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TWO SEASONS, TWO NUTRITIONAL NEEDS
The whitetail’s nutritional needs can be divided into two parts and two needs –warm-season
(spring-summer) protein need and cool-season (fall-winter) energy need. Happily, the needs of
both bucks and does are virtually identical during both periods, but for different reasons.
Warm-Season “Management” Plots
During the warm season, bucks are in their annual antler growth cycle. They start out having to
rebuild muscle and mass lost during the stressful rut and winter. From early spring through
summer, protein is of utmost importance in both growing antlers and rebuilding muscle and body
mass. If protein is in short supply, the body gets first dibs and antler size suffers. During this time,
does also need to regain muscle and body mass lost during the winter. Also like bucks, they need
to nourish something growing rapidly – developing fetuses and later nursing fawns. All this takes
lots of protein.
If you want more and bigger deer that stay close to home, you’ve got to plant warm-season
plots. You can’t have a serious nutritional management program otherwise. Tecomate built its
reputation on unsurpassed warm-season products. Typically, legumes are employed to meet
warm-season protein requirements. Lablab, cowpeas, soybeans, clover, medics and alfalfa are all
legumes. There are annual and perennial legumes, and some type of legume will grow practically
everywhere. Chicory, a forb, is right up there with legumes for protein. Though considered a
cool-season plant, its heat and drought resistance make it an important protein source during the
warm-season. Contrary to popular belief, corn, sorghum and Milo are not good summer sources
of protein. And brassicas, i.e., rape, kale and turnips, are not good choices for summer protein be-
cause of low palatability while actively growing.
Cool-Season “Hunting” Plots
During the cool period, bucks and does need energy to fuel rutting activity and to ward off
winter’s cold; otherwise, they’ll burn muscle and fat and consume body reserves. Retaining more
muscle and body mass entering the spring means bigger antlers and healthier fawns. So, cool-
season food plots need to both attract deer for hunting and provide lots of energy.
Fast-growing annuals have been the traditional cool-season choice. Cereal grains, such as oats,
triticale, rye and wheat, are favorites and excellent sources of energy. In the North, brassicas are
popular and will attract deer once “frost-cured” and their sugar content increases. Unfortunately,
if you only plant cereal grains, brassicas or any other single species, the nutritional value is
largely limited to fall, with little carryover into spring. A much better plan is to include clovers,
winter peas, vetch and/or chicory with fast-growing, high-energy annuals. By doing so, you not
only get better attraction, but you’ll also deliver essential nutrition in late winter/spring, a critical
time in deer herds everywhere. That’s the logic behind our fall annuals – we added chicory and a
variety of legumes to grain-based Max-Attract 50/50 and brassica-based Ultra-Forage. By the
way, deer can readily break down protein into energy, thus legumes and chicory are also impor-
tant sources of fall energy.
