Long and thin plot?

[wisconsinteacher]

I would like to create a food plot in the corner of my property. My hope is to make it 75-100 yards long and shaped like an L. When reading about kill plots, there is a lot of talk about long and thin so that deer travel as they feed and walk past a stand. Some of the readings say to make them 8-20 feet wide. The area of this plot is all 15 year old popular that is 2-5" in diameter and 15-20 feet tall. My question is, what is the narrowest you would make the plot?

 

[Honker]

It really depends on side cover/canopy as to how much sun it will get. We can get away with ten feet in some areas as the side growth is prairie. If its in the timber you may get away with ten feet but the sides are going to need some cutting to let the light in.

 

[Belo]

No real wrong way to make a plot. You're growing food and in hopes that you're in a stand/blind when they come to feed on it. Now you want it wide enough that it can handle the browse, but just think about deer in hard woods, they're browsing the whole way through.

If you want a number though 10' would be the narrowest, and again just for browse pressure alone. Ideally 30' is the slimmest (think 10 yards on a football field).

 

[Hoytvectrix]

How are you going to hunt it? Is there a tree big enough for a stand? Would you be able to get into where you are hunting without being seen by deer?

With those questions out of the way, I am assuming you are talking about bowhunting, because the purpose of the long and skinny plot is to get them close to you. With that said, I think you are going to want it to be less than 30 yards across from wherever you are hunting. I wouldn't plan on deer walking the entire plot. How much of it they will use will depend on where they are coming from and where they are trying to get to. Do you have a clear idea how they are currently using the area? You could plan the thinnest area to coincide with being just downwind of the already natural corridor. More than likely bucks will be cruising the downwind side of the plot and/or trail leading to the plot.

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

I would like to create a food plot in the corner of my property. My hope is to make it 75-100 yards long and shaped like an L. When reading about kill plots, there is a lot of talk about long and thin so that deer travel as they feed and walk past a stand. Some of the readings say to make them 8-20 feet wide. The area of this plot is all 15 year old popular that is 2-5" in diameter and 15-20 feet tall. My question is, what is the narrowest you would make the plot?

If I were to do this with plans of hunting it i would want the maximum distance from my stand to be 40 yrds (if bow hunting) I would also say I would want the minimum distance from my stand to the far side of the plot to be 20 yrds.

 

[wisconsinteacher]

I'm thinking about making it an L and putting the 90* corner close to tree I can get a stand in. I currently have a stand in this area and a travel corridor that they use. I just want to sweeten the area up and make it better. I have hunted this corner of the property for 3 years and have a fairly safe way in and out. In 3 years, I have bumped 1-2 deer going in and out.

 

[Hoytvectrix]

There is a lot of truth to what @S.T.Fanatic said. I would rather deer be just out of range than constantly being too close. I like to set my stands 5-10 yards into the tree line off of a plot.

 

[PatinPA]

I have a long thin plot. It's about 10-15 yards wide and about 60-70 yards long. I made it along what was a natural corridor on a small bench. I even cut in a trail from one end of my property to the other. They do occasionally use it the way I intended but the patterns have changed over the years and now most of the time they just cross it on their way to the large crop fields nearby. And the buck in the rut will actually parallel above it.

 

[wisconsinteacher]

Here is a sketch of what I'm thinking. The stand would be 25 yards from the inside corner where I would put a mock scrap.

 

[SD51555]

I would like to create a food plot in the corner of my property. My hope is to make it 75-100 yards long and shaped like an L. When reading about kill plots, there is a lot of talk about long and thin so that deer travel as they feed and walk past a stand. Some of the readings say to make them 8-20 feet wide. The area of this plot is all 15 year old popular that is 2-5" in diameter and 15-20 feet tall. My question is, what is the narrowest you would make the plot?

Which corner would it be in? I'd base that width on sun penetration primarily. If you're gonna bow hunt, I'd set yourself back 10-15 yards, and make the L at least 15-20 yards wide, and even wider if necessary. You may wanna go bigger. Those measurements give you about 1/5 of an acre. I don't have a lot of deer, and they'd smoke a 1/5 acre plot quickly if it was remotely desirable.

 

[wisconsinteacher]

Which corner would it be in? I'd base that width on sun penetration primarily. If you're gonna bow hunt, I'd set yourself back 10-15 yards, and make the L at least 15-20 yards wide, and even wider if necessary. You may wanna go bigger. Those measurements give you about 1/5 of an acre. I don't have a lot of deer, and they'd smoke a 1/5 acre plot quickly if it was remotely desirable.

The plot would be in my SW corner of the property. The longer leg would be running east and west. The goal of the plot would be to get a shot as deer were heading from bedding to the east and heading to the neighbors ag to the west in the evening and then the opposite in the morning. I'm not worried about feeding deer, my goal is to have something to bring them to for a shot. At this point, this area of my land is all 3-5" popular and there are not many chances for shots.

 

[Triple C]

Love long linear food plots. One of our most productive plots for daytime deer sightings on my place is a plot that is 30ft to 50ft wide and between 300 and 400 yds long. Took out 3 rows of planted pine to create an access rd and use it as both an interior road and food plot. Deer are only a couple of jumps away from cover and seem to feel very comfortable feeding here during day time.


