How to Prepare Mississippi Food Plots for Fall Planting

If you own a hunting property in Mississippi, it's almost time for one of the busiest parts of the year, food plot season.

Every year, I see landowners wait until the week they're planning to plant before they start thinking about food plots. By then, they're trying to pull soil samples, fix equipment, clear roads, and spray weeds all at the same time.

The reality is that successful Mississippi food plots start weeks before you ever spread a bag of seed. Taking care of a few key projects now will make planting season much easier and give your food plots the best chance to succeed this fall.

Start with a Soil Test

If there's one thing I recommend to every landowner, it's getting a soil test before planting your food plots.

A soil test tells you exactly what your plot needs instead of guessing. Many Mississippi food plots have acidic soils, and if your pH is too low, your fertilizer won't be nearly as effective.

Spend a few minutes pulling samples from each food plot and send them to the Mississippi State University Extension Soil Testing Laboratory. It's one of the cheapest investments you can make and often has one of the biggest impacts on your food plot. Check out Submitting a Soil Test | Mississippi State University Extension Service for more info on submitting soil tests. 

Order Lime and Fertilizer Early

Once your soil test comes back, don't wait until planting weekend to order lime and fertilizer.

Lime takes time to begin changing your soil's pH, so getting it applied early gives your food plots a better chance of success. It also helps you avoid the last-minute rush that always seems to happen right before planting season.

Control Weeds Before Planting

One mistake I see every year is trying to plant food plots into thick summer weeds and grasses.

Take the time now to spray unwanted vegetation and let the herbicide work before you start preparing the seedbed. Starting with a clean food plot gives your seed a much better opportunity to germinate and establish.

Service Your Equipment Before Planting Season

Nothing is more frustrating than finally getting the rain you've been waiting for only to find out your tractor won't crank or your disk has a bad bearing.

Before planting season gets here, spend an afternoon servicing your equipment. Check tires, grease fittings, bearings, batteries, and anything else that could slow you down once it's time to plant.

A little maintenance now can save an entire weekend later.

Clear Roads and Access Trails

Summer has a way of making roads disappear.

Before planting season, cut roads, trim low-hanging limbs, and remove any trees that have fallen across your trails. Good access makes hauling lime, fertilizer, seed, and equipment much easier.

It's also one less thing you'll have to worry about once deer season gets here.

Check Stands and Shooting Lanes

While you're already on the property, go ahead and inspect your stands.

Replace old ratchet straps, tighten loose bolts, and trim shooting lanes while everything is still green. Waiting until the week before opening day usually means working in hotter weather and putting more pressure on your hunting property than necessary.

Final Thoughts

Preparing Mississippi food plots isn't complicated, but it does take a little planning.

Getting your soil tested, lining up lime and fertilizer, spraying weeds, servicing equipment, and clearing roads now will make planting season much smoother when cooler weather arrives.

At White Oak Properties, we spend a lot of time walking hunting properties across Mississippi. One thing I've noticed over the years is that the properties with the best food plots usually aren't owned by the people who work the hardest the week before planting, they're owned by the people who started preparing weeks in advance.

If you're getting your property ready for deer season, start with these projects now. Your food plots, and hopefully your hunting season, will be better because of it.

If you are looking for land of your own to hunt this fall, check out a few of our listings at White Oak Properties Land