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| ATV spreading food cropsThe feel of a 70-degree day against a person’s skin sure energizes them after weeks of inclement, dreary weather. Hopefully, the worst of winter is already behind us and we can begin to enjoy a few of the warm days that February and March usually afford us.One of the greatest things about being deeply involved in the outdoors is that you are constantly looking to the future for one reason or another. Presently, I am already thinking about September and October, envisioning a landscape that radically contrasts with what we see today.What is on my mind is this year’s mast crop, and if an individual is ever going to stack the deck in their favor for an outstanding yield of persimmons, hickory nuts, beech nuts and acorns, now is the time to act. I, among thousands of others, am a big proponent of establishing food plots for wildlife; however, the fact that the vast majority of folks simply cannot have a traditional food plot has never escaped my attention.If you think about a food plot in a different way, though, you will discover that anyone with access to any sort of woodlands has a permanent, self-sustaining food plot in the form of mature mast trees. Conveniently enough, for those of us suffering from severe to moderate cases of cabin fever, mid-February through March is the best time to fertilize these important trees. Fertilizing in the fall could lead to animals ingesting the fertilizer along with the fallen fruit or nuts, while waiting until spring and summer may stress the tree and also inadvertently boost the growth of competing trees and weeds. Therefore, it is obvious why this short period needs to be taken advantage of.The first thing to consider before setting out to stretch your legs and improve the natural wildlife habitat is determining which trees you would like to fertilize, keeping in mind that the objective is to make the best even better. Disregard the trees that do not currently produce very well, because it will most likely take more than simple fertilizing to bring them up to par. Try to recall the specific trees that have historically attracted game with bumper crops of fruits and begin with fertilizing these exceptional specimens.A good rule of thumb is to spread one pound of fertilizer per inch of trunk diameter - the pounds can add up quickly on a large tree such as an old white oak or hickory. On the other hand, persimmon trees and crabapples take relatively little in comparison if you are on a strict budget like many of us. I like to use a hand-crank spreader with a shoulder sling to spread the 13-13-13 granules, but on level ground a push-type or even ATV-mounted spreader will do the job just fine.The fertilizer should be spread evenly beneath the dripline (the ground area below the coverage of limbs) of each tree for optimum availability by the roots throughout the upcoming growing season. I’ve found that marking the trees that are fertilized with GPS coordinates or ribbons are also a good idea so that you can not only refertilize the same trees year after year, but you also can find them easily during hunting season.Animals, both domesticated and wild, find fertilized vegetation more palatable and deer and turkeys will many times walk through a traditional food plot to reach an enhanced natural foodstuff. Tipping the odds in your favor this fall begins by getting out of the house right now and fertilizing one of your many permanent food plots. |
