food plot after winter wheat is picked

[ilhunter]

We rotate winter wheat in three of our fields every year. After we pick the wheat in mid summer we do not touch the field until it is turned over and replanted the following spring. Do you guys have any thoughts on a good food plot to plant once the wheat is picked? It would have to be an annual as it would be turned over in the spring. The opportunity to plant in the wheat field occurred to me and I am looking something to help get birds through the winter.

 

[UGUIDE]

We rotate winter wheat in three of our fields every year. After we pick the wheat in mid summer we do not touch the field until it is turned over and replanted the following spring. Do you guys have any thoughts on a good food plot to plant once the wheat is picked? It would have to be an annual as it would be turned over in the spring. The opportunity to plant in the wheat field occurred to me and I am looking something to help get birds through the winter.

All things considered a brassica is the best all around thing to plant. Like turnips and radish. Good cover crop. Too late to grow a food source for pheasant and wheat waste grain should already be enough for them. The brassica will work very good in your rotation.

 

[Prairie Drifter]

Some other options might be cowpeas, Austrian Winter Peas, clover, vetch, or any of a number of other legumes. I'd stay away from soybeans though.

 

[Freeborn]

As UGUIDE indicated you won't have enough time to produce a food crop for pheasants but you could plant something to improve your soil, feed deer and provide a little cover before you turn it over.

Radish is very good at bringing soil nutrients to your top soil and winter rye is good at providing allot of organic material to your soil. I use straight feed winter rye as it cheap and overseed my food plots and I have been happy with the results. I have sandy loam soil that drains quickly so I use the winter rye to build soil. The deer love radish and winter rye when its fresh and tender.

 

[Win97]

I would think a wheat stubble field left unsprayed after harvest, would make its own food plot with weed seeds and waste grain. I have had some great hunting in grown up wheat fields. Now most fields get spayed and are of little use for later when the weather gets bad.

 

[mnmthunting]

I would think a wheat stubble field left unsprayed after harvest, would make its own food plot with weed seeds and waste grain. I have had some great hunting in grown up wheat fields. Now most fields get spayed and are of little use for later when the weather gets bad.

This is good advise. :thumbsup:

 

[UGUIDE]

This is good advise. :thumbsup:

This is true and would make good hunting but like in my weedy wheat fields weed mgmt is a concern and it will get a burn down before i put my cover crop in.