Clover & Chicory – planting instructions

Planting Date – Clover & Chicory can be planted in either the spring or fall or frost-seeded in late winter. For spring plantings, the earlier the better as the goal is to get the plants well established before the weather turns hot and dry. Fall-plantings are best done in late August to early September across much of the United States with the goal being to get the plants well established before freezing weather sets in for the winter. Frost-seeding needs to be done late in the winter when there is still freezing temperatures to help work the seed into the soil.

Site Prep & Planting  – Start by spraying your plot to kill any vegetation. When it is time to plant prepare a good seedbed by disking or tilling the ground so that it is primarily free of bigger dirt-clods. Then use a culti-packer or roller to firm the seed bed. Next broadcast the seed onto the plot. Finish by rolling or culti-packing the plot again to push the seed firmly into the soil. Clover and chicory seed is very small and does not need to be buried into the soil.

Frost-seeding is done by simply broadcasting the seed onto a plot that was prepared the previous fall. This can be done on frozen ground or even on snow-covered ground. The key is that the plot was prepared for frost-seeding the previous fall. We have had fantastic results planting a plot in Real Worlds Whitetail Forage Oats or Plot Topper in the fall and then frost seeding clover & chicory into the oat plot in late winter.  This may require a few mowing to keep the other vegetation down as the clover & chicory becomes established.

Note – Clover & Chicory is a great crop to plant in 10’-20’ wide firebreaks around the edge of warm-season native grass plots. This helps to contain the fire when these grass plots are burned while also serving as a foodplot and travel corridor for deer bedding in the grasses.