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Chisel Plowed Corn Fields

Shoot2Kill

Shoot2Kill

Active Member
I spotted a nice shooter buck a week ago on Monday coming out into a freshly picked corn field - while it was just barely light enough to see. He was there with 2 other bucks and 5 does...I hunted around that corn for the next 3 nights and only saw one doe and 2 fawns in those 3 nights. There were tracks all over that field while I was out there...then...the farmer chisel plowed the field and as of last night I found ONE set of tracks out there.

What is your experience with chisel plowed fields? There is only one field within 2 miles of where I'm hunting that is still just the stalks...everything else is plowed under. Those deer are obviously feeding elsewhere now. Have you guys experienced this? Thoughts? Ideas?

Why does it seem that every field is now chisel plowed in the fall? Are there advantages to this - question for the farmers on here. I think I'd see a lot more critters if all the fields weren't plowed under.
 
It must be fairly flat ground if the farmer is allowed to do fall chisel plowing as part of his conservation practices. Most of the ground around where I hunt is borderline HEL if not HEL (highly erodible land). Fall chisel is not allowed. Due to wind erosion, it is frowned upon on the flatter ground.

Fall chisel buries most of the waste grain left after harvest, so it won't be as attractive for deer. Have you tried walking across a chisel plowed field?

My approach would be to try to hunt the edges of the field next to the best alternate cover you can find (alfalfa fields? timber?). The deer are probably occasionally looking for corn along the edges.
 
You're thoughts are the same as mine...yes, walking across chisel plowed fields sucks to say the least. I thought wind erosion was a major reason why you don't chisel plow in the fall...everything around you all winter just turns black from all the dirt blowing all over. Do they do it in the fall to save time in the spring?

I was just wondering if you guys experience the same things if you see this...seeing lots of deer when the corn is still there, and then none when it's plowed under. I wish I could have had a few more days on the field before he turned it under.

I was watching a farmer combine yesterday afternoon...on the opposite side of the field somebody else was already chisel plowing it...so it went from a standing corn field to dirt in one afternoon. That sucks for wildlife.
 
I agree....I've seen 20 deer in a picked field , and the days after it was ripped.....nota. They just move on to the next field.
 
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Do they do it in the fall to save time in the spring?


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Yes and it allows the dirt to "mellow". Dirt clods will be broken up by repeated freezing and thawing. Also, the corn residue will break down in the soil over the winter. I'm not a huge fan of chisel plowing (though I spent many an hour in a tractor doing it when I worked as a farm hand in high school). You get wind and water erosion, it costs you time, fuel and equipment costs, and your fields dry out. This drying out is good in that you can get into the field earlier in the spring to plant, plus the black loose dirt warms up quicker (planting dates are tied to soil temps/moisture). But if you have a dry year, no-till is said to give you an inch of rainfall bonus over "conventional" tillage.

I went back to my home town two weeks ago for a memorial service. The ground around there is pretty flat. I was surprised to see some chiseled fields as most people around where I live now were concentrating on harvesting rather than fall tillage.
 
Shoot,
Its pretty common in Minnesota for fall tillage. The ground is not HEL, but more pure black dirt or a sandy mix. Most of the farmers are doing this to save time in the spring.

It makes hunting a pain though. Just walking accross it dry sucks, let along when its wet.

My guess is they moved on.
 
This fact could be the ONLY advantage us "southerners" have over you guys. Our corn has been out two months and most of the fields have winter wheat growing in them now. With the rain we got last night that wheat should launch pretty quick. I do empathize with you, I'm worried about the farmer at my favorite stand location putting his bean stubble under after he harvests. I've got my fingers crossed that he'll no-till wheat or just leave it for next spring. We'll see...
 
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I agree....I've seen 20 deer in a picked field , and the days after it was ripped.....nota. They just move on to the next field.

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Now you know why I spend a lot of time and effort to have the only standing corn left when all the crops are off...or at the very least, some type of food plots.

Deer will suck to those stubble fields just like it was a magnet...then move on when they plow....and I can't wait for them to get everything plowed around me
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D-Tree, you make a good point. It'd be very hard to make food plots work around here, just b/c of the abundance of available food. One day, the good Lord willing, when I have some land I'll probably work to make it the most attractive bedding/staging area around, with some "treats" like fruit trees...
 
