Deer plot food: what to plant and when it actually works

Last updated 2026-07-25

what is a food plot, exactly?

A food plot is a planted patch of forage, usually somewhere between a quarter acre and a few acres, put in specifically to feed and attract deer or other wildlife. It's not a farm field in the commercial sense. Nobody is harvesting it for grain to sell. The whole point is standing forage that deer can browse through the season, whether that's a clover field they hit all summer or a brassica plot they hammer after the first hard frost. Most plots fall into two rough categories: perennial plots (clover, chicory, alfalfa) that you plant once and maintain for two to five years, and annual plots (brassicas, cereal grains, sorghum, peas) that you replant each year, often timed to peak right before or during hunting season. A lot of serious plotters run both, a perennial clover field for spring and summer and a brassica or grain plot for fall. The USDA's National Agroforestry Center and state wildlife agencies both treat food plots as a wildlife habitat management tool, distinct from agricultural crop production, and most state agencies publish their own guidance on plot species suited to local soils and climate ^[1]. If you're just starting, the soil test is the actual first step, not the seed bag. A $10 to $20 soil test through your county extension office tells you the lime and fertilizer story before you spend money on seed that will underperform in the wrong pH.

when to plant food plots for deer?

Zone 3-4 (Upper Midwest, Northern New England)	mid-May to early June	mid-July to mid-August
Zone 5-6 (Mid-South, Mid-Atlantic, Central Midwest)	late April to mid-May	early August to early September
Zone 7-8 (Deep South, Southern Plains)	March to April	September to early October	These are general starting points, not gospel. Your local extension office and the PlotSeason plot plan builder both use your actual zip code and frost dates rather than a zone-wide average, because a plot two counties apart can have a two-week difference in first frost.

The honest answer is: it depends on your growing zone and what you're planting, but there are two big windows most of the country works with. Spring plots (clover, chicory, some brassica blends, soybeans) go in after the last frost date, generally April through May in the North and March through April in the South. Fall plots (brassicas, cereal grains, oats, winter wheat) go in 60 to 90 days before your first expected hard frost, which for most of the whitetail's range lands somewhere between mid-July and early September. The reason fall planting dates matter so much is frost tolerance. Brassicas like turnips actually get sweeter after a frost because the plant converts starches to sugars, so timing the planting so the plot matures right as frost hits is the whole game. Plant too early and the plot bolts or gets overgrazed before hunting season. Plant too late in northern zones and you risk the crop not maturing before a killing freeze stops growth. Here's a rough framework by zone, cross-referenced against university extension planting guides: | Zone (USDA Hardiness) | Spring plot window | Fall plot window |

do deer like clover, and is it worth planting?

Yes, deer like clover a lot, and it's probably the single most planted perennial food plot species in the country for good reason. White clover (Trifolium repens) and red clover both test out extremely high in crude protein, often in the 25 to 30 percent range during active growth, which matters most in spring and summer when does are lactating and bucks are growing antlers. Clover's real advantage over annuals is that once it's established, it comes back year after year without replanting. A well-maintained white clover stand can produce for three to five years before you need to reseed, according to Penn State Extension guidance on forage legumes. That said, clover needs decent soil fertility and a pH close to neutral (6.0 to 7.0) to really perform, and it does not like standing water or heavy shade. If your soil test comes back with a pH under 5.5, clover is going to struggle no matter how good the seed is, and lime is the fix, not more seed. One underrated point: clover holds up to grazing pressure better than almost anything else you'll plant. A brassica or bean plot can get grazed to the dirt by August in high deer density areas. Clover, once established, tolerates that pressure and keeps regrowing through the growing season. For a deeper species comparison, see food plot whitetail and deer food plot seed.

when to plant turnips for deer, and do they actually eat them?

