Fall food plot planting dates by zone and species

Last updated 2026-07-25

When should you plant fall food plots?

Upper Midwest, Northeast (Sept 15-Oct 1)	Late July-mid Aug	Aug 1-Sept 1	Aug 15-Sept 15
Mid-South, transition zone (Oct 15-Nov 1)	Mid Aug-early Sept	Sept 1-Oct 1	Sept 1-Oct 15
Deep South (Nov 15-Dec 1)	Sept-early Oct	Sept 15-Nov 1	Oct-Nov	These are starting points, not gospel. Local rainfall, soil temperature, and elevation shift things by a couple weeks in either direction, so check your state extension's frost map before you commit seed to dirt [2]. If you want a plan built around your actual coordinates and soil test instead of a regional table, that's exactly what a food plot whitetail plan is for.

The short answer: count backward from your average first frost date. Most fall food plot species need 60 to 90 days of growing time before a hard freeze shuts things down, so your planting window is whatever falls that far ahead of frost in your specific county. This isn't a guess. Land-grant extension programs build their planting calendars around the National Weather Service's 30-year climate normals for first frost, and food plot timing follows the same logic row-crop farmers use for cover crops ^[1]. If your first frost historically lands around October 15, you want brassicas like turnips or radishes in the ground by mid-August, and you can push cereal grains like oats or winter wheat into September without much penalty. Here's the practical breakdown most Midwest and Northern extension offices use for fall establishment: | Region (typical first frost) | Brassicas / turnips | Clover | Oats / cereal grain |

When to plant food plots for deer, step by step

Start with a soil test, not a calendar. Pull samples 6-8 weeks before your planned planting date so you have time to get lime down, since ag lime takes weeks to months to fully react with the soil and adjust pH. Once your soil test results are in hand, work backward from frost date to pick species, then forward from today to see if you have time to prep ground (kill existing vegetation, spray, disc or drill) before that species' ideal window closes. A rough sequence that works across most of the whitetail's range: 1. Late June-July: pull soil samples, order seed, spray existing weeds/sod if using a kill-and-drill method. 2. 6-8 weeks before frost: get lime and fertilizer applied per your soil test recommendations. 3. Brassica window (60-90 days before frost): plant turnips, radishes, rape, or a blend. 4. Cereal grain and clover window (45-75 days before frost): plant oats, wheat, or frost-seed clover. 5. 2-3 weeks before season opener: nothing to plant, just manage and scout. Most failures in fall plots trace back to skipping step 1 and step 2. A perfect planting date on bad soil still produces a thin, stressed plot. Soil pH below about 5.5 locks up phosphorus availability regardless of how much fertilizer you spread, which is why extension soil labs push lime timing so hard.

When to plant oats for deer?

Plant oats 6 to 10 weeks before your first killing frost, which usually lands in the September window across most of the whitetail's core range. Oats germinate fast (5-7 days in warm soil) and put on good tonnage of tender, high-protein forage that deer hit hard in October and November before winter-killing back in most zones colder than USDA hardiness zone 7 ^[3]. Oats aren't a survive-the-winter crop north of the transition zone. They're a fall attraction crop. In the Deep South (zones 8-9), oats can overwinter and provide grazing into late winter, so Southern planters have more flexibility on timing. A lot of guys blend oats with brassicas or a cereal rye/wheat mix. The oats come up fast and give deer something to eat while the slower brassica bulbs are still developing underground. That blend approach also spreads your risk if one species has a rough germination. Soil temperature matters more than the calendar date. Oats germinate best in soil around 50-85°F, so if you're in a warm stretch, you can push a little later than the standard 6-10 week rule ^[3].

When to plant turnips for deer?

