Aldeer.com Forums Alabama Deer Talk Quality Deer Management Turning the page.. Summer plots

Now that deer season is over, let's talk about summer plots. I like to hear what others are doing, etc.

What do you have planned?

I'm planting 5 acres of vetch/alyce clover for the first time. Open to suggestions on the best time to plant, how much to fertilize, etc. Also, was planning on 10lbs to the acre of each. Does that sound reasonable? Anything else you would throw in there with it?

Also bought a bag of spring/summer mix from Hancock Seed to try on an acre.

Considering T&M a 1,200 yd long strip of milo/millet along the timber edges for the birds, maybe a couple acres total.

I plant my summer plots in September.

We started planting Deer Magnet in the Fall because of the extended feeding it provides into the Summer. It has been working.

I have a great crop of various clovers and some chicory already present. I’m planning to plant sunn hemp, lablab and maybe some Milo into it in late May or early June. Or I might hold off on the sunn hemp until late July or August.

Yeah, I have 8 acres or so of various clovers as well that I will just let go until fall planting if the red and arrowleaf keep producing. My summer plots will be in addition to the clover. I’m anxious to see how the vetch does on my soils

Where I'm at I'm gonna try to plant some sunflowers and iron clay peas about the end of may or beginning of June.

It’s all about August and September. That’s the biggest nutrition hole in an Alabama whitetail’s year. I also let a few fields of WMS deer magnet go until fall planting, but neither that nor the dedicated durana plots really perform in late summer. And though its valuable to the mix, the magnet doesn’t have enough red and chicory to really fill in.

Cowpeas, kudzu, and deer vetch shine in those two important months.

Other than food, I’m going to play with short sorghum and tall Egyptian wheat screenings this year for the first time.

You'll think you've wasted your time and money with the vetch, and then about when you've given up on it, boom, its coming on strong when its most needed and will go until frost. Because it handles browse pressure so well, i spread out smaller acreage plantings across the property.

That’s true TTown.
I plant jointvetch and Alyceclover together in May every year as long as I can get both of them. The Alyceclover seems to do better in sandy areas while the jointvetch does better in the clay but they do great together. Fertilize with 0-20-20. May have to spray with Clethodim for grass or butyrac for broadleafs. Starts slow but then it takes off and never slows down no matter how dry it gets. 20# per acre is good.

I'm spraying my WMS Deer Magnet plots this weekend to terminate grasses and boost clovers etc.

Does this work? Keep us updated with your results

I'm doing the same to my clover/3-way grain plots on Saturday. Most of my wheat has been browsed down to not much of an issue, but I do have a rye grass problem that I need to start working on.