How To Save Money On Deer Food Plots
Do not throw your money in the dirt!!
When it comes to the food plot world I have never seen so many people waste so much before. Its honestly not there fault. With tv advertisements social media and misinformation on social media forums it can get confusing very very quickly.
We all want to save money and we naturally assume more is better. That’s not the case when it comes to food plots and saving money.
Today we are talking about CEC
CEC basically means how much the soil can hold nutrients at any given time. The lower the number the least amount it can hold it would be compared to a screen door. The higher the number The more it can hold it would be compared to a sponge.
Fertilizer costs this year is getting super expensive. Typically when we fertilize we go at such a high rate per acre because nothings perfect. We have run off, low PH acidic soil, low CEC, Low organic matter etc. On average you are adding 300-400 pounds of fertilizer per acre that’s a hefty bill.
BUT! There is a better way and you can actually save some money. Of course when doing food plots the most important part is actually taking a soil sample. Without a soil sample its impossible to know how much of anything you need. You could be adding lime and fertilizer and not even need it! So i encourage you to take 5 minutes and get a soil sample done!
Pay attention to the CEC when reading soil sample reports…
When you get the results back there will be a spot on the sample that says CEC with a number next to it. It will also recommend The amount of fertilizer you need. It could be anywhere from nothing to 300-400 pounds. This number is to bring your NPK levels up to optimal levels.
At this point look at your CEC number and do the math.
In the soil sample report above the CEC is 10.5 Take 10.5 X 10 = 105
This means your soil can only hold 105 pounds at any given time. That’s basically 2 bags of fertilizer instead of 8 bags. Whatever you r CEC number is X’s it by 10 and that is how much your soil can hold. Any more then that it is just wasted. That’s why split applications is always best. Add 105 now then 1-2 months later add another 105 pounds or so. Limp it along instead of full force all at once.
When driving a car and you get gas you fill it up. That gas eventually runs out. If you stop and give it a few dollars and throw some at it every now and then you can get much further.
To sum it up the most important step is getting a soil sample. Read that CEC number times it by 10 and that’s how much to add. The end goal with this is to actually improve the CEC number with rotations of annual crops and increasing organic matter. When you build those numbers up the soil can hold more and you will see over time you will need very little fertilizer and lime because the soil has the ability to actually hold it. END GAME SAVE MONEY!
increasing organic matter with rotations of annual crops.