deltafarmpress.com/mag/farming_food_plots_forage/index. -
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Published on: 5/25/2009
Last Visited: 5/25/2009
What does matter, says Steve Payne, is that deer trails are still evident and the beans are still harvestable.
It may seem strange that Payne actually wants these two things in the same field.
But that would be before you know that Payne is a wildlife biologist who actually has a passion to restore old, forgotten forage beans to Delta land.
There is a place for such varieties, he insists, especially in this age of food plots and hunting leases.
It turns out that Payne, who runs Southern Wildlife Management, is the man to see if you're looking for old soybeans or new food-plot seed mixes.
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Payne is now growing the Group 7 named Tyrone - "which produces 25 percent to 35 percent protein and is great for addition to silage or hay for cattle" - for Tennessee Farmers Coop in Laverne.
But finding a good, old soybean or a new exotic seed to blend in with wildlife mixes is what lights Payne's eyes up.
Payne, a graduate of Mississippi State University with a degree in forestry and wildlife, says he is simply trying to fill a niche.
When he graduated a few years ago, it was "obvious" that there was a big need for wildlife seeds and no one was filling that need.
"I have a friend at Mississippi State that helps me find old soybeans - like Laredo - that have been put back in seed storage for 15 or 20 years.
Most of the seeds have lost their germ.
But if we can get one or two plants, we can start a project and see what develops," says Payne, who farms and manages a hunting club outside Senatobia, Miss.
Payne stops his truck next to a field of Laredo soybeans, a very old bush forage variety that gets about 5 feet tall and produces about 800 pounds of protein to the acre.
The steady summer rains experienced in the Delta have muddied the roads.
Payne, boots giving in the moist soil, walks down the road and into a field of Quail Haven soybeans and Egyptian wheat (another giant variety that grows as high as a basketball rim).
"Notice how the soybeans are growing up the wheat and pulling it over.
MSU developed it in the 1960's to go in with silage corn to up the protein content.
They found out they couldn't keep deer out of it."
A healthy deer herd is clearly the goal for Payne and if the large number of deer trails branching through the field of Tyrone's is any indication, the herd is in fine shape.
Deer clearly like the offerings.
But the plants get so big, says Payne, that deer can't really hurt the crop.
When the crop dries down, plant matter will be so low to the ground combines have a hard time picking it up.
But it can be done, "you just have to drive through it slow."
What about the Egyptian wheat?
Payne says a good thing about Egyptian wheat is it makes a great cover crop allowing deer to feel secure.
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When people see his wild looking fields, Payne often fields questions about how hard it is to revert to a controlled row-crop situation.
He says the concerns are understandable, but nothing to worry about.
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Payne not only has soybeans that reseed, but also a variety of Egyptian wheat.
Wildlife enthusiasts really like the ability of these varieties to come back year after year, says Payne.
"You come in around February or March and lightly disk the soil and that produces a perfect stand."
Seeding rates?
For wildlife plots, Payne says most milos and wheats go in at 8 to 10 pounds per acre.
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A good rule of thumb with any seed is the smaller the seed, the less it needs covering, says Payne.
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Food plots are all about location, says Payne.
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Even those claiming success with no-till food plots will tell you the land needs some kind of prep work, says Payne.
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Payne says the most important and cheapest thing for anyone to do is a soil test.
"You can spend thousands of dollars prepping a field and it won't do a bit of good if you aren't applying the right things.
The tests are cheap and quick."
And bow hunters take note: If you plant a wildlife mix in September, you'll be lucky to get 6 inches of growth by bow season off the wheat.
If you want something substantial for bow season, Payne says you need a Group 7 soybean.
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So all their forages are developed for deer while ours have been developed for cattle," says Payne.
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A former college football lineman, Steve Payne is a substantial man.
But 10 steps into the wildlife plot - a Mossy Oak Biologic Seeds product called "Fans and Feathers" that Payne blends - and he is lost in the vegetation.
Several years ago, Payne was asked by Mossy Oak Biologic to blend varieties for the company.
He does the aforementioned Fans and Feathers along with "Biomass.
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