Plot and Feeder questions

[Telum Pisces]

Ok, this is the first year I've been a part of a club where I have to take care of my own section/plot etc... I have a few feeders out, but i've been running them to put out just a small amount of feed just to keep the deer interested in my spots. When do most in NWFL start really feeding for deer? What time of day do y'all set your feeders to run? Do you run them once or twice a day?

Also, when do y'all plant your fall plot? And what is your favorite thing to plant if all you have is one plot?

It's been public land or a club where everything is taken care of up to this point in my short hunting career. This stuff is all new to me.

 

[FrankT]

Any premium seed mix will work but I like going to a local feed and seed store and using their mix for my local area, we start prepping, tilling and then planting in Oct, all depends on the weather and projected rain.

I really corn for hogs not deer but I set my feeders at 6AM and 5PM, then adjust the times for DST, I am cheap and set the sling time for 5 sec. but then I have roll barrels and troughs w other feed.

 

[Fishinspot]

Frank,
Which feed and seed do you use? My camp is north of Defuniak. I ordered a mix from south Fl. Last year and did ok but looking for a local mix this year. I'd like to get some seed on the plots now and then around October.

Thanks,

Doug

 

[FrankT]

I use Harris Feed and seed in vernon, they seem to be in tune w what grows where.

 

[Telum Pisces]

Thanks for the info Frank. I'm cheap too and have only been running my feeders for 3-4 seconds recently. I was going to start feeding more soon. Just have to find that balance of cheapness in me and what I think will hold and bring the deer in.

 

[FrankT]

I did find after the hours of sitting in my stand last year the deer would browse the plot and not touch the corn, then the hogs would come in to clean up the corn first the browse. So my corn is for the hogs, protein feed, plots and mineral blocks are for the deer. LOL

 

[SAWMAN]

To answer your question as to ..."what time do ya'll plant." I would first have to ask....will your plot be hunted during the bow season ?? --- SAWMAN

 

[Telum Pisces]

To answer your question as to ..."what time do ya'll plant." I would first have to ask....will your plot be hunted during the bow season ?? --- SAWMAN

Yes I will be bow hunting. But I will not be bow hunting the plot area probably since there are no climbable trees around my plot. I plan to bait up a different area to bow hunt some trails/areas leading to my plot area I think. I have a shooting house set up on the plot area. But, the area behind the plot is where I plan to bow hunt.

 

[SAWMAN]

Reason for asking is that, if you plan to bow hunt the plot, and you want it to produce vegitation,you will need to plant it 2-3 weeks before the opening day. Also......if you plan to plant the plot,do not have a feeder on the actual plot. The deer will stomp the plot to get to the feeder and kill a big part of the plot. Carefully consider the "normal" wind direction,the sunset,sunrise,and even the moonrise for hunting hogs. Also how you will get to the area/plot and how you will leave. Use peanut butter to get 'em started also.

No climbable trees....consider a tri-pod.

I could go on an on.....however......invite me out to your club one day and I will share my thoughts on getting set up. I am by no means an expert in this....however....I do have some expierance. OR...you could come over to my club to take a look at my setup. --- SAWMAN

 

[abailey]

My feeders run year round, 2 times a day for 6-7 seconds on medium. My summer plots I try to plant end of may, first of June depending on the weather. Fall plots go in sometime in September, this again revolves around when we have rain forecasted. I slacked on the summer plot this year and just planted clay peas 3 weeks ago and they were about 8 inches high last weekend thanks to all the rain.

We have tried the premixes before and I didn't care for them. Too much rye grass and oats in them. We started mixing our own 2 years ago with much better results that we will continue to adjust depending on how well certain plants grow in our area.

 

[Ben Ghazi]

are you trophy hunting?
my experience has been this.
I went whole hog into the food plot and multi feeder / mineral / salt / molasses block thing the first year I bought my hunting land. it was fun , I did a lot of work , bought a lot of equipment including a 4.6' tiller that does a great job [ now for sale but i have never listed it ] . had the soil samples done , bought lime and fertilizer plus the best of food plot seeds and really had a great time. I could count as may as 28 deer at one time but only need 3 a year to feed my family and the dogs get the scraps.
SOOO long story short , I just have one feeder now and only start it up during Bow season and generally harvest my 3 deer within the first 30 minutes of any hunt without all that trouble expense and work.
I was planting around opening day of bow season so the plot would still be so-so during the rut. JMO
do not trophy hunt and harvest 3 young tender tasty spikes each year with ease and add them to mushroom gravey

 

[FrankT]

TP, if you are trophy hunting or for that matter not...lol A climber or ladder stand in the woods on trails/crossings/rubs maybe a feeder maybe just deer attractant on the ground will get you that big buck. My deer do not come on my plots except at night especially the big boys during season. I am sorta plotting for the fun of it and the health of the deer, really not sure it does any good like the previous post.

 

[JohnAL]

Yeah, I have plenty of deer in my back yard but they prefer the graveyard shift. I almost never get a daylight picture and when I do it is always a doe or two. This was about 60 yds. behind my house.

 

[DrifterFisher]

JohnAL that is what 60yds behind,to the sides,and to the front of my place looks like...

 

[JohnAL]

that is much better than neighbors

 

[Telum Pisces]

I am not a trophy hunter by any means. But that does not mean I don't like the chance at a big one. I just like to eat the tasty critter more than anything.

A big part of my section of the woods is very, very, very thick hardwoods and underbrush. You can barely push your way through. I honestly think that the big deer stay in this thick stuff and hardly ever come out. Plenty of food back in there for them. But my plot does meet up with this thick stuff though. I am thinking about trying to cut a small trail into this thick stuff and clear out a small bow hunting spot. It's just going to take a lot of work by hand to get it done.

 

[Telum Pisces]

TP, if you are trophy hunting or for that matter not...lol A climber or ladder stand in the woods on trails/crossings/rubs maybe a feeder maybe just deer attractant on the ground will get you that big buck. My deer do not come on my plots except at night especially the big boys during season. I am sorta plotting for the fun of it and the health of the deer, really not sure it does any good like the previous post.

And that was another theory I had. Everyone always goes into the plot thing and I hardly have ever seen a deer around these parts just eat on a plot in daylight hrs. I'm in it to kill and eat the darn critters. And I am thinking that maybe just some baits and attractants will get it done without the need for a plot. Hmmmmm.

 

[FrankT]

you know back in the woods and a bucket feeder along a trail or crossing, the deer will feel much safer. Put a cam, ladder stand and feed down, go in a week to check and make sure the feeder is full and what is on the cam, don't go back till you need corn just before season, be scent free..

 

[FrankT]

Lots of time you might find a clearing already in the thick, follow the trails and see.

 

[JohnAL]

you know back in the woods and a bucket feeder along a trail or crossing, the deer will feel much safer. Put a cam, ladder stand and feed down, go in a week to check and make sure the feeder is full and what is on the cam, don't go back till you need corn just before season, be scent free..

Yep. Go checking the cam every day and stinking the place up will just drive them away. Deer are also easily trained to be nocturnal so you never get a daylight shot.

I live really close to 11,000 acres of paper company timber but I seldom see deer in my yard until about a month before deer season. I'm convinced it's everyone tromping around in the woods and driving them out into non-preferred areas. Too many dogs and people to deal with in the populated areas on a normal basis but they come here when the hunters are in the woods.