Best Deer Food Plot for Sandy Soil, Homestead Hunting

Having your own homestead affords you the blessing of hunting your own land. This saves you in land lease fees, hunting club dues, and even travel expenses. However, you might find that planting the alluring food plot difficult, especially if you have less than desirable soil. No worries, we’re answering your question: What’s the best deer food plot for sandy soil?

The Best Seed for Your Food Plot in Sandy Soil

Check out your nearest local farm supply store for the best seed selections for your area. They often sell seed in bulk, bringing the price down. You can usually find older farmers hanging around to give you some tips on what grows best in your area.

Online seed companies may provide more variety to choose from. Just make sure that you pick plant seeds that will grow well in your region. Beware of shipping costs. Freight shipping 50 pound bags of seed will add up quickly.

Look for pelleted seeds for help germinating your food plot plants. Since sand has such poor soil condition, the water percolates right through. This leaves the top layer too dry to sprout seeds. Pelleted seeds help keep moisture surrounding your seeds giving them a chance at life.

The Worst Part About Sandy Soil

There is little microbial life to sandy soil. Adding large amounts of organic matter will always help. You can do this through obtaining truck loads of milorganite. Often times, nearby utility companies will sell bulk supply of milorganite inexpensively.

Ask a local dairy if they’ll sell you a truck load of manure. Sometimes they need more places to get rid of extra manure. They’ll off load it for little to no cost.

Additionally, spreading large round bales of hay and straw will help build a layer of compostable substance that’ll hold onto seed.

Too Much Drainage

Sandy soil is known for too much drainage. Even sandy loam can turn dry in no time. The benefit of this type of soil is that you’ll never flood. Where’s there’s sand, you’re high and dry, and most homesteaders will appreciate this.

Where there’s grass, there’s water. Nobody wants their hunting area of their homestead to be in the swamp. Look at having sand on your homestead as a blessing. Nobody can have everything, right?

Critically Low Ph

Sandy soil is notoriously low in pH, meaning it’s an acidic soil. Most plants have trouble in these growing conditions. Choosing native plants, or those in the same family, can help you have good success in growing your food plot.

Low Essential Nutrients

Last, tough soils, like sand have few nutrients. The poor quality is not only difficult to grow in, but white-tailed deer will not be attracted to a place with no plant growth.

This leaves the deer hunter with no deer to hunt.

We’re going to discuss fertilizers and soil amendments to improve nutrient density in a bit. First, here are some things to think about to help get you started.

What You Should Consider Before Planting a Food Plot

• Look at what’s growing there already.
• Learn what’s native to your area.
• Ask what others around you are planting.
• Understand growing seasons.
• Find out what your options are to fill in the gaps.
• Choosing perennials and annuals

Where to Begin – Make a Plan

Here in North Florida, sandy soil means oak trees that drop acorns in winter, young blackberry chutes in early spring, and gall berries in summer.

Local hunters know what the deer are looking to eat during the seasons because its all they have. But what if you could entice them with a tasty buffet of variety?

Here’s how you can start.

Where should I grow my deer food plot?

You’ll need to choose an area that gets enough sunlight to grow healthy plants. It’s great if you have access to irrigation, but not necessary. We’re here to help you grow in that dry sandy soil without it.

Watch your land for deer signs. Buck scrapes, beds, and deer scat will show you the places they are already traveling through. A beaten path through the woods, perhaps to a watering hole on your land is a give away that deer are present. Planting the area the deer already know is a good idea.

(You can further entice them to the place you intend to plant with commercial deer attractants. Sweet corn and block licks are a couple of good options.)

What size food plot should I grow?

There isn’t really a rule about size to attract deer into your plot. You really have to consider cost though. A large plot will not only need more seed to plant, but you’ll soon find out that amendments add up too.

If this is the first time that you’re planting for deer, consider small plots on your land. You can easily experiment in small samples without breaking the bank.

Soil Samples Help

For best results, contact your local agricultural extension agent to get a soil sample. You can order one from any number of companies online as well.

Not only will the result tell you the exact pH, it’ll give you nutrient analysis too. This helps you decide how to best amend your soil before planting.

This may take a little time so plan ahead. Results typically take a week or two to arrive. Then, you’ll need to research how to amend your sandy soil and source materials.

Know Your Zone

The USDA Plant Hardiness Growing Zone Maps can be accessed so that you will know your growing zone. This is particularly important when growing through your cooler months. This tells you the lowest average temperatures to expect in your area during Winter.

Plant appropriately for the right time of year. You wouldn’t want to plant a warm season crop in your deer plot that gets burned by the first frost. Deer will not want to eat dying or dead plants. Plant cold-hardy brassicas or roots, like turnips, in your new plot.

Time to Plant

When is your estimated first frost? Even though cold hardy plants can withstand your lower temperatures and frost, the tiniest of those sprouts may not.

You’ll want a good stand of plants before the harsher conditions arrive. Sometimes this means getting started in late summer so plants can withstand the first frost.

Solutions for Planting the Best Food Plot for Sandy Soil

There are many ways that you can physically and chemically amend your sandy soil for a quality food plot. You want a neutral pH and top notch nutrient density.

