How PlotSpike Benefits Your Property in the Off-Season 

It’s finally the off-season and you’ve waited a long time to put up the tractor keys in favor of a shotgun or bow. But before you settle in your tree stand, you may want to consider planting one more acre. A nutritious, palatable food plot attracts deer, turkeys and other game, while helping to maintain healthy populations, but also benefits the rest of your property. 

A Feast of Green 

Deer eat roughly nine to 12 pounds of green foliage per day; that is a lot of vegetation. And it’s not just buffalo, but deer love to roam; deer graze on the move, never staying in one place too long. A food plot, full of natural and sourced plants, provides attractive dining options that keep them coming back. When deer are grazing on your freshly-planted food plot, they’re not damaging the surrounding trees and plants. 

Consistent Meals 

A food plot that provides year-round nutrition can convince deer to focus on it, even if it’s out of their comfort zone. Deer are instinctively drawn to their adult home ranges, but a solid nutrition choice can expand their home turf, keeping them in-range and in your sights. 

Improve Soil 

A food plot helps improve soil conditions, fights erosion and helps prevent pre-season weeds from sprouting. For example, our PlotSpike Clover Blend not only is tender and palatable, and provides high levels of protein and carbohydrates that deer populations love but clover plays host for nitrogen-fixing bacteria, which help maintain critical nitrogen levels in the soil. A thick blanket of grazing greens will push out any pesky weeds, while its root systems hold the soil in place, even during winter snow and rains.  

Plenty of Forage Solutions 

We understand every plot of land is as different as the game you’re trying to attract. That’s why Ragan & Massey offers several different blends of our high-quality PlotSpike forage seed. 

• PlotSpike® Forage Feast is quick to germinate and works well in a wide variety of soil conditions. It features our exclusive Forage Oats along with smaller grains, premium forage rape, clover and Austrian winter peas that provide palatability, protein, digestibility, and hardiness. 
• PlotSpike® Forage Complete provides nutritious forage for up to 12 months. It contains a wide variety of perennial and annual plants including wheat, rye, PlotSpike Forage Oats, winter peas, clover, brassica, chicory, and plantain. It is easy-to-grow, cold tolerant and adapts well to low fertility soils.
   
• PlotSpike® Shade Blend only requires about four hours of sunlight a day to survive and thrive. Plus, it can be planted with minimum tillage, making it ideal to plant along field roads or in small clearings deep in the woods. 
• PlotSpike® Quick Stand No-Till Blend is a highly nutritious and palatable mix of forage tetraploid ryegrass, fast-growing annual clovers and rape brassi that can be planted without discing. 
• PlotSpike® New Zealand Blend is cold-tolerant, nutritious and palatable. Allowed to reseed and given adequate moisture, it can produce healthy fall, winter, and spring forage for years to come. 

All of these blends can be found on our website. Go here to find a retail location near you or buy it online.