7 card stud food plot seed: what it is and how to plant it

Last updated 2026-07-25

What is a food plot, exactly?

A food plot is a planted patch of forage on hunting land, meant to feed deer, hold them nearby, and give hunters a predictable place to watch or set up. It's not a garden and it's not a lawn. Most successful plots run somewhere between a quarter acre and a few acres, depending on herd density and how much open ground you've got to work with. The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and state wildlife agencies generally treat food plots as a wildlife habitat practice, not agriculture, though the seed and equipment overlap heavily with farming. Plots serve two jobs: nutrition (helping does raise fawns and bucks grow antlers) and attraction (giving you a stand site with predictable deer movement). A good plot plan usually splits acreage between a spring/summer nutrition plot (clover, alfalfa) and a fall attraction plot (brassicas, cereal grains) ^[1]. Seed blends marketed with poker names like "7 card stud" are just multi-species mixes sold under a catchy name. There's no universal industry standard defining what's in a "7 card stud" bag. It's a brand name, not a botanical category, so always read the tag on the actual bag you buy. That tag legally has to list species and percentages by weight under most state seed laws ^[2].

What's actually in a '7 card stud' style food plot blend?

Brassica (turnip/radish)	Tonnage, late-season draw after frost	60-90 days
Clover (red/white)	Perennial base, spring/summer protein	Establishes in 60-90 days, lasts 2-4 years
Cereal grain (oats/wheat/rye)	Fast cover, early season attraction	30-45 days to grazeable
Chicory	Drought-tolerant perennial filler	60-90 days
Forage peas	Nitrogen fixing, early palatability	45-60 days	If you want a plot built around one strategy instead of guessing what's in a branded bag, a custom food plot plan built off your own soil test and region can tell you exactly which 2-3 species make sense instead of paying for a 7-species bag where 3 of them may not even suit your ground.

Blends carrying names like this almost always lean on a core group of species: brassicas (turnips, radishes, or rape), one or more clovers (red or white), a cereal grain (oats, winter wheat, or winter rye), and sometimes chicory or forage peas rounding out the mix. Some versions throw in sorghum or a sunflower filler for tonnage and quick cover. The logic behind any 5-to-8-species blend is simple: hedge against soil variability and weather. If your dirt is heavy clay in one corner and sandy loam in another, a blend gives something a fighting chance everywhere, versus a monoculture that might fail outright on the wrong soil. The tradeoff is you lose some control. You can't fertilize precisely for one species when you've got clover, brassicas, and grain all competing for the same nitrogen and pH window. Here's a rough breakdown of what a typical multi-species fall blend brings to the table: | Component | Typical role | Days to maturity |

Do deer eat sorghum?

Yes, deer eat sorghum, but it's usually a secondary food, not a first choice. Whitetails browse sorghum leaves and will hit grain heads once they mature and dry down, especially in late fall and winter when other food is scarce. It's more commonly grown as a cover crop, screen, or supplemental grain than as a primary attractant plot. Sorghum's real value in a blend is structure: it grows tall fast, gives deer travel cover, and holds up through summer heat and some drought better than most legumes. University extension trial work on forage sorghum consistently ranks it below soybeans, cowpeas, and brassicas for whitetail preference, but it still gets used, particularly in the South and Midwest where deer pressure on tender forages is heavy ^[3]. If sorghum shows up in a "7 card stud" bag, treat it as a filler and screening component, not the reason you bought the blend.

Do deer eat clover, and do they actually like it?

Deer eat clover readily and it's one of the most consistently preferred food plot forages across the whitetail's range. Both white clover (Trifolium repens) and red clover (Trifolium pratense) show up near the top of forage preference studies, and clover regrows after grazing better than almost anything else you can plant, which is why it survives heavy deer pressure where other species get wiped out. Do deer like clover? Yes, consistently, across regions. Clover also carries 20-30% crude protein in good stands, which matters most in spring and summer when does are lactating and bucks are growing antlers. A well-limed, well-fertilized clover stand can produce for 3-4 years before you need to reseed, which makes it one of the better cost-per-year investments in a plot program. The catch with clover: it needs pH in the 6.0-7.0 range to really perform, and it's slow to establish, taking 60-90 days to get to a grazable stand. If your soil test comes back at 5.2, no amount of clover seed fixes that until you've limed and given it time to react. This is exactly the kind of site-specific call your soil test lab should make, since lime recommendations depend on your buffer pH, more than your water pH.