Turnips need 80 to 90 days before frost to fully bulb up, which puts most turnip planting in late July through mid-August across the Midwest and Northeast, and late August through September in the transition zone and Mid-South. This is the species most hunters plant too late. Turnips look fine as leafy green forage even on a shorter timeline, but the sugar-loaded bulb, the part deer really key in on after a couple frosts convert starches to sugar, needs that full 80-90 day runway to size up ^[4]. Plant turnips in September in a zone with an October 1 frost date and you'll get leaves, not bulbs. Cold actually helps turnips. A few hard frosts trigger the plant to convert starch to sugar, which is why turnip plots often get hit harder in December and January than they do in October. Purdue Extension and other Midwest programs note that brassica forage quality and deer preference tends to increase after frost, not decrease ^[4]. If you'reland-locked to a shorter window, straight turnips are riskier than a turnip/radish/rape blend, since radish and rape mature faster and give you a fallback if the season runs short. This is where a deer food plot seed blend beats a single-species bag.

Do deer like clover, and when do you plant it in fall?

Yes, deer strongly prefer clover, and it's consistently rated among the top forage choices in deer diet studies because of its digestibility and protein content, which commonly runs 20-25% crude protein in vegetative growth stages ^[5]. Clover is also a workhorse because it's perennial, meaning one planting can produce for 3-5 years with proper mowing and fertility maintenance. Fall clover planting works two ways. You can do a full seedbed planting 6-8 weeks before frost (same window as cereal grains), or you can frost-seed in late winter by broadcasting seed onto existing frozen or thawing ground, letting freeze-thaw cycles work the seed into the soil. Frost-seeding is a late-winter technique, not a fall one, but a lot of hunters plant clover in fall specifically so it's established and ready to frost-seed thicken the following February or March. Clover does need real lime and phosphorus/potassium levels to thrive; it's sensitive to low pH and will struggle below 6.0 ^[6]. If your soil test comes back at pH 5.2, don't expect clover to perform even if you nail the calendar date. Get lime down first. Winter survival is regional. Ladino and red clover overwinter fine into zone 3 with snow cover; without snow cover in the upper Midwest, exposed clover can suffer winterkill in open, wind-scoured spots.

Do deer eat sorghum?

Yes, deer eat sorghum, particularly grain sorghum heads in late fall and winter once other food sources thin out, but it's a secondary food plot choice rather than a headline species. Sorghum is more commonly planted as a summer/fall standing grain crop and as cover, not as an early-season attraction plot. Sorghum's real value in a food plot program is structure. Tall sorghum or a sorghum/soybean mix gives deer both food and screening cover, which matters a lot on pressured properties. It's drought-tolerant and handles poor soil better than corn, which is part of why it shows up in wildlife plantings recommended by USDA NRCS conservation plans in drier regions . Don't expect sorghum to outperform brassicas or cereal grains for pure fall attraction. It's a supplemental, late-season standing grain, best used in combination with something faster-growing and more palatable early on.

What are deer's favorite foods?

Deer preference shifts by season and region, but across food plot studies and deer diet analyses, acorns (especially white oak), soybeans, clover, and standing corn consistently rank at the top, with brassicas and cereal grains close behind once temperatures drop . Whitetails are opportunistic browsers; their "favorite" food on any given week is often whatever's most abundant, most digestible, and least available elsewhere on the landscape. In fall specifically, that means fresh brassica tops and bulbs, standing soybeans, and acorns dominate. As natural browse and mast crops decline through late fall and winter, food plots become a much bigger share of the diet, which is the entire reason fall planting timing matters so much. There's no single silver-bullet species. A property with clover, brassicas, and a cereal grain gives deer options across the whole fall and winter, and options are what actually hold deer on your ground longer than any one "favorite" plant.

Do deer like honey (or sweet attractants)?

Deer don't eat honey in any meaningful field sense, and it's not a food plot input or attractant with any research behind it. What people are usually really asking is whether sweet, sugar-rich forage draws deer, and the honest answer is yes, indirectly: deer show real preference for high-sugar forage like frosted brassicas and molasses-treated mineral/protein supplements where legal. There's no wildlife agency or extension guidance recommending honey as a deer attractant, and pouring liquid sweeteners on the ground crosses into baiting in most states' legal definitions, which typically include any placed food substance meant to attract game. Baiting rules vary a lot by state; some allow supplemental feeding outside hunting season, some ban it outright, and definitions of what counts as "bait" differ. Check your state wildlife agency's current regulations before using any attractant, mineral, or feed product.

