Vetch

[Bowsnbucks]

Does anyone on here plant hairy vetch or chickling vetch as DEER FOOD??? I've read of some food plotters who plant vetch (didn't name the type) as part of a seed mix with brassicas, rye, clover, etc. I know Lickcreek used it for N-fixing, but I've never heard of vetch as a deer FOOD. Anyone have any info???

 

[Catscratch]

I've done it. Deer ate it. Couldn't say if it was preferred or not.

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[weekender21]

I think it gets used quite a bit in the summer in our plots. This is a pretty diverse mix but most of the other plants are past their prime when this picture was taken.

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[SD51555]

They tried it at my place. Wasn’t a big draw.


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[MRBB]

I had a about 4 acres of it (crown vetch) for years, it ,(was there long before I got on property) what I can tell you is this, YES deer and all sorts o critters use it, it makes good cover for young animals as well
BUT I never found it to be much of a big draw, for anything , like deer or?? deer will walk thru it all the time to get to other things, they like better, and its a very invasive plant it spreads like wild fire
I had it on a property I managed for an old timer that LOVED the stuff as he got the seeds for free yrs ago, and long before food plots, and the guy just wouldn;t let me get rid of it!

it would drift seeds into everything on the 200 acre property, and once the man passed away, I was able to curb it back to about a 1/2 acre in a small section, and never missed the rest of it!

I will say this, it grows in about any soil, and is GREAT at preventing soil from eroding and that's why its used a lot along Highways

so, Yes it does add something to the diet and adds decent cover for young animals and such,
but if your goal is having it attract deer during hunting season, , there are better things to use!, that don't require as much work to stop from invading other plantings!

have to ask yourself what your goal is before using it IMO<as it can get into places you don;'t want it pretty easy!

 

[SD51555]

have to ask yourself what your goal is before using it IMO<as it can get into places you don;'t want it pretty easy!

I'll second that. The HV I planted in the fall of 2020 came like gang busters in 2021 with rye. After I mowed it, I think the population density went up many times higher. I'm ok with it so far. It took a backseat for the rest of the year after getting mowed. That stuff was favored by the bumble bees all year long, and never quit blooming or setting seed.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

have to ask yourself what your goal is before using it IMO<

I was only inquiring about vetch since I read about it (hairy vetch) in a seed mix by a habitat manger in my state. I know it's a legume and it's a N-fixer, but I had no knowledge of it being a preferred food for deer - or NOT. After further research on hairy vetch, I doubt we'll use it at our camp. It's supposed to be hard to terminate once established. We don't want a runaway plant. I'm sure in various places and situations, it has it's uses.

Thanks to all who've responded SO FAR. Always open to more info !!!!!!! Don't let this post stop anyone from posting more info on hairy and chickling vetch.

 

[bigbendmarine]

Not hairy vetch (Vicia villosa), but do recall Baker being a BIG fan of joint/deer vetch (Aeschynomene).

 

[Telemark]

Is he saying "Alice clover"?

 

[yoderjac]

Is he saying "Alice clover"?

I think he is referring to Aeschynomene. It is sometimes called deer vetch or joint vetch. It is something I would like to experiment with but I haven't found a good seed source for a reasonable price. Here is a reference: https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/AA189

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

I’ve used joint vetch the last two summers. They hammer it. The problem I have with it is I have to kill it to get fall planting so it’s a pretty expensive venture. I tried to broadcast into but it creates such a dense mat that almost nothing came up so last year I was left with scrambling late to get some rye down just to have something. In terms of attraction it’s super high in July and august and seems to fade in September as it matures and gets twiggy

 

[yoderjac]

I’ve used joint vetch the last two summers. They hammer it. The problem I have with it is I have to kill it to get fall planting so it’s a pretty expensive venture. I tried to broadcast into but it creates such a dense mat that almost nothing came up so last year I was left with scrambling late to get some rye down just to have something. In terms of attraction it’s super high in July and august and seems to fade in September as it matures and gets twiggy
View attachment 39603

Have you tried leaving some through fall? I understand it can be quite attractive in the fall. I was actually thinking it could cover summer and become a fall bow season attractant.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

Have you tried leaving some through fall? I understand it can be quite attractive in the fall. I was actually thinking it could cover summer and become a fall bow season attractant.

