BioLogic food plot seed: what it is and when to plant it

Last updated 2026-07-25

What is a food plot, exactly?

A food plot is a planted patch of forage or grain on hunting land, built to feed deer and other wildlife and to give hunters a predictable place to watch or hunt. Plots range from a quarter-acre kill plot tucked in timber to multi-acre field plantings meant to hold deer through winter. Most state wildlife agencies treat food plots differently than bait piles. A planted, growing crop is legal nearly everywhere deer hunting is legal, while piled corn or mineral is restricted or banned in a lot of states. Michigan restricts baiting and feeding of deer and elk under its Wildlife Conservation Order, with rules tied to chronic wasting disease and bovine tuberculosis management, while food plots remain legal statewide ^[1]. Always check your state agency's current baiting and feeding regulation before hunting over anything you didn't grow in the ground, because rules change year to year and vary by county in some states. Food plots do two jobs at once. They add nutrition during stress periods (late summer drought, post-rut recovery, winter in the North), and they concentrate deer activity in a spot you control for scouting cameras, stand placement, and wind. A plot doesn't guarantee you'll see deer on a given sit. It shifts odds over a season by giving deer a reason to use ground you already hunt. If you're new to plotting, start by reading up on food plot whitetail basics and deer food plots planning before buying seed, because seed choice only matters if your soil and site work is right first.

What is BioLogic food plot seed?

BioLogic is a food plot seed and mineral brand owned by Mossy Oak, selling pre-mixed clover blends, brassica mixes, cereal grain blends, and sorghum-based products aimed at deer hunters planting small to mid-size plots. Popular lines include Clover Plus, Deer-Radish, Full Draw, Maximum, and Green Patch Plus. BioLogic markets itself around simplicity: pre-mixed bags meant to go in the ground without a lot of custom blending on the hunter's part. That's the appeal for a lot of weekend plotters who don't want to source five separate seed types and mix ratios themselves. The tradeoff is that pre-mixed bags cost more per acre than buying straight clover, oat, or brassica seed from a farm co-op or food plot seed supplier and blending it yourself. A 4-lb bag of a name-brand clover blend covering a half-acre commonly runs $25 to $40, versus $3 to $6 per pound for raw ladino or red clover seed bought in bulk from an ag supplier. You're paying for convenience and marketing, not magic genetics, though the germination rates and species selection in most major brands (BioLogic, Whitetail Institute, Antler King) are legitimate and tested. None of that makes BioLogic bad. It makes it one option among several solid ones. The seed inside the bag still has to match your soil, your rainfall, and your planting window, or it fails regardless of the label.

Do deer eat clover?

Yes. Clover is one of the most consistently preferred food plot forages for whitetail deer, and it's the backbone ingredient in nearly every major food plot seed brand including BioLogic's Clover Plus. Ladino and red clover both deliver high crude protein, commonly cited around 25 to 30 percent in vegetative growth stages, which matters most during antler growth (spring/summer) and lactation ^[2]. Do deer like clover specifically compared to other forages? Research and decades of field observation say yes, deer show strong preference for clover relative to many alternatives when it's actively growing and hasn't been hammered flat by overbrowsing. Clover's real strength is longevity. A well-maintained ladino clover stand can produce for 3 to 5 years before you need to reseed, provided you mow it a few times a season to control weeds and knock back maturity, and keep soil pH near 6.0 to 6.5, which your soil test will confirm or correct with lime recommendations. Clover is a poor choice on ground that floods or stays wet, and it struggles in heavy shade.

Do deer eat sorghum?

Yes, deer eat grain sorghum, both the standing plant and the seed heads once they mature, and it's a common component in fall/winter blends and screening cover mixes. Sorghum isn't usually the primary attraction crop in a plot, it functions more as a grain source and standing cover that also draws deer, similar to how corn works but with better drought tolerance in the South and lower input cost. BioLogic and other brands often include grain sorghum in blends marketed for late-season or screening purposes because it stands tall (4 to 7 feet), tolerates poor soil and drought better than corn, and the seed heads persist into winter when other food sources are gone. Deer will browse young sorghum shoots too, though it's not their first choice over clover or brassica leaves. Sorghum takes real heat and a longer growing season to mature, generally planted after soil temperatures hit 60-65°F and needing roughly 90 to 120 frost-free days depending on variety, per Kansas State University's grain sorghum production handbook ^[3]. In northern zones with a short frost-free window, sorghum is a riskier bet than in the South and Midwest.

