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Seed
blends are a very good way to plant a variety of plants quickly and in
my opinion they are the way to go. The best seed blends contain several
varieties of grass and several varieties and species of legumes and some
sort of brassica.
Whatever
blend you choose, or even if you choose to blend your own, be sure to
get some chickory in your food plots. Chickory is starting to look like
the absolute best deer attractant forage out there. I have seen bucks
come into food plots and go straight to where the chickory is growing
best. Several blends are available that contain chickory and you can
even buy chickory additives for your seed.
The
reason for a variety of plants in the food plot is to, in essence, offer
the deer a "salad bar" of forages. All of the different plants
provide the deer with something it needs. Some plants are high in
protein, some are high in energy; others are high in minerals and then
some are higher in one mineral than others. A variety of forages
available means that the deer can meet many of its nutritional needs in
one spot and, believe me, they know it.
Be
sure to read the tag on the bag of seed if it is a blend, and see just
what is in it and how much. I have seen some plot seeds that contain a
high percentage of summer annuals such as brown top millet, iron and
clay peas and corn. I guess the reason they are in the blend is so that
the hunter can see something come up fast. This is great for public
relations but when a frost hits the woods, there won’t be much to eat.
If you don’t know what a variety is on the tag, then ask the sales
force about it. If they either cannot answer your question or at least
try to find out, then leave and go somewhere else.
Lets
take a quick look at a seed tag and see what it tells us. First and
foremost, it’s going to tell you when it was germination tested and
what the germination percentage was and what the company will guarantee.
Then it will list the species of forage in the bag and how much. If it
lists wheat, it will tell you the variety of wheat and the content
percentage. (Example: EK-102 Wheat- 30% means that in a fifty pound bag,
fifteen pounds is wheat seed.) I can promise you that whatever seed is
the highest percentage, it probably is the cheapest seed in the bag,
which is not a bad thing. As the seed value increases you will see less
and less of it. Remember that legumes are very expensive.
After
looking on the tag and seeing just what we are getting, what does it
mean?
The
grasses in the bag are there to supply energy for the deer; they are
like the white bread or biscuits of the deer world. They produce a lot
of forage, grow fast and require a lot of fertilizer. I would look for
no less than three different varieties of grasses in a blend.
Next
are usually the legumes. Legumes are such things as clovers, winter peas
and vetch. These are the plants that supply the proteins. They are able
to take nitrogen from the atmosphere and convert it into a form that
they can use. They are able to do this with the help of a soil bacterium
called rhizobium.
If
you plant a pure stand of legumes, your seed dealer should advise you to
apply inoculant to the seed before planting. This inoculant does not
help the seed to germinate; it is to supply the bacteria needed by the
plant to do their "nitrogen trick." It is not quite as
important when planting crimson clover because the bacterium needed by
crimson is found in most Alabama soils. If your seed source doesn’t
know what inoculant is, once again, go somewhere else.
The
brassicas are things like turnips, mustard, rape and the New Zealand
varieties as well as chickory. They also produce tons of forage and need
a good bit of fertilizer. The brassicas contain energy, protein and
usually have a good mineral content. Unfortunately, many of them don’t
taste that good until a frost hits them and frees up the sugars in the
plant.
The
best thing about seed blends is that most of the manufacturers have
tested them and the ratio of grasses to legumes to brassicas are usually
the best ratios to be beneficial to each other and to the deer. Let them
spend the time and money it takes to evaluate them for years and years.
One
last thing to remember about seed tags is that they will also tell you
whether or not the seed is one hundred percent of one variety. If you
plant a bag of seed that says a particular brand that means nothing, it’s
the tag that tells you what is inside the bag. If you don’t read the
tag, you are liable to wake up one morning and think someone has played
a cruel joke on you and seeded your plot with turnips.
Always
make sure that the lot number of the seed is on your receipt so that if
there is any problem, such as not germinating properly, you can get some
help from the seed company.
If
you have problems, all the seed company is responsible for is the
germination percent, the stated varieties and their amounts, foreign
matter and weed seed. There are a zillion things that you can do wrong
when planting that can result in plot failure, so ask what is the best
way to plant and maintain the plants in the food plot and again, if they
can’t answer you, go somewhere else.
When
trying to decide on a blend to plant, ask your seed dealer what has been
working best for local hunters. They should know.
One
last thought to pass on; this might be a year to start some supplemental
feeding of your deer herd. Fellow hunters, there ain’t much out there
for the deer to eat this year; I’ve even seen some kudzu dying! What
is out there is dying fast or getting eaten down because it isn’t
growing. If you do decide to do some feeding, don’t feed corn. The
deer need protein right now, not ice cream. Pure corn can cause acidosis
in a deer’s rumen and that is almost a death sentence for him. Try to
feed a complete feed or some soybeans to help them get through this
tough summer.
Ralph
Ricks is the manager of Quality Cooperative, Inc. in Greenville. |
