# are winter peas worth it?



## gahunter70 (Sep 10, 2014)

I've used winter peas in the past and the deer hammer them but I didn't plant at a high rate. So after reading Jeff Sturgis' s article on layered food plots and seeing he reccomends 50# oats/a and 50-100# peas/a I wonder how they will hold up to deer pressure in plots close to 1 acre in size. Anybody have any thoughts?
 Here is Jeff's article http://www.whitetailhabitatsolutions.com/blog/layered-food-plots-for-whitetails/


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## Forest Grump (Sep 10, 2014)

I will give you my experience, (& that of many others), & you may take it or leave it. 

I planted Austrian Winter peas, Nutrigreen peas & secada peas, for many years, & never could get deer to utilize them worth a flip. I could grow gorgeous pea plants, with 4 foot stems, in plots that deer fed in daily & kept grazed like a golf course (except those peas). People told me: they won't eat the purple flowered ones, only the white flowered ones...OK, now what? You see, you never know what color the flowers are in the ones you buy! Had some white ones one year, they would take one bite, & that's it, never touched them again. 

After decades of trying to get deer to eat them, I no longer buy them or plant them. But it's up to you. If you read the article you quoted, his deer were clearly overpopulated & in Wisconsin, one is very limited as far as what will survive winter. In his case, he might have had success with many different plants. 

Deer on my properties will never touch many of the plants I see people say they will eat on theirs, but I suggest you don't over-spend in year one & see if your deer will consume a new food. It has taken me 3 years to train deer to eat a new forage, & that is after many years of learning how to teach a deer to eat something it has never seen before.

In terms of your specific question: 50# of oats + 50# of peas is excessive; 50 oats + 100# of peas is extreme, you are being your own weed in that instance; your article author needs more plantable acreage or fewer deer/sq. mile.


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## gahunter70 (Sep 10, 2014)

Thank you for sharing your experience.  I have planted winter peas in the past but the deer wiped them out fast. Based on the fact that Jeff Sturgis is an accomplished whitetail property manager 
And author of 2 books on food plots I wondered if the high rate he uses could be a solution to the over grazing I experienced.  Also my pea use is limited to SC and now I'm planting in Ga so I'm looking to see what everyone else has had luck with. Here is a link to his book for reference http://www.qdma.com/shop/whitetail-success-by-design-by-jeff-sturgis


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## GT-40 GUY (Sep 11, 2014)

I've planted cow peas and the deer mow them down. This year I'm going to plant them very heavy to try keep ahead of the deer so they get a chance to mature.

gt40


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## Scrapy (Sep 11, 2014)

Forest Grump said:


> It has taken me 3 years to train deer to eat a new forage, & that is after many years of learning how to teach a deer to eat something it has never seen before.
> ./QUOTE]
> 
> You too? For many years I have had a garden within a hundred feet if the house. Deer left it alone. I have about 80 acres and walk squirrel dog pups about most days. At night I see deer in the pasture behind the garden.  I don't care that much about deer hunting and figured we had an agreement, I will leave you alone if you leave me alone. Then one year one got in and ate my okra of all things, from one end to the other.  I had four 100 ft long rows of cowpeas blooming good. So as a preventative I staked out a coon dog at both ends. The peas got perfect . I said I will oil up the pea sheller tonight and pick tomorrow.  Why did I put off? The whole herd got in there and ate the peas sticking up, not the vines at all , just the peas.  They ate all the way up to five feet away from the dog chains.  I cussed those dogs for all they were worth. I told them I was going to replace them with deer dogs.  They just looked at me like what was I to expect?
> ...


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## king killer delete (Sep 11, 2014)

I plant a mix winter peas/cow peas and wheat and rye. They will go to the winter peas first


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## gahunter70 (Sep 11, 2014)

killer elite said:


> I plant a mix winter peas/cow peas and wheat and rye. They will go to the winter peas first



That's been my experience,  so much so that I had decided they aren't worth it. Just wondering if anyone has had success with high rates to overcome graze pressure before they can get up good


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## Canuck5 (Sep 11, 2014)

I'll be planting leftover AWP's from last year .... just not sure the deer ever ate any of them, but we will see this year.


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## Killdee (Sep 11, 2014)

I tried planting them,Austrian winter peas, for several years and had the same results FG did. I no longer waste my $ on them.They eat cow peas in warm weather before they get out of the ground good.


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## Gadestroyer74 (Sep 11, 2014)

I'm with killdee and FG planted them and didn't  touch them waste of time and money I always lean toward if it ain't broke don't fix it oats wheat rye grain clover always works so I stick with that


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## Core Lokt (Sep 11, 2014)

they never really ate the AWP's I planted for a couple of yrs. I quit planting them.


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## Atlanta Dawg (Sep 11, 2014)

According to the DNR/WRD survey there are fewer and fewer deer-so it must be goats or sheep eating the Peas !!