Do deer eat turnips, and when should you plant them?

Yes, deer eat both the turnip leaves and the bulbs, though the order matters. Deer typically browse the leafy tops first, starting weeks after planting, and don't dig into the bulbs in volume until after a hard frost converts starches to sugars, making the bulb sweeter and more palatable. This is why turnip-heavy brassica blends (BioLogic's Deer-Radish and Maximum both use brassica genetics) are marketed as a late-season food plot play. When to plant turnips for deer depends on your first frost date. Turnips need roughly 80 to 90 days from planting to full bulb maturity, and the plan is to time planting so the plant matures right around your first hard frost, not before. In most of the Midwest and Northeast, that means planting turnips in late July through mid-August. In the Deep South, growers can push planting into September. A common mistake is planting turnips too early. If the bulb matures in September and just sits there through six more weeks of warm weather, deer may pass on it in favor of still-growing soybeans or acorns, and the plant can get tough and overmature by the time deer actually need it in December and January.

When to plant food plots for deer, by region

Timing splits into two windows almost everywhere in whitetail country: a spring/summer planting for warm-season forages (clover, soybeans, chicory) and a late-summer planting for fall/winter forages (brassicas, cereal grains, winter peas). The exact calendar dates shift by 4 to 8 weeks moving from the Deep South to the northern tier states. Spring/summer plots (clover, chicory, soybeans, alfalfa): plant after your last frost date and once soil temps hold above 50-55°F for germination. That's typically March into April in the South, April into May in the transition zone, and mid-May into June in the North and Canada border states. Fall/winter plots (brassicas, cereal grains, winter wheat, oats): plant so the crop has time to establish before the first hard frost but close enough to frost that brassica bulbs sweeten at the right time. That generally means late July through early September across most of the whitetail's range, with northern states planting earlier in that window and southern states later. The single best resource for nailing your local dates is your state's cooperative extension frost date and planting calendar, not a blanket national date, because a "plant in August" recommendation can be two or three weeks off depending on whether you're in Georgia or Minnesota. Check your state extension office planting guide before locking in a date.

When to plant oats for deer

Oats are a fall planting in the vast majority of whitetail range, planted alongside or ahead of brassicas and clover in late summer, typically late August through September depending on zone, so the plant establishes cool-season growth before frost slows it down. Oats germinate fast (5 to 10 days in warm soil) and green up quickly, which makes them a strong early-season attractant while slower brassicas are still bulking up underground. Oats are a cool-season annual and will winterkill in hard freezes in the northern half of the whitetail's range, meaning they won't survive to spring in Minnesota, Wisconsin, or similar climates the way winter wheat or rye will. That's fine if your goal is fall/early-winter attraction, less fine if you wanted a spring green-up plot from the same planting. In the Deep South, some hunters plant oats in early fall and again get a spring flush before summer heat kills the stand, effectively getting two seasons of grazing from one planting. USDA NRCS's plant guide for oat (Avena sativa) describes the crop as best suited to cool, moist conditions ^[4], which lines up with typical September/October conditions across most of the Southeast and mid-South.

What is deer's favorite food, really?

There's no single universal favorite, deer preference shifts by season, region, and what's available, but research and extension forage trials point to a short list of consistent top performers: acorns (especially white oak family acorns, which are lower in tannins than red oak acorns and preferred when available), soybeans and clover during the growing season, and standing corn or other grain in winter. Acorns are worth calling out because they often beat anything you plant. White oak acorns have lower tannin content than red oak acorns, and deer show clear preference for them when both are dropping at the same time, a pattern documented in oak regeneration and wildlife forestry research from the USDA Forest Service ^[5]. This is why a plot planted 100 yards from a heavy white oak flat sometimes gets ignored in a big mast year, it's not that the plot failed, deer just had a better option. Among planted crops, soybeans consistently rank near the top for both tonnage of forage produced and crude protein (often 30+ percent in leaf tissue), which is why soybean plots are a staple on farms with enough acreage and deer density low enough that the beans survive past the seedling stage. Clover ranks close behind for reliability and regrowth. Brassicas and grain sorghum matter more in the specific late-season window when little else is green. The honest answer is that "favorite food" changes with the calendar. What's the favorite in July (soybean leaves, clover) is not the favorite in December (standing corn, turnip bulbs, acorns still on the ground).

