Episode #127 When to Plant Fall Food Plots?

Published: 2022-07-25 Episode page Duration: 78 min

In this episode

amish

• Terry said he has come to deeply respect the Amish and Mennonite community, especially how families and the wider community hold each other accountable. 17:42

antler-growth

• Tim Henrich asked when antlers finish developing, how long they take to solidify after they stop growing, and whether a velvet buck peaks by early August. 61:55

asio-gear

• Terry announced ASIO Gear, run by Joe Miles, is running or about to run a sale on early and mid-season camo that he and Don have been wearing. 19:05

broadheads

• Don said he is against mechanical broadheads, believing he would have wounded and lost several bucks, including this one, had he used them instead of fixed blades. 71:37

credibility

• Don said people should show the actual bucks they’ve killed using their own methods before others take their deer-management advice seriously. 48:13

deer-lures

• Don said Smokey collects gland-lure glands from deer at a processing plant in Ohio that processes around 9,000 deer a year. 58:25

deer-scent

• Chris Lovely asked what Don and Terry think about deer urine and scents collected and made straight from a deer farm. 55:39

doctor-strickland

• Terry observed that despite differing approaches, Don and Doctor Strickland work closely together, respect each other, and still get along, calling that unheard of. 48:32

fall-planting

• Don’s rule of thumb is to plant fall food plots forty-five to fifty days ahead of the typical first frost date. 23:10
• Don said properties along Interstate 70 (Columbus, Indianapolis, St. Louis) should plant fall plots around September 1, moving the date a week earlier for every 100 miles north. 23:29
• Don warned that planting fall plots too early makes plants overly mature and less palatable, so deer browse them less. 24:12
• Terry planned to plant a fall food plot where his sweet corn had been once it’s harvested this week, even though the plot isn’t in a spot deer frequent. 32:14
• Terry plans to terminate a food plot where his planter product underperformed and replant it as a fall plot. 32:29
• Terry said once rain is in the forecast in late August, he plants immediately, since fall food plot timing must be planned around rain. 33:08
• Terry warned that a light pop-up thunderstorm right after planting a fall food plot can cause seeds to swell and crack, then die in extreme heat before establishing. 33:58

fatherhood

• Don reasoned that because Amish fathers stay home and discipline their children, teaching them right from wrong, there are no gay Amish people. 7:01
• Don urged young men going through divorce or custody disputes to put their child first rather than their own grievances. 12:34

fetal-programming

• Don explained fetal-programming benefits: does feeding on a balanced-diet plot like Deadly Dozen enter the rut in noticeably better shape. 31:45

food-plots

• Don said a failed spring food plot can still be cleaned up, sprayed, and tilled in time to plant as a fall plot instead. 21:34
• Terry recommended mixing a bit of any local soybeans into a fall plot, since the first soybean sprouts act as a strong deer magnet. 26:29
• Don recommended a seeding rate of 10 to 20 pounds per acre for soybeans mixed into a fall plot, cautioning against using too many. 26:46
• Don noted soybeans mixed into a fall plot will compete only briefly and are killed off entirely once the first frost hits. 26:56
• Don agreed with seminar speaker Ray Reeves that fall plots should avoid monoculture and instead mix several plant species together. 28:12

forgiveness

• Don asked listeners to pray for the person who posted critical comments on his social media rather than firing back at him or his family. 13:42

hunting-advice

• Don joked that bad advice tells hunters to stomp through the woods like a drunken fool and climb fast to bag a king buck within ten minutes, calling it nonsense. 46:41 (light moment)

mail-in-questions

• Terry announced the podcast opened a mail-in question option through the office for Amish and Mennonite listeners without internet access. 54:24

prank

• Terry recalled jokingly convincing a listener that buck age could be told by the distance between its butthole and scrotum, prompting him to reverse his trail cameras. 61:08 (light moment)

seminar-tour

• Don spent twelve days touring Indiana, Pennsylvania, New York, Maine, and Vermont doing nine seminars for Real World Wildlife Products dealers, valuing the chance to meet dealers face to face. 1:32
• While on tour Don spoke with Lincoln Ron Drone, owner of Packer Max cold packers, about fatherhood and staying active in kids’ lives after divorce. 8:20

