20 Best Food Plot Seed For Shaded Areas (2022 Updated)

Good stuff. Wild bunnies and birds like to run around and eat and play in it. So happy to find it on Walmart. I use this outside my clover yard and it helps keep everything eating outside the fence.

I bought a bag for my chickens ’cause grass just doesn’t last long and getting a mixed bag of seed to make everyone happy seemed a just and worthy expense. I set up a planter box with hardware wire over the top and with 4 days, greens were already popping up and somehow unaffected by the early spring frost.

Used this seed for years to bring back good greens for my chickens to eat. It sprouts and grows well, and the girls love it!

I’m very, very pleased with this ground cover mix. I live in an arid climate with heavy clay soil. I’m trying to repair the soil on my property in order to improve water retention and nutrient density so that I can eventually grow fruits and vegetables in the ground instead of raised beds.

I’ve tried a handful of ground covers this summer, and none of them have been successful except for this one. I tilled the soil down about 8 inches first and amended it with a clay buster mix. The cover crop is flourishing! I will definitely be purchasing more of it in the future.

This product suited our needs greatly. We are not using this cover crop seeds for agricultural/farming purposes, but for aesthetic reasons only. The seeds were sown into our forest (pine, fir and oak trees) in early April.

They germinated within 4-5 days already and even survived a couple of snow/frosty days. Currently they are about 3-4 inches which is perfect for us so far. We are at zone 9 and this cover crop seems to be a good alternative for ground cover in the forest floor.

very disappointed! I have bought and used “Hot Spot” for many years based on previous experience with the product. This time however, it appears that the seeds provided were of a very different make up.

All that came in was rye grass. I have always prepared my plot prior to seeding, utilizing both weed killer, and fertilizer prior to planting and this was the worst plot I have ever had with this product.

Based on the package, you don’t have to prepare a field or area in the manner I did, It’s basically a throw and grow type of plot mix. I’m not sure what happened during packaging, but 3 5lb bags failed to produce.

The best part of this product is the lack of soil preparation that is needed. We disked the field but there were still some weeds. So far it is growing great. I would give it 5 stars but it is not a full grown product.

Looks like it will be a great treat those big bucks.

Grows great! You have to clear out the pine needles and leaves to see bare ground first, but it germinates quickly.

I have been using this clover for several years now. I make small food plots by hand with a hand tiller and a rake. I also have a big food plot in my back yard. The deer love it. It also grows well in the woods.

I have used throw and grow, not that impressed. Clover does better with shade and i think attracts deer better. Very satisfied with this product.

I buy this stuff for my clover lawn, it’s great. Just a little bed prep and water and these seeds take off. Highly suggest.

I bought several 40 lb bags of the Plot Spike and planted it in 5 different locations on my farm for deer and turkey. I planted it in areas around existing row crops that were left vacant due to being to wet when planted.

I planted it in August. Now, in October the plots have flourished. I cannot believe how well it has turned out. The Chicory has really jumped up and covered the field. I never expected these results from a affordable blend.

We planted our food plots in SW Georgia in early September. Soil moisture was perfect and we had about 1 inch of rain the next day. Within one week all cameras showed beautiful, lush green growth. Then nothing, no rain for three weeks.

I expected brown fields for opening day, and was greatly surprised. Everything, especially the radishes, is in great shape. The wheat and oats are thriving in spite of heavy browsing. Only the peas seem to be adversely affected by dry conditions and browsing.

Really good food plots this year.

I was ordering this as a gift. It arrived not in the nice bag shown online but in a clear unmarked plastic pouch with a white sticker on it. Also, I was surprised on how much dirt/inert matter (11%) and ****/crop seed (1%) you allow in the bag.

The total seed germination was only 80%. This means 88% was seed and only 80% of that will germinate at best so my 10lb bag was only good for 7lbs of usable seed. That’s a far cry from others I have purchased elsewhere.

Ordered the seed and was notified that they were out and I had to wait for another batch to be made. Then I was promised delivery on a certain date and they missed that date by a day. Overall delayed me about a week from my original planting date.

The seed mix has worked quite well however I have found that their formula for 40 lbs. per acre is a little thinner than what I like and I have adjusted the rate for spreading. Overall a good product just order earlier.

