Guest Post From Local Wildlife Biologist & Soil Scientist

 

Perennial food plots in most cases supply food all year long for deer and turkeys. If you have 5-10% of your land in food plots, perennial food plots can be about half (40-60%) of your total food plots. Twenty-five to thirty-three percent of your food plots should be perennials if you have about three percent of your land in food plots. This could vary if you have significant row crop or alfalfa hay being grown in your immediate area. The reason for this is that annual food plots produce upwards of 10 tons of food per year and perennials provide only one ton or a little more with the exception of alfalfa which will produce significantly more than clover or clover/chicory.

 

Perennial food plots are ideal for slightly sloping land, irregular field shapes that are hard to plow properly or in small kill plots in the woods. Perennial food plots also spread out your work on an annual basis and has food when your annual food plots are “down” for replanting.

 

Red clover, white clover, chicory and alfalfa are the primary species used in perennial food plots. The more common herbicides used for perennials will kill the chicory. There are some herbicides that will not kill the chicory. Chicory is a good species to add to clover fields but I would not plant chicory alone. The very best red clover will perform the same primary function as chicory which is to thrive in the hot summer when the white clover is under duress. Therefore, chicory is optional. Birdsfoot Trefoil and Small Burnet are other choices but have their limitations.

 

There are several varieties of white clover, and the selection of the variety is based on soil type and the amount of sunlight available. Six hours of direct sunlight is considered full sun and 3-4 hours of direct sun is considered partial sunlight in agronomic terms. White clover is usually the most dominant of the species in a mix. A simple but reliable mix is 4.5-5 pounds of white clover and 3 to 3.5 pounds of the best red clover per acre planted.

 

Alfalfa is another species to be considered as part of your perennial food plot makeup. It will produce about 4-6 tons per acre, but this can be exceeded with exceptional management and good rain. However, the production is in the summertime even though it is a perennial as it goes nearly dormant in the winter. It can be planted alone but never in plots less than one acre but preferably not less than two acres. Alfalfa takes a little more work than clover plots and will not last as long as clover plots. Another option is to combine the alfalfa with white and red clover. It takes a separate document to explain alfalfa in more detail.

 

Perennial food plots can be established in the spring in the Mid-South but fall planting will be successful much more often. A cover crop of forage oats or combination of forage oats and forage wheat should be used as a companion for the slow developing perennial species. The cover crop has several roles and are noted as follows:

 

• The quick germination will reduce erosion if planted on slight slopes 

• When the cover crop dies in the spring it will provide organic matter and nutrients to the soil

• Provides shading for the young perennial species. 

• Accurately measure the field – don’t guess. 

• Take a proper soil sample and send to a quality soils lab.

• Reduce current vegetation by spraying, mowing or burning to the least possible vegetative cover.

• Add lime and fertilizer per soil test after spraying, mowing or burning and before tillage.