Was beans now corn this year

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mheichelbech
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Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby mheichelbech » Wed Jun 26, 2019 7:32 am

For those who hunt ag land, how, if at all, does it affect your strategy when hunting a farm that had beans the last couple years and now had corn all over for hunting season?


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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby matt1336 » Wed Jun 26, 2019 7:39 am

I’d be focused on beans opening day here in WI. There are still some green plants in the fields during our opener. You get beans with shade on a hot day...you’ll be in em. I learned that from the thp guys. Kinda of obvious, but I’m god at overlooking the obvious sometimes. :?
Corn is a focus later in the season, unless you’re hunting bears. Those things love corn before it hardens up. I treat corn like cattails. I think deer think of corn as edible cattails. Look for elevation changes, lone trees, fence lines that offer a view of access and or grassy swales in the field and you’ll find deer
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jmaas07
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby jmaas07 » Wed Jun 26, 2019 8:42 am

Heres an example for you. I have ran a camera on corn and bean years for an entire year in a funnel coming out of an oxbow where the river pinches to a crp field edge and the funnel heads straight to an ag field. On bean years I get next to no activity after the beans yellow, on corn years I get fairly regular activity when the corn is up as well as cut. Activity is mature bucks, young bucks and does. They still bed the oxbow after the beans yellow but they dont exit the same, they're heading to other food sources which is the other direction. Adjust your hunting accordingly
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby Lockdown » Wed Jun 26, 2019 3:59 pm

jmaas07 wrote:Heres an example for you. I have ran a camera on corn and bean years for an entire year in a funnel coming out of an oxbow where the river pinches to a crp field edge and the funnel heads straight to an ag field. On bean years I get next to no activity after the beans yellow, on corn years I get fairly regular activity when the corn is up as well as cut. Activity is mature bucks, young bucks and does. They still bed the oxbow after the beans yellow but they dont exit the same, they're heading to other food sources which is the other direction. Adjust your hunting accordingly



This is what I would expect.

Corn is a draw even when beans are prime. They eat corn leaves as soon as it starts popping up through the ground, then switch to the ear as soon as it’s edible. I see a lot of posts dismissing corn if the beans are green and I think that’s a mistake. In my mind if they’re bedding closer to corn than beans, even though the beans might be their final destination, they’ll (especially a big wary buck) stage at the corn field and browse on their way to the beans. Standing corn offers a lot of security for them. It’s extremely common for me to see deer browsing in green beans right on the corn field edge.

Last year early season I targeted some bedding next to a bean field. As evidence in their droppings, they were hitting the corn field as well, which was close to a mile away.

In my opinion even when beans are prime, they’d still rather bed near corn then travel to beans. Especially if pressure is a legitimate factor. I’ve always considered corn to be king.
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby UofLbowhunter » Wed Jun 26, 2019 4:24 pm

I dont dismiss any kind of ag they all have there place in the deer world. Its all good food to them!
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Southern Man
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby Southern Man » Thu Jun 27, 2019 12:24 am

mheichelbech wrote:For those who hunt ag land, how, if at all, does it affect your strategy when hunting a farm that had beans the last couple years and now had corn all over for hunting season?


Down here crop rotation is very common. Actually non- crop rotation is very rare. Farmers here plant corn one year. when that is harvested in September, they plant winter wheat. When that is harvested the next June, they plant beans. When the beans are harvested in the fall, the field sets idle until April and the rotation starts all over again, corn, wheat, beans, idle.

A few years back I hunted a farm for several years that had this pattern. The thing is the farmer with the property next to ours was on the same crop rotation except when we had beans, he had corn. It was interesting to see how the deer adapted to it. One year they had set patterns based on the crops and the next year the patterns would change due to the crop rotation. but the following year when the crops rotated again, the deer went back to the same patterns that they previously used. You could count on it. It was like hunting 2 different farms every year. Every other year the patterns were the same.
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DaveT1963
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby DaveT1963 » Thu Jun 27, 2019 12:32 am

most everywhere I hunted beans and corn were always rotated each year. I think standing corn absolutely changes travel as it is more secure between corn and wood lines then a bean field. i find some great scrapes to hunt in these travel lanes over the years and i have had mature bucks use them all day during the rut if you can leave several rows standing (might cost you a bit) but it was usually worth it.
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby Redman232 » Thu Jun 27, 2019 1:20 am