I read so many bad reviews on deer hunting sites about ryegrass. I don’t think the people giving the bad reviews understand the difference between diploid and tetraploid ryegrass. I planted Throw & Gro, which contains tetraploid ryegrass, on May 23rd.

and it is already attracting deer. Never before have I seen deer in my yard in the mid-afternoon during summer. I am now and it’s to eat this product as it grows. There wasn’t much of anything growing in the shade in my backyard to begin with, so all I did was mow what weeds were there as low as I could, roughed the soil up by driving my ATV around on it, spread the seed with a rotary spreader, spread some 13-13-13 the same way, drove around on my riding mower pushing the seed down into the soil surface and then watered it in.

I had noticeable growth within 5 days and deer started coming around after about two weeks. I included three photos. One from planting day and two from a deer I saw out there at 3 PM today. In the first deer photo, it is back in the food plot in-line with the tomato cage by the porch.

The 2nd deer photo is a cropped version of the first. I’d like to note that I live in an area with a lot of farming and there are new crops coming up all around that the deer could eat, but yet I am still getting them to come to my Throw & Gro plot.

My wife let the dog (lab) out at 10 PM the other night and there were three deer eating in the food plot that never left (dog didn’t see them but my wife did with the flood lights on).

You wont find better for a cover crop for garden. The rye at least is crazy solid. It grew dark green till mid Jan to. At that time the tips browned some. That was some of the thickest lush grass i have ever seen and starving out the fall weeds.

BUT for me i used it for green manure in my garden and i added Vetch. Problem was it did not winter kill and it was a hard season in the garden as it kept finding a way to come up despite a good plow and till of the garden in late spring.

My advice is to chemical kill a few days before turning it over. I will never use anything else despite the love hate i had with it over the summer. If your looking for organic matter for your garden this is a no brainer.

This company also has clover to add in there for frost planting so load it up. BEST STUFF EVER. I have a 3500 sq ft garden i did more then half with 1 bag and it was THICK THICK. The othe half i did winter rye (large seed) and it didnt do near as well and nor does it no till well either.

Broadcast this stuff water it hard and i mean hard and in a couple days watch it sprout.

I recently moved to PA from NYC (no exp with wildlife) & loved that deer were roaming around but then saw them munching on things I planted; was advised to toss seeds around tree trunks or in the woods, so I did just past the grass line w/no prepping the dirt (just happened we also had a good rainstorm later on) & within 3 days, deer were eating the tall, bright green stalks that grew.

No water is necessary bc when I tossed more a week later, no rain & didn’t water them & it still grew. So easy & if a city girl can do it with good results, then anyone could & I also know now that I can’t plant flowers/veggies w/o having Fort Knox around it – LOL but what a wonderful trade-off to live my goal-planning, dream life here in PA.

Cleared an acre of land. Prepped and tested soils. Planted this bag, a bag of clover and a bag of “bow stand”. Bow stand took off great, oats and brassicas in there are coming in strong. Clover and alfalfa mix is sprouting.

This has 0 growth. Not 5% germination. Maybe a bad batch or bag as everyone else had great quality but man, I even reseeded 5 days after first planting in the middle of a storm hoping to get something growing, but 12 days after original planting, 4 rain storms and nothing.

Waste of time and money.

I used this product as my first ever food plot because of price. Best value I have found. Used on pieces of land that had never been farmed or anything. This product came up and produced very good I thought.

My son and I were able to harvest two deer off of our family land because of our small food plot. Like this product so much I bought two bags this year and look forward to more good results.

I am new to planting food plots so I purchased Deer Plot by Mossy Oak. I didn’t really know if it would grow or not. Well needless to say it will grow. i didn’t even get a chance to fertilize the acreage yet and i already have growth with minimal rain.

I can only imagine what its gonna look like in a few weeks.

Almost zero germination in a soil tested plot, prepped with a fence drag with immediate water. Good rain and supplemental sprinklers from then on. The weeds have eventually come back now 3 weeks later.

Great food plot deer attractant, sews easily and effective with proven results, see pic of micro plot after 9 days, follow the instructions!

Always had good results grows easy good looking food plot and the Deer like it ,what can I say. More Deer if you plant it they will come.

