Food Plots take planning and effort.  Unfortunately, certain marketing stratagems have convinced hunters that a colorful bag of seeds, purchased from the super market, will be full of magic beans.  That no further attention is necessary, other than dropping the seed on the dirt, is a false belief that we need to kill right now.  First, let us clear up some general points of fact.  1)  A seed is a living organism.  2)  A seed needs water, sunlight, and nutrient rich soil.  3) Water and sunlight are variables that we are limited in altering, where-as soil fertility is a factor that we have a somewhat consistent ability to control.  In order to make alterations to the make-up of a soil, we need to know what we have to work with.  The only accurate way to obtain this information is by taking a soil sample and having a qualified soil-testing laboratory perform a soil test for you.

The First step in the process, of course, is choosing a site to construct your food plot.  Or, if a food plot exists already, decide if you will be replanting or maintaining the plants currently occupying the soil.  If you will be plowing the soil in order to plant, I recommend you pull a sample of the top four to six inches of soil.  When turning the soil, plows and discs often dig as deeply as four inches.  If you are managing an existing plot, you may only need to test the top two to four inches.  As a safety, and to reduce your margin of error, however, it is often best to pull at least four inches.  It also helps to know what type(s) of forage you will be planting before you take samples, as this allows the Lab to better tailor an analysis, specific for your food plot.  All of this information creates a foundation with which you form a plan for the implementation of your supplemental feeding program.  If you’ve spent time around carpenters, you’ve probably heard, “measure twice, cut once.”  Cutting wrong is a waste of time and money.  The premise is the same here.  Make a well thought out plan first.  Only act after you are sure of your needs and your purpose.

Once you are sure of the area you will be working with, you need to collect samples of the soil for testing.  It isn’t very often that you will find a plot of ground that is perfectly uniform in make-up, density, or moisture retention.  For this reason we use a concept known as Stratification.  This means we take many samplings spread across the area in question.  A grid is used most often by professionals.  In this way we can avoid taking samples in a biased way and prevent human error.  Set up your grid lines parallel to terrain contours or homogenous zones.  I conducted soil sampling of an existing food plot where I planned to replant.  As you can see in this first picture, the plot is rectangular in shape, long and narrow.  The plot slopes, slightly, from one end to the other.  I ran two sample lines, length-wise, taking samples every 80 feet, approximately.  My goal was to take six samples from this one food plot.  In this way, I collected an average of the soil content.

Collecting a soil sample is easy, yet does require a small amount of strategy.  Any digging tool will work, though some work better than others.  I used a standard shovel. 

I first scraped the vegetation from atop the soil in order to have a relatively clean working space.  You want to keep grasses and debris from mixing with your soil as much as possible.   

Inserting the shovel head four to six inches into the soil, I removed a wedge of dirt. 

Chop the wedge down to a piece roughly 2” by 2”. 

After collecting six to ten samples this way, you will mix them together in a bucket or bag.  These samples, combined, are a reflection of the over-all soil make-up of your food plot.  Make sure you break loose any clumps so that the dirt can be mixed evenly.

   At this point, you will pull a sample from your combined samples.  Most qualified soil-testing labs require that you submit a minimum of 1lb of dirt to be sampled.  The Whitetail Institute of America provides sampling kits for customers.  In this kit you will receive a sample bag, a form to be filled out and an addressed envelope.  The bag will contain your sample.  Pack your dirt into the bag, up to the “fill” line that is drawn in for you.  On the bag you will list the name of the plot or location you took your samples, as well as the type of forage to be planted.  The form letter will require a more detailed description of the sample.  Location, forage type, new plot or existing plot, etc…

So now that you have some dirt in a bag, what do you do with it and why?  Mail the soil sample in the provided, addressed, envelope.  The lab will test your soil and provide you with a detailed analysis.  A report will be sent to you either by email, within a couple of days of the lab receiving the sample, or within a couple of weeks by mail.  The Whitetail Institute of America tailors a report specific to one of their own products, or for a general forage type.   There are other labs that can conduct a soil test; however most cannot provide an analysis specific to a particular seed mix or brand.

The whole purpose of the soil analysis is to alter the soil fertility as we discussed at the beginning of this article.   You will find three areas of interest within your soil analysis report, pH level, nutrients found in the soil, and fertilizer needs.  We will focus on pH levels in this article and will review and study nutrients and fertilizers in a part two article of this topic.

“Soil pH is the most important success factor you can control.” – Jon Cooner, “BigJon”, WINA Director of Special Projects

pH refers to a scale in which we measure the levels of acid or alkaline in a given substance.  In soil, we will most commonly find an acidic pH, 7.0 or lower.  Seldom will you find soils that are naturally higher than 7.5 even more rare are those that are naturally higher than 8.0.  Optimum “neutral” range for planting purposes is 6.5 to 7.5.  If the soil is not within this optimal range, the plants have a hard time taking nutrients in from the soil.  The further the pH level is from neutral, the harder it becomes for plants to receive the nutrients they need.  Plants can even be so pH sensitive that in a low pH soil, they can starve and even die.  In extreme instances, low pH levels can make it so that no amount of fertilizer can correct the damage done to “starving” plants.  The plant is unable to take in the nutrients provided by the fertilizer.

