Dale,
I just got off the phone with Chris Agee at Pennington Seed. These are the numbers I was given.
30,000-40,000 lbs per acre per year of wet forage.
4,000-5,000lbs of Dry Forage Per Acre containing 25% Protein
Our deer here average 140lbs or so so 3lbs of Dry Forage Per day.
So if the deer ate the food plots only we could support between 4-5 deer per acre per year.
The initial Cost for each 1 acre plot is roughly $500. Each year after the cost to fertilize and cut is $150.00
This breaks down to $100 per deer the first year.......$30 per deer the following years.
The area we are in has a deer concentration of 40 deer per square mile and we have roughly 2 square miles.
We have 7 acres of food plots so we can feed 35 Deer per year for a total of about $1,000.
Corn is 90% Dry Matter. So it would take 3.3lbs of Corn per deer per day or 1200 lbs per year.
Corn costs around $11.00 per 50lb bag here so that equates to $264 per deer per year.
To feed the same 35 Deer would cost $9,240 with Corn at a much lower protein level.
Of course deer are browsers so this would never happen but I just wanted to show how much less expensive a quality food plot costs versus the same amount of Corn.
So if Clover Food Plots.......
Cost 80% Less after the first year
Are more attractive "Bait" to Deer than Corn.
Improve the health of the wildlife.
Are much easier to maintain.
What reason would anyone have for using Corn?
Robert
Your numbers look reasonable and comparable now, maybe a bit skewed towards the food plot. That's what got me started earlier, your 20,000 lb figure without a DM conversion wasn't an apples to apples comparison.
I do have a couple of additional comments/questions.
How long does a clover food plot last? Up here, about 3 years is all we can get from a red clover field, then the clover is gone. If you want more, you have to reseed.
You may already know this, but lime is very important. Clover does better with a pH above 6.0, alfalfa needs 6.5+ for the best growth. The breakdown of fertilizer causes the soil to become acid.
The protein content isn't 25% year round, once the clover matures, protein levels drop to about 12%. The only way to keep it high is to mow it on a regular basis and prevent it from blooming. I doubt you get much growth in winter, I know our alfalfa is dormant from Dec. to April.
If I was buying a large amount of corn, I sure wouldn't buy it by the 50# bag. 35 deer times 1200 lbs, divided by 56 lb/bushel=
750 bu. Current avg. market price as reported by Pa. Dept of Ag is $4.18 per bu for a total yearly cost of $3135. Considerably better than your $9000+ figure.
Of course, 750 bu is about a tractor trailer load, you better have a good sized bin.
Anyhow, to answer your last question
"What reason would anyone have for using Corn?"
I would use corn to lure the deer off the posted property next door and onto the property I have permission to hunt. There is no need to feed year round as the deer have plenty of feed, it is a matter of getting them in a particular spot at a particular time so they can be shot. Which is exactly the reason the Pa. Game Commission recently legalized baiting in certain parts of the state.
Dale