My family has been purchasing from Hancock for our Fall and Winter deer food plots for the past four years. We have had incredible germination rates and great food plots each year. Even when rain amounts were low we have still had great success and will continue to buy seed from Hancock every year for all of our hunting needs.

We are especially big fans of the Hancock’s fall/winter food plot seed mix. W. S. Davis Hamilton County, FL.

Saturday 12/7: Cleared about a 50′ (don’t want to put too much pressure right now) area in some brush and blew away the leaves with a leaf blower. Dumped two bags of aglime and spread 20 lb of 10-10-10.

Churned up the ground with a $30 hand cultivator from the hardware store. Came back Tuesday 12/10: Broadcast the seeds and took 10 minutes to work them in a little with the cultivator. Thursday 12/12 it rained.

Sunday 12/15 I have a field of sprouts and could not be happier with my “Poor Man’s Food Plot”. I expect in the next two weeks to have a great food source as long as we get one more decent rain. I’m going to expand it in the spring to about an acre so I will be back for a summer blend! I’m in Central Florida.

We ordered Handcock’s Ultimate Fall Food Plot seed towards the end of September. It was delivered to our door within a week. The previous year, we planted a 5 acre plot with the same mix. It grew very quickly to the height that deer were barely visible.

Added a second food plot this season. After two weeks and a couple rains. It is already coming up. We have gone to an over hunted ranch by the previous owners to a property with awesome potential in just two seasons.

Love the product.

This has over 80% rye Grass. That is what you put in your lawn. No value for deer. It should contain rye Grain, but since rye grass will also grow fast and fake you out to think you have something good growing in your plot, you get excited for nothing.

You’re better off buying the clover mix or forage feast. But yourself a favor and stay away from this. Trying to help other hunters save your money.

I put this out on an area that is rough with bad dirt, wasn’t expecting much, boy was I wrong. Looked great in less than a week.

I purchased this blend to put in a hunting spot that has poor soil, lots of shade, and high traffic from deer. It was more or less a last ditch effort to have something growing there instead of mud. I put a little 14/14/14 on the ground then the seed and didn’t even cover it.

A couple of weeks later I had a stand of tetra ryegrass clover and brassicas. Deer have been using it since. Great product!!.

As I reported previously, when I opened the bag, the dust just billowed out. Hancock’s explanation was that the seeds had been treated/inoculated. Well, I’ve bought a lot of seed over the years and I have never had this happen, even with inoculated seeds.

It was a total surprise. If this is a normal occurrence, Hancock should at least a heads up when advertising the seed. As far as growth? Still waiting to see.

No problems with transaction and quick shipping. However the seed seemed as if it was swept off the floor tons of debris in the bag. Poor germination. I have used this seed company before with no problems.

I was late ordering and seems of they just cobbled together a bag. I don’t like giving bad reviews but the seed just wasn’t up to their standards.

I decided to purchase seed from this company based on several great reviews from individuals personally known. I placed an order for 50 pounds of Spring/Summer mix and some vetch as well. The delivery time was alright considering the pandemic we are experiencing right now and the seed was packaged well.

Upon opening the box that contained both products, I was surprised to find dust everywhere. The Spring/Summer mix was not torn open but was full of what appeared to be corn or grain dust. At 70+ dollars a bag, I did not expect to find meal in place of seed.

I did not find any insects in the bag and therfore decided to put the seed in the ground. Hopefully the seed will germinate and I will be inclined to update this review.

This was our first food plot so we didn’t want to invest a lot of money into it. The no plow was the cheapest with a great variety. We did not do soil tests but followed the instructions on lime and fertilizer.

Three key factors 1) I did some samples to see what seed was what. Proper bedding is the key. The seeds on the surface still germinated but took 4x’s the time to establish. 2) timing is everything. You want to try your best to plant this right before a rain.

My dad did a separate plot and his got rain the next day. His germinated instantly to where it took some time for mine to get rain and took about two weeks to establish and weeds started to come into the plot.

3) Make sure to stir the seeds before spreading. During transport the seeds tend to separate and you’ll end up with sections that are more dominant of one plant. The overall downside to this plot is even though the bag says it’s 24% rye grass.

That grass will soon overpower the rest of the plants. I don’t have a large plot so I try to top the grass with a weed eater at plant height but it’s not enough.

