Summer time browse diversity

[j-bird]

I took a walk today at my place and although my fields are full of soybeans and the deer have obviously noticed I was really surprised just how much other plants I noticed showed signs of browsing as well. The pic below is a collection of just what I found today. The center pic is my ag soybeans - which is what many in my area would consider the primary summer time forage for deer Some of the things I can identify some I can't. I saw browsed, ash and cherry saplings, grape vine, giant ragweed, what I think is coffee weed & sweet clover, raspberry, even some multi floral rose was browsed.

I'm sure this isn't news to many of you, but I was really surprised at just how many naturally occurring "weeds" the deer feed on. Below is a new thing I found as well - its a tree that blew over in a recent storm that HAD some young poison-ivy on it. The deer have reduced it to the vine and stems!!!!

Funny - what you can find when you just look!!!!!

 

[Native Hunter]

J-bird, that plant just left center of you soybeans is one of the Ticktreefoils - very valuable summer browse plant in the bean family with nutrition similar to soybeans.

 

[j-bird]

J-bird, that plant just left center of you soybeans is one of the Ticktreefoils - very valuable summer browse plant in the bean family with nutrition similar to soybeans.

Awesome - I have a ton of it naturally - finally something I have that isn't something bad! I was just really surprised how many things the deer still browsed with literally 100's of acres of young soybeans at their disposal. Most of the browsed plants are in my CRP/field buffers - and although they don't create great deer cover when left to just grow in natural weeds they obviously add lots of forage diversity in the summer time. I was also floored to see how the deer stripped the poison-ivy off the downed tree.