Kansas's bur oak savanna and eastern hardwood timber concentrate mast production in river drainages and the southeast quarter of the state. With western Kansas dominated by prairie and ag, mast availability in eastern Kansas timber is a sharp differentiator for stand sites.
Categorical ratings (failure → excellent) per year. Overall is solid; white oak and red oak series are dashed.
| Year | Overall | White Oak | Red Oak |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | good | good | good |
| 2023 | fair | fair | fair |
| 2024 | good | good | good |
| 2025 | good | good | good |
Most recent first. Click through to a year-specific page for a permanent reference link.
Preliminary reports indicate productive eastern Kansas mast.
Mast is plentiful enough to pull deer off plots and ag fields. Find the productive oaks and set up tight; expect deer to be less predictable on traditional stand sites built for travel routes.
Solid recovery in eastern timber.
Mast is plentiful enough to pull deer off plots and ag fields. Find the productive oaks and set up tight; expect deer to be less predictable on traditional stand sites built for travel routes.
Mixed conditions, with some bur oak failure in north-central counties.
Mixed conditions — some areas with productive oaks, others without. Scout for the pockets that produced and hunt the travel routes between bedding and mast. Plots and ag fields still hold deer where mast failed.
Strong eastern Kansas production.
Mast is plentiful enough to pull deer off plots and ag fields. Find the productive oaks and set up tight; expect deer to be less predictable on traditional stand sites built for travel routes.
Locate specific white oak flats with active drop, hunt tight to the trees, and expect deer to be less predictable on traditional travel-corridor stand sites. With food everywhere, generic stand placement loses to oak-specific scouting.
Kansas Forest Service.
Kansas Forest ServiceAlways cross-reference with the most current published agency report. Mast surveys update annually in late summer to early fall.
Statewide mast reports tell you what to expect in general. Bield: Hunt logs every productive oak you find on your specific land — and turns multi-season data into stand sites that compound year after year.
