Outdoor Logic with BioLogic: "Ice Cream" Crops for Hunting Plots

BY TODD AMENRUD

Fall Planting Options for Whitetails

Throughout the country, traditional planting times for most crops coincide with when there is ample topsoil moisture available. The soil normally holds enough moisture during the spring from snowmelt in addition to those “April showers.” Then again, moisture returns during the late summer or fall when the sun’s angle to the earth subsides, allowing the moisture from any late summer thunderstorms to stay in the topsoil long enough to germinate the seeds and facilitate the new seedlings through lag phase and into plants our whitetails will relish.

Some of the most attractive crops are planted during the spring, but majorities of those “candy crops” are traditionally planted during the late summer (in the north) or fall (in the south). In Minnesota, you may be planting as early as July to as late as the first couple of days in September. On the other extreme, in Mississippi or Alabama, you may be planting as late as November. Picking a crop that is most attractive for when you want to hunt is a key to getting the most from your hunting plots.

Whitetail managers are lucky in that many of the most attractive plantings end up also being some of the most nutritious. Timing and placement dictate when and how they will be used from north to south. Some plants can be used for specific missions while others cover a wide array of benefits.

Some of the most attractive crops are planted during the spring. For instance, perennials such as red and white clovers, alfalfa, birdsfoot trefoil and chicory are very attractive and very nutritious at times during the fall. And soybeans are relished for their forage during the summer months and then for their fruit during late hunting season.

Corn is also planted during the spring or early summer and every hunter knows how attractive it can be to whitetails at times. When cold temperatures come, they’ll be in the corn or brassicas. In fact, if you live where you have deep snow, those may be your only two reliable, accessible food plot choices.

Annual legumes such as soybeans, iron & clay peas or lablab are great summertime nutrition, but only the dried beans are really an option after a frost has occurred and your beans are dead and brown. If you concentrate on the crop for the earliest part of the bow season before a frost, they can hold some great attraction power. But these annual legumes are very vulnerable to cold temperatures. When planted for whitetails, most choose to plant these for the green leaf forage production for summertime nutrition, but as mentioned, the dried soybeans left on the stalk can also be a great late season magnet.

Variety is a key to consistency, so available food plot acreage is a major concern. With small plots, since you can’t “do it all,” you must adopt a targeted approach. With little fields, you’ll want your crop to be at the peak of its attraction when you plan on hunting it. If the plot allows the space for variety, by all means, I’m going to give it to them. If I have the space available I like to present an attractive, palatable food choice that will keep them coming from before opening day until the season ends or until the food runs out.

When designing a hunting plot, knowing when plants are favored and how they should be utilized is important. Following are a few choices that are planted during the late summer/fall planting season, when they are typically planted and when they are normally attractive to whitetails. Please keep in mind that different herds may respond to various types of plants uniquely. Because of deficiencies in native vegetation or certain plants missing from your overall food plot program, plants that would normally be palatable to whitetails during a certain stage of growth, or other plant types when weather events turn the plants to their most palatable stage, may be eaten at times other than their traditionally most attractive timeframe. Below are the norms for some of my favorite late summer/fall plantings.

Most often, it will take cold temperatures to change the brassicas’ high levels of starch to sugars; then they become the most attractive. A “browse-cage” will teach you the potential of your plants (inside) and what your herd is consuming (outside). (Photo Credit: Todd Amenrud)

WINTER PEAS

These succulent annual legumes are like “ice cream” to whitetails. They are palatable right away after germination and typically devoured as fast as they grow. Because of this, you have a couple options; you can plant enough acreage to overwhelm the amount of “mouths” you have to feed or protect what you plant with electric fencing, P2 Plot Protector or some type of deer-proof barrier. Then, when you choose to “ring the dinner bell,” simply open the plot up to your herd. Or, plant smaller amounts and just understand that the crop will likely be eaten fast and furious, and just make sure you are there when the carnage is occurring.

Winter peas are planted as soon as early August in the far north to as late as early October in the south. They are normally planted ¼-inch deep at approximately 40 lbs. per acre and will grow in all soil types as long as the site receives adequate rainfall. They like the sun, but can be grown in partial sun, to as little as six hours per day. Nutritional content will vary depending upon the stage of growth, but will average around 25% protein.

Winter peas are normally used for early season attraction and, because of the poor yield in relation to other crops, one of the best tactics is to fence off half your devoted acreage with P2 Plot Protector. The reason for protecting only half your crop is because it is much easier to protect one-half if you give them the other portion. A hungry whitetail is hard to deter and if you cut them off completely they will almost certainly breach your defense. If you do choose to protect the entire crop, keep a close eye on it and mend and bolster any breaches in the ribbon as soon as they are found. Once one whitetail finds the way in, it’s like opening the floodgate, so I usually use two offset strands of P2 ribbon right from the get-go, and I always leave a bit of the crop outside of the fenced-off area to satisfy their appetite.

CEREAL GRAINS

It is said that lablab was originally brought into the United States from Australia. Wherever it came from, there’s no doubt it was made famous for whitetail management in Texas. There, researchers showed that lablab improved antler size, body weight and herd density, but it was proven to do all of this under some of the harshest growing conditions in the country … as I said, it’s Texas. A downfall is that just like other annual legumes that are susceptible to browse pressure, lablab seems to be doubly so. Lablab is not the best choice for small, unprotected mono-plots – it should be planted in large plots or protected with fencing and/or repellents.

