I cleared some food plots in the woods where I hunt 4 or 5 years ago and didn't have much luck so I gave up on them. I now have access to a tractor to make the job easier and have decided to give it a try again. We bush hogged the areas down the other day and I was wondering a couple things. 1. Should I rake most of the leaves off before we till or does that make much of a difference? 2. Should I put down ag lime and then till or wait til after? I plan on getting lime down now and then not planting til early fall to let the lime work some. And 3 just wondering do those soil testers you see on Gamekeepers websites and such for $25 work or do you need to do a sample and send it off?

I see your in Jackson County. Take it to the Co op in town I think my last soil test was like 7 bucks.

1. Soil test to determine if you even need lime.
2. Personally, I would wait until green up a little more then kill it and then wait a couple weeks. Disc it. Let it green up again and kill it again. Drag it. It would really depend on what you are planting in the Fall.

Clovers, turnips, and radishes are all small seeds. If you make a good soil to seed bed then all you would have to do is broadcast seed before a good rain.

Oats and winter rye grain grow anywhere. That all we plant basically with some turnips and clover thrown in. I have pictures of 10+ deer in February in one of our 1/16 acre plot. Got one a few weeks ago with 3 long beards and multiple hens in that plot