Turnips for deer?

I'm trying to produce some quality deer managment on my land and was looking for an easy food source. I overheard someone talking about how turnips are great because deer love them and they grow back every year, are both of those true? what other benefits, if any, do turnips provide?

We've had great luck with turnips on marginal land/soil. They have done well when most other things didn't.

Yes they are easy to grow, no they don't come back every year. It may take a few seasons for the deer to realize that they like the turnips. Also, don't over seed because the plot will get too thick and the grow for crap. I put too much seed down this year on one of my plots and the turnips have no bulbs and are beginning to dye in places.

Here are a few pictures of my plot from last year. You can see how tall the turnips are before and after the deer used the plot.

I plant turnips and rape together and had 22 deer in the field sunday night in front of the house, but I am no expert. I do know it works for me I can plant about 4 acres for about $70 in seed. I also put on about 3 loads of manure from a local farmer every year. I don't have much for other crops near by so maybe the deer don't love them, but that is all there is to eat. They seem to like the leaves better then the turnips themselves. I have never had them come back in the spring, but I usually have to work the soil pretty early in the spring because of weeds from the manure I put on. I don't plant them until the 1st of august because then you don't have the weeds to compete with and then there are some left for hunting. By the end of November or beginning of December the 4 acres is usually cleaned up from the deer.

I cringe when I read this stuff - I'm hoping you know more about QDM than just providing food. Turnips can be a great winter carryover crop - especially when combined with access to a standing corn field. Turnips are high in protein and corn is high in carbs - combine the two and you cover their complete nutritional needs. They will not come back year after year - they may indeed survive a winter under the snow if they are not consumed (i.e. your deer don't like them - which BTW is a very common occurrence). The next spring they'll send up a tall flower and will produce seeds. Allowing those seeds to form and then drop to the ground is a mistake. You'll end up with a very scattered, condensed plot where the turnip bulbs cannot develop. In addition, turnips need bookoo nitrogen. If you are just allowing them to set seed and regrow (which will not even work with hybrid turnips - you'll end up with something else than what you planted) how will you give them the needed nitrogen? Top dressing before or during a rain is possible, but requires great timing.

I'm hoping you've already joined QDMA and have spent hours reading all the information available on their website. If not, I'd ask that you don't talk to folks about QDM/QDMA until you have done so. I'm not trying to be a dic&, I'm just a little tired of folks talking about a great org. when they don't really know what they're talking about. Come on over to the QDMA forums, read, learn, contribute and be welcome. Anything and everything you'd need to do about food plotting and native habitat projects can be answered and very likely already have been.

I have never had them come back , but they grow easy. I just tossed mine in a patch of dead grass, and away they go. Now softball sized. Deer did not use them until late in the year.

Deer love them! They get better after the first hard frost cause they break down and become more sugary.