Turnips need to go in the ground 80 to 90 days before your first fall frost, which for most of the whitetail range means a planting window from mid-July through late August, depending on latitude. Plant them too late and the bulbs and leaves won't size up before growth stops. Deer absolutely eat turnips, but the timing of when they start hitting them hard is not immediate. Early in the plot's life, deer often ignore turnip leaves almost entirely and go for other forage nearby. Once frost hits and the plant's carbohydrates convert to sugars, palatability jumps, and that's when you'll see plots get hammered, often from October through December depending on your region ^[2]. The bulb itself (the root) tends to get eaten later in winter, sometimes only after deer have knocked down most of the above-ground leaf matter, especially in areas with real snow cover where the bulbs are one of the last high-energy foods left standing. A mistake a lot of first-time plotters make is planting turnips alone at a low seeding rate and expecting a thick canopy. Purdue Extension and other land-grant programs generally recommend blending brassicas with a cereal grain like oats or winter wheat, both for soil coverage and because deer often prefer to browse a mixed plot over a monoculture ^[3]. A 2 to 4 lb per acre turnip rate mixed with 50 to 100 lbs per acre of oats is a common starting blend, though your specific rate should follow the seed tag, not a rule of thumb from the internet.

when to plant oats for deer?

Oats are a fall annual for almost every deer plot use case, planted in late summer to early fall so they're green and growing right as hunting season opens. In the Midwest and Northeast, that's typically August into early September. In the Deep South, you can push it to September or even October since frost comes later. Oats are attractive to deer because they're a fast-growing cereal grain that produces a lot of tender, high-carbohydrate leaf material quickly, often within three to four weeks of planting under good moisture. They don't handle hard freezes as well as winter wheat or rye, so in the coldest zones oats will die back after the first serious hard freeze, while wheat and rye keep growing into winter and even green up again in early spring. That's actually a reason to plant a blend: oats for that early-season pull, wheat or rye to carry the plot through winter. One real limitation with oats: they're a favorite of a lot of things besides deer, including turkey, and in high pressure areas oats can get grazed down fast if the plot acreage is small relative to deer density. If you've only got a half acre, pairing oats with a brassica or clover base gives the plot more total tonnage to absorb that pressure across the season.

do deer eat sorghum?

Deer do eat sorghum, but it's more of a secondary or supplemental plot species than a primary draw, and it's used differently than clover or brassicas. Grain sorghum (milo) is mostly planted for its seed head, which deer, along with a long list of other wildlife like quail, dove, and turkey, will feed on once it matures and dries down in fall. Sorghum's real value in a lot of plot designs isn't as the main food source at all, it's as cover and a screen. Standing sorghum can grow 4 to 8 feet tall and gives deer a sense of security walking into a plot during daylight, especially bordering a more open clover or brassica field. Some plotters plant a sorghum or corn strip on the edge of a plot specifically to break sightlines from a road or neighboring property, then hunt the more open forage plot behind it. As a straight food source, sorghum's crude protein is lower than clover or a legume, generally in the 8 to 11 percent range for the grain itself, so it's not doing the heavy lifting nutritionally that a clover or soybean plot does ^[4]. Where it earns its place is in a mixed-species plot design, or on ground where full-season screening cover matters as much as the food itself. If you're weighing where sorghum fits against other summer annuals, deer food plots has a broader rundown of summer species.

do deer like honey, or does it belong in food plots at all?

No, honey isn't a food plot input and it isn't something deer specifically seek out as forage in the wild. Deer are herbivores built around a rumen digestive system designed for browse, forbs, mast, and grasses, not concentrated sugar sources like honey. There's no wildlife agency or extension guidance recommending honey as an attractant, and it's not a legal or practical component of any food plot program. Where the idea probably comes from is the broader category of sweetener-based attractants (some commercial deer attractant products use molasses, sugar beet extract, or apple scent) which are a completely different category from food plots. Those are bagged or liquid attractants poured or sprayed at a site, not planted crops. A lot of states regulate or outright ban baiting and the use of attractants near hunting areas, and the rules vary hard state to state, so check your state wildlife agency's current regulations before using any attractant product, honey-based or otherwise ^[5]. Food plots themselves are legal in every state as a habitat practice, but the line between a food plot and bait can get blurry depending on how a state defines it, especially with things like mineral supplements or protein pellets scattered on the ground.

what are deer's favorite foods, really?

