What is the best food plot for deer in South Carolina?

There is no single best food plot for deer in South Carolina. Alabama Extension says a variety of plantings is generally better than a single crop. In Mississippi State University’s comparison, seed costs ran from $37.50 an acre for wheat to $139.23 for berseem clover.

The right pick depends on the season you want to feed and the ground you have to plant. Deer numbers matter too, because deer can overbrowse a small plot.

Which food plot is best for deer in South Carolina?

Start with the season. Alabama Extension says cool-season plots produce green browse from fall to early spring, when green vegetation is sparse. Warm-season plots cover late summer and early fall, another time of nutritional stress.

Clemson Extension adds that lactating does and bucks growing antlers need extra nutrition in spring and summer. Clemson lists deer density, browsing pressure, length of forage production and ease of establishment as factors to weigh.

Then decide the plot’s job. A hunting plot pulls deer into the open, while a nutrition plot feeds them through lean months.

Our food plot establishment work starts with those questions on your ground. We plant and hunt our own food plots on our family’s 327-acre tract in the ACE Basin, near Yemassee.

How do the food plot forages compare side by side?

MSU Extension Publication 3604 compares yield and seed cost for nine cool-season plantings. Its yields come from variety trials on the MSU campus and the Coastal Plain Experiment Station in Newton, Mississippi.

Seed costs and yields are from MSU Publication 3604, July 2024 edition, with two-year average yields for perennials. Brassica and legume rows use MSU Deer Lab and Alabama Extension notes.

How do wheat, oats and cereal rye compare for deer?

Alabama Extension says cereal grains attract deer by providing quick green-up and browse through fall and winter. MSU found the three grains yield about the same.

MSU calls oats preferred early fall forage, though oats are less cold tolerant than wheat and rye. Cereal rye is the most cold tolerant, but it grows very fast and loses its protein early. Wheat produces forage all winter. Alabama Extension notes deer use of wheat declines once it reaches 12 inches tall.

For 1,000 pounds of deer forage, MSU figured oats would cost $37.76 in seed, rye $31.46 and wheat $22.50. MSU suggests the wheat savings could go toward lime and fertilizer.

Which clover is best for deer in the Lowcountry?

Clovers bring staying power. Alabama Extension says some clovers can produce for 3 to 5 years with proper maintenance.

Among the annuals, MSU rates crimson as a quick grower and good re-seeder. Balansa handles periodic dry spells and standing water.

Perennial clovers carry a plot into summer. Red clover averaged 4,822 pounds of forage an acre in MSU’s trials, the most of any planting in its tables. At $13.14 in seed per 1,000 pounds of forage, MSU calls it the best value of its perennial clovers. Ladino white clover produces from October through June.

Clover types and seeding rates for our area are in our clover planting guide for South Carolina.

Are brassicas a good food plot for deer in South Carolina?

Brassicas like rape, turnips and radish are leafy cool-season greens. MSU’s Deer Lab says they are nutritionally comparable to other forages. Deer often prefer them less than other cool-season forages, though.

Alabama Extension says radish and turnip add energy-rich tubers to the leafy tops. Its guide notes brassicas can be a draw to deer in the winter months. The Deer Lab says brassicas are best planted alone, though they can be mixed with cool-season grasses.

Dates, rates and the frost question are in our rapeseed and brassica planting guide.

Are soybeans, cowpeas or lablab worth planting for summer?

Clemson Extension says summer plots can fill the gap when native plants are poor. That is often the case in hot, dry weather.

MSU’s Deer Lab warm-season guide rates soybeans as excellent forage for deer. It calls lablab highly preferred and very drought tolerant, but lablab does not tolerate wet soils. Cowpeas are browsed by deer and grow on sandy loams to heavy soils.

Browsing is the catch. Where deer density is high, the Deer Lab says soybeans and cowpeas may need large plots. Soybeans and lablab may also need protection from grazing for their first month.

Alyceclover and deer vetch (aeschynomene) hold up well to grazing, per the Deer Lab. It warns aeschynomene can become invasive near waterfowl impoundments or rice fields.

Which food plot holds up best on a small plot?

Plot size changes the answer. Alabama Extension says cool-season plots typically range from a quarter acre to 5 acres. It warns small plots can be overbrowsed in areas with moderate to high deer density.

On a small plot, favor forages that take grazing. MSU describes one Ladino variety as more tolerant of heavy grazing. Where deer numbers run high, give soybeans and cowpeas the larger fields.

More plots spread the pressure. Alabama Extension says a well-balanced property has 1 to 5 percent planted in food plots, spaced evenly. The more forested or shaded the land, the more plots it takes. The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources says food plots create food and cover over broader areas and longer periods. We plan plot layout across a whole tract as part of hunting land management.

What soil and pH do food plots need on Lowcountry ground?

Soil decides more than seed. Clemson Extension says many soils in the Coastal Plains region of South Carolina are naturally acidic. It calls proper use of lime the most critical management practice in wildlife food plot production.

Clemson puts the target pH for most food plot crops at 6.0 to 6.5. Alabama Extension says a soil pH under 6.0 reduces nutrient availability. It adds that lime can take 6 months or longer to take full effect, so test early.

Drainage narrows the list. Wheat, berseem and Ladino tolerate poor drainage, per MSU, while dry, sandy ground suits oats and lablab. Alabama Extension advises avoiding poorly drained areas where you can.

Open ground saves work. Alabama Extension suggests sites that are already open, such as old fields and fire breaks. An old overgrown field can become plot ground through pasture and field reclamation. Full budgets are in our food plot cost guide, and planting dates are in our South Carolina food plot calendar.

What happens when you call about a food plot?

Call us at (843) 696-7162 with the spot you have in mind and what grows there now. We come out to look over the ground with you and mark the trees you want kept. Estimates are free.

The team covers the Lowcountry, including Charleston, Summerville, Walterboro and Beaufort.