When to plant food plots for deer (by region and season)

Timing splits into two windows: spring/summer plots (clover, alfalta, soybeans) and fall plots (brassicas, cereal grains, blends). Spring plots generally go in after your last frost date, when soil temps hit 50-55°F. Fall plots need to go in 45-90 days before your area's first hard frost, depending on the species mix. Cooperative extension planting guides break the country into rough zones. In the Upper Midwest and Northeast, fall plots typically go in late July through August. In the transition zone (mid-South, Mid-Atlantic), September is the target window. In the Deep South, growers can push into October because frost comes later ^[4]. Here's the general rule of thumb extension agronomists use: brassicas need 60-90 days before a killing frost to bulb out and sweeten, cereal grains need 30-45 days to establish enough leaf for fall grazing, and clover needs the same window as brassicas but ideally goes in on its own in spring if you want a clean perennial stand. A multi-species blend like a 7 card stud mix forces a compromise date, usually splitting the difference around 60-75 days before frost, since you're trying to get grain up fast and brassicas bulbed at the same time. That compromise is the single biggest weak point of any all-in-one bag blend.

When to plant oats for deer

Oats should go in 6 to 8 weeks before your area's first fall frost, which lets them establish enough leaf mass to be grazeable by early fall while staying tender into the early part of hunting season. In most of the whitetail's range, that lands somewhere between mid-August and mid-September. Oats are one of the fastest-establishing cereal grains, often up and grazeable in 3-4 weeks under good moisture, which makes them a favorite "quick green-up" component in blends. The tradeoff is oats winterkill in most of the North once temps drop into the low teens or below for sustained periods, so in colder zones oats function as an early-fall draw, not a winter food source. Winter wheat or winter rye are the better choices if you need something standing after a hard freeze ^[4]. Spring oats can also go in as a nurse crop for spring clover seedings, though that's a secondary use most hunters skip in favor of straight clover.

When to plant turnips for deer

Turnips need to go in 60 to 90 days before your first expected hard frost. That timing matters more for turnips than almost any other food plot species, because the whole point of turnips is the sugar conversion that happens in the bulb and leaves after a hard frost hits. Before frost, deer generally ignore turnip bulbs and browse the leaves lightly. After a couple of hard frosts convert starches to sugars, deer often switch hard onto turnips, sometimes overnight, and can clean out a plot in the late season when almost nothing else is left standing. This is why turnips are the backbone of most late-season blends, including most "7 card stud" style mixes. Plant too late and you get small, bitter bulbs with no frost-sweetening window before deer season ends. Plant too early in hot, dry conditions and you risk poor germination or bolting. Extension guides generally recommend a seeding rate around 4-6 lbs/acre for pure turnip stands, broadcast into a firm, weed-free seedbed and lightly covered, no deeper than a quarter inch.

What are deer's favorite foods, really?

There's no single "favorite" because preference shifts hard by season, region, and what's available. That said, food plot preference trials (cafeteria-style studies where deer are given free choice between several planted species) tend to show a consistent hierarchy: soybeans and cowpeas rank at or near the top during summer growing season, clover ranks high nearly year-round, and brassicas jump to the top of the list specifically in late fall and winter after frost. Acorns, where available, generally out-compete anything you plant when they're falling in volume; deer will often walk past a lush clover plot to hit a hot white oak drop. That's not a knock on food plots, it's just biology: deer prioritize energy density and what's abundant right now. So "favorite food" really means: soybeans/cowpeas in summer, clover as a steady year-round option, brassicas as the late-season trump card, and acorns whenever they're on the ground. A well-built food plot whitetail program usually plants for more than one of these windows instead of betting on a single species.

