PREPARATION

Start with a clean, weed-free seedbed by spraying or tilling existing vegetation. Create a smooth, firm seedbed that provides excellent seed-to-soil contact. Because crimson clover seed is small, avoid leaving the seedbed loose or deeply worked immediately before planting.

SOIL TEST & FERTILITY

Conduct a soil test whenever possible and adjust soil pH to approximately 5.5–6.5. Apply fertilizer according to soil test recommendations. Avoid unnecessary nitrogen when planting a pure legume stand, and ensure seed is properly inoculated with the appropriate Rhizobium when required for
effective nitrogen fixation.

PLANTING RATE

Broadcast (Prepared Seedbed): 25 lbs/acre
Broadcast (no-till): 30-32 lbs/acre
Drill: 15 lbs/acre

When Used In Blends: Reduce the rate according to the percentage of
crimson clover desired in the planting.

PLANTING DEPTH

Plant ¼ inch deep or less. When broadcasting, spread seed evenly across a firm seedbed and cultipack or roll afterward. Do not deeply disk or cover the seed after broadcasting.

TIMING

Plant during the appropriate fall window for your region as temperatures cool and dependable moisture becomes available. Ideally, allow approximately 45–60 days of establishment before severe freezing conditions.

MOISTURE

Adequate moisture is critical during germination and early establishment. Plant immediately ahead of dependable rainfall whenever possible and avoid broadcasting into extremely dry soil without rain in the forecast.

ADJUSTING FOR PLS & GERMINATION

Recommended planting rates assume 100% Pure Live Seed (PLS) and 100% germination. Actual seed quality varies by lot. To determine an adjusted planting rate, divide the recommended seeding rate by the PLS percentage multiplied by the germination percentage, both expressed as decimals. Adjusting for PLS and germination ensures proper stand density and maximum forage production.

Straight Shot™ Blood Trail™ is a premium single-species crimson clover packaged for hunters who want to build custom blends, enhance existing food plots, or plant crimson clover by itself without purchasing a bulk bag.

Blood Trail™ is a cool-season annual clover. It establishes in the fall, provides forage through the cool season, produces strong spring growth, and completes its life cycle after flowering and producing seed.

Crimson clover combines relatively fast establishment with highly palatable, nutritious forage. It is an excellent choice for adding clover to fall plots, cereal grain plantings, and custom cool-season blends.

Yes. Blood Trail™ can be planted as a pure stand or incorporated into a blend. Its versatility is one of its biggest advantages for hunters who want control over exactly what goes into their plots.

Blood Trail™ pairs especially well with cereal rye, forage wheat, oats, brassicas, and other clovers. It is an excellent way to add a
nitrogen-fixing legume and another forage layer to a cereal-grain-based plot.

Yes. Blood Trail™ can be used to enhance an existing cool-season plot, provided you can achieve good seed-to-soil contact. It is
particularly useful for adding clover to cereal grain plantings or increasing
diversity in an existing fall plot.

Plant ¼ inch deep or less. Crimson clover is a small seed, and planting too deep is one of the easiest ways to reduce establishment. When roadcasting, spread onto a firm seedbed and cultipack or roll rather than burying the seed.

Blood Trail™ performs best in properly managed soils around 5.5–6.5 pH. A soil test is the best way to determine whether lime or additional fertility is needed before planting.

Yes. Crimson clover is a legume and can fix atmospheric nitrogen when properly nodulated by the correct Rhizobium bacteria. Proper inoculation is important when compatible bacteria are not already present in the soil.

Yes, but don't treat it like a cereal grain. Crimson clover can supply much of its own nitrogen through biological nitrogen fixation once properly established and nodulated. Base phosphorus, potassium, lime, and other fertility applications on a soil test.

Blood Trail™ is primarily a fall-planted cool-season clover. Plant during the recommended window for your Backwoods planting zone as summer heat declines, soil moisture improves, and enough growing time remains for establishment before severe winter weather.

Crimson clover is valued for relatively rapid establishment compared with many other clovers. Under favorable soil temperature, moisture, and seed-to-soil contact, emergence can begin quickly and the stand can start producing meaningful forage during the fall.

Blood Trail™ Crimson Clover is the better choice when the goal is faster fall establishment and earlier cool-season production. Victory™ Arrowleaf Clover generally matures later and is better suited for extending annual clover production farther into the spring. Planting the two together can provide a broader seasonal forage window.

Blood Trail™ is an annual designed primarily for seasonal production, while Everlast™ Ladino Clover is a perennial intended for long-term stands. Choose Blood Trail™ for fast annual production and Everlast™ when
persistence across multiple growing seasons is the priority.

Potentially. If plants are allowed to mature, flower, and produce viable seed, crimson clover can naturally reseed under favorable
conditions. Heavy browsing, mowing, herbicide applications, or terminating the
stand before seed maturity can prevent reseeding.

It can be frost-seeded in suitable regions and conditions, but fall establishment is generally the more dependable approach for maximizing cool-season forage. Successful frost seeding depends heavily on exposed soil and repeated freeze-thaw cycles creating good seed-to-soil contact.

Straight Shot™ gives hunters a practical quantity of a single food plot species without requiring a large farm-size bag. Use exactly what you need to create your own blend, spice up an existing plot, or plant a
targeted single-species food plot.