Do deer like honey (as in Honey Hole or sweet attractants)?

If the question is about literal honey, there's no real research or extension data showing deer seek out honey as a food source, and it's not a practical or legal attractant in most states anyway since baiting rules restrict placing food to draw deer outside a growing plot. Deer are not pollinators and don't have a natural drive toward honey the way bears do. If the question is about "Honey Hole" branded products, several brands (including BioLogic's own naming conventions and other seed and mineral companies) use "honey hole" as marketing language for a prime hunting spot or a mineral/attractant blend, not literal honey. Sweet-smelling mineral licks and molasses-based deer attractants are real products and deer do respond to some sugar and salt-based minerals, but that's a different category from planted food plots and is governed by the same state baiting and feeding restrictions that cover corn piles and mineral licks. Worth checking directly: some states classify mineral licks as bait under their feeding regulations even where corn piles aren't singled out, so a product marketed with sweet or attractant language can still put you in violation depending on your state's definition. Confirm with your state wildlife agency's current regulation before using any mineral or attractant product, more than piled grain.

How do you pick between BioLogic and other seed brands?

Start with your soil test, not the seed bag. Your county extension office or a private ag lab can run a soil test for $10 to $20 that tells you pH, phosphorus, potassium, and organic matter, and that report is the actual authority on what lime and fertilizer your ground needs, more than any brand's bag instructions. BioLogic, Whitetail Institute, Antler King, and generic ag seed all perform about the same when soil chemistry and planting timing are right, and all of them underperform when soil pH sits below 5.5 or the seed goes in the ground three weeks late. Where brand differences show up is species mix and price per acre. If you want a no-mixing bag with tested germination and a clear planting instruction card, paying the premium for BioLogic or a similar branded product is a reasonable convenience choice, especially for a first-time plotter with under 2 acres to plant. If you're planting 5+ acres a year and want to control cost, buying straight species (VNS ladino clover, Groundhog radish, cereal rye, grain sorghum) from a farm supply store or ag co-op and mixing your own blend at your own ratios saves real money over a season, often 40 to 60 percent per acre compared to name-brand bags. Neither path is wrong. Match the choice to your acreage, your budget, and how much time you want to spend thinking about seed ratios versus just planting a bag.

What's a simple, honest planting plan if you're starting from scratch?

Pull a soil test first, from your county extension office or a private lab, and follow its lime and fertilizer recommendation exactly, that report is more accurate for your specific dirt than any generic seed bag guidance. Lime takes months to fully adjust pH, so if your test comes back needing lime, get it down as early in the season as you can, ideally the fall before you plant. Pick your window based on what you're plotting for: spring/summer clover or beans go in after last frost when soil holds 50°F+, fall brassicas and cereal grains go in roughly 80-90 days before your first hard frost. Match species to your site, clover and chicory want decent drainage and some sun, brassicas tolerate a wider range, sorghum wants full sun and takes real heat to finish. If you'd rather not build this plan yourself, that's the exact gap a $99 one-time Custom Food Plot Plan is built to fill, general species, timing, and rate guidance based on your zone and your soil test results, not site-specific agronomy replacing your soil lab's recommendation, but enough to take the guesswork out of picking species and dates. For DIY research along the way, deer food plot seed and domain food plot seed both cover species selection in more depth.

Frequently asked questions

Do deer eat sorghum?

Yes. Deer browse young grain sorghum shoots and eat the mature seed heads, especially in fall and winter when other food is scarce. Sorghum is more often used as a grain and screening cover crop than a primary attraction plot, and it handles drought and poor soil better than corn, making it common in Southern and Midwest fall blends.

Do deer eat clover?

Yes, clover is one of the most preferred food plot forages for whitetail deer, delivering roughly 25-30 percent crude protein during active growth. It's the base ingredient in most major food plot blends, including BioLogic's Clover Plus, because it regrows after grazing and can produce for 3-5 years on one planting with proper mowing and soil pH near 6.0-6.5.

When to plant deer food plots?

Spring/summer forages (clover, soybeans, chicory) go in after your last frost once soil holds 50-55°F, typically March-April in the South and May-June in the North. Fall forages (brassicas, cereal grains) go in roughly 80-90 days before your first hard frost, generally late July through early September depending on zone.