Snapped this pic from a ladder stand located a few yds into the timber.


On thre south end of my property is another very long and linear food plot. Probably 15 yds wide at the narrowest point and 40 yds wide at the widest. Pushing 400 yds from top to bottom. Multiple stands set along the edge and just back into the timber. Often times we will have 3 bow hunters sitting this plot at the same time.


Elevated blind at the top end if gun hunting.


Multiple ladder stands along the edge. This is my favorite sit on the property. Ladder stand tucked in a cedar tree with excellent concealment when bow hunting.


From the south end looking north.

Over the years, I’ve observed multiple doe groups using these plots at the same time.

I know a lot of folks love hidey hole or micro plots. Even Dr. Grant Woods touts his hidey hole plots. I’ve got those as well. Perhaps it‘s something I’m doing wrong but I’ll take long and narrow all day long over a hidey hole plot on my property.

 

[wisconsinteacher]

Great pictures Triple C. I don't have the land to go 300-400 yards long but I really like the concept. My hope is to spend time and map out a plot in the next few weeks.

 

[SD51555]

The plot would be in my SW corner of the property. The longer leg would be running east and west. The goal of the plot would be to get a shot as deer were heading from bedding to the east and heading to the neighbors ag to the west in the evening and then the opposite in the morning. I'm not worried about feeding deer, my goal is to have something to bring them to for a shot. At this point, this area of my land is all 3-5" popular and there are not many chances for shots.

Not to completely derail, but have you thought about making that the best covered travel corridor instead of food opening? If you're at 15 year poplar regen, it could be ripe for a reset with the chainsaw. Do some savvy brush stacking and let the regen come fast. If your deer are skittish about moving around in the open, those thick corridors become very important. The trails through my thick sanctuary are the only ones my deer use to move from west to east through my place. The trails I use on the outside of the property to get to my blinds rarely have a track on them.

 

[wisconsinteacher]

Not to completely derail, but have you thought about making that the best covered travel corridor instead of food opening? If you're at 15 year poplar regen, it could be ripe for a reset with the chainsaw. Do some savvy brush stacking and let the regen come fast. If your deer are skittish about moving around in the open, those thick corridors become very important. The trails through my thick sanctuary are the only ones my deer use to move from west to east through my place. The trails I use on the outside of the property to get to my blinds rarely have a track on them.

SD51555, this is exactly why I posted my question. Please tell me more about your thoughts and ideas. I currently have a corridor in this area. I just took a chainsaw and made a walking path wide enough for me to use. Deer do use it but it is tricky to hunt at times because they move past quickly.

 

[SD51555]

***Reposted from our PM:

Shape is open to interpretation, you could take the outer corners of your L and turn that into a quarter acre square right on the corner. Cut everything down, and cut those regen poplars into 10' lengths and make spaced out brush piles out there just like the #5 side of a dice. They can meander through it freely and there are no fatal funnels (multiple escape routes from each direction of every pile). Each pile can be cover for the first year or two before they settle.



By the time they settle, you'll be back into 6'+ regen anyway. What I'd also do, is lime and gypsum it as soon as you're done cutting, and spread ladino clover and chicory into it. Then you get a hybrid browse/cover/travel/food corridor. Ladino laughs at shade and will excel there.

Just an idea, and like you said, if it doesn't work, you can burn the piles, dig out the stumps, and make a plot.

 

[bwoods11]

I have an L shaped plot like you put in the diagram and I’ve shot nice bucks going to and from it !

The corner is the hot spot !

 

[wisconsinteacher]

Currently, the corner area is best. The issue I'm having is that they head to the neighbor's field to the east on multiple trails. My thinking is a narrow plot will give them a place to travel and eat and then take one main trail to the ag field. If that happens I can place 2 stands and cover a lot of different wind directions.

 

[Tree Spud]

Love long linear food plots. One of our most productive plots for daytime deer sightings on my place is a plot that is 30ft to 50ft wide and between 300 and 400 yds long. Took out 3 rows of planted pine to create an access rd and use it as both an interior road and food plot. Deer are only a couple of jumps away from cover and seem to feel very comfortable feeding here during day time.
View attachment 60327

Snapped this pic from a ladder stand located a few yds into the timber.
View attachment 60332

On thre south end of my property is another very long and linear food plot. Probably 15 yds wide at the narrowest point and 40 yds wide at the widest. Pushing 400 yds from top to bottom. Multiple stands set along the edge and just back into the timber. Often times we will have 3 bow hunters sitting this plot at the same time.
View attachment 60337

Elevated blind at the top end if gun hunting.
View attachment 60330

Multiple ladder stands along the edge. This is my favorite sit on the property. Ladder stand tucked in a cedar tree with excellent concealment when bow hunting.
View attachment 60328

From the south end looking north.
View attachment 60329
Over the years, I’ve observed multiple doe groups using these plots at the same time.

I know a lot of folks love hidey hole or micro plots. Even Dr. Grant Woods touts his hidey hole plots. I’ve got those as well. Perhaps it‘s something I’m doing wrong but I’ll take long and narrow all day long over a hidey hole plot on my property.

What is the handicap on each of those holes?

 

[Triple C]

What is the handicap on each of those holes?

Tree Spud - Not sure I understand your question?