Soils, Seeds And Super Bucks

By Brad Herndon

By 1996 a man in his mid-20s in Wisconsin had amassed an incredible record of 27 fish and wildlife convictions. His hunting privileges were revoked in Wisconsin, but even this didn’t cure him of his dastardly ways.

Driving around with a friend in Wisconsin one night, he spotted a trophy buck, which he instantly shot. Concealing it in his vehicle, he and his buddy drove to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan that night and placed an unused deer tag the man had from Michigan on the deer. To prove he had taken the deer in Michigan, the man had his buddy video tape him tracking and recovering the trophy whitetail in a wooded area.

Knowing no one could prove he didn’t legally tag the buck in Michigan, the man confidently returned to Wisconsin with the deer tied to his vehicle, making sure the trophy was in plain sight for all interested spectators to see and admire. And this included conservation officers.

Knowing he had most certainly taken the buck illegally, conservation warden John Welke worked on the case for two years. Finally the man who had video taped the recovery confessed to Welke what had happened. Welke then turned the case over to Ed Spoon, a special agent with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Spoon knew he still didn’t have enough information to convict the man, but he knew Brian Beard of the University of Wisconsin’s Department of Geology and Geophysics might have the knowledge to put the final nail in this poacher’s coffin.

By analyzing the antlers for their strontium isotope, which is a trace element in bone-like structures, Beard can tell exactly what part of a geographic region a deer grew up in. It works because rock deteriorates and turns into soil, soil then produces plants, the deer eat the plants, and then these trace elements become part of the antlers. It’s like the DNA of the soil in a region.

Sampling the strontium isotope of six bucks near Portage, Wisconsin, where the man lived, Beard was able to ascertain the man’s poached buck did indeed come from this same area. The strontium isotope taken from antlers of six bucks in the region of Michigan where he was supposed to have killed the deer were considerably different. This occurred because the geologic formations from the Michigan area are among the nation’s oldest, while those from the Portage, Wisconsin region are among the nation’s youngest.

It confirmed once more the old saying, “You are what you eat.”

It’s In The Soil

The just-related story about analyzing antlers for their strontium isotope in order to convict a poacher is one of the most interesting aspects of the soil that I have come across in a long time. And it got me to thinking.

Because I’ve kept detailed records of all Pope & Young and Boone & Crockett statistics for many years, I’ve long known what regions of the United States produce the best antlers. It’s a fact these regions typically have some of the most fertile soils in the nation.  I’ve also known a higher number of book deer entries come from some of our major river systems. This, too, has piqued my curiosity and I’ve wondered why this happens (more on this later). 

While the number of deer in a state, the management philosophy of state game agencies and the length and time of firearms seasons enters into the trophy deer formula, I don’t think there is any doubt that soil plays an important part as well. Because of this, I thought now would be a good time to discuss different types of soils, how seeds relate to certain types of soils, and what part soils do, in fact, have in the trophy buck formula.

No Two Soils Are Alike

Dirt is dirt, we may think. And we would be wrong. Illinois contains some of the most fertile ground in our nation. Surprisingly, there are 1,500 different types of soil found in The Prairie State! Jackson County, Indiana, where I live, contains 75 different types of soil. Yes, there are a staggering number of soils. Of course I can’t cover every type of soil -- that would take several books -- but I can explain the basics and why it’s imperative to know what type of soil you have in order to get the most out of your deer food plots.

Soil can be described in various ways, such as light, heavy, sandy, clay, loam, rich or poor. Soil scientists describe soil types by how much silt, clay and sand are present. This is called texture. It is possible to change the texture of soil by adding different items. Changing texture can assist in providing the correct conditions needed for plant growth.

Sand is the largest particle in the soil. When you rub it, it feels rough because it has sharp edges. Sand doesn’t hold many nutrients.

Silt is a soil particle whose size is between sand and clay. Silt feels powdery and smooth and feels sticky when wet.

Clay is the smallest of soil particles. It’s smooth when dry, sticky when wet. Soils high in clay are called heavy soils. Clay can hold a lot of nutrients, but it doesn’t let air and water through it very well.

As you might suspect, particle size has quite a bit to do with a soil’s drainage and nutrient holding capacity. As a comparison, sand would be about the size of a basketball, silt the size of a baseball and clay the size of a golf ball. In my county, there are flooded river bottom clay soils where only corn and soybeans are grown, and then only after the fields have had drainage pipe installed. Less than two miles away there are sand soils where mostly watermelons and cantaloupes are grown.

Obviously, then, it’s important to know as much about your soils as possible in order to insure maximum yield of your products. This means soil depth has to be known, since planting a deep-rooted crop on shallow soil would prove unproductive. Likewise, how much moisture is held by the soil is important. Imperial Whitetail Clover does best in moist areas, whereby Alfa-Rack does better on well-drained soils. Do you know what type your soil is?

Know Exactly What Type Soil You Have

Too often those new to food plot management take the advice of hunting buddies with a little experience in managing for deer. They use the same seed and put the same fertilizer on their plots as their friends do. Oftentimes this works, while at other times it’s a disaster because the soil can be totally different within a small region. One photograph accompanying this article is a shot of a map that shows the soil types in Jackson County, Indiana. The letters designate a specific type of soil. You can quickly see how many different types of soil there are within this one area.

The good news here is that you can go to your county soil conservation service office and find out exactly what type of soil your food plot contains by looking at a detailed county soil survey map. Not only will it tell you the type of soil you have, it will explain what type of plants will grow best in this type of soil, what type of planting methods to use, and much more. And the information is free.

