THFN Team Member and Biologist John Schwarzlose gives us some guidance for creating those essential food plots for attracting doves to your property this fall.

Most outdoorsmen are aware of the recent increase in the popularity of food plots as a wildlife management tool.  The market is flooded with seed varieties and blends that promise to attract upland game birds, grow bigger deer, repel feral hogs, draw ducks to the desert, and cure cancer.  As seed companies continue to out shout each other with claims of grandeur, an exaggerated importance is placed on food plot seed selection.

While choosing the right seed is important, designing your plot with what I call “ecological perspective” is equally important.  This is to say that plot shape, location, nearby bodies of water, surrounding vegetation, surrounding structure, abundance of target and/or nuisance wildlife species, etc., must all be considered so the resulting food plot provides for all of the ecological needs of the target wildlife species.  Remember, there are three components to wildlife habitat: food, water, and cover. If designed properly, food plots can provide all three.

An ecologically sound food plot design that may be of some interest for September wing shooters is called a dove strip.  As the name implies, dove strips are strips of crop species designed to attract doves.  Dove strips provide far greater hunting opportunities than do square fields because they are tailor-made to coincide with the behavior patterns of doves.

Let’s examine a few things we know about doves:

1. They roost in trees
2. They feed on open ground (preferably exposed soil)
3. They like to feel covered while feeding
4. They travel along linear structures such as high lines, tree lines, and fence lines.

Properly designed dove strips take advantage of all these behavior patterns to create a five-star dove hotel.

With the common behavioral patterns of doves in mind, I recommend planting two side-by-side dove strips 15 feet from the edge of a tree line.  The strips should be about 20 feet wide and separated by a 10 foot wide gap that runs between the two strips.  The periphery of the strips, as well as the 10 foot separation strip, should be periodically disked or tilled to keep these areas free of vegetation.  Discing or tilling creates open feeding areas where doves can easily land, find food, and move in and out of the dove strips while remaining concealed by the surrounding vegetation.  The proximity of dove strips to a tree line encourages doves to utilize strips by offering a nearby roosting site.  Roosting sites provide a safe place for doves to rest during the day and flush to if startled while feeding on the ground.  Since doves use linear structures to navigate, the tree line will direct traveling doves to the food plot allowing more doves to find and utilize the food plot.  Last, but not least, a tree line provides cover for hunters to set up under and enjoy one of the outdoors’ most exciting sports.

Several different configurations are available for proper dove strip installation, one of which is the situation I described above.  It involves a long tree line where heavily wooded habitat and open pasture meet to create an edge.

The Edge Dove Strip Design

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