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Switchgrass

I thought you could spray oust on established plants before they emerge like first of April when cool seasons are starting to emerge and Swicthgrass is still dormant to clean a stand up. As long as its not a establishment year.
 
I thought you could spray oust at 1 oz a acre in the spring on an established field to clean it up before WSG come to life. I had a 2nd year stand that was still a mesh with foxtail I sprayed 6 oz Panaoramic mid April when cool season where rolling nuked it and Switchgrass took off..
 
You may be able to. I've sprayed in fall. Oust makes me nervous but it's possible it can be done. Read way back in here from Paul's experience with it.
 
I don't want to be the tightwad of the group but...what are some options on getting seed where I don't have to take out a loan? This isn't for CRP where cost share is an option. Looking for 1, 2, 3 varieties of a tall switchgrass for about 5 acres
 
arm said:
I don't want to be the tightwad of the group but...what are some options on getting seed where I don't have to take out a loan? This isn't for CRP where cost share is an option. Looking for 1, 2, 3 varieties of a tall switchgrass for about 5 acres
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You can do switch for about $70/acre with a 8#/a seed rate. At least as of last year. Think I paid $7.50/# for CIR.
 
The best price I have found ever is Enrst Seed Co out of Meadvill, PA. (ernstseed.com or (800) 873-3321). Their prices have gone up in 2017. CIR and Kanlow are both $8/lb. In 2016 it was only $5/lb. Good luck!
 
The new CRP plans in the future may allow more switchgrass and tall native grasses. Basically a way to save money on the cost share the government has to pay. Personally I like that move. My experience is that is where all the wildlife is anyway, in the tall natives.
 
Call for prices and quotes. Cir and sunburst switch are pry the lowest cost options for seed if a guy did a monoculture. BB isn't too far off either. I'd personally add a lbs or 2 of kanlow switch but that be like $15-20/lbs if guessed. If seed is higher than normal- it's just due to last year and this year's high rates of a lot of new Crp sign ups.
 
I have a burning question. With the warmer spring temps, and farmers planting crops, what are your thoughts on burning WSG this weekend in SE Iowa? To late?
 
ELKY said:
I have a burning question. With the warmer spring temps, and farmers planting crops, what are your thoughts on burning WSG this weekend in SE Iowa? To late?
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Burn away. As long as ur plants are established well they will be fine. Burning later on nwsg is always better. Ideally right before they sprout out. But u will be just fine.
 
So I'll be planting a CRP mix Friday with a Great Plains No-till drill. The drill has 3 seed boxes. Below you can see the various species and seeds. The recommended plan/practice is to lump seed types together (flowers with flowers and switch with conservation cover) but after looking at the individual seed sizes, I'm thinking I should lump them together by seed size. For example the Cave N Rock will get mixed with the Flowers (not with the Big Blue and Indian Grass). And the Purple Headed Cone will get mixed with the Canada Rye instead of the other flowers because it is much larger and "fluffy". I can adjust the drill to hit my pounds per acre accordingly....Thoughts?
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I mixed hard small heavy seed in the small seed box in back. Obviously fluffies in native box. If there's "light" non fluffies, I'll mix in the native box as well. Canadian rye I put in with fluffies. I suppose a guy could tweak the big seed box to accomodate stuff like canadian rye, etc. I probably wouldn't. "light weight" - put with fluffies. Heavy, go in small seed box. Just my opinion and 2 cents and how I do it. easy to adjust volume based on mix (some seeds bigger as you showed) on back of drill for lbs per acre. If it's bigger seed you're mixing in with some smaller stuff, look at ratios you'r mixing and then figure out how you want to set the dial on lbs per acre. So, if I'm wanting switch at 3 lbs to the acre & I have another set of seeds I want to be 7 lbs to acre, pretty easy to mix the ratio and set seeding rate with lever on back- if bigger seed, I may need to do a little guesswork to get it precise. I will manually make sure seed stays mixed in small seed box as well every couple acres. It usually is fine but of course, switch & similar have tendancy to go to bottom, but it's very minor and not bad. Little mixing by hand keeps it mixed well. good luck!
 
My switch is already about 6-8 inches tall , is it to late to burn it ? Will it damage burning now it has started to grow .. ?
 
Each stand and field are different. Soil temps dictate & other variables. I have switch that's on a hillside. Part of it had shoots coming out a couple weeks ago, part did not. It's pretty easy to know if it's switch (still have to look close) but simply follow last year's growth & plant to the base. If it's greening up at that base u will notice quickly. It takes a tiny bit of an eye to determine that it's not some other cool season- as u will only see this type of grass coming out of the old clumps. Very possible it's up and growing. I have some clumps that I am walking inside from literally 5 mins ago that are 10" tall. Yep. Very possible.
 
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