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now i don't own any land, lease any land, but i have hunted some land in the delta for a while and one thing is the same...every field has been cut...now, i know that for the most part farmers are doing this...what i'm wondering, and this discussion came up this past year...what is the law on cutting and flooding fields...my bud said that you can't hunt over a flooded field that has not been cut (i.e. leave a been field standing, then flooding it)...i say it's the same as planting a plot for deer, your trying to attract wildlife and what not...i guess i'm wondering, if you got a little opening in some woods, say, 100 x 100 yds and want to plant it, do you gotta cut it before flooding, granted you got the ability to flood it? don't know why i thought bout this now, and it really want affect me for a while, but whatchall think...gator

I think you are okay if you do the same to the whole plot.

You get in trouble when you leave a small are of crop standing in a big field. Or roll a certain area in a rice field.

Gator


I have hear this discusion many times before. I think the law reads anything done in a normal agricultural practice is legal. Now if you leave a crop standing in a field then go bush hog it, that is illegel. If it were illegel to hunt on an agricultural field, the federal penetentury wouldn't be big enough.

Gator, shouldnt your mind be on the powder in CO and not on planting food for ducks?

I am glad you asked this question cause I would love to know myself. We dont have fields to hunt in my neck of the woods and being able to plant a slough or two would be great. We have also discussed this but havent done it because we didnt know whether or not it was legal.

Have fun in the powder. I wish I was going.

totty, we're headed out at 9 sharp saturday morning...i'll be having a few breckenridge brews by the next night...we got a good/big group going so it's gonna be a good time...yeah, i've been interested in this question for a while and i just thought bout it again and it got the best of me so i asked it here...it think delta duck and big country got it right, i was just trying to stimulate a lil convo...incidently, i'm running gauge in the west tn hrc hunt test march 22, 23 so i'll be in your neck of the woods...if'n you want to go let me know...although i know you got your hands full w/ a certain new fiance...gator

Where are the trials? I would like to come. And yea I got my hands full with the fiance but it is fun. Dont let Todd get into too many of those Fat tires, they make it kind of hard to enjoy the slopes the next morning.

Yall be careful on the road and I hope yall have a blast. I wish I had signed up but timing didnt work out and funds are kinda strained after the ole ring investment. Bust your ass once for me!

the hunt test are in memphis, me and ole todd already got us a plan w/ a camel back and some brew (look out mountain), and i'm sure i'll bust my ole tail more than once for you ...gator

My understanding on the law and it's not straight out of the books, just my understanding is you can leave it uncut and standing however then you gotta be big time careful. You are not allowed to cut a path to your blind with a tractor if you do then it's a baited field and you are illegal, if you take a 4 wheeler to the blind take the same path every time as if you take numerous paths to nock down the standing stuff, you are baiting. Next you also can't make a hole for the birds to land in by nocking down unharvested grain, then that too is baiting. Basically you can't just plant stuff, then not harvest it and then find an excuse to nock all the headed out crops into the water as that would be baiting.

Jeffs right. If it is cut, then you can manipulte any part of it. You can roll a hole in the rice stubble, around your pit. Its stubble. But if it isn't cut, no matter why it isn't cut, then you can't manipulate it in any fashion. Grain knocked loose as a by product of getting to your blind, or setting decoys, or retreiving birds is not bait. But knocking it down for the purpose of feeding, is. We left lots of standing beans this year for the ducks. I couldnt take my truck and cut donuts to knock beans loose for food. But i could take my truck and cut donuts to bust ice for setting decoys, and be legal. It's a fine line, and if called to the mat, you damn well better be able to defend your actions when it comes to uncut crops.
Note- millet is a crop the first year, therefore it cant be manipulated. But recurring millet is considered a grass, and it can be cut and flooded in following years, as long as no more sowing occuring. And doves have different rules. You can cut a crop and not harvest it (like bush-hogging sunflowers).

gator, don't forget to look for the online labs lab limo at west tn. I think we're taking 12, so we'll be busy, but we'll catch up sometime Im sure. travis

hey goosebruce, i'll keep and eye out for ya...thanks for the info on the field...oh yeah, i talked to mr. bumgardner from south ms hrc on the phone the other day and i got my application coming in the mail, thanks again for the help...gator