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My family leases approximately 500 acres of timberland for hunting. We have about 10 acres in food plots, plus another 8 acres in a right-of-way that we plant. I recently collected soil samples from all of the plots to determine our lime and fertilizer needs. The landowner told us the previous hunting club had limed the plots in the past, but all of our soil sample results indicate we need 2 tons of lime per acre. Being on a limited budget, do you think we can get by with simply bumping up our fertilizer rates this year?

Dennis – Jackson, Mississippi

Let me start by commending you for collecting and having soil samples tested. This is by far the most important step to any food plot project.

Let a soil sample test tell you when to spend money on fertilizer or lime.

Annually testing soil pH and fertility allows you to monitor and make adjustments to soil quality for maximum forage production and nutritional quality for a deer herd. Maintaining a desirable soil pH (6.0-7.0 for most crops) is sometimes neglected in favor of additional fertilizer, but it is critical as it directly influences the availability of nutrients in the soil for uptake by food plot plants. When soils are acidic (low pH), valuable nutrients (e.g., N, P, K, S, Ca, and Mg) are chemically "tied up" in the soil and not available for consumption by plants - or eventually the deer herd - regardless of how much fertilizer was applied. Amending soil with lime to ensure desirable pH levels frees up nutrients and can improve fertilizer efficiency by more than 50%. With the increasing costs of fertilizer, maintaining proper soil pH will not only ensure optimal plant growth and ultimately healthier deer, but will save your hunting club money in the long run.

Because it can take several months for the chemical process to effectively change soil pH, checking and amending the soil with lime in the spring/early summer will allow ample time to enhance the soil before fall planting activities. Although the previous hunting club may have applied lime, most soils in the South are naturally acidic (low pH) and may require several applications to achieve desired soil pH levels. Once desired levels are reached, periodic applications are required to maintain these levels.

Jed DeZelle, Wildlife Consulting Coordinator

Back to Westervelt Outdoors Spring 2011

The above article was featured in the Westervelt Outdoors: Spring 2011 issue. To view publication in its entirety, please view/download the PDF.