Here is a quick quiz to see if you need to read this article: Does your hunting property lack row crop agriculture (corn, soybeans, alfalfa) either within the property or around it? Has all previously existing row crop agriculture been converted to pasture, hay field or pines? If you answered yes, then read on.

If you answered "no" to the first question, you can still benefit from food plots but you don't absolutely need them. If your answers to any or all of these questions are "yes," read on because your deer herd will likely never reach its genetic potential for body weight or antler development without food plots.