Catscratch
5 year old buck +
Prefer less stubble, but it is what it is... a mosaic of dove heaven.
Dove Plot - Soon to be Food Plot
- Thread starter Kdog
- Start date
What did you have planted for doves?
I just got done bush hogging my fields. Combo millet and sunflowers in field straight ahead, the far field on top the hill pure millet, field to the far left pure sunflowers.
I don't think mine would have looked that good had I tried. Based on the weather, it should be ready to burn Wednesday or Thursday, but I can't get up there until Friday at the earliest.
Catscratch
5 year old buck +
Love what you've got going on! We've tried sunflowers and millet with no luck. I'm a little envious.
It's my dad's plot; wheat and weeds.
Bale it in August.
Burn stubble and hunt doves.
Replant.
Hunt deer on it.
Graze cattle on it Jan/Feb.
Use hay from it to feed cows rest of winter.
Repeat. That little field provides countless dove and deer hunts every yr, and feed the cattle with both green grazing and hay all winter.
Cool Hand Luke
5 year old buck +
I'm not up to speed on Dove plots. Anyone care to give me the rundown? I figured you just plant something like sunflowers and leave them standing indefinitely?
Catscratch
5 year old buck +
Doves love bare dirt with seeds on it. Burns after bushhogging give you that. But I have had some hellatious hunts in both standing sunflowers and standing milo. Dove hunting is one the best days out i can imagine. Absolutely love it!
Cool Hand Luke
5 year old buck +
Thanks for sharing your knowledge! Something I'll have to plan on for next year, although I've been seeing tons of doves flying in and out of my corn plots.
Catscratch
5 year old buck +
If you already have doves then maybe you won't need to change anything. Just go hunt them.
Catscratch
5 year old buck +
A little more burning this weekend. Not seeing many doves around, and we have a week long cool front coming in. Hope to have some around for opening.
The weather forecast has changed. If that holds true, I will head Thursday early AM, work remote 1/2 day, then cut and burn Thursday afternoon.
After reading the post above from @Catscratch I may just follow his path on wheat and maybe rye grain in this plot this fall, and put my goodies in another section of the pasture.
After reading the post above from @Catscratch I may just follow his path on wheat and maybe rye grain in this plot this fall, and put my goodies in another section of the pasture.
I have tried that. The problem I have is everything eats wheat heads. My wheat is mature and dry first week of June. Everything eats wheat heads here, but deer are the worst - even awned - they dont care. Coons eat it, skunks eat it, all kinds of birds eat it, hogs eat it if you have them. I never have any seed left past mid july. If you do it, spray it with gly as soon as it matures to keep it clean and doves will definitely feed in it. Dont know how to keep everything else out of it
Cool Hand Luke
5 year old buck +
Guys, sometimes I think we over compensate/complicate habitat plans here, though it’s so enjoyable! I mowed a 6’ strip around my 10 acre switch field last week. I have a buffer strip of early succession I let go fallow around the outside of the switch. I took a ride with the family last night on the trail and counted/flushed at least 30 doves on that drive. No food plot necessary!
I have five acres of sunflowers cut, five acres of millet cut, and 500 lbs of top sown wheat - which is considered a normal farming practice here and legal. On the field yesterday afternoon, there were fifty crows, four doves, and one pigeon. If I converted my 350 acres to quail habitat, I still would not have a quail because there is not one in 20 miles. In some places, it does not matter what you do.
Catscratch
5 year old buck +
Crows and pigeons are fun to shoot!
I wont deny that? But when you spend $1700 on seed, fertilizer, and herbicide and 30 hours in a tractor seat - you would really like to kill a handful of doves
Cool Hand Luke
5 year old buck +
Bet you don’t eat one!
Catscratch
5 year old buck +
I've eaten a lot of pigeons...
Lol, I don't add up cost per pound of things I hunt! I could retire if I'd just quit hunting ducks. But seriously, I get your point. Put in the work and time and it dam well should pay off!
Lol, I don't add up cost per pound of things I hunt! I could retire if I'd just quit hunting ducks. But seriously, I get your point. Put in the work and time and it dam well should pay off!
We eat all the pigeons we shoot. Don't think I ever ate a crow, but have eaten crow several times.
Double Creek
5 year old buck +
I feel your pain. I planted 9 acres of millet. I cut half of it last weekend. I think I saw 2 doves. Hopefully it gets better. Way too much time and money not to have a decent shoot. Plus a dove field kind of screws up my fall deer plot rotation.