Do deer like clover more than other food plot options?

Field observation and extension forage trials consistently rank clover among the top preferred forages, especially when actively growing. Preference shifts seasonally though, deer favor soybean leaves and clover in summer, then shift to acorns, standing grain, and brassica bulbs once cold weather hits and those crops sweeten or mast drops.

When to plant oats for deer?

Oats are almost always a fall planting, typically late August through September depending on your zone, timed so the crop establishes before frost slows growth. Oats winterkill in hard northern freezes but can produce a second spring flush in milder Southern climates before summer heat ends the stand.

When to plant food plots for deer in general?

Two windows cover almost everywhere: spring/summer for clover, beans, and chicory after last frost, and late summer for brassicas and cereal grains roughly 80-90 days before first hard frost. Exact dates shift 4-8 weeks between Deep South and northern states, so check your state cooperative extension's local frost date calendar.

When to plant turnips for deer?

Plant turnips 80-90 days before your area's average first hard frost so bulbs mature right as cold weather sweetens them. That's typically late July through mid-August across most of the Midwest and Northeast, pushing into September in the Deep South. Planting too early leads to overmature, less palatable bulbs by hunting season.

What is a food plot?

A food plot is a planted area of forage or grain crops on hunting land, grown to feed deer and other wildlife and give hunters a predictable place to hunt. Unlike bait piles, a planted, growing crop is legal in nearly every state, though hunters should still confirm current rules with their state wildlife agency.

What are deer's favorite foods overall?

There's no single universal favorite; it shifts by season. White oak acorns rank very high when available due to lower tannin content than red oak acorns. Among planted crops, soybeans and clover lead for protein and tonnage in the growing season, while standing corn, sorghum grain, and frosted turnip bulbs matter most in winter.

Do deer like honey?

There's no research showing deer seek out literal honey as a food source; they're not natural pollinator feeders like bears. "Honey Hole" in food plot marketing usually refers to a prime hunting spot or a sweet mineral/attractant product, not literal honey, and those products still fall under state baiting and feeding regulations.

Is BioLogic food plot seed worth the extra cost over generic seed?

It depends on your acreage and how much time you want to spend blending seed yourself. For under 2 acres, the convenience of a tested, pre-mixed bag is a reasonable tradeoff. Planting 5+ acres a year, buying raw species and mixing your own blend commonly saves 40-60 percent per acre over name-brand bags.

Do I need a soil test before planting a food plot?

Yes. A soil test from your county extension office or a private ag lab, usually $10-20, tells you pH and nutrient levels and gives lime/fertilizer recommendations specific to your ground. That report is more accurate than any generic seed bag instructions and should drive your fertilizer and lime decisions, not brand marketing.

Can I plant a food plot instead of using bait to attract deer legally?

In most states, yes, planted and growing food plots are legal even where baiting (piled corn, mineral, or feed) is restricted or banned, such as Michigan's baiting and feeding restrictions under its Wildlife Conservation Order. Rules vary by state and sometimes by county, so confirm current baiting and feeding regulations with your state wildlife agency before hunting over any supplemental feed.

Sources

1. Michigan DNR, Wildlife Conservation Order, Baiting and Feeding of Deer and Elk (Order 2.10): Michigan restricts baiting and feeding deer in parts of the state due to disease concerns, while food plots remain legal
2. Oklahoma State University Extension, Clover for Wildlife Food Plots (PSS-2909): Ladino and red clover deliver high crude protein, commonly 25-30 percent, during active vegetative growth
3. University of Tennessee Extension, Wildlife Food Plots (SP731-P): White clover ranks among top preferred wildlife food plot forages for regrowth and digestibility
4. Kansas State University Extension, Grain Sorghum Production Handbook (C-687): Grain sorghum requires roughly 90-120 frost-free days and warm soil temperatures to mature
5. Clemson Cooperative Extension, Brassicas for Wildlife Food Plots (HGIC 4021): Brassica turnips need roughly 80-90 days from planting to bulb maturity and should be timed to mature near first frost
6. USDA NRCS, Plant Guide: Oat (Avena sativa): Oats grow best in cool, moist conditions
7. USDA Forest Service, Southern Research Station, Research Paper SRS-52, The Southern Appalachian Oak Ecosystem: White oak acorns have lower tannin content than red oak acorns and are generally preferred by deer when both are available