How Big is Your Plot?
By Bob Coine

Knowing the size of your food plot is critical in order to calculate seed, fertilizer, and lime rates. This is really not a difficult task. Most rates are calculated on a per-acre basis, while a few are calculated using square footage.

A requirement of X pounds of seed or fertilizer per acre will need to be reduced to a smaller quantity should your plot be less than an acre in size. An acre of land is 43,560 square feet.

If your plot is square or rectangular in shape, simply measure and multiply the length by the width for the precise size. For example, if you have a plot 50 feet wide by 100 feet long, the calculation is 50 x 100 = 5,000 square feet.

Next you need to calculate the percentage as it relates to an acre. Simply take the plot size and divide it by 43,560, the number of square feet in an acre. This will provide you with the percentage, or fraction of an acre that applies to your particular plot.

Plot size (sq.ft.) Acre (sq.ft.) Plot size (% of an acre)
5,000     divided by     43,560 = 0.115 acre, or 11.5%

If your seed rate calls for 10 pounds per acre, and your plot size is 11.5% of an acre, you need only 11.5% of 10 pounds of seed (1.5 pounds) to properly plant your plot.

Pounds/acre               % acre        Seed required
10 multiplied by 0.115 = 1.5 pounds

These same formulas will apply to your applications of fertilizer and lime, as well your seeding rate. If your plots are not square or rectangular in shape, break them up into square or rectangular chunks, then measure each piece and add them up for a close approximation of square footage.

This is an excerpt from the Building Whitetail Paradise Food Plotters Field Journal, written by Bob Coine. The book may be purchased at www.Heartlandillinois.com