Whitetail Institute perennials can be planted in spring (in most areas) or fall. Each planting season has its own unique advantages. In this article, we’ll look at some of the advantages of planting perennials in the fall.
I should clarify what I mean by planting in the fall. It’s my way of saying planting during the Whitetail Institute’s fall planting dates, which are a few weeks or months before hunting season starts in most areas. The planting dates for each Whitetail Institute product can be found on the back of the product bags, and they’re also posted at whitetailinstitute.com. Three big benefits of planting Whitetail Institute perennials in the fall relate to plant development. First, a perennial planted in fall will generally be the youngest and most tender when hunting season starts. Second, a fall-planted perennial will also be one of the first things to green up after winter and provide deer with much-needed nutrition during the next spring and summer. Third, planting in fall allows more time for the perennial’s roots to fully develop before they must tackle their first summer of hot, dry weather. That can be a big benefit, especially in the South. A fourth important benefit of planting perennials in the fall concerns weed competition. No matter if you plant your perennials in spring or fall, you’ll need to control grass and weeds as part of normal spring maintenance. Even so, perennials planted in fall almost always suffer less weed and grass competition than those planted in spring. Even with all the advantages I’ve mentioned, there’s an additional option you might consider if you want to maximize the advantages of planting perennials in the fall: planting a nurse crop of Whitetail Oats Plus with your fall-planted perennials. Doing so isn’t mandatory, but it can yield even greater benefits, including boosted early tonnage and attraction. Whitetail Institute perennials tend to come up very quickly. Even so, annuals just naturally germinate and emerge more quickly than perennials generally do, and Whitetail Oats Plus does that. The additional benefit of its high sugar content makes Whitetail Oats Plus a superb choice for maximizing early-season tonnage and attraction of fall perennial plantings. Planting a nurse crop of Whitetail Oats Plus with perennials in fall also offers a variety of forage choices within the same plot, and it can even serve as a sort of insurance policy if Mother Nature turns off the rain after planting. Because Whitetail Oats Plus can establish quickly with even less soil moisture than perennials need, planting them as a nurse crop with perennials in fall can help ensure that you’ll have an even more attractive plot to hunt. That can be a good move, especially in the South where recommended planting dates are later in the fall. [Note: When planting Whitetail Oats Plus as a nurse crop with a perennial, use only about 30 to 45 pounds per acre as opposed to 90 pounds per acre if planting Whitetail Oats Plus alone.
