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Biology And Management Of White-tailed Deer In Alabama

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are usually better suited for use in deer food plots. Corn is a highenergy<br />

food source that can increase body weights of deer. The<br />

drawbacks of corn are the expense and difficulty in growing, and a protein<br />

level below the level (16 to 18 percent) deer need to achieve optimum<br />

antler, skeletal, and muscular development (Kroll 1994). Most use of<br />

corn does not occur until after the corn has dried (fall and winter). Better<br />

crop choices for warm-season plantings include high-protein legumes,<br />

such as soybeans, cowpeas, alyce clover, lablab, and American jointvetch.<br />

One of the best combinations to plant during the spring and summer<br />

months includes cowpeas (40 to 60 pounds per acre) and alyce clover<br />

(10 to 15 pounds per acre; Griffin and Jacobson 1994). Both of these<br />

crops are high in protein and make excellent deer forages. These two<br />

crops can be planted as a mixture or in separate strips and should be<br />

planted in late-spring or early-summer (Griffin and Jacobson 1994).<br />

Grain sorghum (5 pounds per acre) also can be planted with these two<br />

crops (Kammermeyer and Thackston 1995). Sorghum helps support<br />

the cowpea vines and alyce clover stems and keeps deer from overgrazing<br />

the cowpeas and alyce clover early in the growing season. Planting<br />

dates and seeding rates for other warm-season forages can be found in<br />

APPENDIX 10, pages 165-170.<br />

Exclosures<br />

Many hunting clubs and landowners have started using wire<br />

exclosures or utilization cages in their wildlife openings. These<br />

exclosures generally measure about three feet in diameter and four feet<br />

in height. They can easily be constructed from a piece of 2” x 4” net wire<br />

10 feet in length. These cages prevent deer and other animals from<br />

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