The Secret to More Turkeys? It’s Not Your Calling—It’s Their Dinner Plate

Photo: Judd McCullum

So, you just flipped past the Trophy Room page in The Iowa Sportsman and saw a couple of pictures of some monster toms that were tagged this spring. Those are what make all the pre-dawn wakeups and tick checks worth it.

If you’re like most hunters, your next thought is probably, “How do I get more birds like that on my property?” We spend a fortune on calls, decoys, and camo, but the real secret to holding turkeys on your land isn’t in your vest—it’s in your soil.

I was talking with Judd McCullum (the gentleman with the tom in the photo) the other day, and he said it perfectly: “A diverse prairie creates a full plate for wildlife.”

What he means is that, as long as you have roosting trees, a healthy stand of native prairie and wildflowers provides everything a turkey needs to thrive, every single day of the year. It’s not just a nice idea; it’s a biological necessity backed by decades of wildlife science.

Let's break down what that "full plate" really looks like from a scientific perspective.

Spring: The Nursery & The Numbers Game

When a hen is looking for a place to nest, she’s playing a game of odds. Wildlife biologists will tell you that nest predation is a leading cause of population decline. The clumping nature of native grasses like Big Bluestem and Little Bluestem provides ideal overhead concealment from predators like raccoons and opossums, directly increasing the odds of a successful hatch compared to a thin, matted field of brome or fescue.

Early Summer: The Protein Prescription

This is where the science gets crystal clear, and it’s the single most important factor for your turkey population. According to extensive research by experts like Dr. Michael J. Chamberlain at the University of Georgia, for the first four weeks of life, a turkey poult's diet must consist of nearly 90% insects. Without this massive, constant source of protein, poults simply cannot grow fast enough to fly, evade predators, and survive.

This is where your wildflower field becomes a lifesaving "bugging ground." A native prairie field is teeming with the grasshoppers, beetles, and spiders essential for poult survival. This habitat provides the perfect combination of a protein-rich food source and "umbrella-like" cover from aerial predators like hawks, giving those young birds all they need to thrive on your land.

Fall & Winter: The Payoff

Once the critical bugging season is over, that same prairie continues to provide for the next generation of hens and toms. The flowers and prairie grasses alike offer thousands of tiny, high-energy seeds as forage. As winter hits, those stiff grass stems stay standing up to snow, providing critical thermal cover that helps birds conserve life-saving energy during a bitter Iowa cold snap.

So, if you want to see more longbeards on your trail cameras next year, it's time to think like a biologist and subsequently, a conservationist. Focus on boosting poult survival. Building that full plate with a diverse native habitat isn't just one piece of the puzzle—it's the whole game.

Ready to build your own turkey factory? It all starts with the right seed. Check out our Turkey Habitat Mix!