An oak dropping into standing corn would be in my top 2 or 3 ideal scenarios. I'd much rather hunt a farm with corn than beans. It turns the whole farm into usable habitat/security cover for deer. Also give the hunter more options for access.
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby hambone » Thu Jun 27, 2019 3:58 pm

Around our area most farmers rotate beans and corn ever year. I like beans early or standing beans late, but I'd pick corn over beans overall. The deer feel much more secure and bed closer to the corn than when in beans, all else being equal.
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby Lockdown » Thu Jun 27, 2019 4:56 pm

In general I think if you talk to hard core hill country hunters who have minimal ag available, they'll be more prone to say "Yes, green soybeans are money early on." and they're probably right.

In my mind that's because their deer already have plenty of cover/habitat and routes for escape.

The veteran farm boys often hunt amongst a lack of cover. Standing corn provides that. :think:
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby Southern Man » Fri Jun 28, 2019 12:08 am

By the time season opens here some of the beans are starting to yellow. That knocks the deer out. But once they combine them, the beans that spill will sprout and start to grow until a hard frost or freeze. Deer love those. Also acorns start dropping in late September and early October. Deer here will feed on acorns before coming to the fields most of the time.
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mheichelbech
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby mheichelbech » Fri Jun 28, 2019 1:06 am

Hunted a tree surrounded by corn, deer would travel around this tree all day long. It’s basically a one and done deal as they can pick up your scent so easily. Not saying it couldn’t work for multiple sits but for mature bucks I don’t see that by my experience.
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby jman22 » Fri Jun 28, 2019 1:56 am

I hunt a lot of farm country in NY. I have more options for access on corn years, as I'll walk through the corn to reach stand locations that would otherwise leave me exposed on bean years. I've also noticed that stand locations on inside corners of crop fields hunt better with corn. Again, I think this is because there is added cover.

When the fields are in beans, I have more luck using observations stands as I can obviously see further. In NY we don't open till Oct 1st at which time the beans are yellowing and not an attractive food source. I'll use this to my advantage and hunt apples, oaks etc.. as the deer aren't traveling from bedding to the fields to eat at this time.

I've got a few locations that have small brushy ditches that run in between bean fields and also connect bedding areas. I've noticed the bigger bucks will use the ditches (or the very edge of the corn) more on corn years as they are easier to walk through than tightly spaced corn. When these fields are in beans they seem to be more prone to walk out into the beans when they are leaving bedding.

Crop rotation is huge for me as I hunt parceled farm land that doesn't have a lot of big contiguous acres of woods. You have the treat the crops as a terrain feature and use it to your advantage.
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Re: Was beans now corn this year

Unread postby moog5050 » Fri Jun 28, 2019 5:49 am

jman22 wrote:I hunt a lot of farm country in NY. I have more options for access on corn years, as I'll walk through the corn to reach stand locations that would otherwise leave me exposed on bean years. I've also noticed that stand locations on inside corners of crop fields hunt better with corn. Again, I think this is because there is added cover.

When the fields are in beans, I have more luck using observations stands as I can obviously see further. In NY we don't open till Oct 1st at which time the beans are yellowing and not an attractive food source. I'll use this to my advantage and hunt apples, oaks etc.. as the deer aren't traveling from bedding to the fields to eat at this time.

I've got a few locations that have small brushy ditches that run in between bean fields and also connect bedding areas. I've noticed the bigger bucks will use the ditches (or the very edge of the corn) more on corn years as they are easier to walk through than tightly spaced corn. When these fields are in beans they seem to be more prone to walk out into the beans when they are leaving bedding.

Crop rotation is huge for me as I hunt parceled farm land that doesn't have a lot of big contiguous acres of woods. You have the treat the crops as a terrain feature and use it to your advantage.


Yep in my area of NY, beans yellow about 2 weeks before opener and really aren't a good food source in season. I much prefer corn.


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