food plot beginner

[kyhareraiser]

have a farm here in ky and the owner is footin' the bill on the seed and lime and fertilizer.he even ouns the tractor ,disc,tillet and drag.  we put down some roundup /mixed 2 quarts to 20 gal.water to try to kill the ky31 fescue he's had growin' for years.. i've had the soil sample test done and it needs lime ,phosphate,potash,and i forget whatelse the resource guy told me ,but i have it wrote down..what i'm wanting to di is to ive the deer aome nutrition so the fawns will do well because the does have nutrition for milking and minerals for th bucks to antler up nicely. i figure a warm season forage firld and a cool weather field.. what do y'all suggest i put down to grow for these purposes.. the fields are mostly sunny all day and wate run the creeks all year.. any help will be appreciated

[Blue Duck]

Im not an expert but its hard to go wrong with clover. 

[Land_Owner]

Blue Duck is on target.  Clover, peas, brasscias, rape, turnips, alfalfa, and a host of others.  Some plants require a good frost to stimulate the production of glucose sugar from stored starch.  Only after this begins are some plants palatable to the deer.   I recommend that you discuss your strategy with the local wildlife biologist.  They can tell you from first hand experience what the deer in your area prefer, what grows best, what will provide the highest quality nutrition, and what is the most economical to plant - and when.

[deerslayer79]

duck and landowner are spot on but I would like to add cowpeas or a mix containing them,good nutrition,and cover for those small fawns.I plant it every may,june.

[Land_Owner]

I believe every year you experiment...a little.  I buy seeds which grow into plants that I know, in the past, the deer ate to the ground, year-after-year.  This year, same plants, no deer.  Too many hogs.

Now the hogs are thinned/nocturnal/gone and still no deer.  The Iron and Clay peas are growing (the ones the deer love), but there are no deer eating them.  Go Figure.

I added Australian Winter Peas...no change in deer activity.  I added rye, oats, and wheat...still no change.  The fields "look great" and are growing well, but without the deer knowing it is there, well...the season seems real long (AND DRY) from the flat hard bench of the tree stand overlooking lush fields with no deer in them.