Early August Plantings-Turnips, forage rape, and radishes.  If you can’t get your food plots planted before the 30 days-until-first-frost (DUFF) mark, I’d recommend throwing in the towel and waiting until next year. Planting in August ensures enough growing season to enable the radishes and turnips to develop substantial root sizes. Waiting till September or later to plant often means that you will get tops only. Fall Planting Dates Rely on Average First Frost Dates. Procrastination is defined as the action of delaying or postponing a task which needs to be accomplished.  It’s something us humans are remarkably good at, and while it may have gotten you through high school and college, it will not favor the food plotter.  Every year around the end of August, I start to get a handful of emails and phone calls asking if it’s too late to plant food plots.  My initial reaction is always the same and goes something like this, “Why didn’t you ask this question a month ago!”. First, annual ryegrass is not cereal rye. It can be extremely rewarding to effectively plant and manage a food plot and see the results of your efforts: improved visibility and quality of wildlife! Heartland Outdoors, 311 E. Main St., Suite 607, Galesburg, IL 61401. Wildlife food plot sites are generally small clearings in wooded areas or farmland. If you plant too early, there’s a chance the plot will over mature and become unattractive.  Whitetails like young growth and the 45-60 DUFF planting window will give you just that. This is a video taken about 5 to 6 months after first being cleared for the spring planting. Gerald Almy | Originally published in GameKeepers: Farming for Wildlife Magazine.To subscribe, click here. Make your seed choices based on your ability to plant with or without tillage and your ability to get them planted at the appropriate time. Planting clover with other crops in the fall will not usually provide enough clover growth for fall forage, but can be used as a strategy for establishing clover for the following year. For best results, wait to plant until excessively hot, droughty summer weather has passed. Buckwheat seed is a preferred food source for wild turkey. I have found that on farms where I have good natural browse and other food sources, the deer will not touch my turnips, rape and radishes (leaves or roots) and thus these crops have been wasted space as far as a food source on these types of farms for me. Cereal grains are best planted after September here in Illinois. Heartland Outdoors is a registered trademark. The short answer is it depends.  Here in the upper Midwest (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan), fall food plots need to be planted no later than the week before Labor Day, and preferably around the first of August.  Anything after that and you’re really betting on Mother Nature to be in your favor.   The biggest determining factor is when will the first frost occur or as I call it, DUFF (days-until-first-frost).  The next biggest factor is what will you be planting and the final factor is when will it rain. August and September are key months for planting food plots here in Illinois to provide quality green forage for deer for the fall and well into the winter months. Perhaps more important is to put seed in the ground just prior to a rainfall. These plantings can also provide great areas to hunt during the upcoming archery and gun seasons. My suggestion is to plant winter peas into tilled ground to ensure good seed to soil contact. Rye will grow in acid soil and low fertility, but is not as palatable as wheat. I have a couple of fruit bearing persimmons in this area that I plan to place a stand near and I also plan to plant some “throw and grow” type seed mixture in a small area as well after I kill the weeds with glyphosate which I plan to make next week and then plant around the first couple weeks of September. But my preferred method to plant cereal grains for food plots is to broadcast the seed into standing soybeans when the soybean leaves begin to turn yellow upon maturity. Everything you need from seed to atv attachments for food plots even a section on the effects of increased fertilizer costs in whitetail deer and other wildlife food plots along with chart on calculating food plot size. Planting Dates for Fall Vegetable Production VEGETABLE DAYS TO MATURITY PLANTING PERIOD ** Southern Peas 55 - 75 July 15 - Aug 1 Summer Squash 55 - 60 July 15 - Aug 15 Irish Potatoes 90 - 100 July 15 - Aug 1 Tomatoes (plants)* 75 - 80 July 1 - July 15 However, oats are not as cold tolerant as rye or wheat and oats and will typically freeze out by December or January in many parts of the state. Food Plot Seed List With Planting Info|Food Plot USA Planting … Perennial Clovers Field of turnips, rape and radishes. You may see generic planting dates printed on a food plot seed bag or on a seed manufacturer’s website and wonder how they determined them.  Quite simply, they are determined according to the average first frost date in your area.  Most fall food plot forages, and I’ll emphasize most, need somewhere around 45-60 days to grow before the first frost. Think Annuals for Fall Success: Annuals are plants that grow for one season, but they are key for fall food plots because they establish quickly and grow robustly in the cool fall months. In an effort to ensure…, The RUT – a unanimous term that sparks excitement, anxiety, and giddiness amongst the deer hunting community.  