To fence or not to fence

[Elite]

You might be able to rig something up with a few rolls of chicken wire, zip ties and a frame Made of 2 by 4s or PVC for fairly cheap.

Like make a few strips that are 3 ft tall by 5ft wide by 25 ft long maybe in a few areas and keep them staked down and caged off till the plants mature or it gets deep into hunting season. Then open it up so it’s exposed whenever you get ready.

Make sense?

I was thinking of using caution tape using the same design like a Hot Zone fence. Granted, it won't be electric but it's greatly cheaper. Just hope the bears don't destroy it...

[1STRANGEWILDERNESS]

Hard to say, I’d probably just risk it..Have a bunch of rye oats and peas or something to throw in as a backup plan. You could broadcast a bunch of that seed in there mid to late august regardless.. Not saying it’s the best approach I just typically gamble with these type of things.

[Cchez]

i'm in NE Minn. We do brassicas on our private land every year. We have some clover and other perrennials planted to give them something else to feed on while the brassicas grow. They don't typically start eating on them until late september/early october, but they seem to just eat the leafy tops and save the roots until later in october. We also have a few larger plots, and a lot of woods, so it might be a bit different for you if you've got a smaller plot. A buddy of mine (NW Wisc.) plants the same stuff as us on a pipeline strip on his property (about 200yards long by 30 wide) that he doesnt fence in. But he has sections that are just brassicas and sections of just clover. If i remember right, he said the deer really started feeding on the brassica tops in early october. Hope this helps.

[Elite]

i'm in NE Minn. We do brassicas on our private land every year. We have some clover and other perrennials planted to give them something else to feed on while the brassicas grow. They don't typically start eating on them until late september/early october, but they seem to just eat the leafy tops and save the roots until later in october. We also have a few larger plots, and a lot of woods, so it might be a bit different for you if you've got a smaller plot. A buddy of mine (NW Wisc.) plants the same stuff as us on a pipeline strip on his property (about 200yards long by 30 wide) that he doesnt fence in. But he has sections that are just brassicas and sections of just clover. If i remember right, he said the deer really started feeding on the brassica tops in early october. Hope this helps.

Thanks for the info!

[Elite]

Well, I ended up "fencing " the plot using a similar concept as the Hot Zone. The chicory and brassicas were getting hit pretty hard by does and fawns so I decided to go for it. Set the outside fence at 24" and the inside fence at 10"-one yard inside the outside fence. Not sure what to expect, but hopefully it deters them enough.

[HuntingParadise]

Ive only fenced soybeans on a small plot. Never had an issue with anything else. How big is it?

[Elite]

Ive only fenced soybeans on a small plot. Never had an issue with anything else. How big is it?

It's about 1/5 of an acre but it's close to bedding. They started hitting it pretty hard over the last week.

[HuntingParadise]

Ive only fenced soybeans on a small plot. Never had an issue with anything else. How big is it?

It's about 1/5 of an acre but it's close to bedding. They started hitting it pretty hard over the last week.

Interesting. Does can do major damage if they want though so fencing makes sense if you need it. Update us on how it works. We have done an electric fence before but the white fencing I think deters them almost as much as the shock.

[Elite]

Ive only fenced soybeans on a small plot. Never had an issue with anything else. How big is it?

It's about 1/5 of an acre but it's close to bedding. They started hitting it pretty hard over the last week.

Interesting. Does can do major damage if they want though so fencing makes sense if you need it. Update us on how it works. We have done an electric fence before but the white fencing I think deters them almost as much as the shock.

The outside and inside fence difference is what apparently deters them from jumping over the fence. They can't judge distances, so that's what I went for. If this works, I will have saved $405!

[tim]

I don’t ever plan on fencing anything again! I stated an Apple orchard on my land and to give the trees a chance to not get his I decided to put fencing around entire area that was probably 7-8 ft tall..... it completely changed deer movement. I had changed their environment and they didn’t like it. They completely avoided the area which was not my intention. So it worked for the fact they weren’t in eating my Apple trees but not in the fact that I changed their travel routes and they avoided it altogether. My pond was nearby as well and mature bucks did not even want to drink out of the pond. After 5 years of it enclosed I took it all down and it took 2 more years and the deer now travel like they used to and mature bucks will use the pond again. My cameras don’t lie I had and still have the area monitored with cams including nearby pond.

[seazofcheeze]

I’ve never had issues with brassicas getting hammered Early - the sugar content spikes (frost turns the starch to sugar) after a hard frost and that’s when they start to draw the deer. I’d try it and see what happens with no fence. If planting beans and the acreage is small I’d fence.

Thanks!

Bud, If I remember right ,you’re a ways north right? Here In the UP they ate my brassicas before our season opened Oct 1. My neighbors all had similar problems.
It’s wild how much these things vary from one place to the next.

I'm in NW Wisconsin. Our average first frost is Sept 1-10 and season opens Sept 12 this year.

I agree with 1STRANGEWILDERNESS, it seems like in more northern areas, or areas with limited ag, brassicas will be a target even before a hard frost. If you were in the heart of the midwest, then it seems like the deer move to brassicas later in the year. If you have a smaller plot, fencing would be a good idea. I think I'd want at least 1 acre to go without a fence in a northern location, otherwise I think the risk of the plot being over browsed prior to the end of October is pretty strong.

[Elite]

So far, so good. The "fence" seems to be working as there's little evidence of continued browse.