brassica is great if it makes it that far, but I have not found anything other than the rye(or wheat) that will provide forage for the entire late fall through early spring. BUT the rye can be a hinderance for your clover during summer, so killing it when the clover perks in spring can be an option...but not a necessity. The oats are great too, and extremely important because they make up 50% of the forage during the hunting season, but die during the winter and do not offer competition to the establishment of the clover in the spring. Basically, by using rye AND oats in combination with a clover blend, you can get away with a full grain mix per acre even if herbecide is not used to kill the grass.










Because the base of the plantings(rye/oats/clover-chicory) takes place in the fall, adequate moisture is available for not only the grain, but for the effective establishment of clover for the following summer....even in sand. You get two very important moisture periods before entering a potential summer drought-fall, and then spring.










Once the field enters the spring, the rye begins to head out, and the clover is awake, you can then kill the rye, and plant brassica into the field. The field will not be too thick with clover because the clover was planted late in the year, and there will be a very good amount of soil exposed to be able to plant the brassica. A month earlier planting of clover in late summer will result in a clover field that is too thick to plant brassica into with noticable results, so planting timing is critical in late summer, but if you plant at the right time for rye and oats, you will be successful. The 4 leafed plants(actually 2) in the picture are the brassicas, and there are over 20 in the picture. You can also see the dead oats, and dying rye.










When your late summer planting approaches it's 1 year anniversary, it is a great time to kill the worst 1/2, and plant the same mix again( I do not plant the brassica in the spring on the 1/2 to be killed late summer). This is a picture of the old 1/2 of pure clover on the left(which also has occasional chicory plants in the field), and the new portion on the right with the brassica cultipacked into it.










When your plot rotation is established, each clover planting will be good for 2 years, with a great crop of brassica the 1st full year. With a crop rotation like this you will have a base of clover on the plots for the majority of the year but because of the rye and oats available at various months, the brassica, and the clover, your fields are about as diverse as can be with an emphasis on the most food, for the most months, and very little "down" time. Your brassica can grow with a clover and chicory base all year, while the other 1/2 is pure clover and chicory, killed, tilled and re-planted in the rye/oats/clover-chicory blend in late summer. 










With the crop rotation you will experience heavy clover on the older side in the spring, with chicory, with a light covering of clover/chicory/rye and dead oats on the other...with great soil exposure for planting the brassicas in the spring following the initial late summer planting. Again, if you planted that field on the right a month earlier the previous late summer, the clover would be too thick to get adequate brassica germination and growth. The 1/2 on the left will be killed in late summer this year, and re-planted with the same oats/rye/clover-chicory blend. Persistant weed problems can be dealt first with with spot spraying ealier in the year to target the worst areas, and then a 2nd time when the entire field is killed at least 10 days before the late summer planting.

Although it can look light, the 1/2 on the right will look exactly like the 1/2 on the left next spring...continuing the rotation and your four season food plot system.


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## Ferg (Dec 17, 2002)

No pics at least for me - and links are broken - 

great right up even without pics

ferg....


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## Jeff Sturgis (Mar 28, 2002)

Ferg,

Hope they are there now...can you see them?


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## Ferg (Dec 17, 2002)

NorthJeff said:


> Ferg,
> 
> Hope they are there now...can you see them?


Yea - thats better 

ferg....


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## bishs (Aug 30, 2000)

Great Pics!
Working the land and seeing your plots turn into green carpets, is as satisfying as hunting itself..


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## Jeff Sturgis (Mar 28, 2002)

bishs, Do you recognize any of those areas without the snow? Great spot to ambush some bunnies....that was a lot of fun and I'm hoping we can do it again sometime! 

You are right as well, it is at least as satisfying as the hunting, if not more.


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## brokenarrow (Oct 6, 2003)

Probably more !. I say that because I get to enjoy plotting for almost 8 months. Hearing fella's ask me what is that out there? WOW thats awesome! Had a guy pull in this spring asking what I had out there last fall! I think that is one of the best parts of doing this. Educating others around the area may pull some deer away from your plots but in the long run, the whole local herd may benifit and in time you may score a nice buck that was feeding all year in your neighbors fields. Sure throwing a pile of corn out there may bring "in" some deer and if your lucky maybe even in the legal hunting hours, but IMO your cheating yourself of the pleasure of knowing the animals are eating all year as healthy as they can and your also cheating the animals as soon as you take the corn away.
Thanks Jeff for your tutorial and slide show. Always thinking of new ideas and different rotations. I have a week coming up in Mid June that will be loaded with different chores to accomplish. Establishing the base for 2 little "side plots along 2 of my larger ones. Finishing my bean field and getting her planted. Maybe even will use up some of that round up in preperation for a small plot next spring. Pictures say a thousand words and get the excitement up a bit more than words, so thanks again for the pics Jeff.


