Check out Map #1 of soybean production in the U.S. Now compare it to Map 2, which shows where the most record-book bucks (P&Y and B&C) have been killed in America over time. Uncanny isn’t it?
The maps clearly show a strong correlation: The more soybeans, which have nearly 30% crude protein, that are planted in and around your hunting area, the more big bucks that live there.
Click here for more information on soybeans and when to plant them this spring.
Interesting! Do you think the soybean production is directly related to the size of the bucks in the area or are there a lot of other factors at play too? For example maybe all the rainfall from the great lakes makes for a good soybean climate but it’s also good for a bunch of other crops so the bucks are just well fed in general? Do you know if the same correlation holds for other foods?
In GA we use mix like BD but no rye as deer here don’t like it. We use turnips in the mix. Much self seeds so we replant 1/3 plot each yr & mow rest close for regrow the. Deer & turkeys use all year.
The trouble with soy beans or any beans for that matter is they get eaten too quickly in small plots which are 90% of all food plots planted to hunt deer over. Most are under 1 acre in size. Where beans are planted in agriculture fields they are indeed an ideal food for all types o game.
A much better cool season choice in small “hunting” plots are wheat, oats and rye top seeded with a giant white clover(ladino) / white dutch mixture. The grain mix will be up in a week and supply cover for the clover to make it to the following spring. I plant my “kill” plots all under an acre…many under 1/2 acre with these cool season mixes every year.