What is a food plot, exactly?

A food plot is a planted area, usually somewhere between a quarter acre and several acres, established specifically to grow forage that attracts and nutritionally supports deer or other wildlife on a property. It's distinct from a farm field grown for harvest; the crop stays in the ground for animals to eat directly, whether that's standing corn, clover, or brassica. Food plots serve two overlapping goals: nutrition (helping deer through late-season stress periods when natural browse is thin) and hunting access (concentrating deer activity in a predictable, huntable location). A well-designed plot program usually runs a mix of both, some plots tucked in thick cover meant purely for hunting access, others larger and more open meant to carry a herd through winter. State wildlife agencies generally treat food plots as a private land habitat management practice, and many state agencies and USDA Farm Bill biologists offer free technical assistance or cost-share programs for landowners planting for wildlife, separate from agricultural crop programs . If you're planting your first plot, start small, get your soil test back, and pick 2-3 species instead of trying to run five different blends across a new property in year one. For more on picking species suited to a property, see deer food plots and deer for food.

How do you build a fall planting calendar for your specific property?

Pull your county's average first frost date from NOAA's climate normals, then work backward using the 60-90 day windows above for whichever species you're planting ^[1]. Write the dates down. Don't try to hold all of this in your head, because between soil test turnaround, seed orders, and weather delays, a written calendar is what keeps you from missing a window entirely. A basic worksheet: - First frost date (from NOAA/local extension): ___

• Brassica plant-by date (frost minus 85 days): ___
• Cereal grain plant-by date (frost minus 60 days): ___
• Clover plant-by date (frost minus 60 days, or frost-seed next Feb/March): ___
• Lime/fertilizer application date (6-8 weeks before earliest plant date): ___ Every property is a little different once you factor in soil drainage, shade, slope, and existing weed pressure, which is why generic calendars only get you most of the way there. This is the kind of detail work a PlotSeason Custom Food Plot Plan handles for $99 one-time: you get species and timing matched to your actual coordinates, soil test numbers, and equipment, rather than a regional average. It's general planning guidance built from your inputs, not site-specific agronomy advice, so your soil test lab's lime and fertilizer recommendations still take priority over anything else.

What equipment and prep actually matter more than the exact date?

Seedbed prep and weed control usually matter more than being off by five days on the calendar. A perfectly timed planting into thick sod or unkilled weeds will get outcompeted regardless of the date. Minimum viable fall plot setup: a way to kill existing vegetation (glyphosate application or disking), a way to work seed into soil (disc, cultipacker, or a no-till drill), and a way to spread lime/fertilizer per your soil test. You don't need a tractor to start; ATV/UTV-mounted sprayers and small disc harrows handle plots under 2 acres just fine. Seed-to-soil contact drives germination more than almost anything else. Broadcasting brassica or clover seed onto bare, prepped soil and rolling it with a cultipacker (or driving over it with a UTV) beats broadcasting onto rough or trashy ground every time. If you're shopping seed, food plot seed and domain food plot seed blends are built with these fall windows in mind, but the equipment and ground prep still fall on you.

What goes wrong when you plant too early or too late?

Plant too early and warm-season weeds outcompete your brassicas or clover before frost knocks the weeds back; you also risk brassicas bolting to seed in lingering summer heat instead of building bulb mass. Plant too late and you get leaf growth with no bulb development, thin cereal grain stands going into winter, or clover seedlings too small to survive the first hard freeze. The most common real-world mistake is treating one bag date as universal. A bag of turnip seed printed with "plant July-September" is covering the entire Eastern half of the country in one line; that's not useful for your specific frost date. Match the species window to your actual zone, not the wide range on the packaging.

Frequently asked questions

When should I plant fall food plots for deer?