There's no single scientifically ranked list, but wildlife research on deer diet composition consistently shows a few categories dominate: soft and hard mast (acorns especially), legumes like clover and soybeans, and agricultural crops like corn and soybeans where available. A study by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and similar state deer research programs found that acorns can make up 20 to 25 percent or more of a whitetail's fall diet in years with a strong mast crop, more than almost any single planted forage. Among planted food plot species specifically, soybeans and clover routinely test as the most attractive and highest-protein options during the growing season, while brassicas and cereal grains take over as fall and winter draws once frost sweetens them up and mast supplies run down. Deer are also opportunistic browsers of natural forbs, woody browse, and agricultural leftovers (waste grain in a picked cornfield is a huge late-season draw in ag country). The practical takeaway for a plot plan: no single species is the answer year-round. A property that has clover for summer, standing corn or soybeans for fall energy, and a brassica plot for the late season covers the deer's actual nutritional needs across all three seasons far better than one big field of a single "favorite" crop.

how do you pick the right food plot species for your property?

Start with the soil test, not the seed catalog. Your local land-grant university extension office or a private ag lab can run a basic test for somewhere around $10 to $20 that tells you pH, phosphorus, potassium, and organic matter. That test is the actual authority on what your specific dirt needs in lime and fertilizer, and it should drive your species pick more than any article, including this one. After the soil test, the next filter is sunlight and drainage. Clover and brassicas both want 6 or more hours of direct sun and don't tolerate standing water. A shaded, low-lying spot is a bad fit for almost every common plot species and might be better left as a sanctuary or bedding cover instead. Then match species to season goals. If you're trying to build a herd through summer, clover or soybeans. If you're building toward a late-season hunting draw, brassicas and cereal grains timed to your fall frost date. Most properties do best running at least two plot types so there's food available across the season instead of one plot that peaks in September and is gone by November. For a build-out of specific seed blends by region, domain food plot seed and food plot seed break down common mixes.

what does a basic planting and fertility plan look like?

Once you have a soil test back, the sequence is roughly: lime first if pH is low (lime takes months to fully react with soil, so ideally it goes down a season ahead of planting, not the same week), then fertilize according to the test's phosphorus and potassium recommendations, then plant at the seeding rate on the bag, then mow or spray to manage weed competition through the growing season. A lot of first-year plot failures trace back to skipping the lime step. Clover and brassicas both perform poorly below pH 6.0, and no amount of nitrogen fixes an acid soil problem. If your test comes back at pH 5.0, you're not looking at a light dusting of lime, you're looking at a real application, often 1 to 2 tons per acre depending on your soil's buffer capacity, which the lab report will spell out. This is also where a $99 one-time Custom Food Plot Plan from PlotSeason's plot plan builder earns its keep for a lot of landowners: you plug in your soil test results, property location, and goals, and it hands back species picks, seeding rates, and a planting calendar built around your actual frost dates instead of a national average. It's general guidance built from your inputs, not a site visit or a substitute for your soil lab's specific lime and fertilizer recommendations, which remain the final word on your dirt.

what mistakes should you avoid with a first food plot?

The most common one is planting on bad ground because it's convenient, a shaded corner or a compacted old logging road, instead of finding the sunniest, best-drained spot even if it's a longer walk. Deer will use a well-placed plot on marginal soil more than a poorly placed plot on great soil. Second is skipping the soil test entirely and guessing at lime and fertilizer. You can spend $150 on premium seed and get a mediocre plot because the pH was 5.2 and nobody adjusted it. The soil test costs less than one bag of seed and it's the single highest-leverage thing you can do before planting. Third is planting a small plot (under half an acre) with a single high-value annual like soybeans or peas in a high deer density area and watching it get grazed to bare dirt within weeks. Either go bigger, fence part of it to let some mature for seed production, or blend in a hardier species like a cereal grain to spread the browsing pressure. Fourth, and this trips up a lot of new plotters: not checking state rules before adding any kind of supplemental feed, mineral, or attractant near a plot. Baiting and feeding regulations vary widely by state, some allow it broadly, some ban it entirely, and some restrict it seasonally or near specific hunting methods, so check your state wildlife agency's current regulations before combining a plot with any additional attractant or feed source ^[5].