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## 280bst (Sep 11, 2014)

I've always had good luck with AWP's guess my deer were schooled the way I kept them from eating them and stuff in the garden is a mixture of liquid sevin and a little miracle gro in a sprayer be easy on the miracle gro. I discovered this one year when I sprayed by garden and saw tracks going down the rows and nothing even nibbled at them


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## Gone Fishin (Sep 11, 2014)

I always though of the peas as just a way to give everything else a little time to get growing.  I use soy beans, because they are ~$20 for 50#'s at the local feed store.  The deer hammer them in my area.


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## Millyville Hunter (Sep 12, 2014)

I agree completely with deer not eating Austria winter peas. I planted them a couple of years and kept them separated in the plots and the deer always went for the forage oats, winter wheat, and clover first. It's has been proven that deer prefer grain crops during the fall when it comes to food plots.


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## elfiii (Sep 14, 2014)

Millyville Hunter said:


> I agree completely with deer not eating Austria winter peas. I planted them a couple of years and kept them separated in the plots and the deer always went for the forage oats, winter wheat, and clover first. It's has been proven that deer prefer grain crops during the fall when it comes to food plots.



You'll never convince the deer around me of that. Never had an AWP sprout make it past 2" tall. Once they are up the deer come through with a lawn mower and a vacuum cleaner. That's why AWP is a waste of money.


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## The Longhunter (Sep 14, 2014)

elfiii said:


> You'll never convince the deer around me of that. Never had an AWP sprout make it past 2" tall. Once they are up the deer come through with a lawn mower and a vacuum cleaner. That's why AWP is a waste of money.



We've planted as much as 2 acres of AWP, and never have seen one get past the 4 leaf stage.


I'd love to see one 3 feet high, I'd have to post a picture to get it identified.

They are a large seed so you have to plant them separately from the small grains - we have given up on the AWP.

You just have to remember that with any pea, once they clip that stem, that's the end of the plant, it doesn't come back.


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## yellowhammer73 (Sep 14, 2014)

If you have hogs they will root up any and all peas you plant.
They will do the same with cereal grain as well but really seem to go after the peas first. Just a little food for thought.


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## Georgia Hard Hunter (Sep 14, 2014)

maybe its the time of the planting, I planted AWP the first of Sept a few years ago, the plot only lasted a few weeks as the deer hammered them and no plant got over 2 " tall. After about 3 weeks nothing was left and I had to replant grains wheat/rye/oats. I havent planted them since because of the lack of staying power.


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## jmharris23 (Sep 14, 2014)

They've never touched me when I planted them...I stick to wheat, oats, and clovers now


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## Hut2 (Sep 14, 2014)

I've Planted Them In Twiggs, Wilcox, Ben Hill, & Irwin Counties With No Luck!


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## elfiii (Sep 15, 2014)

The Longhunter said:


> We've planted as much as 2 acres of AWP, and never have seen one get past the 4 leaf stage.
> 
> 
> I'd love to see one 3 feet high, I'd have to post a picture to get it identified.
> ...



I'm planting a 5 way this year from Athens Seed - Wheat, Oats, Rye, AWP and Crimson clover because that's what my feed and seed had. I'm going to top dress that with some rape which I would have preferred over the AWP. I already know the AWP will disappear quick but that will bring them in. My bet is on the cereal grains for the early part of the season and then the rape for late November on.


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## Crakajak (Sep 16, 2014)

I will stick with my fruit trees/hard mast trees/ perennial clover mixture .I am lazy.


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## elfiii (Sep 17, 2014)

Crakajak said:


> I will stick with my fruit trees/hard mast trees/ perennial clover mixture .I am lazy.



I'm going to get back in the Duranna business next Fall. Once you get it established taking care of it is a breeze.


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## gahunter70 (Sep 22, 2014)

thanks for all the advice, went with oats, wheat, deer greens(equal parts rape,radish,turnip) and crimson clover. I'll come back when that gets going and overseed with rye


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## Killdee (Sep 22, 2014)

elfiii said:


> I'm going to get back in the Duranna business next Fall. Once you get it established taking care of it is a breeze.



I'm going to try WI clover and chicory this year in a couple spots. Deer walked through my duranna to get to everybody else's cereal plots and I plowed it under after 2 seasons. It fed deer great in the spring though.


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## Georgia Hard Hunter (Sep 22, 2014)

elfiii said:


> I'm going to get back in the Duranna business next Fall. Once you get it established taking care of it is a breeze.



I'm not convinced on the Durana clover, I had a 3/4 acre thick with Durana and saw fewer deer the last 2 years both with the clover. I decided to plow 1/2  of the plot  and plant rack master Fall blend. It will be interesting to see which the deer prefer in the fall. I suspect the deer in my area  use the clover more in the spring than the fall


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