Do deer like honey? (and other things they don't actually eat)

No, deer don't eat honey, and it's not a food plot ingredient in any legitimate blend, branded or otherwise. Honey shows up in internet folklore and some scent/attractant products (as a masking or bait additive, not a forage), but deer are not drawn to raw honey as a food source, and it has zero place in a seed bag. Worth noting for hunters mixing up attractants and food plots: many states restrict or outright ban baiting, which can include placing feed, minerals, or sweet attractants to draw deer for hunting, separate from a planted food plot. Baiting rules vary enormously by state; some allow it with distance and visibility restrictions, some ban it outright, and some only restrict it in specific management zones for disease control (chronic wasting disease areas especially). Always check your state wildlife agency's current regulations before using any bait product, and understand that a planted food plot is treated differently from bait piles under most state law, but the line varies ^[5].

How does a 7 card stud blend compare to a single-species plot?

Single species (clover)	Consistent perennial food, precise fertility management	Narrower season of peak attraction
Single species (brassica)	Late-season sugar-up draw	Nothing to offer early fall or spring
Multi-species blend ("7 card stud" style)	Variable soil types, hedging bets, one-bag simplicity	Compromise planting window, harder to fertilize precisely, some species may fail on your specific soil	If you've got one food plot and one soil type, a targeted 2-3 species plan built for your specific pH and region usually outperforms a 7-species bag where a third of the seed may never thrive on your ground. If you've got multiple plots or highly variable soil across a property, a blend's hedge-your-bets logic makes more sense. This is where a soil test earns its keep. Your test results (from your state land-grant extension lab or a private ag lab) tell you your actual pH and nutrient levels, and that lab is the authority on how much lime and fertilizer your specific dirt needs, not the seed bag tag. A custom food plot plan, a $99 one-time build from PlotSeason, takes your soil test and region and builds a species list matched to what you've actually got, rather than a generic blend built to survive everywhere and thrive nowhere in particular.

The honest tradeoff: a multi-species blend spreads risk across soil types and weather, but sacrifices control. A single-species clover or brassica plot lets you fertilize and lime precisely for that plant's exact needs, and you know precisely what maturity window you're working with. A 7-species bag means compromise on planting date, pH target, and fertility program. | Approach | Best for | Downside |

How do you plant a multi-species blend correctly?

Start with a soil test, at least 60 days before you want to plant, so lime has time to react if your pH needs correcting. Extension labs typically turn results around in 1-2 weeks, and lime needs 3-6 months to fully adjust soil pH, so early testing matters more than any other single step . Clear the seedbed. Spray or till out existing vegetation, especially perennial grass and weeds that'll outcompete slow-establishing clover and chicory in the mix. A firm, clean seedbed with good seed-to-soil contact beats a rough, weedy one every time, regardless of what's in the bag. Broadcast at the labeled rate, don't eyeball it. Most 7-8 species blends run in the 10-20 lbs/acre range depending on brassica and grain content, but check your specific bag tag since blends vary. Small seeds (clover, brassica, chicory) need shallow coverage, a quarter inch or less; drag a chain harrow or light cultipacker over the top rather than disking it in deep, which buries small seed too far to germinate. Fertilize based on your soil test, not a generic "food plot fertilizer" bag rate. Most blends benefit from a balanced starter (something like 19-19-19) plus supplemental nitrogen for the grain component, since brassicas and grains are heavier nitrogen feeders than clover, which fixes its own. If you're deciding between blends and straight species entirely, deer food plot seed and food plot seed cover how to read a bag tag and match species to your region before you buy anything.

Frequently asked questions

Do deer eat sorghum in food plots?

Yes, but it's a secondary food. Deer browse sorghum leaves and eat mature grain heads in late fall and winter, but forage sorghum consistently ranks below soybeans, clover, and brassicas in university preference trials. It's more useful as cover and screening than as your main attractant crop.