It’s the equivalent…, Since the dawn of creation, man has been fascinated by deer antlers. Growing tips:  Like the turnips, rape and radishes, soybeans and buckwheat establish best with tilled soil. Cereal grains oats, winter wheat, and rye can be planted individual plantings or in mixtures which is what I usually like to do at equal ratios. Buckwheat will take about 60 days to mature so plant accordingly if you want seed production. If your goal is to have turnip and radish roots in addition to leaves for forage, then it is important to plant these crops within the first two weeks of August for most of Illinois (earlier in the north and latter in the south). Obviously that is a bit of an exaggeration, but the point I want to make is that annual ryegrass often will grow in situations where other crops wont. I have also found the white clovers do well in the shade and can stay very green and lush even during the heat of the summer in heavy shaded areas such as the north side of a tree-line or honey-holes in the middle of the timber. Warm Season Food Plots American jointvetch Planting Dates: April 1 – June 1 Jointvetch is a reseeding legume that will grow on sites too wet to support most other food plot items. Young oat plants are very attractive to deer and often I notice that deer will selectively graze oats among wheat and rye plants. Radish roots resulting from August planting date. Fall-planted oats can winterkill in the North. Annual ryegrass is not even close to the top of my list of food plot plantings but I do see utility in remote food plots areas, or areas with tough soil where other crops won’t grow, or in areas where minimal effort with planting is my only option. Click on your food plot product below for specific planting dates. Picture was taken in August of 2012 during the drought. *Do not plant SunnHemp until soil temperatures reach a constant 65° F. Wait as long as necessary for soil temperatures to reach a constant 65° F before planting. Jointvetch requires fertilization at … Annual ryegrass. Picture of white clover and chicory mix on the north side of the timber showing shade tolerance of the white clovers. Last year I started mixing buckwheat in with my soybeans for an added attraction. The wheat is the easiest/cheapest way to go-“Even at $8.50” It will germinate in my gravel driveway when I spill it filling the 4wheeler seeder! The second factor that will determine if you still have time to plant is the specific type of forage are you planning to use.  Typical fall food plot forages include brassicas (turnips, kale, radishes), oats, rye, winter peas, and winter wheat.  These are all cool season annuals that grow quickly, hence why they are planted during the late-summer and early-fall.  That being said, some grow faster than others and will be better for those who procrastinate. I have a lot of value of clover as a perennial food source on farms that I manage food plot plantings. in August as mixtures with my other August crop plantings) can result in too much top growth of the cereal grains going into hunting season and the bigger plants don’t seem to be as attractive to deer. Use the map below as a guideline for when to plant Imperial PowerPlant & Turkey Select Chufa in your area. A couple years ago I started planting soybeans in August with the primary goal of providing a more attractive food source to keep the deer from foraging on my spring planted soybeans which I planted to produce soybean grain. Annual ryegrass establishes quite rapidly and I believe would grow on the dash of my truck if given the opportunity. Alternatively, maybe you purchased some bad seed and it didn’t germinate well, or maybe you covered the seed too deep when planting and it simply ran out of energy and died before it could break … Get the latest food plot information, promotions & deals from Whitetail Institute. When August rolls around, have seed and equipment ready and keep an eye on the weather for an approaching cold front (associated with rain). Add some chicory: Also consider mixes with forage chicory for chicory is a good companion perennial crop with clover. For this reason, if you look at the seed tag for products marketed as throw and grow or no plow type seed mixes, you will see that often annual ryegrass makes up a high percentage of these seed mixes . Planning, Planting & Managing Food Plots. Fall Food Plot Planting | Plant Now for Success - DeerGro Food … Sunn Hemp Planting Dates For best results, wait to plant until excessively hot, droughty summer weather has passed. Example of information on a fall food plot seed mixture seed tag. So instead look at the seed tag which will be stuck on the back side of the seed bag or stitched into the bottom seam of larger seed bags. The following are my suggestions for fall plantings – these are mixes that have worked well together for me and have similar planting date requirements. I always have some extra soybean seed left over from my spring time plantings. Planting Fall Plots? Legendary Whitetails is thrilled to announce the winners of the “12 Bucks of Christmas” Sweepstakes. Examples include woodland openings, remote areas of large residential lots, abandoned fields or … Legendary Whitetails Team Supports ‘Fox6 Coats For Kids’ For Second Christmas. Keep in mind that soybeans and buckwheat will be killed with the first frost, so about two weeks before the anticipated first frost, I broadcast cereal grains into my August planted soybeans and buckwheat. A good rule of thumb is to make sure your food plots are panted at least 30-45 days prior to the first frost. 