Facts from the Field 2009 An exclusive 4 season trail camera study of food plots and their effect in Ontario hunting strategies This program is brought to you by:            Three months have passed since we introduced our program in the last issue and the plots in our 4 areas are really coming to life. Our goal in this issue is to further introduce the products that we are using, the decisions that need to be made when doing plots and then let the 4 participants elaborate on the methods and strategies they employed.    Commercial wildlife food plot seed blends are broken up into three categories: annuals, which are plants that complete their life cycle all within the same year, perennials, which are plants that live for several years and then there’s mixed blends with a combination of annuals and perennials.    Annuals tend to be the type that most hunters who have dabbled with food plots are familiar with. The reason being, annuals like those in the Brassica family, can be planted in August or sometimes even early September and will provide rapid growth and green forage during hunting season. These plants tend to provide a strong attraction to deer in the late season and thus become a hunter’s favourite. What annuals lack, is regenerative growth that will keep them around throughout the rest of the year. If all you care about is attracting deer for hunting season then they will serve your purpose, but if your interests are in creating a healthier deer herd, you need year round nutrition and that’s where perennials shine.    Perennials, my favourite of which are clover and chicory, can be planted both in the spring (April through late May) and summer (late July through August) and once established, will continue to produce highly nutritious forage year after year as long as the plot is kept mowed to about 6” in height. The mowing serves two important purposes. First, mowing will cut down weeds preventing them from reseeding and secondly, mowing stimulates new, more nutritious growth while strengthening the plant. With most spring plantings, a perennial clover and chicory plot might need to be mowed once in it’s first year, but by the next season, you’ll likely be mowing it two maybe three times. A properly cared for clover plot can last 3-5 years. One of the most important purposes that perennial plots serve here in Ontario, is providing forage for deer as soon as the snow melts and before the trees and other crops “green-up”. This is a crucial time for deer as they are coming out of winter and badly need to replenish their depleted energy stores. When the snow arrived last winter, one of our clover plots had about 4 inches of growth left. In a matter of a week, the snow buried the plot and the deer moved off to their winter range. This spring, as soon as the snow melted, the deer were all over that plot and they had it mowed down to dirt in a matter of a few weeks. It is a gratifying feeling to know that your work is doing some good in their times of need.    All 4 participants in this program are using a combination of annual and perennial blends from our fine sponsors listed below. The chart on the next page shows the variety of annual and perennial blends we are using. Perennial vs Annual Options Backyard Wildlife Products Sweet Success 36% Perennial 64% Annual Superb-uck 67% Perennial 33% Annual Walk n’ Toss 52% Perennial 48% Annual Whitetail Institute of North America Chicory Plus 100% Perennial Alfa-Rack 100% Perennial Winter-Greens 100% Annual No-Plow 100% Annual Secret Spot 100% Annual Pure Attraction 100% Annual Mossy Oak Biologic Clover Plus 100% Perennial Premium Perennial 70% Perennial 30% Annual Maximum 100% Annual    Having participants ranging in geographical latitudes from southwestern Ontario, all the way up to Thunder Bay is providing us with some very interesting experiences and observations that will be presented throughout the course of this program. One of which, that is most related to this issue, is the difference in planting dates. When James Vanos was planting his plots in southwestern Ontario, none of the rest of us had even broken ground yet. Starting with James’ planting in mid-to-late April, Joe was the latest to get his seeds in the ground due to a very prolonged snow melt. Though it was much later than most years, Joe didn’t finish his spring plantings until late June. This difference in planting dates amongst our participants is even confirmed by inspection of farm crops in the respective areas. Corn fields in SW Ontario were shoulder-height when this issue went to press, while corn fields were only 6” high in Thunder Bay at the same time. This difference in planting dates has an obvious impact on growing seasons as well and needs to be considered when planning food plots in those regions. Those in northern climates need to recognize that they have a shorter window to get their plots planted and as such, need to plan further ahead and use methods of weed control and plot preparation techniques that will accomplish their objectives in the reduced time. Whether you have access to heavy farm equipment, a sub-compact tractor, a 4-wheeler or just hand-tools, there are products and seed blends available that make a food plot well within any hunters reach. Sure, it might require a little bit of hard work, but ask any of our participants and they'll all agree, the benefits make every bead of sweat worth it. Lee Nilsen is shown disking his food plot to properly prepare the seed bed for planting. The picture at the top right is of Joe Dampier's soil sample just prior to sending it away for testing. Taking soil samples and properly preparing your seed bed are two extremely critical steps in producing successful plots.    While an extensive food plot program such as this one can consume a good amount of one’s time, we are finally at the stage where the only time spent is watching the food plots from a far-off vantage point to catch glimpses of an opening day target, or checking the trail cameras in hopes of finding pictures of the monster that got away last season. Our spring plots have been mowed, fertilized and are showing tremendous growth. Our fall plots are all in the ground and soaking up this warm September sun.    As much as I love working on the plots, nothing compares to the feeling of satisfaction when the time spent on the plots transitions from sweat and labour to sitting and waiting for a deer to show up.    In this issue, we are wrapping up the planting and preparation techniques and focusing mostly on the growth that we’ve been seeing and some of the lessons learned throughout the planting process. We are also showcasing some of the wildlife that have been visiting the plots and had their pictures taken by our Scoutguard trail cameras.    The next few months will tell us a lot about the success of the plots as we begin to concentrate our attention more heavily toward watching deer activity on the plots. Keep reading to hear what the participants have to report and stay tuned for next issue where we will be reporting on how our hunting seasons went and how well the plots were utilized during those periods. CLICK HERE to go back to the main Facts from the Field page CLICK HERE to meet the participants