Frequently asked questions

Do deer eat sorghum in food plots?

Yes, but sorghum is mainly a secondary plot species. Deer eat the mature grain heads in fall, but sorghum's crude protein (roughly 8-11%) is lower than clover or soybeans, so it's usually planted for its standing cover and screening value alongside a higher-protein primary forage, not as the main draw.

Do deer like clover more than other food plot options?

Clover ranks among the most consistently attractive food plot species because of its high crude protein, often 25-30% during active growth, and because it regrows through repeated grazing all season. It's a top pick for spring and summer plots, though brassicas and cereal grains often take over as the preferred draw once fall frost hits.

When should you plant food plots for deer?

Spring plots (clover, chicory, soybeans) go in after your last frost, generally April to May in northern zones and March to April in the South. Fall plots (brassicas, oats, wheat) go in 60-90 days before your first hard frost, typically mid-July through early September depending on latitude.

When is the best time to plant turnips for deer?

Plant turnips 80-90 days before your area's first expected fall frost, usually mid-July through late August in most of the whitetail's range. This timing lets the bulbs and leaves size up before growth slows, and the plant sweetens noticeably after the first hard frost, which is when deer use tends to increase sharply.

When do you plant oats for deer food plots?

Oats are a fall annual, typically planted late summer to early fall (August into early September in the Midwest and Northeast, later in the Deep South) so they're green and tender right as hunting season opens. Oats grow fast but die back after hard freezes, unlike winter wheat or rye.

What exactly is a food plot?

A food plot is a planted area of forage crops, usually a quarter acre to several acres, established specifically to attract and feed deer or other wildlife rather than for commercial harvest. Common types include perennial clover fields and annual brassica or cereal grain plots timed to hunting season.

What are deer's favorite foods overall?

There's no single ranked list, but research shows acorns and other mast can make up 20-25% or more of a whitetail's fall diet in good mast years, per Georgia DNR deer research. Among planted crops, soybeans and clover test highest in attractiveness and protein during growing season, with brassicas taking over in late fall.

Do deer like honey as an attractant?

No. Honey isn't a recognized food plot input or a forage deer naturally seek out; their digestive system is built for browse and forbs, not concentrated sugars. Some commercial attractants use sweeteners like molasses, but those are separate from planted food plots, and attractant use is regulated differently by state.

How big should a first food plot be?

There's no fixed rule, but under half an acre in a high deer density area risks getting grazed to bare ground fast, especially with a single annual species like soybeans. A half acre to a few acres, blended with at least two species, generally holds up better to browsing pressure over a full season.

Do you need a soil test before planting a deer food plot?

Yes, and it should come before you buy seed, not after. A basic soil test through a county extension office or private ag lab, usually $10-$20, gives you pH and nutrient levels that determine lime and fertilizer needs. Skipping it is the most common reason first-year plots underperform.

What's the difference between a perennial and annual food plot?

Perennial plots (clover, chicory, alfalfa) are planted once and can produce for three to five years with maintenance, per Penn State Extension guidance. Annual plots (brassicas, oats, sorghum, soybeans) are replanted every year, usually timed so they peak right before or during hunting season.

Are food plots legal, and do baiting rules apply to them?

Food plots are legal habitat practices in every state, but baiting and supplemental feeding rules vary widely and some states restrict how plots interact with other attractants or feed near hunting areas. Always check your state wildlife agency's current regulations before combining a plot with any additional feed or mineral source.

Sources

1. USDA National Agroforestry Center, wildlife habitat management practices: food plots are treated as a wildlife habitat management practice distinct from commercial crop production
2. University of Tennessee Extension, brassica forage for deer: brassica palatability and sugar conversion after frost
3. Purdue University Extension, food plot forage guidance: mixing brassicas with cereal grains for coverage and deer preference
4. Oklahoma State University Extension, grain sorghum nutritional value: grain sorghum crude protein range
5. State wildlife agency baiting and feeding regulation guidance (varies by state; verify locally): baiting and feeding regulations for deer vary by state and should be checked before use