Arbuckle Mountain Area Chapter
Food Plots
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Arbuckle Mountain Area Chapter |
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| 'When you need food plots, they won't grow from lack of rain, and when you can grow them, you don't need them.' This is the paradox of food plots. It is scientifically questionable and practically expensive to do food plots, but many of us like to do them. If your management practices include them, here are some tips to make them as good as possible. Improving forb diversity and creating disturbance may well be the side benefit of food plots and that is a proven value to benefit quail. | ||
| "I have found that in my sandy loam soil types, sorghum (milo) has been hard to establish and grow. A mystery grain that showed up in a special mix, seemed to come back for several years as a volunteer, and I saw quail pairs in them regularly. After thinking it was sesame seed, I learned it was actually Brown Top Millet. It was quick to make seed and sometimes made two crops in a year. I have since discovered it is a high energy food for quail and that chicks dig the bugging grounds!" Chris Cowlbeck | ||
| Picture of Brown Top Millet (JPG 274kb) | ||
| Food Plot Info | NWTF | Turkey Food Plots (PDF 1.6mb) |
| Missouri NRCS * | Food Plot Field Measures (JPG 327kb) | |
| Missouri NRCS | Seeding Rates for Quail Plants (JPG 348kb) | |
| Texas A&M Univ | Quail Food Development (PDF 136kb) | |
| Noble Foundation | Think Before You Use Food Plots by Russell Stevens | |
| Noble Foundation | Establish Food Plots by Russell Stevens | |
| Noble Foundation | There Are No 'Silver Bullets' by Ken Gee | |
| * Natural Resources Conservation Service |