BearClaw Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 Anyone ever use these? I've tried small plots around my stand in the past and I can't get them to grow. I've used products that are supposed to grow anywhere but not there! Have very rocky and clay soil. Would like to try again. Any suggestions on these or other products? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkneck Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 I havent tried them, but i know where you're coming from. Good luck, maybe someone here will get you some good advice on those products. But sometimes you got to face the grim reality or either go roll out some astroturf. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PotashRLS Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 I've used products that are supposed to grow anywhere but not there! Have very rocky and clay soil. I/we use nearly all of the Whitetail Institute Products and have been using both the Secret Spot and No Plow a lot. I call our Secret Spot plots the killing plots. When I want to put a doe in the freezer on a given afternoon hunt, I sit one of those small secluded plots. I have the luxury to be in Wisconsin where our agriculture areas are very fertile. Your comment above says it all. NO seed is the miracle seed, regardless of misleading marketing. The W.I. agrees that advertising does mislead so I recommend calling them directly as they have always been willing to bend over backwards to help anyone I send to them. With that said, did you do a soil test? PH level? Did you fertilize exactly like the package said? Did you have poor soil moisture at the time of planting or after germination? Many folks expect foodplotting to be super easy and it is not. My advice is to check out www.whitetailinstitute.com as they are irrifutibly the pioneers of science behind foodplotting. Good Luck. A doe my brother shot in strips planted with Winter Greens and No Plow :'> A picture looking into a Secret Spot Plot :'> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkneck Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 Potash, I likes the looks of dat spot!!!:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogdoc Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 share with us the amount of prep work you do. Do you kill of existing vegetation? Are you broadcasting the seeds on bare soil. Are you able to work the soil at all? The no-plow mixes still have to make soil contact. I planted Evolved Habitats Throw and Grow last year. For the amount of prep i did i thought it did very well. All I did was mow the area and then 2 weeks later i sprayed with roundup and broadcasted the seed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 Have never tried either. Considered secret spot and had intentions of trying it one year, but no one locally had the seed, not even the local shops that were carrying and promoting the WI lines. Think I would have to agree with what was said above on prep. With any type of plot even the throw and grow types, that you have to have some minimal prep to get fair to good results. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkneck Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 Have never tried either. Considered secret spot and had intentions of trying it one year, but no one locally had the seed, not even the local shops that were carrying and promoting the WI lines. Think I would have to agree with what was said above on prep. With any type of plot even the throw and grow types, that you have to have some minimal prep to get fair to good results. Yeah, i mean who dont have rye grass growing in the back of the truck a few weeks after planting. Almost anything is throw and grow, but if you cant plow a little and pour some fertilizer to it, your shooting yourself in the foot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BearClaw Posted March 3, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2009 Admittedly, I did little soil prep. There wasn't a lot of vegitation but I did take a rake so the seeds would have some contact but still nothing. I had done some work before with another company's seed plot by another stand. Dug, used fertilizer, lime, the whole bit and still not much. This time I said, if it grows, it does, if not, I wasn't going to do a lot. But this time I'm ready to try again but put a lot more work into it. I'm going to buy a soil tester, get a hand wheeled tiller and use the lime and fertilizer again and do it the best I can. i'd liek it to work if I'm going to put any effort into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zippyswamp Posted March 3, 2009 Report Share Posted March 3, 2009 Well I can speak for Pot's, we are one in the same. We are officers in the North East WI Deer Management Alliance and very good friends as well. If you don't follow the directions on the bag of seed from W.I. don't expect your plot to look like it does in the magazine pictures. We deal with the W.I. only, the best seed we've used, and we've tried them all. Start with the soil test, then move on to killing the plants that are currently growing. We use Round Up, and wait 7-10 days and start the ground preparation. If your using a no-plow type seed, we've found the less soil disturbance the better. Dragging with a spring tooth drag, then fertilizing and rolling is all that's needed. Seed your plot by the directions! Don't over seed, less is better. Then roll the plot with your roller. We sometimes use the ATV and run tire for tire to compact the soil on a small plot, but don't drag the seed bed, all you want to do is have seed to soil contact. Try to do this when rain is in forcast, it's not always possible, but you should have some moisture in the soil, and you will have a good plot for your deer to feast on. We like the Secret Spot, No-Plow, Winter Greens and Pure Attraction, if I had to choose only one, it would be the Pure Attraction. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BearClaw Posted March 4, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2009 Thanks for the advice-I'll take it and let you know how things turn out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RangerClay Posted March 5, 2009 Report Share Posted March 5, 2009 I planted Secret Spot in my plot and the deer really didn't go for it. However I took two bags to my buddies plot 30 minutes from here and the deer mowed it to the ground. He even shot his best buck ever this last fall in the plot. I found that Winter Greens works best for my plot but I have seen first hand that Secret Spot DOES work if the conditions are right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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