May
7
Written by:
Clint Patterson
5/7/2010 2:00 PM
As we continue our Food Plot Journey there is a critical step that should be taken within a few days of getting the seed down. Actually, it should happen right after the first post-seeding rain comes. There is a specific reason that we’re using this Milorganite, but first let’s look into what Milorganite is.
Milorganite is an organic, human waste product that is used as a fertilizer. Yes, you read that correctly, it is human waste. Milorganite is derived from dried microbes and is a slow-release fertilizer. The nitrogen in Milorganite is not released until growing conditions are favorable for the plant to grow. I would also mention that the level of nitrogen in the Milorganite is not great enough to damage the plants. See an informational video on Milorganite.
Barenbrug USA / Tecomate Seed representative Mike Lee described the reasons for using Milorganite on our food plots. Mike gave an analogy that is useful to help understand the reason for using Milorganite. He quoted “If I were to cook you a nice, juicy T-bone steak, put it on a plate and set the plate on a picnic table covered with fresh manure, would you really want to eat it?” Obviously you wouldn’t want to eat it. Well, deer are the same way because they aren’t drawn to that smell either. This is beneficial to our food plot because not only does it slowly release fertilizer into our food plot, but it keeps the deer off our food plot and gives the plants time to grow. If we were to just leave the field as it is and let the products grow, then there is a chance that the deer may eat the plants to the ground before the plants have time to develop a good root system. If this were to happen, the field would look like a bunch of nipped-at-the-top green stems and it would kill the plants.
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| Milorganite in Spreader |
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By applying Milorganite to our field we help ourselves out in 2 ways: fertilizing and protecting the plants. You may ask why would we plant a food plot and want to keep the deer out of it, since the purpose is to get deer to eat this stuff. Well, this will only happen for a period of time. After some rain and a few weeks, the smell of the Milorganite will go away and the deer will return. During these weeks when they’re away is when our plants should be growing (if everything goes well).
See benefits of Milorganite
Below is a diagram of how we have structured our food plot
This step is one that you have to execute pretty accurately in order to give your food plot the best chance for success. The timing of putting down the Milorganite is what’s important here. It needs to be done after you have planted the seed and a few days after the first rainfall is received. You can buy Milorganite at Lowe’s for around $13 per bag with each bag containing 36lbs.
With our field, we are dividing it in half with the spreading of Milorganite. Essentially we are creating another cross-section of our field and dividing it in half, but this half will be halving it with one side having Milorganite spread on it and the other side being left alone.
And the journey continues with the wait for something to grow.
Information in this post came from Milorganite’s web site: www.milorganite.com
Regards,
Clint