Aldeer.com Forums Alabama Deer Talk Serious Deer Talk Forum Food plot help

I have a several acre foodplot in lower Alabama and I want to break it up by plating rows of something tall so the deer have to move around to see everything. Suggestions on what to plant? Winter crop and I don't have a row planter. Thanks in advance.

There are no winter annuals that I know of that will provide the structure you want. Egyptian wheat or sorghum Sudan planted late spring for next years plots. You can broadcast it but don’t sow too heavy. You want heavier stalks so it doesn’t lodge.

Plant some cane.

I am planting this next summer around my food plot. Has good reviews from people that planted this.

WMS has a good mix too.

Not well known but the best I have used is Teosinte I got from Petchers. Easy to grow and mine came back for several years after I planted it

I’ve done something similar to this before and come to the conclusion that deer would rather have it be one open field…..They’re prey species that like to be able to see around them when feeding with their heads down.....Just my .02

I think I’d just let it grow wild in the off season. Maybe do a few wide passes with sunn hemp and let it grow up. We tried it one year on a plot and the deer and hogs only ate one small corner. The rest was 9 feet tall in September.

While deer are prey species and they do like to be able to see, they do not like to see deer from outside their family group. It adds anxiety to their feeding. The secret is to create spaces big enough for them to feed but open enough for them to feel secure.

The Egyptian wheat and sorghum need to be planted early as mentioned.

Be careful with cane because it can get to a point where it’s hard to control.

Of course, deer will eat just fine in a big open pasture or plot. We’ve all seen it and it’s worked for years. My first statement is from my own observations, as well as discussions with others around creating the “most” attractive space. This is especially true for doe groups. Bucks will visit covered areas more liberally in daylight also. Not just the rut.

I do that on one plot. I just let those areas go to briars. With the briar patches and a screen of Egyptian wheat, I occasionally see beds in the clover during deer season.

It's kind of a problem in that I still have to spray in amongst it for coffee weed. Otherwise the coffee weed will creep in.
I'm thinking of converting it to blackberry since I'm having to work on it anyway.

To each his own......I'd rather have the space planted in more cereal grain......The only buffer strips I do is around the perimeter now

Egyptian wheat will work. Have a good bushhog when it time to cut it.

Good input. Thank you everyone.

Just leave strips between your planted fields. 10 feet wide and knee-high grass or weeds strips will be fine to let different family groups have their own field. I have been planting this way for years and if the weeds are higher that's great but if not don't worry about it. If you need a screen to get in and out of your stand then Egyptian wheat or sun hemp planted in the summer is fine. You can also broadcast crimson clover in the weeds so the deer will feed in late January.