HUNTING SOY BEAN FIELDS

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  • diver dan

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    Jan 21, 2013
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    DeMotte
    Hey guys I was wondering if deer hunting soy bean fields is very productive, I have always hunted corn fields, but the guy who lets me hunt his farm has surprised me this year and planted soy beans.I think I am going to do a little scouting very soon to see if I can see any tracks in dirt.I used to hunt groundhogs in soy bean field along railroad tracks, very productive usually.But never saw deer in soy beans.I have to find out soon so I can look for another spot before season opens.Just wondering if any of you guys did any good in soybeans.Going to put out camera next week.
     

    amboy49

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    5   1   0
    Feb 1, 2013
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    central indiana
    Hey guys I was wondering if deer hunting soy bean fields is very productive, I have always hunted corn fields, but the guy who lets me hunt his farm has surprised me this year and planted soy beans.I think I am going to do a little scouting very soon to see if I can see any tracks in dirt.I used to hunt groundhogs in soy bean field along railroad tracks, very productive usually.But never saw deer in soy beans.I have to find out soon so I can look for another spot before season opens.Just wondering if any of you guys did any good in soybeans.Going to put out camera next week.

    if you decide not to hunt it let me know. It’s a lot about the travel corridors.
     

    phylodog

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    Mar 7, 2008
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    Arcadia
    Spotting bucks in the beans during the summer evenings is one of our favorite things to do when we can get out to the farm. We see fewer and fewer as the beans begin to dry out and I can't say we typically see many at all after the beans have shed their leaves and almost none once they've been harvested. They'll hit a picked corn field for a few months after the corn is out so the few stands we do have near field edges we don't usually hunt if that field was in beans that year.
     

    d.kaufman

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    Mar 9, 2013
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    Hobart
    Where i hunt the farmers alternate years between beans and corn. Ive definitely had more success when the corn surrounds the property v/s the beans. Just my personal experience however.
     

    Mattroth54

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    Mar 23, 2013
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    Where i hunt the farmers alternate years between beans and corn. Ive definitely had more success when the corn surrounds the property v/s the beans. Just my personal experience however.


    My experience is exactly the same. They prefer corn. That said, we whack plenty in cut bean fields, too.
     

    dprimm

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    Jan 13, 2013
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    Just West of Indianapolis
    The herd at the farm grazes on beans nightly. When season opens, they tend to decrease the frequency of that. But all summer they eat green leaves.

    Beans don't leave much residue for deer after harvest, so there is little reason for them to go into the field. watch travel routes.
     

    DeadeyeChrista'sdad

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    Feb 28, 2009
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    winchester/farmland
    Travel routes and funnels, or choke points, where their trails intersect. Establishing their routine movements from a pretty good distance away is going to be far more productive for you than worrying about corn or beans.
     

    two70

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    Feb 5, 2016
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    Johnson
    The question is not nearly so simple as corn vs. beans. Food source preferences can change week to week if not day to day in the fall depending on a variety of factors such as weather, hunting pressure, condition of the crop(ie. standing vs. picked corn, green vs. yellow vs. dry beans) and availability and quality of other food sources. For beans specifically, deer tend to feed heaviest on them when they are green, then taper off as they die, before feeding more heavily once again after they are ready for picking. Depending on how many beans are spilled or missed and whether or not the farmer is into recreational tillage, deer will continue to feed on the leftover beans after they are picked as well.

    A few things to keep in mind, first, it doesn't take much hunting pressure to stop deer from coming in to open fields during hunting hours so you are better off hunting somewhere between their bedding area and the bean field instead on on the edge of the bean field. Second, choosing your entry and exit route(s) are very important to keep from educating deer. It doesn't take bumping many deer to greatly reduce the amount of daylight feeding activity in open fields. Third, for the same reasons as above, avoid the temptation to rush out and scout heavily now. Scouting should be low impact and preferably from a distance at this time of year as opposed to tromping through the woods leaving scent and/or spooking deer.
     

    indiucky

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    My Boykin in our field of beans.....

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