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Food plot

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TrevorM:
Me and my two boys did a lot of work over the weekend seeing up or first plot. It's not totally clear but it was a good start. We seeded what we've cleared so it'll be interesting to see how it's doing when we go back.

Hawkdancer:
Good luck with the plot!  That boy could probably clean and jerk that log!
Hawkdancer

bjrogg:
That should let a little sunshine in. What type trees were living there? The old timers could tell a lot about what kind of land it was by what type of trees were growing on it. Around here they liked were the hardwoods grew for the best dirt. Needed some drainage though. The popul and birch weren't as productive but usually better drained. A lot of pine might need to check ph with soil test.

Just opening it up a little and letting some light in might already make it attractive to the wildlife. Spreading some clover or a food plot mix might really put you in the right spot.

Congratulations on your property. I'm so happy for you and your family. I wish you many generations of pleasure and respect for the environment. It's  great being a kid with some property to explore. It's even better being an adult with kids with property to explore.
Bjrogg
PS there might be someone at your county soil bank that can give you some very helpful advice about how to help create a really productive property for all types of wildlife. They have lots of ideas about how to remove or plant certain trees to create mini environments within a property.

TrevorM:
Thanks guys! Nearly all those trees were already very dead, as you can probably tell from my son carrying that log. In fact I just pushed most of them over.

All the dead trees were pine, and it seems the lower down part of the property is mostly pine too, but there are a lot of other types around too. Several very large oaks and quite a few I'm not sure about. We had rain on the forecast so I wanted to get some seed down so I got a deer mix from the local hardware store, it probably won't do too well but I figured it wouldn't hurt. I'll get a soil test for next years planting. What's a soil bank? I know there's a big co-op near by I thought I'd go in there and see what they think (if I can find it again).

As we were clearing I found a turkey feather so there's at least something around. I've got a few trail cams so hopefully I can get an idea of what's around.

Exploring sure is a lot of fun, we've probably only seen half so far, if that. Just got to watch out for the snakes and spiders.

Pat B:
It would be a good idea to get a soil test and let the testing agency know what you'll be planting, ie. food plot.
 Deer are browsers, they eat the local vegetation. Just liming and fertilizing the existing vegetation will draw deer. Adding a salt/mineral lick to your property can also be a draw, depending on where you like. Some places have natural salt/minerals so adding more is not necessary. And if you do add a salt lick do it away from the food plot.
 We very rarely hunted on a food plot but we hunted the trails leading to the food plot. And hunting over salt is considered hunting over bait in some areas and is illegal. Most states allow hunting near food plots because they are considered "proper agricultural practices" like hunting on a corn or bean field.

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