Once you have your analysis report and you know the pH level of your soil, you can begin to make adjustments.  For soils with a pH lower than 6.5, add lime.  Lime will raise the pH from an acidic level to neutral.  The lower the pH, the more lime you will need to apply; the report will recommend application rates.  For those soils that are 7.5 to 8.0, you can often leave them alone, as once you fertilize and plant, the pH will drop down within the neutral zone.  For soils 8.0 and higher, sulfur is used to drop the alkalinity.  Use the recommended rate as reported on the soil analysis.

In the soil analysis report that I received back from the sample above, a pH level was reported as 4.9.  A 4.9 pH is very low for food plot plantings, however quite common in the piney woods of south Louisiana.  The report subsequently recommends an application of 5,000 lbs/acre of lime.  Lime must have particle-to-particle contact with the soil in order to affect the pH level.  (a piece of lime must touch a piece of dirt)  For this reason, it is recommended that you disc the lime into the soil for greater mixing and distribution of the lime in the soil.  In this food plot, the pH was so low that I knew I had to start over and mix the lime into the soil.  If I had a pH of 6.3, I would have sprayed the weeds and spread a low application of lime over the top of the plot.  Spreading 5,000 lbs of lime per acre on top of the soil would have been ineffective and a large waste of money.  A good bit of the lime would have washed off in a hard rain, and a large portion would sit on top of the soil un-used.  Remember, we need particle-to-particle contact.  Even though I had clover growing in this plot, it was more cost effective and beneficial for me to plow the plot under and start over so that I could properly raise the soil pH.

Some things you need to know about lime.  Bagged, particulate lime can cost in the range of $300 per ton, whereas bulk ag lime will run closer to $60 per ton.  The bulk lime does present a problem for most hunters when it comes to application.  Most of us can spread particulate lime in a basic seed spreader; however, bulk lime takes larger equipment.  I rent a hopper from the co-op where I buy my lime.  It costs me an extra $25 for the use of a hopper that holds 4 tons of lime.  For $50 the co-op will deliver 8 tons of lime in a lime truck.  Solid roads are a necessity when hiring a truck.  I use the hopper and pull it either with a small tractor or with my pick-up.  Some feel the convenience of particulate lime justifies the cost, but I see it as one of the greatest scams of all time.  Not only does particulate lime cost more, it isn’t as effective.  Remember, particle-to particle.  Particulate lime is made up of pulverized lime that is held together with a binding agent, often a type of clay or mud.  This prohibits an even spread of particle-to-particle, lime-to-dirt, application.

One other thing to understand is the period in which it takes lime to raise a soil pH.  Generally speaking, you want to apply your lime approximately six months before planting, or as close to it as possible.  It takes some time.  Apply the lime at the recommended rate, disc it in and give it time to work.  It may be less convenient to make two trips to your hunting property, but it will be more cost effective and give you better growing results if you follow these directions.  You can find specific directions for specific Whitetail Institute of America seed products on their web site: http://www.whitetailinstitute.com/.

Next issue; Nutrients and how to correct them with fertilizers.

By Brent Sawyer

TalkHunting Pro Staffer, Brent "Cobrican" Sawyer, was born into a sporting family.  His first couple years of life were spent on the banks of Lake Arthur and around his grandfather's farm in Jennings, La.  Even when his family moved to the city, they visited the farm often.  Brent's parents and Pawpaw spent as many hours as they could find taking him outside to learn how to care for and survive on the land around him.  They camped and hiked.  They gardened.  Brent joined the Boy Scouts as a Bobcat and continued to be involved through his High School days.  There, he learned many new skills to help him belong out of doors.  Brent and his cousins would often sleep out under the stars with only a blanket.  

At the age of 8 he was given his first BB gun.  At 10 he was allowed to hunt with a shotgun.  The family had a lease where they hunted, predominantly, Speckle-belly geese with the occasional snow or duck.  They also hunted doves and rabbits.  Brent learned how to call specks well enough to hunt on his own in only a short time.  About the time Brent went to college, his grandfather dropped the hunting lease.  Fortunately, North Louisiana offers some great opportunities for hunting on public lands.  He spent many hours duck hunting as well as hunting small game.  In 2000 Brent was invited to his first deer hunt.  Since then he has been fully involved in the deer hunting experience.  He also loves to fish.  Lately he has made more opportunities to fish salt water than freshwater but he enjoys both.

Brent Graduated with a degree in Forest Technology and has used his degree as a basis for hunting and recreation properties management.  He joined Talkhunting.com in 2008 and has attended gatherings in Louisiana and Alabama.  He also works for Breathe Safe Environmental Services as a third party monitor for lead and asbestos abatement.  He loves his job but hopes to be able to one day move exclusively to property management and consulting.

Comments(4):

1. So important

   Great info! I hope people realize just how important it is. Great article. Thanks for digging up the info. :)

   Sunday, March 06, 2011 Robert

2. soil sampling etc.

   wonderful article brent, glad to have you as one of our resident writers and pro staff. have to do my samples soon as the ground thaws here. thanks for the info on the necessary preparation to have a good plot.

   Sunday, March 06, 2011 brad

3. Great Info

   Awesome article Brent! I always look forward to your articles about land improvement. I have learned a lot from you! I know I have wasted a lot of money on seeds before I had my soil tested!

   Tuesday, March 08, 2011 Anthony

4. Excellent information!

   Awesome article Brent! I knew soil tests were important, but only basically why. This really shed some light on things. I ordered my test kits last night!

   Wednesday, March 09, 2011 Duane