Once you’ve determined the best product for your soil in this way, the next step is to get a detailed analysis of your soil for the particular product you are planting. This report is inexpensive and will tell you how much lime you need to apply to get the pH to the proper level for the seed you’re using, and it will also tell you precisely what type of fertilizer you need to make those plants grow to their maximum potential. Paying attention to these details makes all the difference in the world. I’ll repeat once more what Steve Scott once told me: “Take a soil test, and if your food plot doesn’t turn out to your satisfaction, take another soil test.”

A friend of mine has property in a river bottom that floods. People told him it was rich land and he didn’t have to do much to it to have good food plots for his whitetails. Following their advice, he planted accordingly and his results were marginal. This past year he did a detailed study of his soil and closely followed soil test recommendations. His food plots last fall were lush, to put it mildly. I wrote this article on Oct. 18, 2002 and the night before my friend had 16 deer in his food plots. He had one 10-point buck that would gross about 150 inches broadside for several minutes and didn’t shoot it because of Indiana’s new one antlered buck rule (I had him committed to a mental institution the next day).

Another good friend of mine leases land in a plateau in a large hilly region south of me. He did detailed analysis of his soil and planted three food plots. On Oct. 17, 2001, (the same night my other buddy passed the big 10-point) he saw 25 deer on his evening hunt. He had two 3-1/2 year old 10-point bucks in his Imperial Whitetail Clover field at 5:30 p.m. He also saw three yearling bucks, a 2-1/2 year old 8-point, and a 5-1/2 year old buck just before dark that he couldn’t get a shot at.

All this activity took place on a lease only 78 acres in size, with only 28 acres being wooded. Because of the lay of the land, there are dry and moist locations on this property. My friend actually has three different food products planted on his small piece of land. He’s taken a small tract and by knowing his soil and liming it and fertilizing it properly for the quality products he plants, he’s turned it into a real big buck haven.

I have another example showing the importance of knowing your soil. This example will also show how dramatically soil can change from one acre to the next.

My wife, Carol, and I do extensive assignment photography. Among our clients is the largest farming magazine in the nation. In the summer of 2000 we did a photography job for this magazine that was to accompany an article on three brothers who farmed 5,000 acres in the Midwest.

These brothers had special GPS units on all of the equipment they owned. One unit was installed on a specially equipped ATV. The operator of this ATV could tell by watching his GPS exactly where the center of every acre they farmed was located. He would stop at each of these spots and with a special remotely controlled arm take a soil sample of this acre. This meant 5,000 soil samples were taken every year.

The data from these soil samples was then entered into the computers on their planters and all of their equipment that applies fertilizer or nitrogen. This allowed these farmers to do variable rate seeding and fertilizer application perfect for each acre. For instance, one acre might be planted with 33,500 seeds of corn, another acre with 30,000 and another acre with 28,000, depending on the condition, type and wetness of soil. This was a lot of work for the farmers and you might wonder if it paid off.

Once the system was perfected, the income per acre for these farmers increased by $30. Take $30 times 5,000 and you have an increase in yearly income of $150,000! Most interesting to me was the fact the farmer said that an increased application of zinc made them a greater increase of income per acre than anything else they did. 

Each of these cases I’ve cited has shown how important it is to know exactly what type of soil you have and to build it up to its maximum potential for your seed product. One other example I have will show how, over time, this buildup of soil will increase yield. Overall, Indiana has extremely fertile soils. In the early 1900s, corn yield per acre was 40 bushels. By 1950 it was 50 bushels per acre. In the year 2000 the corn yield in Indiana had jumped to an amazing 147 bushels per acre!

Hopefully by now I’ve convinced you of the importance of finding out what type of soil you have and the importance of taking a soil test of your deer food plots every year. You can build up your soil to where it will grow incredible quantities of nutritious food for your whitetails, and their scores will reflect this added nutrition that has been put into their diet.

To give you something additional to think about, the top P & Y producing counties in the states of Louisiana and Mississippi are found along the Mississippi River. In Louisiana, the best counties are East Carroll, Tensas, Madison and Concordia Parish. In Mississippi they are Washington, Clairborne, Issaquena and Bolivar. Are the best whitetail racks grown in these counties because of food plot management and excellent native vegetation, or is it because of fertile soils washed in from many miles upstream, possibly the Midwest? Or, more likely, is it from a combination of all of these factors? As I said, it’s something to think about.

While we don’t yet have the answer to this intriguing question, we do know fertile soils play an important part in producing megabucks. By knowing your soil, what seed products you should plant on it, and enriching your ground as specified by quality soil tests, you can take a giant step toward growing higher scoring and healthier deer.

Keep in mind, however, there are limitations to improving your deer’s antler size. While you can take marginal soils and with proper treatment and food plot species increase antler scores substantially for your area, you will never be able to match similar management practices in regions with naturally fertile soils. This is true because you can’t treat large forested tracts where whitetails spend much of their time browsing.

By analyzing the antlers for their strontium isotope, a trace element in bone-like structures, Brian Beard was able to tell exactly where a poached buck grew up and was able to obtain a conviction. I wonder if some day he will be able to determine the area a deer grew up in, and that it had been eating Imperial Whitetail Clover on a well-managed food plot? I guess that’s one more fascinating question we need answered.   

What Type of Soil Do You Have?

It’s important to know exactly what type of soil you have in order to plant the most productive food plot product for that soil. It’s also critical to plant these seeds properly and to build your soil up to its maximum potential by applying the proper amount of lime and fertilizer products. To see the difference this can make, leave the lime and fertilizer off of one part of your food plot. Once this is done, place exclusion cages in both the treated and untreated parts of your plot. You’ll be astonished to see how much better your plants will grow in the area that was fertilized and limed. Remember, you are what you eat.