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winter wheat?

at1010

*Supporting Member*
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I know I ask a lot of your guys favorite plot questions but I am just curious how many of you plant winter wheat?

I have a lane to one plot and I was thinking about doing it this fall in a mix of clover, winter wheat, and oat.
 

RedCloud

Super Moderator
Super Mod
17,381
193
North Central Ohio
I'm not sure about where you are in the state but I know from what I have seen with full 100+ acre fields of plain winter wheat up here. I have seen deer cross the fields and once the wheat gets tall enough in late spring use the fields to bed in but not once have I ever seen a deer eat it.

If it was me, I would find something else to add to the clover and oats.
 

jagermeister

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Ohio
I've planted Winter Rye with success but not WW... The rye worked very well as a mix with oats and clover. I believe the rye has a natural way of preventing weeds somehow, too.
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
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Appalachia
for deer not worth it...now for turks....different story...

Yep. Look at something like Buck Forage Oats or Heartland Wildlife's Buck Buster Extreme. I have been eyeballing the Buck Buster for a while now and may just plant some of it this year...
 

at1010

*Supporting Member*
4,943
139
Yep. Look at something like Buck Forage Oats or Heartland Wildlife's Buck Buster Extreme. I have been eyeballing the Buck Buster for a while now and may just plant some of it this year...

I am actually going to plant a few sections of buck buster extreme this year. That is made up mostly of brassicas, and is supposed to be a great product.

This is just a small lane, I might just leave it as oats, and clover.

My only thing is that the oats I had last year just kept growing and the deer never ate them. They are now about a foot high.
 

Milo

Tatonka guide.
8,184
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I am actually going to plant a few sections of buck buster extreme this year. That is made up mostly of brassicas, and is supposed to be a great product.

This is just a small lane, I might just leave it as oats, and clover.

My only thing is that the oats I had last year just kept growing and the deer never ate them. They are now about a foot high.
did you lime them?
 

Beentown

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15,740
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Sunbury, OH
I hunt in farm country and the deer just don't hit the brassicas. Turnips... yep, oats... yep, but no love for brassicas the three years I tried it in strips.
 

hickslawns

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
39,720
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Ohio
We saw the foliage on the turnips and brassicas hit last year. They did eat up some of the radishes, and turnips, but nothing like I was hoping. I agree the mild winter sure did not help any. I don't think any of them ever sweetened up. Trust me, I tried some of the turnips. They were baseball to softball sized.
 

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
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18,060
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Ohio
I am actually going to plant a few sections of buck buster extreme this year. That is made up mostly of brassicas, and is supposed to be a great product.

This is just a small lane, I might just leave it as oats, and clover.

My only thing is that the oats I had last year just kept growing and the deer never ate them. They are now about a foot high.

What time of year did you plant them and how high were they going into hunting season?

I hunt in farm country and the deer just don't hit the brassicas. Turnips... yep, oats... yep, but no love for brassicas the three years I tried it in strips.

Now that's strange right there. Turnips are one of the main types of brassica, so why the hell would the deer eat turnips and not other brassica like radishes and such?
 

at1010

*Supporting Member*
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Milo yes I lime all of my plots.

JB I think I planted them around late August and I just overseeded them. I did it to two different plots and watched deer eat them. During the season they didnt get to high maybe 6 inches? I thought they were supposed to die off, but they never did.

I am nervous about the brassicas too because everyone keeps telling me that some times deer just wont hit them. I am in Noble County and not near a AG area at all. So i think if I could get in beans,corn, or even brassicas it would be a big transition from what the deer are used to, but might be a huge turn on. I just do not have the open acreage to put beans, and corn in. My largest plot is about an acre.
 

at1010

*Supporting Member*
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the effectiveness of the lime. We have found Ag lime stays longer in the soil...pellitized not so much...

that is absolutely true! Pellet lime i believe to only be good for up to one year. Ag lime can be good up to five. I just have a small operation and it is easier for me to get pellet lime and use my ranger to spread it faster.
 

bowieoutdoors

*Supporting member*
My brother plants winter wheat on a small corner of a field on his property and the deer love it. Now, that's in WV and it's not in farm country so there isn't much else for them to eat depending on the acorn crop from year to year. They do usually keep it mowed down though and we get alot of pics out of it. I'm sure something else would be better but we have a kind of unique situation and the winter wheat isn't as noticeable by other people as other food plot items are. For the most part it just looks like grass so we don't have a particular hunter camping out over it the few days he shows up.