Tennessee couple with promising hunting ground wants to know where to start improving it.
QUESTION: My girlfriend and I purchased 62 acres in north-central Tennessee. The central area of the property is pasture with several 1- to 2-acre cleared spots. We would like to know how to go about putting in food plots before we actually start living there. There is deer and turkey sign on the property, and we’ve seen 8- and 10-point bucks taken in the area. Also last year, two 300-pound bears were taken within two miles. How and where do we start improving and enhancing our property? Any help would be appreciated. — Jeff G.
ANSWER: It sounds like you already have the makings for a great hunting property. As with many similar queries we receive, it’s difficult to get too specific without more detailed information, so I’ll offer some general guidelines that might benefit others in a similar situation.
The first thing you should do is conduct a baseline analysis of your property. Using maps, aerial photos and boots on the ground, look at what you have in terms of food, cover and water. You should also look at surrounding properties and what they might have or not have to attract deer. For example, if adjacent areas are agricultural, you might want to explore ways to preserve, enhance or create more bedding cover. If they’re mostly wooded, you should turn your attention to creating food plots.
Again, it seems you have a good situation. With smaller properties, it’s best to keep food plots toward the interior. The cleared areas you describe sound like ideal starting points. Take soil samples and send them in for analysis. Mow the fields, wait a week or so and then spray them with herbicide. Give it a couple more weeks then disc or till the soil. By then you should have your soil sample results, which will tell you what fertilizer and minerals you should till into the soil. Then plant with a seed blend of your choice and pray for rain.
Also note that pretty much any commercial seed blend you purchase will include planting instructions and season recommendations for year area. Seed company websites also have tons of information about planting their particular seed products.