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I agree....I've seen 20 deer in a picked field , and the days after it was ripped.....nota. They just move on to the next field.

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Now you know why I spend a lot of time and effort to have the only standing corn left when all the crops are off...or at the very least, some type of food plots.

Deer will suck to those stubble fields just like it was a magnet...then move on when they plow....and I can't wait for them to get everything plowed around me
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I wish I had that option!!
 
The deer don't seem to use the chiseled fields as much around us here. Every year one specific field is corn it's like I-80. Once it gets chiseled they seem to avoid it more. It's beans this year though I'm anxious to see what happens.
 
Chisel plowing fields around here (north central MN) only seems to happen on the fields I want to hunt. Here fields arent picked/combined there chopped which means stocks and all are gone. This does leave a fair amount of ears on the ground. If the farmer does it at the right time there will be very little corn on the ground.
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. The farm I hunt tries to get all their corn chisel plowed. Means all those ears are put under the dirt. Once a field has been chisel plowed there wont be a deer feeding in it. No questions about it.

I dont have much experience about chiseled plowed picked fields.

Dean
 
There are hardly any farmers around us that do any tillage. I really don't see the point. No till has come such a long ways and fuel prices are so high, I don't think thier is much advantage.
 
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There are hardly any farmers around us that do any tillage. I really don't see the point. No till has come such a long ways and fuel prices are so high, I don't think thier is much advantage.

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You would think that everyone would be no-tilling by now, but yields are almost always higher using tillage...plus old habits die hard
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I would say 80-90% of corn stubble gets some form of fall tillage around here, while often soybean stubble is left to no-till corn into.

Bean stubble dosen't draw as many deer though.
 
Tilling the stalks under and getting them to start to rot down and release the nutrients that are left into the ground makes a difference in how much fertilizer you apply at planting time. Also the guys that continue to no-till end up with what is called hard pan. It's a had plate of earth from 6 to 12 inches under the top soil that the roots of the next crop have a hard time breaking through. Thus creating poor crop. Fall chieseling (HEL) (highly erdodable land) actually preserves the ground from water erotion. Cheiseling creates groves for the water to catch in and not just wash over the hill. Also holding the water in the grooves helps for it to soak into the earth, instead of running away. Anyway, just a few things on tillage. There are many benifits and disadvantages to fall tillage. Although I will say that is does nothing for the deer hunting.
 
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the guys that continue to no-till end up with what is called hard pan. It's a had plate of earth from 6 to 12 inches under the top soil that the roots of the next crop have a hard time breaking through.

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This would be better brought up in the WM forum, but as someone who has been involved in no-tilling crops for nearly 30 years....

Hardpan is typically caused by moldboard plows and can only be truely broken up by using a subsoiler.

Chiselplows work better by not creating a hardpan and as noted, helping to till, while controlling erosion (to some extent)

No-till planters only penetrate the ground several inches and surface residue helps improve soil tilth and aggregate stability. No-till planting is the solution...not the cause of hardpan or soil compaction.

To see the benefits of no-tilling crops it often takes years...mostly to undo the damage that has already been done..and even then if fall harvest equipment runs across wet ground...it will still end compacted on the surface.

Just a couple links on the subject (on which there is reams of information
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30 years of no-till

Sustainable Soil Management

Back to the original question...

In this country you have to be able to "move with the feed", or plant your own...or end up bored in your tree stand.

That can be true no matter if it's corn or acorns (it's better if you have both
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I think the benefits of fall plowing and everything has been covered, but I know one thing a farm I can hunt that has the best potential for huge bucks goes way down when the corn is out and it has been plowed. The timber is not very big as it is and I watch all the neighboring deer all change there patterns to feilds that have not been plowed. I pulled up to this farm on Friday afternoon pumped up and when I came around the corner to see the corn out and plowed I was devastated. I never saw one deer. This a farm I tend to see 10-15 a sitting with the corn in or stubble left. I do think it makes a big difference.
 
I had an old boy tell me once that the worst job you do in the fall is better than the best job ya do in the spring. tends too be wetter in the spring so it's easier too do in the fall. every one around here does it. find the stubble and find the deer.
 
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