Originally Posted by
timbercruiser
Your problem is going to be finding something that will grow with low sunlight being available to it, and I don't know of anything that will flourish under those conditions. You might have more light than I expect. I would mix Rye, wheat, oats and clover together and broadcast it. Watch and see what does best, if anything, and then next year plant that. Any pruning of the limbs in the trees that will let in more sunlight will help.
That's a great idea, and it's a good mix down here in Florida. I don't know what grows well up your way. I would suggest utilizing your local Extension office. They can help you with a soil test (inexpensive) which includes your pH and fertilizer recommendations. pH is important in successfully growing a food plot. Another idea that might be beneficial is to take the varieties mentioned in the above post (or whatever you choose) and plant them in "mini" plots in your food plot... don't mix them. Plant them individually. Indicate the edges of your mini plots with paint sticks. The benefit here is it will tell you what the deer will eat first... what they like the most. In a shady area you will have less growth. It will be spindly and thin, but it should come up for the most part. You will not get the same fullness as a sunny plot. You don't have to buy expensive "off the shelf" advertised mixes. Go down to your local Feed and Seed store and buy the raw ingredients. Get a hand-crank spreader if you don't have one (the kind that straps to your chest... not a little dinky one). You can use it to seed your plot and distribute your fertlizer mix. HTH