I can tell anyone that THIS STUFF GROWS and it grows without a lot of prep and ground work. I’ve planted NO Plow about 5 times. Old corn fields, power lines, cut bean fields ect ect. The stuff grows, if you kill weeds fertilize and just break the surface of the ground.

The problem though is here in the south some southern deer DO NOT eat this type of brassica in no plow. Theyll eat some of the grasses and other stuff in it but I’ve planted this stuff in 2 different counties.

Waited until hard frosts and freezing temps. The deer didn’t touch it during or after hunting season. I think its a product best for deer up north. I don’t think the brassica blend it what deer eat “in my area”.

I purchased two 25 lb bags. I have a few stands in very remote areas. Spent over a hundred hours this spring planting fertilizing liming. Bottom line. If there is any forest canopy this will not grow.

It needs more than four hours of sunlight a day. The plot I planted with full sunlight grew well. However, it’s basically a stand of tall grass. The various fescues dominate the plot choking out any other forms of seed.

This is essentially just a very expensive way to purchase grass seed. Furthermore the full sunlight No Plow plot is planted immediately next to a plot of clover and chicory. There is no question that the deer in my area strongly prefer the Clover and Chicory, hardly ever showing any interest in the No Plow.

I thought after a hard frost things may change but they haven’t. I wouldn’t waste your money on this product.

Planted this for the first time this past February. I was a little concerned as it says to wait til soil temperature is above 60 degrees. March and April showed nothing but like a clock, as soon as May temperatures hit 60 it took off.

Very impressed and will buy again but make sure soil doesn’t s 60 or above.

I did a couple of plots this year. I wanted to do one with the clover. I’ve used plot spike products in the past and they were great. Out of the entire bag maybe 10% germinated.

Ordered 25lbs of killer clover on a field that was recently tilled. Area was a bit moist so wasn’t expecting much but expected something. Nothing at all grew. Tried a separate area that was sprayed, cultivated and sprayed again to kill off any weeds.

This area was soil tested and prepped properly. Ran out of seed so split the field between this and whitetail institute. Rain came the day after I planted with more rain later in the week. This grew in a bit patchy.

The WI seemed to grow better and thicker. Have tried many other brands of seed and seem to have had better clover results with other brands. Will stick with Hancock for other seeds but this blend was not the best turnout.

So this was my first year putting a clover food plot and right now I’m MORE than happy with results. I planted about 1/2-3/4 of an acre, I live far away and I didn’t do the best soil prep job I should’ve due to time and budget.

I want to say I had about 3/4 germination, and WOW those spots are thick with clover. Finally able to to fertilize about 3 weeks ago along with using Hancock Daikon Radish and Bayou Kale for Fall/Winter plot.

With the pictures my trail cam has been sending me. like I said more than happy. Just an explosion of clover and starting see some green tops from radish and kale where areas were bare. All being said cant wait to frost seed this spring and knowing clover takes a good year to really kick in I’m excited.

Also trying Hancock for grass seed once temps drop a bit, very happy with overall experience so far with their service.

I’ve been putting in food plots for 6 years now and using a variety of products. Started using Whitetail clover about 4 years ago and decided last year to plant nothing but their clover because the deer LOVE it.

They walk past 20 acres of alfalfa to get to the plots. They are always on the clover plots from spring to freeze up. They eat it down to the ground before winter sets in. Then, the amazing thing is that if we get a mid-winter thaw here in Wisconsin, this stuff starts to push sprouts up and they are out there eating any growth/green that they can get at.

Unbelievable! Anyway, the 30 or so years of research that Whitetail Institute has put into the development of their products has proven to me that they are the ones with the knowledge and know-how to do it right.

NO, I don’t work for them or know anyone there, I’m simply a fan of theirs. So, do yourself a favor. Prep your land properly, plant it, mow it when the weeds start taking over, mow it again later in the season to again take the weeds down before they reseed.

Mow it for the same purpose the second season. before the weeds reseed! Walla, you have a 5 or 6 year food plot that will pull deer to your land! I’ve found that the cost of the seed is the cheapest part of the whole process.

if your sweat equity means anything to you. I tried to cheap-out by buying less expensive products from the Co-op or other companies and had bad results so at the end of the season you step back and say da*n, all that work and this is the result? Buy good seed!.

