Crabapple foodplot & the BUCKHUT that over looks it.

[early riser]

Well, I got to say, we have had much better looking foodplots at Crabapple in years past. With all the time, effort preperation and money we spent again this year, I am dissapointed in the way our plots have turned out so far this year. I'm thinking with all the heavy rains we had right after we put down the 2400 lbs of seed and fertilizer it must have drowned a good many of our seeds. Our plots are way thinner than I would have ever expected with the amount of prep and seeds we put down.

Anyway, here are two photo's, one of one of our BUCKHUTS and the foodplot it overlooks.

Out of the entire weekend, I saw one button head buck and made my first kill with my Exomax Excalibur crossbow. Only problem was it wasn't a deer kill, but we have one less more armadillos walking around Crabapple. Pretty good I thought to kill an armadillo with the Crossbow, but it wasn't worth wasting a broadhead over, but was nice to see I could shoot straight with the X-bow and could hit a small live moving target. Arrow went clean through and the Armadillo made it into some thick briars. I wan't about to go in after it, but the flecthings were covered in blood and messed us as well as the broadhead.

Buckhut, and foodplot it overlooks below.

Sorry...., Pictures have since been removed.

 

[early riser]

the buckhut that overlooks it.

Sorry...., Pictures have since been removed.

 

[Jim McRae]

ER, that plot looks pretty good to me, but I guess it's not up to your standards.


Jim M.

 

[early riser]

Really dissapointed in this plot. It is a low bottom plot next to a beaver pond just in the woods to the left. I think this field must have drowned some of the seed. I hope to go back and top seed some rape to try to get it to thincken up.

Real dissapointing to put down as much seed as we did and the plot to be this thin. :

Sorry...., Pictures have since been removed.

early riser

 

[BROWNING7WSM]

Alot of our plots are thin this year.. Not sure if some seed got washed away or what. We may core aerate and overseed..

 

[early riser]

Jim,

That's it exactly. They look terrible this fall, and we had much worse luck with our earlier spring plots this year. As you can see in the other picture above, they are really thin when looking down on the plots. In years past they have looked like carpet. They should look much better than the way they are turning out to be.

Maybe a heavy overseeding of rape will help them a little, but at present they are less than desireable.

early riser

 

[early riser]

The viewing room plot turned out to look better than most. Below are the before and after shots.

Sorry...., Pictures have since been removed.

early riser

 

[early riser]

I hate to even think such a thing, because I understand Mother Nature, the weather, and everything else that goes into plantings and making a crop, but one should also wonder from time to time, that with all the preperations that we did and the near perfect seed bed conditions we have that we should have had better results. The only other thing that comes to mind is if the seed quality was what it was said to be, or if something else entered into the equation : . We got the rains, but was it we got far too much that hurt the plots :. The germinations showed 80+ % but we sure didn't get the quality stands that we should have due to one reason or another.

Two seasons of plantings with POOR results have me looking my hands over and rethinking the amount and work that we have been putting into them with such poor results. Spring plantings was a waste, and fall plantings are way less than desireable expectations. The soil tests and fertilizer applications are dead on the test recomendations, and still poor results.

AAAARRRRGGGGG!

early riser

 

[Todd E]

ER,

Sometimes too much preparation may be a bad thing, reckon'?

We did no soil test, didn't spray any round-up, b-hogged, plowed with roto tiller, turned fert and pelletized lime under, covered seed with a small chain link fence. All of ours look like the one in my photo under Hancock BFO plot. We did all the planting in one day. I think our club is pretty close by and the rain didn't drown ours.

 

[early riser]

Could be Todd, it's sure something : .

e.r.

 

[HT2]

Larry.....

Looks good brother......

I know the time is fastly approaching to enjoy all the hard work you've put into the place.......

Good Luck.......

 

[Hardy]

ER, they still look better than may of our plots

I know what you mean about putting in as much work and money as you do and sometimes the results are less than you would like. I think the same scenario has driven farmers crazy for years. I still bet you won't have any problem attracting deer to the plots this year.

BTW.....I really like the BuckHut

 

[Woody]

Larry,

It was a crazy spring.

We had a couple of plots get a slight shower -- just enough to swell the seeds ---- then it didn't rain again for about 26 days with temps in the high 80's

We also had times when hard rains washed a lot of seeds away. (Alyce Clover)

I'm glad I don't farm for a living. -- I'd probably starve.

 

[Jim Thompson]

Look great so far Larry.

All of our plots are thick and green and luch and tall. The deer have not keyed in on them yet...acorns and browse.

Jim

 

[hpurvis]

we have had 2 heavy soakers on these and I think it ruined a lot of seed or washed them away. Also we did not go real heavy on rape this year as in the past to give the fields a break from heavy rape planting in the past.

 

[FootLongDawg]

ER...I have not been back to look at our plots since a week after we planted on Labor Day. Elmer Pud went down this past weekend, and is reporting the same thing you are. Thin spots. I am thinking the heavy rains of IVAN must have washed some of the seeds aways. If this is true, I will be as disappointed as you. We did so much preparation, what with the posioning, and liming, and seed bed prep, I was expecting "wall to wall carpet". I notice you may use rape to "fill in" some of your thin areas. I have never planted rape, but I will also need a "fill in" seed. Will you just throw it out in the bare spots or do you prep the soil any? Of all the problems I thought I might incur this fall, too much rain never entered my mind.

 

[early riser]

10-4 FootLonDawg, we just top seed only the Rape, or over seed (top seed) with Marshal Rye grass. Both work pretty well covering thin weak spots, but only seed when there isn't a gully washer coming or it too will be washed away. Try to seed shaded aeras, which will only get the early morning dew moisture, or when only a light drizzle is expected. I noticed even though our ground was powdered, and cultapacked, the top of the ground was hard and crusty even though there is still a good bit of moisture in the bottom plots and around the shaded aeras. I'm thinking many of the seeds drowned, as I am seeing greenish molded looking slim coating in some of the lower spots. I know we are getting lots of dew and morning moisture. I walked through our plots about 7:00 a.m. and my feet were soaking wet from the moisture off the plants from just a walk through.

Sure is dissapointing to know what all and how much we put out to not look any better than they do..

early riser

 

[deuce]

Wheat

I have found wheat works good for filling in bare spots and will sprout on a rock.