Okay I live in East Texas and have about a 25 acre swamp to hunt half pasture half thick woods what would be the best yhing to plant in the pasture area that can be broadcasted on top od the water? It's about 6-24 inches deep all over an holds water year round

Can you control water level?

Your first step would be to read the regulations concerning planting for waterfowl (baiting laws) in your area, understand them, and be able to recite them in case a game warden decides to check you. Second, there are plenty of options that will work well. I doubt any one is really better than the other. It's more about the ducks finding the area, the food, and then bringing their buddies. If they don't imprint, you won't see them next year, and you'll have to hope another group does.

The law states as long as I dnt tamper with it then it's nt baiting and no I can't control the water level

If you could have controlled it I would have suggested jap Millet as I've had decent suscess with it. I have a pond that I can't control the water level because it is entirely run off that feeds it. I got some duck weed and put it in there for the ducks to eat. I wouldn't recommend doing that unless you do not have any fish or plans to have fish in it. If all else fails ducks like those golden acorns!!!!!

Yea golden acorns always brings em inive been debating on planting wild rice it already has smartweed growing an there's prolly about 250 woods tht live there year round and a few mallards an gadwalls an even about a couple dozen teal that are there year round but Im trying to bring in more big ducks by the hundreds

Where I'm at limits of Woody's are easy get but I want more big ducks

I would encourage you to reach out to your local waterfowl chapters if possible and see if there are funds or fund matches available to build nesting and feeding habitat.
Can you feed corn and grains in the spring and early summer when the birds are returning looking to nest and there's not as much forage with hopes that they nest close by and imprint?

In Minnesota I see a lot of wild rice, sago, wild celery, millet and freshwater shrimp grown/planted as a waterfowl food plot, but what's emphasised by the conservation groups is small potholes with lots of undisturbed cover for nesting with few tall trees for predatory birds.
I'd like to learn more about this as well and find out what the rules are as well as what's effective and what the carrying capacity is for a quantity of birds/acre for local ducks.
Also, remember it can be a lot of work and expense just to have some jackhole with a mud motor cruise in and hunt on top of you (I hear some people are chartering helicopters to drop in out of the sky this year)

I can feed in spring an summer and I don't have any local waterfowl chapters around me that I'm aware of

And I don't have to worry about anyone else hunting this area its all private land 10 miles from closest river or lake

I was just making fun of us and our mud motors when I said that about some of us coming to your food plot, that's awesome that you have a little piece of paradise, but collectively we're going to find your spot and hunt it!

We bought some land a few years back. We lease a little over half out t neighboring farmers to cover taxes and expenses and as part of the food for the habitat (the farmers in turn keep an eye on things).
We only use 40 or so acres of non-tillable land until crops are harvested, the rest is managed for deer, waterfowl and pheasants. We have been working with the county on some habitat programs, buffer strips, thermal zones, food plots, nesting/bedding areas and whatnot.
What I am learning is to contact a lot of people and ask tons of questions. Start with your county, watershed district, local game wardens, ag extension and any conservation group you can find and keep working your way up the chain. It takes time and a lot of patience. DU and Delta waterfowl as well USFW all have significant funds and an interest to grow habitat and birds, you just need to ask. They all move slow and are accountable to many different groups, so plan on making the same pitch over and over. I'm not typically a fan of government or outsiders telling me what to do with my property, but the bird groups are really about making more habitat as long as it's a long term deal and not just of couple years. In many cases it's a pretty long lease or commitment to not changing the land once you start. Depending on the location and the type of land and duration, there's typically something, just beware that land programs go with the land, so plan ahead about 20-100 years if you can. Keep an open mind too, we are looking at some significant tax credits and habitat improvement funds if we have bee hives on our property.

Hate to be a downer but you'll prolly never get many big ducks in that spot if it's not already a hot spot.
Unless you are in a big flyway with fresh ducks steady coming in you will have a gar hole after a couple big shoots


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Paint the egg sinkers on your decoys yellow. They think its corn when way up.

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Well planted millet and rice a few weeks back and its up about 1 ft tall and went out there and it was unreal the ducks are already there! We jumped up probably 100 big ducks 50 teal an 50 Woody's man I'm ready for duck season