Beans

In an era of TLDR I guess I won't try to explain the how and why regards getting 50 pounds of dried beans for Christmas.  Just accept this.  So, how will these work in our Hunting Land feed plots?

This is just one of a dozen or so bags.

There is a lot of information out there regards planting traditional stuff like clover and soybeans for the dining pleasure of deer, but Pintos, Navy and Black beans, not so much.  So this will be an experiment.

First step is to make sure they will grow........

And......here's the view about 9 days later!

Navy beans were the early leaders with Pintos catching up.  Germination rates are 90% even with my indifferent care.  Black beans are lagging a bit.

The matter of what to plant for deer feed lots is an arcane topic, one in which there are many strong opinions.  Sects and cults abound.  Soybeans, corn, peas.  What's the role for pumpkins?  Are you looking to just feed them or to keep them around and happily munching right up to hunting season?  

In the end it comes down to what the deer vote for.  Oh, and how much time, effort and thought you want to put into the project.  As this is primarily a learning experienced - with the secondary end goal of meat in the freezer - we'll likely have a bit of fun with it.  Different plots with game cams to keep the All Seeing Eye on things.   

Now, I could see how kind hearted people might look askance at this project.  I mean, it is a bit like having The DeScuzzi Brothers start a delightful neighborhood Ristorante with all you can eat fare and very low prices....then having Mafia assassins turn up one beautiful fall day.  But unlike The DeScuzzis, we have standards.  We won't be putting out big piles of food in front of our stands just before hunting season.  Likely what we plant and nurture will help the deer population* out to the extent that we may spare as many critters as we harvest.  Spring can be a hungry time for new fawns and their moms.  And that fall binge eating sometimes takes them far afield and across dangerous roads.

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* Oh, and planting all manner of edible stuff will greatly endear us to the other wild life, the ones we are not planning on putting into the freezer.  I spent a lot of time watching squirrels dance around our prototype food plots last year.  They will be Most Pleased, as will bear,  turkey and who knows what else.