I did. Last year I didn’t kill it, I just left it to die which it will after the first frost. They definitely still used it some after about mid September but it certainly loses attraction. At least that is my experience and im in western ky so maybe people who plant it in warmer climates have seen longer use (as say that and I’m wearing shorts on 12/27).

 

[yoderjac]

I did. Last year I didn’t kill it, I just left it to die which it will after the first frost. They definitely still used it some after about mid September but it certainly loses attraction. At least that is my experience and im in western ky so maybe people who plant it in warmer climates have seen longer use (as say that and I’m wearing shorts on 12/27).

Thanks! Do you have a good seed source besides seed world or hancock? The cost seems pretty high when you add shipping from them. I'm still playing around with the idea of trying it.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

Thanks! Do you have a good seed source besides seed world or hancock? The cost seems pretty high when you add shipping from them. I'm still playing around with the idea of trying it.

Unfortunately I’ve just sourced it from 2 different local co-ops. Think I paid $255/bag this past year so it’s not a drop in the bucket. I do believe if you had the available acres to spare the chance on a successful fall plot it is a dynamite summer planting.
Also I’m sure if you had a drill and could penetrate the mat you would have way more success with something like cereal grains

 

[yoderjac]

Unfortunately I’ve just sourced it from 2 different local co-ops. Think I paid $255/bag this past year so it’s not a drop in the bucket. I do believe if you had the available acres to spare the chance on a successful fall plot it is a dynamite summer planting.
Also I’m sure if you had a drill and could penetrate the mat you would have way more success with something like cereal grains

That is in the same ball park as Seed World with shipping. That comes out to about $5/lb and at 20 lbs/ac we're talking in the $100/ac range for an annual. That is about twice the cost of sunn hemp for summer.

 

[Native Hunter]

Just for the record, the Hairy Vetch that Bows is referring to is not Aeschynomene (sometimes called Deer Vetch). Hairy Vetch is known as Vicia villosa and has a purple flower. It was used extensively in the southeast for cover crops about 40 years ago but not as much these days. Deer will eat it, but it isn't preferred. When I killed the fescue in an old tobacco patch, it came out of the seedbank after not being planted or visible for 30 years. Since that time the NWSGs have tamed it down some, but I still see a little of it.

 

[yoderjac]

Just for the record, the Hairy Vetch that Bows is referring to is not Aeschynomene (sometimes called Deer Vetch). Hairy Vetch is known as Vicia villosa and has a purple flower. It was used extensively in the southeast for cover crops about 40 years ago but not as much these days. Deer will eat it, but it isn't preferred. When I killed the fescue in an old tobacco patch, it came out of the seedbank after not being planted or visible for 30 years. Since that time the NWSGs have tamed it down some, but I still see a little of it.

Yes, you are absolutely correct. I've seen both called "deer vetch" in common terms and they are sometimes confused because of that. We did get a bit off of Hairy vetch. I don't find Hairy Vetch nearly and interesting as Aeschynomene for my purposes. It is good that you made this clarification since it is easy for folks unfamiliar to mix them up because of the common name overlap.

Thanks,

Jack.

 

[IkemanTx]

Is he saying "Alice clover"?

I think he is referring to Aeschynomene. It is sometimes called deer vetch or joint vetch. It is something I would like to experiment with but I haven't found a good seed source for a reasonable price. Here is a reference: https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/AA189

Thanks,

Jack

Baker’s mix is 50/50 Joint Vetch (Aeschynomene) and Alyce Clover (Alysicarpus Vaginalis).
I planted it in 2020 with decent success. I had an issue with cocklebur in the plot. The clover and vetch got overtopped early by it. I cut it all back by hand with a handheld weed cutter (i grew up calling them yoyo’s) and then the plot got overtopped again by the end of summer.

A hard freeze did the plot in, and i never planted the spot for 2021. Very little residual plants came back this year, so I’m guessing i didn’t get much seed production. I am thinking about doing the blend again this year, because the deer hammered it.

Though, i might go for a crimson/chicory mix for cost savings. Haven’t decided for sure yet.

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[Troubles Trees]

I planted a bunch of random sourced wildflower packets for my Honeybees (and for my daughter). I forget which Vetch this is but it went from a 10’x10’ spot I scratched out for the seedbed to this in 2 years.

I let it grow just to see what it would do and since it spread across my path I am hoping it will shade out the Knotweed I inherited and kill it. Deer walk this path but never eat it that I have seen, it certainly creates habitat for other critters and the bees love it.

(The invasive knotweed is on the left in this picture)