About J. Wayne Fears

Due to many parts of the country being stricken with drought last fall, we’ve been “flooded” with questions about planting a drought-resistant food plot.

Traditionally, there were two key factors relating to wildlife food plot development over which you have little control – sunlight and rainfall. But that is changing … at least the rainfall part.

Moisture capturing co-polymers look like fine powder.

Up until now, barring the use of irrigation, this was a common problem. Now there is a new technology that can help food plots grow faster and last longer by absorbing excess moisture in the soil after rains or dew develops, trapping it there for seed germination and uptake during dry periods.

New Product of Research

In Florida, dealing with dry soils is a concern for landscapers, farmers, orchard managers, and lawn growers. The lack of moisture in dry, sandy soils has made studying moisture control a must.

After five years of research and development on the part of the turf industry, a new technology using man-made material was developed that gets down under the thatch layer and into the soil to supply plants with water and nutrients at the root level.

Once this new technology was proven to work and announced, David Forbes, owner of Hunter Specialties, and his staff saw how this technology could work on food plots just as easily as Florida lawns. They went to work and the resulting product is Vita-Rack Moisture Trap.

	The moisture gathering co-polymers can collect and store water from sources such as dew.

How It Works

The new technology is a range of potassium-based soil conditioning co-polymers with a 90-day effective life as a top dressing application, and up to 12 months when incorporated into the soil by tilling. Each particle holds 400 times its own weight in moisture. It looks like a fine white powder before mixing with water.

When water comes in contact with one of these cross linked co-polymers, it is drawn into the molecule by osmosis. Water is rapidly stored inside the polymer network. As the soil dries out, the polymer releases up to 95% of the absorbed water into the soil. Plants have water and nutrients available as a function of this absorption and release. These molecules can absorb and store any available moisture, whether it is from irrigation, rain, or dew.

The co-polymer is compatible with all types of soil structures and vegetation, and there is no risk of plant tissue burn. When used during planting young trees and shrubs, it can reduce mortality by up to 40 percent. It mixes easily with water and doesn’t leave a hard or sticky residue on sprayer equipment.

Mixing the moisture gathering co-polymers for use in sprayers is as simple as adding the correct amount of water. Sprayer cleanup is also quick and easy.

Is This Product Safe?

According to Hunter Specialties, the co-polymers are biodegradable. The product is sensitive to ultraviolet rays, which by breaking bonds, degrade the polymer into much smaller molecules. It then becomes much more sensitive to the aerobic and anaerobic processes of microbiological degradation. They also state that no bioaccumulation can occur since the product is too large in size to be absorbed by plant tissues and cells.

Firsthand Observation

After hearing about this new technology and how Hunter Specialties had applied it to food plot management, I went to visit a farm in north central Missouri where these co-polymers had been used to hold moisture on food plots during the dry part of summer and fall. It didn’t take long to pique my interest! The food plots planted in clover and fall mix using these co-polymers look as green and healthy as any I have ever seen. It was obvious, based on the number of deer I saw feeding on them, that the high moisture crops were attracting wildlife.

David Forbes showed me the vigorous root growth of plants planted in soils treated with the new co-polymers. He was quick to point out that good farming practices must still be used to have food plots like those that I was seeing. You must still soil test and lime/fertilize according to the test results. You must place food plots where they can get plenty of sunlight. Weed control and management is a must, as is good seed selection and following the planting instructions to the letter. Adding these co-polymers simply gives you some control of keeping moisture in your food plot.

	For large food plots, an ATV or tractor-mounted sprayer may be used.

Spraying Instructions

Spraying is the best way to apply the fine white co-polymers to a food plot. It can be applied by any type sprayer, including hand held, backpack, ATV-mounted, or tractor-mounted sprayer. Mixing the powdered polymer is easy:

• Add water to the sprayer tank to the ½ level; activate the agitator or circulation pump if equipped.
• Add a small amount of the product to the tank by feathering it in one scoop at a time (measuring scoop is furnished with the product) and mix it with water from a hose using a spray nozzle to aid in agitation.
• As the water level rises, slowly add powdered compound one scoop at a time until the tank is full and the correct amount is mixed in to meet recommended amounts.
• Do not add an entire bag of co-polymers at one time, as doing so will cause the product to clump and clog the sprayer.
• Consult the sprayer’s operating manual for the specific sprayer tip application/calibration chart for proper coverage along with recommended speed and sprayer pressure.

Application

Like any farming task, there is a right and wrong way to use these co-polymers. For the initial application, follow the instructions for mixing and apply to the food plot area before disking. Next, apply dry fertilizer as recommended from soil testing and disk in the co-polymers and fertilizer to prepare the seed bed for planting. Then, cultipack the seed bed and apply seed as recommended, followed by cultipacking again to press the seed into the soil. It is only one small step added to the normal seed bed preparation, yet the plants will greatly benefit from the moisture gathering properties.

Here is a food plot crop in the peak of an early fall drought that has been treated with Moisture Trap.

For warm season or perennial food plot crop maintenance, apply the co-polymers as a top-dress application in late spring or early summer without disking into the soil. More than one application may be required per year. This maintenance application will work well to get the crop through the dry late summer and early fall.

Food plots are not the only wildlife application for this product. Fertilized native species such as Japanese honeysuckle, smilax and so on, also suffer during periods of low moisture as do mast bearing trees that are managed. There is a lot of room for more trials using this new technology and you can bet Hunter Specialties, who has purchased the sole right to market this product for wildlife management uses, will explore all the possibilities.

Moisture Trap is available in a 2.5-pound size that covers a half- acre at a retail price of around $30.95. Call 319-395-0321 to talk to a consumer service specialist, or go to www.hunterspec.com.