Because lablab is a legume, it can be successfully grown anywhere that soybeans and peas will grow. It is very drought tolerant once established, but does not grow well in wet soils. It should be planted during the spring when soybeans are being planted in your area or once the soil temperature reaches 65 F or higher.

Whitetails are strongly attracted to lablab’s large, succulent leaves and you should expect utilization shortly after germination. It should produce about four tons of forage per acre at about 25% protein and is very digestible. It has a calcium-to-phosphorus ratio of two to one making it an especially good choice for antler growth. It is very tolerant of browsing once established, but it is vulnerable to browse pressure for the first 30 days of growth. As mentioned, in small plots, it’s wise to protect it with P2 Plot Protector for the first month if you anticipate browsing pressure.

As said, lablab is extremely drought tolerant and likes the heat, but will be finished at the first hint of a frost. Once it makes it to the point of starting to vine (about three to four weeks after germinating), it becomes very vigorous. It’s resistant to insects and disease, grows well even in rough or acidic soil and produces an incredible amount of forage.

Cereal grains (Trophy Oats in the foreground) are very attractive to whitetails during the hunting season. Notice the variety in this hunting plot – cereal grains, brassicas and corn in the background. (Photo Credit: Todd Amenrud)

BRASSICAS/ BEETS

Brassicas could simply be the best deer food God has ever created. They have the best protein content, most digestible nutrients and best yield out of any food plot crop that I know of. They are typically used for late season attraction or wintertime nutrition because of cold temperatures transforming the plant’s high levels of starch to sugar. But be prepared to experience the possibility of several scenarios if you’ve never planted them before.

Deer may react differently to brassicas in different areas. Normally they don’t hit them hard until after a hard freeze or several frosts have occurred. However, the first time you plant them, since you’re introducing a new plant to the area, it may take you a while to battle a learning curve and for them to learn of it.

They also tend to react differently to this plant in various types of habitat. In a “big woods” scenario, where there isn’t a lot of agriculture around, they might eat it as fast as it comes out of the ground.

In an agricultural area, typically they will leave this plant alone until several frosts have come or you have a freeze. This, to me as a land manager, is good because it allows me to gain tonnage. With bigger plants ,I can feed more deer for a longer time when they do become most attractive.

If your property is in an area that does not get cold enough temperatures to trigger a significant response, don’t devote vast acreage to brassicas until you see your herd turn-on to them. If you live in an area where you get cold temperatures during the hunting season, I’ve never seen a better magnet for deer.

Brassicas include many different plant types that whitetails will devour – rape, canola, turnips and radishes are some of my favorites. My favorite blends are Maximum, Winter Bulbs & Sugar Beets and Deer-RAD- ISH. Just like cereal grains, brassicas are also great plants to include in a blend. Perfect Plot, Premium Perennial (brassicas mixed with perennials), Full Draw, Green Patch Plus and Last Bite (brassicas blended with other annuals) are all blends I recommend.

Beets can also be lumped in with brassicas, but they are not actually a brassica. The sugar beet added to Winter Bulbs & Sugar Beets extends the palatability duration of the mix significantly. Whitetails relish these just as well as brassicas.

These small tiny seeds create some amazing yield. Because the seeds are so small a planting depth of ¼ inch or less is recommended. Ideally, the seeds would be broadcast on a firm seedbed and then rolled over with a cultipacker. They also produce excellent stands when planted through a drill. They can also be broadcast on a prepared seedbed prior to a rain or frost seeded in certain areas. Heck, these seeds are so hardy I’ll have brassicas growing in the cracks of my driveway if I have an accidental spill.

Brassicas are very versatile when it comes to planting times. Traditionally they are planted during the late summer or fall, but they can be planted earlier during the spring in the far north. It is not recommended to plant them earlier anywhere but the upper tier of U.S. states and Canada. Because of the longer growing season here further south, the plants will likely bolt to flower and seed, something you DO NOT want. You don’t want your plants to use their energy to produce flowers and seeds – you want the plant’s energy to stay contained in the leaves to be transferred into antler and energy for your herd.

The best planting times would be late July or early August in the north to September in the south. Even with late summer/fall planted brassicas, yields from 12 to 20 tons per acre are common.

These seeds are normally planted at around 9 pounds per acre and the plants will grow well in any soil type if adequate soil moisture is present. They will work in a no-till preparation and in less than full sun (at least six hours per day). They can also do well in below neutral pH. In my view, they are the ideal food plot crop.

I always preach versatility in a food plot program, but it is important to understand when and how each individual planting should be made use of. In my view, it is best to plant a combination of spring plantings and late summer plantings. In the south, most of the “menu” is planted during the late summer or fall, but a combination of annuals and perennials will also be your best bet under most conditions.

Brassicas such as turnips and these radishes are notorious for producing large root-bulbs; however, not all brassicas produce root bulbs. The yield and protein content is much higher in the greens than the root bulbs, but some food plotters love to have the root bulbs because whitetails love them, too. (Photo Credit: Jesse Raley)