Wild Thing
5 year old buck +
Enjoyed seeing Natty Bumppo and Prof Kent's threads on creating their food plots from scratch and thought I would contribute one that I have done, albeit on a little larger scale. All of our 160 acres was completely wooded when we purchased the property, so if we wanted a food plot we had to begin by logging off the timber. The proceeds from the timber sales (we've had 3 now) have all more than covered the cost of creating the food plots but it is still a fairly expensive endeavor if you don't own your own equipment.
Here are some before and after pics to give you an idea of what can be done after logging. This particular area had low value scrub timber along with some areas of Balsam Fir and White Spruce which was infested with spruce budworm disease. I decided it would make a nice "horseshoe" shaped food plot of about 3.5 acres with a little knob of higher ground in the center of it which could be turned into a bedding area.
Here is what it looked like at the end of the timber harvest after it was logged:
Tops have all been chipped and it is time to start excavating out the stumps and rocks:
There is no shortage of rocks around here but we do have good soils once you pick the rocks out. Obviously, this was the most laborious part of the project:
It didn't happen overnight but after picking out the rocks and wood, cultivating the soil and getting it somewhat level, I spread several tons of ag-lime per the soil test and had it ready to seed:
This is part of 3.5 acres of corn which my deer fed on until it ran out in mid February:
I have since planted a number of other crops in this field including, soybeans, brassicas, sugar beets and cereal grains. I have also planted about 75-80 oak trees around the outside perimeter of the plot and will be adding crabapples and maybe some full sized apple trees as well this year. The outside of the plot is mostly planted with a ring of perennial clovers.
Sometimes I wished that I was starting with a clean slate of ag land to begin with....but on the other hand it is probably faster to get where you are going if you have the mature timber to start with...Either way it is a "labor of love". If you don't have the commitment to stay with it you probably shouldn't even start. And I'm sure that Natty Bumppo and Prof Kent will agree that there is a great deal of satisfaction in sitting back when it is done and looking at what you have created. Being a good steward of the land does have its rewards.
Here are some before and after pics to give you an idea of what can be done after logging. This particular area had low value scrub timber along with some areas of Balsam Fir and White Spruce which was infested with spruce budworm disease. I decided it would make a nice "horseshoe" shaped food plot of about 3.5 acres with a little knob of higher ground in the center of it which could be turned into a bedding area.
Here is what it looked like at the end of the timber harvest after it was logged:
Tops have all been chipped and it is time to start excavating out the stumps and rocks:
There is no shortage of rocks around here but we do have good soils once you pick the rocks out. Obviously, this was the most laborious part of the project:
It didn't happen overnight but after picking out the rocks and wood, cultivating the soil and getting it somewhat level, I spread several tons of ag-lime per the soil test and had it ready to seed:
This is part of 3.5 acres of corn which my deer fed on until it ran out in mid February:
I have since planted a number of other crops in this field including, soybeans, brassicas, sugar beets and cereal grains. I have also planted about 75-80 oak trees around the outside perimeter of the plot and will be adding crabapples and maybe some full sized apple trees as well this year. The outside of the plot is mostly planted with a ring of perennial clovers.
Here are a few more pics of my woods turned food plot.
Sugar beets surrounded by corn:
Here is a Google Earth Map of our property. This particular plot highlighted above is the larger "Boomerang" or horse shoe shaped plot at the south end of the property but all of the plots you see were created in the same manner by first logging it off.Sometimes I wished that I was starting with a clean slate of ag land to begin with....but on the other hand it is probably faster to get where you are going if you have the mature timber to start with...Either way it is a "labor of love". If you don't have the commitment to stay with it you probably shouldn't even start. And I'm sure that Natty Bumppo and Prof Kent will agree that there is a great deal of satisfaction in sitting back when it is done and looking at what you have created. Being a good steward of the land does have its rewards.
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