Planting Trails

[ThumbBum]

This is a twist on G-Vacs post about turining "lawns" into foodplots.

Like a lot of us, I have a trail system thoughout my property. I have to mow it several times a year in the open areas where it sees sunlight and I have nocticed that after several years that there seems to be a fair amount of clover growing in these trails mixed in with the grasses and weeds.

Deer seem to use the trails a lot when there is no hunting pressure and have considered trying to develop this clover as a year round food source either by spraying or seeding or both. But I do have some concerns

1. Is it a bad idea to provide too much food over too large an area for deer

2. Will clover hold up to quad and occasional truck traffic

3. Should I focus on a diffent planting then clover, maybe some brassiscas
for more overwinter food.

4. How do you broadcast seed into a 8ft wide strip without wasting hals of
it.

[answerguy8]

1. It depends on your area. If your property is in an agricultural area they propably don't need the extra summer food. If you are in an area dominated by forests the higher nutrition of what you can plant would be a benefit.

2. & 3. Clover would hold up to light traffic much more than brassicas. But if some of the trails don't get anything more than foot traffic the brassicas may be a very good choice.

4. Carefully. Seriously, if you turn the crank slow enough you should be able to make an 8 foot swath with your hand broadcaster.

[bishs]

The more food source locations you have, the more areas you can hunt without educating them. My east border is adjacent to 40 acres of soybeans, the south border, "across the road" has 120 acres of corn, soys and winter wheat. I plant about 5 acres to foodplots. Its nice in the winter when the deer can forage on my soys and corn until spring.

Try mixing cracked corn or cat litter with your clover seed. Use a pull behind broadcaster, pull it just fast enough to get an 8 foot spread. The partial shade in the lane will help prevent the ground from drying out in the summer.

Rye, wheat or oats would also work great planted in late august.

[NorthJeff]

I hate "bumping" deer, so I don't like my trails planted in cool-season food sources unless I don't have to walk on them, especially when it's dark. I like planting the trails in clover, because the clover is not a great draw for me during hunting season, but this year I'm hitting many of the trails with buckwheat. The couple I'll plant for hunting season usually go to straight rye. The deer love it, it stays green, and grows in the coldest of temps compared to just about any other forage. Also, almost the entire property plots are in clover, so the buckwheat offers another variety for a summer food source.

Again though, I don't like planting trails I will be walking on during hunting season in anything that is attractive during hunting season to lower deer/human contact to as low a level as possible.

[brokenarrow]

I too have noticed extreme amounts of wild clover in spots on my trails. I frost seeded this spring and did an experiment. (ps thanks for anouther idea I never thought of,, brassicas along the edges) I frost seeded clover into the very end of 2 trails that lead to two of my food plots. About that last 50 feet or so before they break out inot the plot. Many times in the past I had walked up the trail and waited in this area for my son to call me on the radio to tell me he is ready to leave. Since the fields stay light enough to bow hunt right up till quiting time and in the woods many times its already too dark to take a safe clean shot, I will walk out to the edge and wait the last 2-5 min till he calls. This also keeps me from bumping any deer off the plot while its still light. I got to think??? "Hey, ya think this is what the deer would do (esp. bucks) if there was food at the end of the trails? LOL. DA!!! kinda hit me in the face. During gun season, you can see alot farther and in both my plots from the stand you can see about 50 foot down into the trails. This is why I decided to try and frost seed more clover right there.
Thumbum
You had a good idea, the brassica on the trails. My trails a snow mobile trail so they are wide enough> Most of the wheeler traffic is on the same tracks. If I was to plant some brassica off the the edges, maybe some would grow. Would be nice if about 200 plants grew some nice turnips right at the edge. Thanks for the unintentional idea!!!