We plant food plots every year for both deer and turkeys and we just finished our spring planting yesterday. We have one field of cowpeas, one with chufas, and acouple more with biologic and tecamote seed blends. Here's the ethics question.. With all this fresh seed in these fields they are going to be covered in turkeys by the end of the week. Would you guys hunt these fields or is it a little too close to baiting. I'm not looking for a legality answer, just your moral opinions. We have come to the conclusion that we won't set up on these fields at first light but if we get on a gobbler that heads to the fields during the morning we'll go after them. Just looking for your 2 cents. Steve

Do what you feel is right, because you're the one that will hang the beard, spurs and fan up and look at it, and remember the hunt everytime you look at it.

I wouldn't answer that for you or even hypothetically without knowing more.....but one thing about bait is it tends to be concentrated in such a way to set up a kill. So when you're thinking about you may consider the size of your plots.....whether the seeds dispursed over a large area or just a corner plot. Anyway that's just one of several factors you might consider.

Unless you have got a lot of land to hunt or a different property it seems you answered your own question by planting now. I wouldnt fret over it, i'm sure there are lots of fields recently sowed or soon to be, unless you "accidently" spilled 30lbs of peas in the corner. Go enjoy it, be safe and good luck.

3 words...hunting over bait

Chances are if the turkeys are there now they would have been there anyway...

If the gobbler came across the field following a group of hens feeding in the new dirt and you busted him I'm sure there would be something in the back of your mind about that hunt. If he came out by himself gobbling, strutting, and coming your way across the field never stopping to pick at the seed then it would probably be more rewarding.

It's all about circumstance in my opinion...

I'm sure there will be plenty of us sitting in the rain overlooking a cow pasture tomorrow where there's plenty of food being disitributed by the cattle.

Luckily, we're hearing birds all over the farm and not just concentrated over the planted fields. I think we'll be able to get on some fired up birds far enough away from our plots to where it won't even be an issue.

if that is baiting then hunting corn fields and alfafa feilds is baiting and lets not forget setting a tree stand near apple trees

I'm with you on that Vols. I guess I can't hunt geese in cut corn fields anymore either.

If the bird plays the game the way it's supposed to be played, or as Matt Morrett says "He did the gig" it's called hunting.

If the birds responds to calls and struts his stuff on his way in you can take him.

barry