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Do they feed on maize?? (sweetcorn)


Stephen-H
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Hi everyone been for a scout around my area i know pigeon season is slowing down this time of the year but in the fields near me ( Cheshire ) there still seems to be a lot of planted maize crop (sweetcorn) some looks to have formed and some not . I don't have the permissions currently as a still new to pigeon shooting ( will be going on the knock soon) but once its been cut is maize crop any good to shoot over?? 

Cheers steve 

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Maize when it is cut is very good to shoot over , there will always be some cobs that don't go through the machine that smash them up for pulp and normally within a few days both pigeons and corvids will find it .

Before you go knocking on the doors make sure it is grown for cattle feed or whatever and not this years game cover crop as this wouldn't be available till February and the shoot members would get first choice to shoot any pigeons .

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38 minutes ago, Stephen-H said:

Hi everyone been for a scout around my area i know pigeon season is slowing down this time of the year but in the fields near me ( Cheshire ) there still seems to be a lot of planted maize crop (sweetcorn) some looks to have formed and some not . I don't have the permissions currently as a still new to pigeon shooting ( will be going on the knock soon) but once its been cut is maize crop any good to shoot over?? 

Cheers steve 

I`m about to go out on a field of cut maize later today and even though it was disced on Monday, there were still plenty of pigeons feeding yesterday. My pal shot the field on Sunday and had 34 in just 2 hours and stopped shooting as he did not have a ready market, so just shot enough for himself for the freezer. He said he could have easily doubled the amount, but fair play to him, he showed restraint.

So, in answer to your question, yes they do feed on it and it is really good to shoot over, so get knocking on those doors and good luck. 

OB

 

Edited by Old Boggy
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2 minutes ago, marsh man said:

Maize when it is cut is very good to shoot over , there will always be some cobs that don't go through the machine that smash them up for pulp and normally within a few days both pigeons and corvids will find it .

Before you go knocking on the doors make sure it is grown for cattle feed or whatever and not this years game cover crop as this wouldn't be available till February and the shoot members would get first choice to shoot any pigeons .

Good point MM. All the maize in my neck of the woods is for anaerobic digestion (biofuel) so fortunately for me, no problem to shoot over. As said above, the field at the back of me was disced on Monday and still plenty of smashed cobs lying about and still plenty of pigeons feeding. However, a bit of rain currently, which is due to stop later, so I`m ever hopeful of shooting a few this afternoon. I`ll be happy with just a dozen, but who knows, the wind`s gone round to the North from Westerly and could change flightlines dramatically as we all know.

OB

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33 minutes ago, Old Boggy said:

Good point MM. All the maize in my neck of the woods is for anaerobic digestion (biofuel) so fortunately for me, no problem to shoot over. As said above, the field at the back of me was disced on Monday and still plenty of smashed cobs lying about and still plenty of pigeons feeding. However, a bit of rain currently, which is due to stop later, so I`m ever hopeful of shooting a few this afternoon. I`ll be happy with just a dozen, but who knows, the wind`s gone round to the North from Westerly and could change flightlines dramatically as we all know.

OB

Good luck Old Boggy hope you get some mate 😎

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5 hours ago, Old Boggy said:

Good point MM. All the maize in my neck of the woods is for anaerobic digestion (biofuel) so fortunately for me, no problem to shoot over. As said above, the field at the back of me was disced on Monday and still plenty of smashed cobs lying about and still plenty of pigeons feeding. However, a bit of rain currently, which is due to stop later, so I`m ever hopeful of shooting a few this afternoon. I`ll be happy with just a dozen, but who knows, the wind`s gone round to the North from Westerly and could change flightlines dramatically as we all know.

OB

Yours must be a bit more advanced than our two fields OB , unless they are going to be used for different purposes , ours go for cattle grub and should be cut within a fortnight , last year there was a lot of pigeons using the fields along with a lot of corvids , although to a pigeon the fresh corn in the cobs must make a welcome change from the grain stubble that must be getting past its best .

A bit late but GOOD LUCK for this afternoon .

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30 minutes ago, marsh man said:

Yours must be a bit more advanced than our two fields OB , unless they are going to be used for different purposes , ours go for cattle grub and should be cut within a fortnight , last year there was a lot of pigeons using the fields along with a lot of corvids , although to a pigeon the fresh corn in the cobs must make a welcome change from the grain stubble that must be getting past its best .

A bit late but GOOD LUCK for this afternoon .

I reckon the pigeons would happily feed on grain for months to come, if it were still available. I can't remember the date, but it must have been mid November of 2011 when I shot 150 odd on a barely stubble. They had been feeding on the grain for 10 weeks or more.

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4 hours ago, motty said:

I reckon the pigeons would happily feed on grain for months to come, if it were still available. I can't remember the date, but it must have been mid November of 2011 when I shot 150 odd on a barely stubble. They had been feeding on the grain for 10 weeks or more.

By November there is very little else for a pigeon to eat apart from Beech Mast , Acorns and fresh beet tops , so by having a field of Barley stubble it is sure to be a draw , sometimes if the rape have been directed drilled into the Barley stubble it would be possible to get them in November , more likely looking for grain than eating the rape .

We have still got a few stubble fields with a bit of pigeon activity but I would bet a pound to a penny that as soon as the maize is cut they will leave the stubble to feed on the fresh maize until it is gone or ploughed in and then return to any left over stubble . 

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1 hour ago, Konnie said:

If the maize is for biofuel you will find if is cobless  and of no food value and will only get a quick visit 

I have several fields to shoot that are for biofuel. It is surprising sometimes how much maize has been blown/knocked down.

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1 hour ago, Konnie said:

If the maize is for biofuel you will find if is cobless  and of no food value and will only get a quick visit 

Sorry to disagree on both counts. The field of maize near me is definitely for biofuel and has cobs. Pigeons and rooks have been very much in evidence since it was harvested last week.

OB

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Well I did manage a few hours on the maize this afternoon. As stated, the field had been heavily disced, almost ploughed, but there were still plenty of cobs lying about and still much pigeon activity. I set up with just two dead birds on the whirly and half a dozen shells. The wind had changed from Westerly to Northerly but this didn't appear to alter the flightlines too much and birds started decoying almost immeditely. Realising that I could be in for shooting quite a few, I rang my game dealer to make sure that he would be able to take some from me if necessary. However, he was on a fishing trip in France, so wasn't in a position to take freshly shot birds. I therefore stopped shooting after I had what I thought was about twenty. 

I actually picked 29 which was sufficient for myself and some for couple of neighbours where we will do a trade with some of the produce from their allotments.

The field is to remain unworked for a week or two, so another couple of short sessions will be on the cards in the very near future.

OB

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