In order to maintain a healthy deer herd and maximize our potential of taking nice bucks, Stillwater Hunt Club is integrating a food plot and supplement program into our basic management plan.  The use of food plots and supplements increases our chances of taking healthier/larger does and healthier/larger bucks.  As we all know, healthy bucks grow larger antlers than unhealthy ones.  The benefit of food plots can be shown with basic math :

    The average deer eats between three and five pounds of forage per day.  Therefore one deer will eat approximately 1200lbs of forage per year.  A good food plot can produce as much as 4000 pounds of forage per year per acre.  For each acre of food plot we can feed between three and four more deer than we are currently feeding without the food plots.  At a minimum, if we keep the herd size at the same level, our deer will be significantly more healthy (and larger).

    In addition to the corn and soybeans on our property and the surrounding cropfields, we are in the process of planting several food plots across the property.  Hopefully, we will be adding to our food plot program this coming fall.  In addition we currently have feeding troughs scattered across the property and salt/mineral licks located throughout the property. 

Supplement trough

Food Plot at the "North Pole"

    Below is a chart of our food plots. (See food plot photos here)