Do deer like clover more than other food plot options?

Clover ranks near the top of most whitetail forage preference studies and stays palatable through repeated grazing better than almost any other plot species. It carries 20-30% crude protein in good stands, making it especially valuable in spring and summer during lactation and antler growth.

When should you plant food plots for deer?

Spring/summer plots (clover, soybeans) go in after your last frost, once soil hits 50-55°F. Fall plots (brassicas, cereal grains, blends) need 45-90 days before your area's first hard frost, depending on species. Check your state land-grant extension's regional planting guide for exact local windows.

When is the best time to plant oats for deer?

Plant oats 6-8 weeks before your first fall frost, usually mid-August to mid-September across most of the whitetail range. Oats establish fast (3-4 weeks to grazeable) but winterkill in colder zones once sustained temps drop into the low teens, so they function as early-fall food, not winter forage.

When do you plant turnips for deer food plots?

Plant turnips 60-90 days before your area's first hard frost. Turnips need frost to convert starches to sugars in the bulb and leaves, which is when deer often switch onto them hard. Plant too late and bulbs stay small and bitter with no time to sweeten before season ends.

What exactly is a food plot?

A food plot is a planted patch of forage on hunting land meant to feed deer and give hunters a predictable place to hunt. Plots typically run a quarter acre to several acres and split between spring/summer nutrition plots and fall attraction plots depending on the property's goals.

What are deer's favorite foods overall?

It shifts by season: soybeans and cowpeas rank highest in summer preference trials, clover stays strong nearly year-round, and brassicas jump to the top after frost in late fall and winter. Acorns, when available in volume, generally out-compete anything planted, since deer prioritize whatever's most abundant and energy-dense right now.

Do deer like honey or sweet attractants?

No, deer don't eat honey and it's not a legitimate food plot ingredient. It shows up in scent or bait product marketing, not forage seed. Many states also restrict or ban baiting with feed or sweet attractants separately from planted food plots, so check your state wildlife agency's current rules before using any bait product.

What's actually in a '7 card stud' food plot blend?

It's a branded multi-species mix, not a defined botanical standard. Most versions combine brassicas (turnip, radish), one or two clovers, a cereal grain (oats, wheat, or rye), and often chicory or forage peas. Always check the actual bag tag, since species and percentages by weight vary by brand and are legally required to be listed.

Is a multi-species blend better than a single-species food plot?

It depends on your ground. Blends hedge against soil variability across a property but force a compromise on planting date and fertility program. A single species matched to your specific soil test usually outperforms a generic blend, especially if you're only planting one plot with fairly uniform soil.

How much lime and fertilizer does a food plot blend need?

It depends entirely on your soil test results, not a generic bag rate. Most legumes and brassicas want pH in the 6.0-7.0 range, and lime can take 3-6 months to fully react in soil. Your soil test lab is the authority on your specific lime and fertilizer needs, since results vary by field.

Can you plant a food plot blend without a soil test?

You can, but you're guessing on lime and fertility, which are usually the biggest limiting factors in a failed plot, more than seed choice. A soil test costs a small amount through most land-grant extension labs and takes 1-2 weeks to turn around, and it's the cheapest insurance in the whole planting process.

Sources

1. USDA NRCS, Wildlife Habitat Management practices: food plots are treated as a wildlife habitat practice supported alongside conservation programs
2. Association of American Seed Control Officials / state seed law examples (e.g., Mississippi Dept. of Agriculture): seed bags are legally required to list species and percentages by weight on the tag
3. University of Tennessee Extension, Wildlife Food Plots: regional planting windows for fall food plot species and cereal grain establishment timelines
4. Example state wildlife agency baiting regulation (Michigan DNR): baiting and feeding rules for deer vary by state and are separate from planted food plot regulation
5. University of Missouri Extension, Soil Testing for Lime and Fertilizer: soil test turnaround time and the 3-6 month reaction time lime needs to adjust soil pH