Hunters Journey Magazine

          When I mention the word food plot, what comes to mind? How about a 20-30 acre piece of land with a big pine plantation surrounding it? Well it would be nice if everyone had the luxury of that scenario but let’s be honest, living in Central Minnesota, if I can get 2-3 acres of tillable land that isn’t already spoken for with beans or corn, I feel pretty lucky.

          We are hunting in primarily stands of timber and other hardwoods. Our deer primarily rely on 3 types of food in our area.

1.    Surrounding Agriculture

2.    Acorns

3.    Browse

Let’s assume that we all understand the hunting strategy of feed to bed and bed to feed. We need to pattern our deer and figure out throughout the different times of the year what food source our herd is using. Why not plant the right food for the deer, so you know what they are going to be eating? I am not saying that if you have a 100 acre corn field 50 yards from your plot, you can change their patterns, what I am saying is if you plant your plot in the right area, you can get those deer to visit your food source before they leave the woods to feed.

          I recently had the pleasure of talking to Todd Stittleburg owner of Antler King Trophy Products Inc. He had some very good insight on how to look at your hunting property. When they are planting plots they try to put at least 5% of their parcel into food plots. They would rather have 10% but they realize that sometimes that is just not possible. They feel that if you can give your deer enough food to survive on and not run out then they have no reason to leave. Makes pretty good sense to me.

          Walking into a store nowadays you can be overwhelmed with all of the types of seed. Do some research and know what you are looking for. Think of it as a balancing act. Split your property up 60/40. Sixty percent     of your plots should be for development using Trophy Clover or Mini Max. This will give the deer the high protein source they need in the spring and summer going into fall. The 40 percent should be for recovery after the rut. This is the time of year the deer now need to have some serious weight gain. One good way to put the pounds back on, just like a wrestler after cutting weight for 3 months, eat a ton of high energy foods. In this case that would be Honey Hole, Red Zone, and Fall, Winter, and Spring Food Plot Blend. One last tip that Todd highly recommends is testing your PH level. It is very easy and also very inexpensive but if you do not do it you can waste a lot of time and money on a food plot that just won’t grow. You can purchase PH testers at just about any sporting goods store now days. Antler King supplies PH testers in several of their kits.

You can increase your odds by planting food plots. And by using all of the above mentioned information no matter how big your acreage, I myself have had great success by planting plots in the timber. I find natural “open areas” in the woods. Now these areas may be ½ acre chunks or they may be just a couple hundred square feet. I am a firm believer if you plant them where the deer want to be, it increases your odds ten fold. Be selective, look at the trees around you to determine whether or not you will be able to hang a stand. If you are going to hunt on the ground create a brush pile and use it to your advantage by putting your blind in the brush. If you are questionable about a spot due to low sunlight check it out in mid summer. If there is underbrush and weeds growing then you can definitely get a shaded type of seed mix. Mini Max is very good for growing on old logging roads and in the shaded timber. Don’t forget, planting food plots can be a fun thing for the whole family, I work on my plots mainly in late fall and if I have brush piles to get rid of I’ll wait for a nice warm day with snow on the ground so I can have a little bon fire. Also, keep in mind deer are not the only critter that will be using your plots. Turkeys love a nice green smorgasbord of food come spring time.

          There are a ton of different tips and tactics for food plots. These are just some of the things that I have seen over the last few years out in the field that I feel work very well. Thanks again to Todd at Antler King. If you have any questions about their product feel free to check them out at www.antlerking.com .