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## David G Duncan (Mar 26, 2000)

NorthJeff,

Again my hat goes off to you! You are a gentleman and a scholar in my book. Keep up the great work related to developing a superior food plot system.

I especially enjoyed the photo of the deer. Boy are they nice and fat!

Thanks for sharing this "Four Seasons" approach with us.

I have tons of questions, but I will reframe from overdoing it and only ask the following: How often do you do soil testing to determine your lime and fertilizer applications to your food plots?


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## bishs (Aug 30, 2000)

yes, we will have to do it again, it was a great winter get-away! Those foodplots look great, the evergreen borders create a great looking contrast.


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## Jeff Sturgis (Mar 28, 2002)

Dave,
Ask away on the questions...no problem!

Initially, I took soils samples from several areas for new plots around the entire property. The results did vary a little, but in the end it was just about all the same....around 4 tons of lime per acre, with ph levels mostly in the mid 4's to 5 and very high fertalization amounts. After 2-3 years for most plots I was at a point where I thought for sure I would need more lime...had even arranged for a semi to bring me 10 tons, I received the results back from my soil samples...they were all 6.5 to 7.2! At the same time, most of the fertalizer recommendations went from 500-600#'s per acre down to 200-250#'s per acre. Needless to say I cancelled the lime shipment. That was 2 springs ago. Last year I added quite a bit in total acreage, so I had 15 tons of lime delivered. This year I had about 5 tons left, so I put out 1 ton per acre on the plots that I had the soil tests for 2 years ago, and will wait until next year for another round of tests on most likely every plot.

In a nutshell I go with 4 tons per acre, and wait 2 years to get a soil sample.


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## David G Duncan (Mar 26, 2000)

Jeff,

All three of my plots also started out in the 4-5 range. And like yours after about two years they also are all 6.4 or above.

The only issue so far that came back from my soil tests this year is that one of my plots is really high on phosphorus and I wondered if you had experienced anything similar?


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## BUTTERNUT40 (May 14, 2005)

NorthJeff, thanks for sharing. I'm new at this and spent a good deal of time clearing and working up a 1/4 acre hunting plot. I planted it two weeks ago and checked on it about 4 days after planting. Clover was popping up before my eyes and if one looked close you could see the green carpet coming in. I'm going to check on it this weekend.

I need to get some equipment for my 4 wheeler so I can do a acre spot next year. I'm going to round up 3 times this year and by next Spring I'll work it up.

Again, thanks for the photos and tips. Appreciated.


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## nky_bowhunter (May 31, 2005)

Butternut...If you haven't yet, check out Ed Spinazzola's book "Wildlife Food Plots Easy as 1-2-3". You will pick up some wonderful information and likely save some money and time in the process. I just got it the other day...can't attest to how well his methods work...but I certainly plan on finding out next year! Read it and you may decide not to buy the ATV equipment after all!


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## Jeff Sturgis (Mar 28, 2002)

"I'm going to round up 3 times this year and by next Spring I'll work it up."

Butternut 40,

Personally, I'd highly recommend planting that plot in the fall. Often, planting in the spring is not the best time of the year to plant and you really miss a golden opportunity on limited acreage by waiting until the next spring. I have never waited until spring to plant and have had great luck. In fact, one of the reasons that I have had such good luck is because most of my plots are planted in the fall. Less weed competition, moisture, and the ability to plant a combination fall attractant/perennial base all are great reasons to plant in the late summer/early fall.

Just something to think about, but although spring is "planting time" for gardens and even large farming operations, there are many benifits to the food-plotter for waiting to plant in the fall.


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## BUTTERNUT40 (May 14, 2005)

nky thanks for the title of the book. I will pick that one up.

Northjeff a Fall planting makes sense. Is late August/September the ideal time or do you wait until October?


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## Luv2hunteup (Mar 22, 2003)

Butternut

Here's a link on where to order Ed's book.

Ed's Food Plot 1,2,3 

Another good book is Craig and Neil Dougherty's book ""Grow 'Em Right"

Grow 'Em Right


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## Jeff Sturgis (Mar 28, 2002)

Butternut,

I plant mid-August up here in the U.P, if going with the grain/clover mix, and a couple weeks earlier if going with a brassica/clover mix. I would say that would be move to more like Labor Day in extreme southern MI.


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