Balansa Clover - Deer Food Plot Considerations

Balansa clover is another popular annual cool season food plot forage. Similar to crimson clover, it’s highly nutritious with crude protein % in the mid-20’s, can produce greater than 2,000 lb/ac of forage in a couple months, and is an excellent re-seeder. Crimson and balansa mature within a couple weeks of one another, so balansa is best complimented in a blend with berseem, arrowleaf, or red clover to extend forage production further into spring and even summer.

Deer habitat management is all about plugging the lowest hole in the bucket, and limited forage availability during late winter and summer stress periods is a low hole on many properties. Do you create food plot blends with species that complement one another to maintain high-quality forage for as much of the year as possible?