Amending Soil to Improve the Soil pH

Your soil is probably low pH. You can add agriculture lime to help raise the levels before planting.

If your soil sample results tell you that your pH is too high, aluminum sulfate can be used to bring it down. (Again, sandy soil will usually have a low pH and this is not likely needed.)

Lime and Aluminate sulfate can both be found at most big box stores in the lawn and garden departments. For bulk orders for your larger plots, seek out the smaller farm stores, and ask them to place a special order if needed. You’ll find a better price per pound this way.

Improve Soil Nutrient Content

Organic matter is the fastest way to improve nutrient content in the soil for the long term. As a general rule, more soil life equals high nutrients. So look at how you can improve soil life. Compost, decomposing wood chips, and large amounts of old hay/straw are simple things to add in bulk to your plot.

For even faster, but short term, nutrient improvement, you can utilize a chemical fertilizer. Local farm co-ops are great places to buy triple 13 granular fertilizer to broadcast over your future plot. This is something that’ll have to be done year after year if you continue to use it.

Focus on What Thrives in Harsh Conditions

Not only do we look at what’s native here, we can also look around the globe. What grows in the deserts of the world? Particularly those with the same latitude as us.

I know that I can’t grow many cereal grains where we are. Our winters get too warm, and our atmosphere is too muggy. But if I look over at Australia, I see they are growing soft wheat, also known as winter wheat. It’s a cousin to the hard wheat that we typically use for bread. This is a good option for us too.

Find other plants that just need a little help, like irrigation, to get started, but then thrive on their own. The most productive food plots will have a blend of many plants, not just one or two.

Diversity in plants will help ensure a successful crop to attract deer. A mix of perennials and annuals is a good idea. Annuals come up fast and tend to provide feed more quickly. Perennials will come back every year, which means less work for you next year.

The Five Best Deer Food Plots for Sandy Soil

• White clover
• brassica blend
• leafy plants like collard
• winter rye
• winter peas

You could also ask your small, local farm store for their favorite winter feed plot mix. They often blend their favorite choices together to sell in bulk. This takes the guess work out for the hunter who just wants to start.

How Should I Manage the Food Plot Post Deer Season?

Working the soil during the off season is equally important as seeding season. Weed control may be necessary as well. Let those winter plants drop their seeds when the weather warms up. Then keep your plot space mowed unless you plant to amend the soil.

Legumes can help fix the nitrogen in your sandy soil during summer. Southern peas like zipper peas or black-eyed peas are good choices. You’ll want to mow them down after they flower, but before they set pods. This is when the plant is at maximum nutrient content.

Sunn hemp makes a plentiful green manure to add bulk matter to your sand. Let it grow about 5-7 feet tall then brush hog it over. Let it lay until it browns.

You can till either of these under the soil before planting for the Fall season. If you are able to obtain large silage tarps, laying them over the cut plants for 4-6 weeks is beneficial to improve your soil.

What if my livestock get to the deer plot?

Well, they’ll eat your deer food, but it shouldn’t hurt them. You can plan ahead and have your livestock clear out the space between seasons. Let your cows and sheep manure and turn up the ground a bit before resetting for next year.

However, do some additional research here. Red clover can cause issues for your cows if they get too much of it. Leafy plants shouldn’t be cause for concern. Too much brassica could turn your family milk cow’s milk to an off flavor.

What Other Types of Food Plot Seeds Can Be Planted in Sandy Soil?

We’ve seen hunters only plant winter rye grass for their food plots. While the deer liked it, a monocrop grass wasn’t an excellent choice for a food source. Adding in brown top millet and clover would create a plot that deer loved.

Winter rye does a great job creating ground cover though, which holds moisture. Planting rye, then planting out your food plot a few weeks later may help seeds germinate.

Should I rotate my crop from year to year?

You can rotate your deer plots from year to year if you choose. If you keep adding amendments to your hunting areas during the off season, then you may not find this necessary. Just make sure that you’re seeding the best plants for your region as previously mentioned.

What about land managers?

Speaking purely from a homesteader’s standpoint, I personally wouldn’t invest into a land manager for my hunting food plots. Perhaps if you are leasing your land to other hunters, you might consider otherwise. A land manager is trained in growing in all soil types for all reasons.

Last Thoughts on the Best Food Plot for Sandy Soil

In conclusion, hunting whitetail deer on your homestead can be done with absolutely no amendments if the deer are around. When the bucks rut, they don’t really care about what’s around while chasing does. It’s the does you’re looking to attract because where there are does, you’ll find bucks.

So don’t overthink it.

Raising the pH of your poor soils and then adding large amounts of compostable materials will help bring forth productive soils.

Seed planting during late Summer is usually best, but follow the planting schedule for your region. Remember to try our top 5 suggestions of winter peas, winter rye, brassicas, leafy greens, and clover. A seed mixture of at least 3 of these will suit you well in your sandy soil food plot.

Hunting your own land is a part of the American homestead dream. I hope that you’re inspired to turn your sandy soil field into something that brings you a bountiful harvest of venison for your homestead freezer.

Happy hunting the homestead.

sources:

planthardiness.ars.usda.gov

clemson.edu