GFP pays South Dakota landowners $20 per acre per year ($80 per acre on Walk-In Areas) for wildlife food plots left standing through winter, and provides free food plot seed each spring. Up to 20 acres per quarter section can be enrolled, with no limit per landowner. Payments are made in February/March.
Eligibility
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'Food plots must remain unharvested through winter.' (2026 Guide: 'Food plots must remain unharvested/standing through March 15th.')
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'Maximum of 20 acres per quarter section.' 'Enrollment acres unlimited per landowner.'
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Guide: 'Cooperators must allow some amount of reasonable public hunting.'
Terms
Annual per-acre payment; all projects subject to approval by a GFP private lands habitat biologist.
Published amounts: 'Annual payment of $20 per acre for food plot acres ($80 per acre if planted on Walk-In Areas).' 'Maximum of 20 acres per quarter section.' Free seed (corn, sorghum, brood mix, big game mix).
Application Instructions
Contact a GFP Private Lands Habitat Biologist (regional list below / PLBStaff.pdf).
Deadline text on the page: Seed provided each spring; 'Payments are made in February/March.'
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Updated September 25, 2026
Image Credit: Photo by Lynn Betts, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.
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