Thriving Deer Thrilling Hunts

Thriving Deer Thrilling Hunts: Unleash the Power of Fall Food Plots

By Jessica Graham

When it comes to creating irresistible fall food plots for deer and turkeys, few options rival the power of radishes, turnips, and oats. These dynamic plants not only provide a mouthwatering feast for wildlife but also offer significant benefits for land conservation. Let’s dive into the exciting world of these fall food plot superheroes!

Radishes
Radishes, with their impressive crude protein content of 30%, play a vital role in the growth and development of deer. Protein is crucial for building antlers and helping deer pack on the pounds. Considering that mature bucks can lose more than 20% of their body weight during the rut, the high protein content of radishes becomes even more significant.

Radishes offer more than just a nutritious meal. They can help improve your soil’s fertility. For instance, radishes are compaction busters, with their tap roots penetrating deep into the subsoil, bringing up valuable nutrients to the surface. Radish food plots can also help improve the overall fertility of the soil. As these radishes decompose in the spring, they add to the soil’s organic matter, reducing erosion potential and improving water retention. This means that your land becomes more resilient to heavy rains, safeguarding its health and productivity. Let’s not forget the irresistible attraction of radishes to deer, drawing them in early in the season and post-hard frost. A lot of hunters find radishes are most attractive to deer during the early part of the season. So, if you are a bow hunter, or plan on taking a kid out during youth season, or even early muzzleloader hunting, you should consider planting radishes to attract deer to your property.

When it comes to seeding radishes, they should be planted in the fall. You should have your food plot ready to be seeded by the time the calendar changes over to August. Several of the last years we have been dry and the success of the food plot revolves around the timing of the rains. It is best to be ready before the rain comes. To achieve optimal results, drill six-eight lbs. per acre or broadcast 10-12 lbs. per acre. Plant the radish seeds no deeper than 1/8 inch to 1/4 inch. The seed is tiny and planting too deep can lead to a poor stand. Make sure they have enough energy to break through the surface. For the best outcome, prepare a well-worked seed bed by tilling or you can plow the field, followed by discing, harrowing, and cultipacking. By planting and cultipacking the seeds, you establish excellent seed-to-soil contact, setting the stage for a thriving radish food plot.

Turnips
Now let’s turn our attention to turnips, another irresistible food source for deer. With a fair amount of crude protein ranging from 14% to 18%, turnips provide a nutritious feast for wildlife. Young deer in particular, benefit from the starches and protein in turnips, helping them gain weight for the harsh winter ahead. By providing a healthy start for young deer, you’re setting the stage for their future growth into magnificent bucks.

In my opinion, turnips pair well with radishes. The seed is a similar size, so if you broadcast it, it is easy to seed together. The main reason it complements radishes is that it extends the longevity of your food plot. While radishes hold most of their attractiveness early season, turnips peak in their attraction to deer after it freezes. Deer definitely like to eat the turnip greens, from the time they come up and even as the snow falls. However, after a hard frost, turnips start to move the starches and sugars into the bulb. They now become sweet and more appetizing to deer. When you plant turnips and radishes together, you have a strong early season contender paired with a species that will carry you well past the last day of deer season.

Like radishes, turnips possess the remarkable ability to penetrate through the topsoil, reducing compaction and enhancing soil health. As turnips decay, they increase the organic matter content, improving the soil’s water-holding capacity and reducing erosion potential. This means that your land becomes more resilient and productive, benefiting both wildlife and your property.
For turnip seeding, plan for a fall planting in August. Drill six-eight lbs. per acre or broadcast 10-12 lbs. per acre, ensuring the seeds are planted no deeper than 1/4 inch. Just like with radishes, preparing a well-worked seed bed will yield the best results. There are a ton of different ways to plant food plots. You can use a tiller or you can plow, disc and harrow to create an optimum seed bed. Using a cultipacker can further enhance germination, resulting in a lush and attractive turnip food plot. There are a lot of different options for equipment ranging from tractors, tillers, discs, harrows, seeders and cultipackers. You can often find these in different sizes accommodating UTVs, ATVs, compact tractors, and larger sized farm equipment. You might also need a mower or a brushcutter to clear the vegetation before preparing a seed bed. Some hunters will do a chemical “burndown” using chemicals to kill the vegetation before drilling, no-tilling, seeding or planting. There are a ton of different ways to plant your food plot, most include drills, tillers, planters and broadcasters. Just use the method that works best for your situation and budget.

Oats
When it comes to attracting diverse wildlife such as deer, turkeys, pheasants, and rabbits with a fall food plot, oats are a staple. They offer a highly digestible feast for wildlife, ensuring that almost every bit of the plant gets utilized. Oats are not as attractive to wildlife as some other plants, but they provide a reliable and diverse staple in their diet. When it comes to attracting wildlife, oats become grazed by wildlife germination to post-frost. Even after the first frost, wildlife can still be observed browsing on the grain, although the stem’s palatability decreases slightly, making oats somewhat less attractive.

The benefits of oats go beyond their nutrition to wildlife. These quick-growing wonders make an excellent companion crop when paired with slower-growing counterparts like alfalfa, turnips, and radishes. By sowing oats alongside other crops, you create a winning combination. The oats sprout rapidly, providing valuable soil protection while efficiently absorbing nutrients. As the oats complete their life cycle and decay, they release essential nutrients such as nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorous into the soil. This natural decaying process, known as mineralization, makes these vital nutrients readily available for the next crop to utilize, ensuring a continuous cycle of growth and nourishment.

To achieve a thriving oats food plot, you have the flexibility to plant them either in the spring or the fall. When it’s time to sow, aim for approximately 64 lbs. of oats per acre, drilled into the ground for optimal results, or you can broadcast and harrow into the ground. By providing these seeds with the right conditions, you set the stage for a vibrant oats food plot that will leave wildlife coming back for more.

Winter Wheat & Rye
Winter rye and winter wheat are versatile crops that can be used in various food plot scenarios. They can be planted as standalone crops or as part of a mix with other species, providing for your food plot. Winter rye and winter wheat establish quickly and produce abundant forage. While most of our plants are dying in the fall, winter wheat and rye are growing green and thriving from fall to the following summer. This provides a green source that sustains wildlife through the hunting season and into the next year. The lush and green growth of these crops attracts deer, providing them with a readily available food source.

Winter rye and wheat also play a vital role in soil conservation. Their extensive root systems help prevent soil erosion by holding the ground together, even during heavy rainfall.

When it comes to planting winter rye and wheat for a deer food plot in Iowa, timing is key. Late summer or early fall is the ideal period to sow these crops. Broadcast the seeds evenly over the designated area, aiming for a planting rate of approximately 100-120 lbs. per acre for winter rye and 60-90 lbs. per acre for wheat. If you’re planting winter rye as part of a mix with other species, adjust the seeding rate accordingly to achieve the desired plant density. Drill, or broadcast and harrow the seeds into the soil or use a cultipacker to ensure good seed-to-soil contact.

By planting some of the species mentioned in this article, you can diversify and attract wildlife to your hunting property this fall. Food plots help bring the deer to your location so you have better odds of seeing, hunting, and filling your freezer this fall and winter.