Plant 60 to 90 days before your area's average first killing frost. Brassicas need the full 90 days to bulb properly; cereal grains and clover can go in as late as 45-60 days out. Check NOAA climate normals for your county's frost date, then count backward from there.

When is the best time to plant oats for deer?

Plant oats 6 to 10 weeks (about 42-70 days) before first frost. Oats germinate in 5-7 days in warm soil and provide fast fall forage, but they typically winter-kill north of USDA zone 7, so treat them as a fall attraction crop rather than a winter survival crop in colder regions.

When should turnips go in the ground for deer plots?

Turnips need 80-90 days before frost to fully develop the sugar-rich bulb deer prefer. That's late July to mid-August in the Upper Midwest and Northeast, and late August to September in the Mid-South. Planting later gives you leafy tops but underdeveloped bulbs.

Do deer actually eat sorghum?

Yes, deer eat grain sorghum heads, especially in late fall and winter as other food sources decline. It's more valuable as a standing grain and cover crop than as a primary attraction plot, and it handles drought and poor soil better than corn.

Do deer like clover more than other food plot species?

Deer show strong preference for clover, largely because of its high protein content (commonly 20-25% crude protein) and digestibility. It's a perennial that can produce for 3-5 years, making it one of the most efficient long-term forage investments for a property.

What's the difference between planting for a fall attraction plot versus a winter survival plot?

Attraction plots (oats, early brassicas) peak in October-November and draw deer during hunting season. Winter survival plots (mature brassica bulbs, standing corn, cereal rye) are timed to still have forage available in December-February when natural browse is scarcest. Many properties plant both.

Do deer like honey or sweet attractants in food plots?

Deer don't eat honey in any practical field sense; it isn't a recognized food plot input. Deer do show preference for high-sugar forage like frosted brassicas. Liquid sweeteners or poured attractants can also cross into legal baiting definitions depending on your state, so check current regulations first.

What exactly counts as a food plot?

A food plot is a planted area, typically a quarter acre to several acres, grown specifically to feed and attract deer or other wildlife rather than for harvest. It combines a nutrition function (supporting deer through lean seasons) with a hunting function (concentrating activity in a predictable spot).

What are deer's favorite foods overall?

Acorns, especially white oak, plus soybeans, clover, and standing corn consistently rank highest in deer diet studies. In fall specifically, fresh brassica tops and bulbs plus cereal grain forage move to the top of the list as natural mast and browse decline.

How far in advance of frost should I apply lime before planting?

Apply lime 6-8 weeks before your planned planting date at minimum, though longer is better since ag lime takes weeks to months to fully react and raise soil pH. Pull your soil sample even earlier, ideally 8-10 weeks before planting, to leave time for lab turnaround.

Can I plant a fall food plot too early?

Yes. Planting brassicas or clover too early in lingering summer heat invites weed competition and can cause brassicas to bolt to seed instead of building bulb mass. There's a real window, more than an earliest-possible date, and overshooting it in either direction hurts stand quality.

Is one planting date printed on a seed bag reliable for my property?

Not really. Seed bag ranges often span multiple USDA hardiness zones and frost dates to cover a wide sales region. Match the species' required days-before-frost window to your own county's average first frost date instead of trusting a single printed date range.

Sources

1. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals: Average first frost dates are derived from 30-year NOAA climate normals used to time fall plantings
2. USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Plant Materials Program: Regional planting timing guidance for conservation and wildlife forage species
3. University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension, Oat Growth and Development: Oats germinate in about 5-7 days in warm soil and are sensitive to winterkill in colder zones
4. Purdue University Extension, Forage Brassicas: Brassica forage quality and palatability increases after frost as starches convert to sugars; turnips need roughly 80-90 days to mature bulbs
5. University of Missouri Extension, Soil pH requirements for forage legumes: Clover establishment and productivity decline sharply below pH 6.0
6. USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Farm Bill Wildlife Programs: USDA NRCS and Farm Bill biologists provide technical and cost-share assistance for wildlife habitat plantings, including drought-tolerant grain species like sorghum