Total newb, hand tools only, sandy soil, need help

[j-bird]

As I understand it - Kabic is correct. You spray to get the sunlight and to kill the competition, throw your seed and then mow. The thatch left on top of the seed is to help retain moisture in the soil and reduce birds taking off with your seed - sort of like when you put straw on your grass seed in the yard.

 

[Towely]

When i say I don't want to cut too many trees down I don't mean I dont want to cut anything down. Most of our woods I'm free to do with as I please but the pines are a no go, they were planted by my grandfather many, many years ago. What I do mean is if I'm doing a 1/4acre plot I don't want to have to clear cut 1/2acre or more worth of trees to really open the area up.

As of right now I think the throw n mow method will be my first attempt for a food plot or two.

Also the hinge cutting thing I'm definitely going to give a go. Sounds like a good way to open up around the edges of a food plot for some sunlight while simultaneously giving some better cover around the plot itself, as well as another food source.

For those of you that have hinge cut trees on your land, what success have you had with the trees staying alive? Some of what I'm reading states that when done correctly they can live for as long as any other untouched tree in the woods. I'm not saying it's BS because I have no experience with it what so ever, it just seems rather contrary to my preconceived notions.

 

[OkieKubota]

When i say I don't want to cut too many trees down I don't mean I dont want to cut anything down. Most of our woods I'm free to do with as I please but the pines are a no go, they were planted by my grandfather many, many years ago. What I do mean is if I'm doing a 1/4acre plot I don't want to have to clear cut 1/2acre or more worth of trees to really open the area up.

As of right now I think the throw n mow method will be my first attempt for a food plot or two.

Also the hinge cutting thing I'm definitely going to give a go. Sounds like a good way to open up around the edges of a food plot for some sunlight while simultaneously giving some better cover around the plot itself, as well as another food source.

For those of you that have hinge cut trees on your land, what success have you had with the trees staying alive? Some of what I'm reading states that when done correctly they can live for as long as any other untouched tree in the woods. I'm not saying it's BS because I have no experience with it what so ever, it just seems rather contrary to my preconceived notions.

I have a couple post oaks that were hinged back in the early 90's that are still alive...My uncle cut them across an old logging road near the head to keep people from driving off the county road down it.

I started hinging about 5 years ago and a bunch of my 5 year old hinges are still alive. Mostly hickory and elm...

 

[j-bird]

Hinging success depends on many things. Mainly the species of tree hinged and the size of it and the amount of light it receives afterwards as well. Some trees simply hinge and survive better than others. I have some that don't survive at all while others have survived several years. This holds true for stump sprouting as well.

Without going into loads of details I would simply suggest a 30 feet wide "buffer" of an area where you hinge around the perimeter of your purposed plot. This won't promote much cover for bedding but will help screen the plot to some extent and give you some browse as well. You can always increase this area over time or as you see fit later as well. Just keep in mind that if the cover gets deep enough you will have does bedding right on top of the food and that may not be a good hunting situation for you.

As for the plot itself - I would locate it it where the deer want to be. IF you can find a fairly open space there then great, but if not, then I would remove all the smaller stuff first (and treat the stumps) and then consider how much light the remaining larger trees will block out. Like you said - you don't have to clear cut the 1/4 acre, but you will have to get sunlight to the ground. You also have to realize that anything you leave standing in the plot is going to fight for soil moisture and nutrients as well.

Check out some of the land tours and see how others have done it and it should give you some ideas of what has worked for them. The land tours are a great resource and you can then talk specifically to the person who has done the work for more details.

Good luck.

 

[The Famous Grouse]

Just to say I think the guys are giving good advice with the throw/mow. Personally, I would include grain like oats in the mix.

IMO, the key to your success will be mainly do you get enough rain to get the plots growing enough to shade the ground? It is critical in sand and light soil to prevent all the moisture loss possible. This means selecting plants that will grow fast to shade the ground from moisture robbing sunlight.

I haven't seen it mentioned yet, so I throw in that if you haven't done a soil test, do one! Most likely with pines in the area, you have acidic soil. With small plots, this is not a difficult or expensive thing to fix, spread pellitized lime through your broadcast spreader. I buy pelletized lime at Tractor Supply for $3 a bag, so it's not that expensive to heavily lime a quarter acre.

Also, just to reiterate, I know you don't want to cut down trees, but shade is the enemy of this whole effort.

Grouse

 

[badgerfowl]

Shade will be your friend in the afternoon for plots. That soil will dry up faster than anything if it's full sun. If you're doing a throw and mow w/ clover and rye (or other grain) you don't need a ton of sun.

 

[Hunter_Dan]

We've been plotting in crap central Wisconsin (Waushara/Marquette) soils for years. Spent lots of time trying clover and other perennials and just never had much success until we got more equipment and the pH up quite a bit. Eventually we went to a rotation of Buckwheat (spring) and the annual rye / brassicas in the fall. If you look at most no-till or throw-and-mow types of plots, they are not much more than that.

For the fall planting, start out with the sprayer and take out as much as you can. Wait a couple weeks, then broadcast the seed over the top. The more you can rake it in, the better. The annual rye is pretty cheap for a 50# bag and grows in just about any conditions. We usually would plant pretty late, end of August or early September, so it doesn't get too stemmy. It grows pretty well in shade as well, so you don't need to do too much trimming. The rye will be there in the spring as well, and give them a little food when it's normally pretty sparse.

You might be able to get clover going later, but probably not until you hammer the plots with lime and get a little organic matter going.