letemgrow
PMA Member
You mean drilling or just broadcasting? I broadcast grf radishes, winter rye grain, sunflowers etc into sod and spray it with good luck. The dead sod provides good cover to let the seeds germ and not dry out before they get started. Rye is one of the easiest things to get growing by broadcasting and double cropping that with soybeans by broadcasting into beans when they yellow.
Daver
PMA Member
What time of the year are you hoping to have the food plot(s) ready for? What is the ground you are planting like now, is it bare, etc?
In the right situation, broadcasting will work great. If you have bare ground now, then frost seeded clover in another month or so is really easy to do. Otherwise, what Letemgrow said is true for the rye and brassica seed too, but that would be planted late summer.
Although I have never tried planting sunflowers yet. I do have a bag of sunflower seed that I was planning on using this year though AND I have a spot mowed that I could easily hit with Roundup this spring. So I am curious to know more about how sunflowers can be seeded.
In the right situation, broadcasting will work great. If you have bare ground now, then frost seeded clover in another month or so is really easy to do. Otherwise, what Letemgrow said is true for the rye and brassica seed too, but that would be planted late summer.
Although I have never tried planting sunflowers yet. I do have a bag of sunflower seed that I was planning on using this year though AND I have a spot mowed that I could easily hit with Roundup this spring. So I am curious to know more about how sunflowers can be seeded.
bowhuntr311
IowaWhitetail Addict
Most no-till plots suffer from lack of one thing: preperation.
I have done 2 no till style food plots. So take what i have to say with a grain of salt. The first no till plot I did, i went out and spread an acre worth of clover in about 2/3 of an acre. It was shorter grass but that was it, I spread the seed in the late spring and walked away. I came back in august only to find a meager stand of clover and mostly natural grasses taking over {failure}. A few years later I took a small opening in the woods: mowed it as short as possible then sprayed it with roundup. I spread a turnip/brassica mix and got a POUNDING rain the next day. It came up alright for not tilling but lack of nitrogen was a reason it got demolished in just a few weeks. That was my first real attempt at brassicas and/or notill. I think had I fertilized heavy it would have been awesome.
Most no-till storebought mixs consist of rye grass (75%).
Rye grain is extremely easy to grow and more desirable.
The more seed-to-soil contact you have the better stand of what ever crop your going to have.
Good luck.
I have done 2 no till style food plots. So take what i have to say with a grain of salt. The first no till plot I did, i went out and spread an acre worth of clover in about 2/3 of an acre. It was shorter grass but that was it, I spread the seed in the late spring and walked away. I came back in august only to find a meager stand of clover and mostly natural grasses taking over {failure}. A few years later I took a small opening in the woods: mowed it as short as possible then sprayed it with roundup. I spread a turnip/brassica mix and got a POUNDING rain the next day. It came up alright for not tilling but lack of nitrogen was a reason it got demolished in just a few weeks. That was my first real attempt at brassicas and/or notill. I think had I fertilized heavy it would have been awesome.
Most no-till storebought mixs consist of rye grass (75%).
Rye grain is extremely easy to grow and more desirable.The more seed-to-soil contact you have the better stand of what ever crop your going to have.
Good luck.
The area I'm considering is a 5 acre rectangular shaped field, running north and south, with great bedding on the west and east sides. At present it's grass that I keep mowed every year. I do have a 5 ft. tiller attachment for my tractor and could till the soil. I used to believe tilling the soil was better, but have heard arguments that breaking the dirt is harmful???
Daver
PMA Member
If you break the soil you will stimulate weed growth from dormant seeds that are already in the soil. Spitballing here...but you could till it in April, let it set a week or two and let some of the weeds sprout. Then broadcast Roundup Ready soybeans in early May or so AND hit the green growth with RR at the same time.
If necessary, give the plot another shot of RR in say July or so, if it needs it. Then broadcast rye into the standing beans in late August/early September.
Now depending on deer density and so forth, you would have green beans for a summer food source, tender green rye shoots in the fall and dried beans and rye for a December through February source and then the rye will start growing again in early March or so.
If necessary, give the plot another shot of RR in say July or so, if it needs it. Then broadcast rye into the standing beans in late August/early September.
Now depending on deer density and so forth, you would have green beans for a summer food source, tender green rye shoots in the fall and dried beans and rye for a December through February source and then the rye will start growing again in early March or so.
bloodhoundhandler
New Member
I have always thought about planting sunflowers but figured the neighboring farmer would want to shoot me. They spread like wildfire I have heard and are considered a noxious weed curious if anybody plants them I do think they would make a good plot
Daver
PMA Member
Yep!
To take what I said further...if you plant beans this May/June and then overseed the beans with rye in late Aug/early Sept you could also then forst seed clover over the beans/rye next year in February/March. You would then have your rye resprout next spring and serve as a nurse crop for the new clover.
Have you read through the lengthy posts in DBLTREE's Corner? There are several posts in there that would give you great in depth advice, along with many pictures too.
dbltree
Super Moderator
As Daver mentioned...look through the threads in Dbltree's Corner because I have tons of information and hundreds if not thousands of pictures to show you literally everything you need to do. That includes till/planting no-till planting and no-planting of almost every crop.
Check the RR corn and soybean thread for more information on growing soybeans and you might consider hiring a local farmer to just come in and no-till plant the soybeans for you.
Lot's of things to consider...soybeans are easily wiped out within a month after planting if they are close to cover in a hidden field so I urge you to read the threads this winter before deciding what might work best for you.
