Sep 21

Written by: Clint Patterson
9/21/2010 4:37 PM 

	A pic of the old drag hare that we used

This past weekend Adam and I got out and did a good day’s worth of work on two food plots that we’re installing in the fall session of the Food Plot Journey.  Boy was it hot too!  Up until this point we have taken soil samples for both areas, sprayed, and disked both of these plots.  Given the best case scenario we would have preferred to get the lime in the soil a few weeks ahead of the seed, but due to the fact that we’re just like you (weekend warriors) we’ve kind of gotten in a bind with our time and are putting down both the lime and seed on the same day.  Again, I don’t think this is the best practice method, but it can still work…or at least we hope so!

The soil samples we took for these plots returned a pH of 5.2 for both of these plots...which is a little low.  We are putting lime in the ground to help bring the pH up to a level that creates a better growing environment for the plants that we are planting.  Also, this fall we are using a new type of lime.  We’re using “Fact Acting Lime” which (I believe) is a recent development within lime products.  Fast acting lime is supposed to do just what it is named…act fast!  Normally it takes several months for lime to start breaking down the acidity in the soil and changing the pH.  Though, this fast acting lime is supposed to be able to start changing the pH at an accelerated rate.  On the bag of the lime it says that it’s 15 times more effective than regular lime.  Since we’re late putting the lime down due to our schedules, I sure hope it acts fast!  We’ll be interested to see how it works.  The bags are about 30-40lbs a piece and we put 4 bags on the small plot and 8 bags on the larger, power line plot because that was the recommended amount given the size of our plots and the coverage of the lime.

The Fast Acting Lime

After we made the passes with the lime and spreader, we then hooked up a drag to the ATV because we wanted to drag the lime in.  We’re doing this to hopefully cover the lime up with dirt and get the lime near the area of the soil where the roots of the plants will be located.  If all went well, the lime will be right where it needs to be right when the plant needs it.  You’ll see in the video where we drug both areas.  We used an old drag hare to do this and it seemed to work well and started leveling out some of the small hills as we drug the soil. It was real similar to dragging a baseball field.

After liming and dragging, it was now time to put the seed down.  On the small plot we are putting in Tecomate’s Monster Mix.  The seeds for Monster Mix are very small and look neon green in color.  We only had to make 3 – 4 passes with the spreader because the seed got out so quickly.  It didn’t take too long to get all this done on the small plot as it, of course, is smaller in size.  Adam also climbed up in the stand to take some pics of the envisioned food plot to demonstrate our perspective on what we will be seeing this coming fall.  Hopefully we’ll be looking down on something that is green and thriving!

	An image of the Monster Mix

We repeated the same process on both food plots of liming, dragging, and seeding. As mid day approached, it started getting really hot.  We worked on the power line plot for a while.  We both were soaked and I even went to the store and bought 6 drinks and we drank them all within an hour…but there was still work that needed to be done.  Since the power line plot is steep and “hilly”, it was a little tougher to manage.  The drag would get clumped up, the spreader would bounce and act as if it was about to tip over, etc.  The power line plot required a little more time because of all of this mixed with the fact that I was going back and forth from the video camera to the regular camera etc. 

With regards to the seed and food plot product for the power line food plot, we’re planting Tecomate’s Max Attract & Ultra Forage.  We mixed these seeds together to offer the deer in the area a smorgasbord of food sources.  Optimistically we’ll have a hillside leading to a creek that is covered in green right about when other food sources start to diminish for deer in our area.  This will not only get them where we want them to be, but will also help them with their year round nutritional and dietary needs.

Now that the weeds have been sprayed, ground disked, soil limed, and the seeds have been sowed, all we can do is sit back and hope for rain.  It has been extremely dry these past few weeks/months.  You can see this in the videos we’ve previously posted where dust is flying everywhere and covering us from head to toe.  Without any rain, there’s nothing much that can grow so we’re going to be praying for rain in the coming weeks. Hopefully everything will come together.  On a positive note, Tecomate’s seed is covered with a “Yellow jacket” coating that retains any moisture it comes in contact with.  This coating is specifically designed to aid in dry conditions. 

The seeds of the Monster Mix were bright green and very small as seen in the image below

Below is an HD video collage of the lime, dragging, and seeding install.

And now...the wait for rain!

Regards,

Clint