Planting Food Plots for Deer by John Weiss Book Review Chapters 5 through 7
There are 18 chapters in total. The book was copy written in 2002. Eight of the chapters were 6 pages long. Nine chapters were 8-10 pages long, with the remaining Four being 12 pages long.
Chapter 5
is titled “Equipment needed to plant food plots”. It is basic and covers off some of the general categories. It doesn’t go into real detail and is likely adequate for those considering food plots and could provide a “jump off” point in how to get more detailed information. He does give the following sources for food plot equipment and all of these companies have good products and websites with additional information.
Cycle Country
http://www.cyclecountry.com/hunting-fishing
Country Home Products
Monroe-Tuffline
http://www.monroetufline.com/sportsman.htm
Plotmaster
Wildlife Specialty Products
Chapter 6
This chapter covers tree planting. It has 6 pages but does again present a novel approach. In Deer Food Plots Made Easy we cover plans and trees that deer love most and these of course influence “the ideal habitat”. Taking a long term outlook and planting now for benefits later is a great idea. In my experience 10 or 15 years goes y really quickly and if you plant now you can reap the benefits.
Chapter 7
In John’s chapter on clover and clover blends he lists clovers that are preferred by deer giving some examples such as arrowleaf, crimson, ladino, millennium, Osceola, red, webfoot, and white clover.
He does promote Whitetail Institute’s Imperial Clover Mix. As in most food plot books, mention is given to blends in order to cover different seasons and different soil conditions as well as growth patterns. The clover coverage in this chapter is a place to start from. If you are looking for more details such as grazing tolerances, pH ranges outside the ideal, soil preferences, north versus south, planting dates and cool versus warm season differentiation, then this is not your best source.
The best part of this chapter on deer clovers is his recommendation on proper “pre-planting” weed control. In my experience some clients confuse “no till” with minimal soil preparation. John outlines why this approach often leads to failure. I also cannot stress this point enough. You can waste a lot of time and money just tossing seed over land if you want low time investment and minimal tillage then consider frost seeding over properly prepared land.
John discusses maintenance of perennial plots and does recommend mowing clover plots when they are 6-8 inches high, cutting down to 5 inches. He discusses the option of crop sharing clover hay to help offset some of the maintenance costs. This may be a good idea for you weekend warrior types that are far away from your land or have limited time to take care of things.
The following deer clover sources are listed in Page 70 of John Weiss’s Planting Food Plots for Deer.
Biologic
Texas Seed Company
1-800-321-5673
Whitetail Institute of North America
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