Planting turninps

[CamoMan]

One of my landowner friends wants to put out a small food plot. I am not very knowledgeable in this area, but have read most of the posts in this forum. Turnips seems to be the leading candidate for us, and I am asking your help on planting them. What needs to be done to the area that is being planted, and when is the best time to plant them ? Also, if I remember previous posts, turnips are more popular with deer later in the season - will they be attracted to it in the October/November months also ? Thanks for your input !

[rutnstrut]

Most turnips like rape arte not prefered by deer until a good frost has hit then they become sweet and more palatable. therefore more of a late season plot unless we get a good early frost. Alfalfa, clover, and chickory would be the best bet for early season, they all work well year round also.

[MOBEN]

Get a few bags of Plot Shot Which has turnips and rape in it. Plant it about August 15th with some 12-12-12 and pray for rain . As stated it works best after a frost when the turnips get sweet.

[bjkpharmd]

Camoman,
The planting guide from abseed.com is meant for a vegetable garden but it states turnips can be planted all year as long as they are planted in time for them to reach maturity before the freeze. Growing period is listed as 50-70 days. I don't have experience with turnips but since you are planting for the tops vs the vegetable you can probably plant later & still have lots of forage. Turnips seeds go for around $2.50/pound, very small seed & I guess a little goes a long way. Pharmer

[bowman]

Could someone expand. Do you have to break up the soil? Is it necessary to press the seed to the soil, or bury it? Lastly, how much sunlight is required for growth? I have some small openings that I am considering it in but there is not alot of sunlight. Thanks!

[HUSKERBUCK]

Bowman, I'll try to use my agronomy background for this. With a very small seed such as turnips (as with alfalfa) I think it would be very important to plant them directly into th soil and not broadcast them on top. Seed to soil contact is critical with such small seeds. If you do not have the equipment for that I would at the very least try to get the ground worked up good then broadcast the seed then use something like a drag harrow to cover the seed. Also if you have access to a roller/packer you might want to run over it with that to firm up the seed bed. Then pray for a nice slow rain. As for your sunlight question, as you get later into the year you will get less direct sunlight. If you are planting this in timber, some part of your plot will probably be in the shad all the time. As with any crop, the more sunlight the better. I hope this helps.