shoutout

• Don gave a shoutout to Brock Rowe and Jeremy Hicks, New York State troopers and former military, met at the first Bordeaux Brothers event in Canton, New York. 2:48

social-media

• Don said he reciprocates respect shown to him but is bothered by people who make videos mocking his social media posts. 48:59

southern-indiana

• Terry said after seeing excellent corn and bean fields in Southern Indiana, he might go knocking on doors there for new business. 75:34

stand-hunting

• Don countered that repeated-stand hunting studies must account for access, since good access allows daily hunting of a stand while poor access limits it to a narrow window. 45:31
• David Campbell asked how Don’s low-pressure, minimal-intrusion approach squares with Doctor Strickland’s advice to hunt the same stand five or ten times until an opportunity arises. 37:52

supplemental-feeding

• Alan Miller asked whether a deer fed mineral-mixed supplemental feed keeps eating it after meeting its mineral needs, or stops once it’s satisfied. 49:26

test-corn

• Terry said their test corn product is growing at least a foot to eighteen inches taller than Nutri-Crave Corn on both their farms. 74:55

trail-camera

• Terry asked how to tell from trail-camera photos whether a buck’s antler tine tips indicate the antlers are done growing or still have more to go. 65:23

whitetail-master-academy

• Don said his twelve-day trip generated fantastic new video ideas for the Whitetail Master Academy. 47:21

winter-feeding

• Terry recommended a backup winter feeding plan, such as supplemental feed or bait, to give deer a food source from January through early March before green-up. 30:35

Deer activity

• Trump (hunt) 39:51
• unnamed buck (history) 40:49
• Joey Buck (hunt) 59:02
• unnamed buck (harvest) 66:51
• fork tine buck (history) 68:54
• unnamed buck (history) 72:52

Listener questions

Question: David Campbell asked how Don’s low-pressure, minimal-intrusion approach squares with Doctor Strickland’s advice to hunt the same stand five or ten times until an opportunity arises. 37:52 — asked by David Campbell

• Answer: Don said hunters with decades of experience and mature bucks on the wall would agree the first hunt on a particular stand offers the best odds, though unique bucks like Trump were exceptions. 39:18
• Answer: Terry clarified that Doctor Strickland studies deer movement broadly at a macro level, while Don hones in on the specific pattern of an individual target buck. 44:12

Question: Alan Miller asked whether a deer fed mineral-mixed supplemental feed keeps eating it after meeting its mineral needs, or stops once it’s satisfied. 49:26 — asked by Alan Miller

• Answer: Don said a deer will likely eat as much supplemental feed as it wants, then visit a mineral lick separately to make up any remaining deficiency. 50:51
• Answer: Terry said intake fluctuates with available natural food like acorn drop, but mature bucks at his feeder eat the supplemental feed year-round. 52:27

Question: Chris Lovely asked what Don and Terry think about deer urine and scents collected and made straight from a deer farm. 55:39 — asked by Chris Lovely

• Answer: Don said he believes gland-based lures, not urine-based ones, work best, comparing it to trappers who rely on gland lures rather than urine to attract coyotes and foxes. 57:50

Question: Tim Henrich asked when antlers finish developing, how long they take to solidify after they stop growing, and whether a velvet buck peaks by early August. 61:55 — asked by Tim Henrich

• Answer: Don said in his captive-deer experience some bucks finish antler growth by early July while others keep growing into mid-August. 63:18
• Answer: Don added that regardless of growth timing, his captive bucks all tended to shed velvet around the same week each year. 63:45

Question: Terry asked how to tell from trail-camera photos whether a buck’s antler tine tips indicate the antlers are done growing or still have more to go. 65:23

• Answer: Don said pointed, sharp tine tips mean growth is essentially finished, while rounded, dark tips mean the antlers still have considerable growing to do. 65:35

Sponsors this episode

• QuietKat

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