High altitude food plots

[westonwhitetail]

Anyone ever plant a plot in the mountains? I had a friend who has land at about 10,000 feet in Colorado and he was thinking about planting something for Muellies and Elk. Clay soils, only gets rain in the spring with fairly dry summers.

It would be for hunting in October, Nov. first frost come in September.

Any options for this situation? Alfalfa or chicory? Brassica mix? Winter rye?

Any ideas are appreciated, thanks


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[Bill]

No experience planting at high altitude but I've been there. It's dry! Like arid zero moisture pack Chapstick dry.
I don't even Think alfalfa or clover grows in the valleys unless its irrigated.

Rye is pretty bullet proof but I have doubts about it there. Cheap enough to try a fall planting and see though.

Maybe someone smarter than me will have an idea.

 

[Peplin Creek]

Yeah I'm with bill on that one. Maybe Rye.... there probably isn't that much soil to work with and I am sure it's rocky.

 

[ncstewart]

I have hunted CO a few times and the locals I meet had alfalfa. Also they would bail it and feed it during winter as well when the winters get bad. Although I doubt anything would stay up that high to feed anyway but might be able to sell it to off set cost of irrigation.
If it was me I would work improving local vegetation cause elk and mullies move a lot and at 10k ft i doubt they winter in that area.


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[westonwhitetail]

Sounds like he may need a sprinkler system huh! Wonder how deep that well would be


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[westonwhitetail]

I read on the growing deer tv website that forage brassicas may be a good choice for these conditions. Any thoughts on trying that?

Maybe mix with rye like others suggested may work?


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[Ben.MN/WI]

I think he might want to try a number of different crops to see what works. I would think rye, oats and wheat might be worth a shot since they grow just about anywhere. Perhaps plant them as a nurse crop for some alfalfa, chicory, trefoil, etc. Different brassicas (groundhog radishes, dwarf essex rape, turnips, etc.) would also be worth a shot. Regardless of what he tries, I think getting a soil test first would be a good first step so he can lime and fertilize as necessary. In high altitudes the plants growing in slight depressions or low spots seem to grow best, so it might be a good idea to try planting on one of those areas if possible.

As a backup plan, I would do as NCstewart recommends and try fertilizing a bunch of the native browse in the area to see if you can draw them in that way as well.

 

[westonwhitetail]

I think he might want to try a number of different crops to see what works. I would think rye, oats and wheat might be worth a shot since they grow just about anywhere. Perhaps plant them as a nurse crop for some alfalfa, chicory, trefoil, etc. Different brassicas (groundhog radishes, dwarf essex rape, turnips, etc.) would also be worth a shot. Regardless of what he tries, I think getting a soil test first would be a good first step so he can lime and fertilize as necessary. In high altitudes the plants growing in slight depressions or low spots seem to grow best, so it might be a good idea to try planting on one of those areas if possible.

As a backup plan, I would do as NCstewart recommends and try fertilizing a bunch of the native browse in the area to see if you can draw them in that way as well.

I think I'll tell him just to try rye and oats with some chicory and alfalfa. If anything takes well he can do more next year. Thanks everyone


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[Tap]

I'll add this... I'd look to plant near some natural seeps. Yeah, it's generally pretty dry at high elevations but there are usually some damp spots to be found. Start following creeks and drainages upstream to their sources and look for suitable planting sites. A lot of them might be found on North slopes.
Another way to locate the damp spots is to go on Google Earth and look at images that were taken in later summer, and look for the most green spots.
FYI, in case anyone doesn't realize this... You can view all of the prior Google Earth images and it will show the date it was taken. That info is quite valuable. There's so much that we can deduce from comparing satellite pics from different times the image was taken. Example... Pics taken in early May (in my area) show that oak trees are barely leafed-out, while adjacent areas of other tree species will look more lush. That will help us locate things like different food sources or edges. Pay attention to the dates of the images, it's a great scouting tool.

 

[westonwhitetail]

I'll add this... I'd look to plant near some natural seeps. Yeah, it's generally pretty dry at high elevations but there are usually some damp spots to be found. Start following creeks and drainages upstream to their sources and look for suitable planting sites. A lot of them might be found on North slopes.
Another way to locate the damp spots is to go on Google Earth and look at images that were taken in later summer, and look for the most green spots.
FYI, in case anyone doesn't realize this... You can view all of the prior Google Earth images and it will show the date it was taken. That info is quite valuable. There's so much that we can deduce from comparing satellite pics from different times the image was taken. Example... Pics taken in early May (in my area) show that oak trees are barely leafed-out, while adjacent areas of other tree species will look more lush. That will help us locate things like different food sources or edges. Pay attention to the dates of the images, it's a great scouting tool.

Thanks for the tip, I have used the historic images at work before. But didnt think of it to use as a scouting tool the way you described. I'll pass that along so he can check for a good location


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