I put the lime down in the fall of the year and in February I threw the clover seed down along with he fertilizer on the rocky hilly ground in the ozark’s without any tilling I let it frost seed in. By May the clover was up about a foot high and the deer and turkey we’re all over it.

I seeded the clover a lot heaver than recommend, 18 lbs to the acre to give it a great start. And every month I would spray plot start on it and mow it.

In the past few years I have tried 22 different clovers and clover blends, each in their own food plot. I spray GLY 4 and kill off everything and a week later I come in and put on some lime and 19-19-19 fertilizer and then broadcast the seed.

A light drag afterwards and call it done. The germination of this stuff is phenomenal and the deer come to this plot before anything else. They absolutely love it. The highly palatable clover leads to much higher consumption rate has lead to a huge difference in antler growth and big improvement in body condition and a lot more fawns hitting the ground this year.

Where as we use to pretty much get 1 fawn from each doe, we are now mostly twins and a few triplets, and a big part of the reason is this clover. The difference in antler growth is astonishing. Don’t waste time or money on anything else.

So, it’s probably important to note that I went into this product trial being very, very skeptical. We have tried similar products in the past and needless to say, we have never had good luck! Either the grass didn’t grow, or it wasn’t very strong and died, or it didn’t quite match what we had and always looked weird.

So I didn’t have much hope that the Pennington Smart Seed was going to be any different. But we are about 26 days into our trial and I can honestly say that I’m impressed! First, the product grew much easier than previous brands we’ve tried that required such careful attention that it always took a few attempts before we could get it to grow.

Don’t get me wrong, this requires care too, but we had a few days here and there where we didn’t monitor and water and it was fine. It also appears to be much stronger, less fragile, than other versions we’ve tried.

But the best thing to report is that it totally matches our current grass and looks fantastic! I really am shocked that we finally got something to work in these corners of our yard that our dogs have destroyed! Definitely recommend!.

Product came up nice and green and was looking good until about 6to8 inches then it turned brown and withered to nothing like it was sprayed with poison. I lost all of my food pots at once! All 3 hundred pounds worth! I have always planted buck forage oats with success for years.

I could not get my usual brand this year so I tried Plot Spike brand. Bad mistake!never again! A lot of hard work time and money wasted! Very disappointed and upset.

Always germinates well. My game, (deer & turkey) graze all winter on the green grassy blades. Then after spring, have the seed tops to enjoy. Have used this for over 5 years.

Been planting PlotSpike for 4 years. Best forage oats for the fall , the deer love it. Around Christmas add 33-0-0 fertilizer and you will be set for the rut. Don’t make the mistake I made this year , I usually get the bags sent to the store , hit the wrong button and it was truck delivered to my house.

Cost me almost double the price I would have paid. Once you order , they want let you change it back to your store.

Great stuff for an area only accessible with riding mower and unable to plow. Deer and turkey love it (along with other animals, rabbit, etc). They keep it trimmed where it hardly gets a chance to grow to maturity.

Keeps them coming in all year round. I was surprised how it germinated by just broadcasting on the surface with the other grasses. I’ve used the Imperial Whitetail Clover in a prepared field years ago and it was awesome.

This stuff seems to be close without the work. I would recommend Whitetail Institute seed products to everyone. I’m sold!.

I bought the Imperial No Plow out of curiosity to give it a try. I cleared a small area of mostly shaded soil of the leaves with a rake, loosened the soil, and spread the seed by hand. We had a few good days of rain a few days later.

After about 14 days I had a nice crop of clover and rye grass. I planted in early May which is a bit late for my region but the seed still took well. I did not do any other soil prep like fertilizer or lime so I was pretty happy with the results so far.

I can’t speak to it’s effectiveness with atracting deer yet but hopefully I’ll see some interest over the summer and fall.

easy as it gets, spread seed, water. walk away. instant grass!

I had high hopes for this product because it germinated faster than the package estimated , and it seemed to be coming up thick and green. I followed package directions and kept the area moist. Then, all of a sudden, it stopped growing, and just seemed to dry up.

I think the product is a good quality, it just didn’t work for me. Will I try it again next spring – possibly. Right now, I am very disappointed.

This grass seed is specific for dense shade areas and it seems to work pretty well. It has a rich green color.

Good germination rate No fillers like other seed brands