3. I should also note you don’t want to plant too early, either. Below is a picture of a relative small display of several food plot seed mixes at this store. Pennsylvania is often in the path of hurricane remnant… Picture of August planted soybean and buckwheat (white flowering plants) plots. Do not plant Turkey Select Chufa until soil temperatures reach a constant 65° F. Wait as long as necessary for soil temperatures to reach a constant 65° F before planting. The intent of this article is not to promote nor to condemn specific mixes or brands, but rather to provide some information to help you sort through the choices of all the various seed mixes and be able to make better informed purchases for your fall food plots. You can frost seed or plant in the spring when daytime high temps start to reach 63-65 degrees. Fall plantings should occur 40-50 days before the first frost. North of I-80, planting should be completed by the second or third week in August. If you need to raise deer numbers, plant a food plot to be available during May, June and July. (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), ‘Woodstock with guns’: Waterfowl blind draw at Rice Lake SFWA, Thousands of Dead Asian Carp Left After Flood Water Recedes, Moonburgers and Fried Bologna – Moonshine, IL, Nasty Weeds May Be Coming to Your Food Plots, http://www.plant-materials.nrcs.usda.gov/pubs/mdpmctn7615.pdf. For these reasons, I always avoid clover seed mixtures for my deer food plots which have a lot of red clover or alfalfa in them. However,  an unexpected side benefit was that my buckwheat produced seed prior to the first frost. Plants in front of photo were on the edge of plot and did not have N applied at planting. 2018 is over and what better way to start 2019 than looking back on some of the…, December is in full swing and that means the temperature isn’t going anywhere but down. These plantings can also provide great areas to hunt during the upcoming archery and gun seasons. The dear did feed on the buckwheat somewhat, but preferred the young soybeans. The roots of turnips and radishes then provide attractive extended forage well into the winter months, but they too will usually freeze and turn to mush by late season hunts in December and January. What I suggest you pay attention to are the various seed types and the relative percentages of each when making a decision to buy or not to buy for your specific goals. In contrast, red clovers and alfalfa have stems that are upright and thus need frequent mowing to prevent them from becoming stemy and less palatable. Or call (309) 315-2981 or e-mail: . In this video I go through the process of planting my fall and winter food plot from https://hancockseed.com/. I have tried broadcasting winter peas with my cereal grains into standing soybeans but have had poor success with getting winter peas established by laying the peas on top of the soil surface. However, if you are struggling to offer enough food during the Fall or are experiencing excessive doe population numbers, make sure to limit the amount of available Summer food sources. If you’re running late, every day of growth is crucial.  Remember, days are getting shorter at a rapid pace and fewer hours of sunlight equals slower growth rates.  If you’re planting with less than 45 DUFF and there’s no rain forecasted for the next two weeks, you’re essentially counting on 30 growing days because the seed won’t germinate if there’s no soil moisture.  If you can, wait until the radar shows good odds of rain before you plant. My suggestion for winter peas is plant in larger blocks (1+ acre) or as mixtures with other crops in smaller plots. Fall hunting season always sneaks up on us – one minute it feels like an eternal wait, and all of a sudden that wait turns into one week away with so much to do.  Unlike hanging treestands, planting food plots isn’t something you can typically do during an evening after work.  I’m sure you know food plots take time and prep, so let’s get to the question that likely landed you on this page. I have had great success with planting these crops in soils that I do light single pass tillage with a disc and then just broadcast seed into the rough tilled soil. South of Interstate 80, this is near the middle to end of August with a cutoff date around September 1. http://www.plant-materials.nrcs.usda.gov/pubs/mdpmctn7615.pdf. At the time of the photo, I had already broadcast seeded cereal grains into this plot. For the fruit/bulb bearing forages like brassicas and winter peas, it’s best to plant them closer to the 60 DUFF mark. The big buck picture and marketing claims on the front of the bag provide little to no information about the bag’s seed content. Over 125,000 people entered to…, That’s a wrap! I found that most of the seed mixes had very little information to help me decide which seed mix would be best for my fall food plots and quite honestly, the number of different mixes added to the confusion. To view product prices visit our store at Seedland.com: ORDER ONLINE | PHONE ORDERS: PHONE Phone Business hours - Mon-Fri. 9-5 EST ONLY - Contact via Email Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Planting tips: cereal grains can be planted in tilled ground, no-tilled into fairly clean (not a lot of weeds) soils with great success. Many of you are ordering your seed or even starting to plant. What type of clovers to plant? Fall Garden: What to Plant for the Fall | Planting Dates for Second … 1. Side note:  Turnips, rape and radishes may not be for every farm. The small seeds will find their way in the cracks and voids on the soil surface and then subsequent rains will further cover up the seed. Winter peas Sign up for offers, new arrivals and more! You need a fast establishing food plot at this point, and an annual like a brassica is a great option. Planting ryegrass too early means that it will get too big and will be less attractive prior to hunting season. 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