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Roundup Ready Corn & Soybean Food Plot

You might also consider planting corn around the outside of the field and beans in the center or strips of corn and beans and then rotate the two each year.

The corn offers cover and feed along with the forage and grain the beans offer. As I mentioned you also have the option of over seeding beans with winter rye to add more feed if you wanted too...;)
 
Just a reminder to contact your local Pheasants Forever and National Wild Turkey Chapters for free seed!

The Iowa NWTF and IDNR joined forces to give away hundreds of bags of RR corn and soybean seed recently and often they have sorghum and alfalfa seed available also.

One bag of RR seed corn can run $130-160 a bag so spending a few dollars a year on dues is well worth the money!

Pheasants Forever

National Wild Turkey Federation

Check local farm seed sources for year old seed as well as they will usually discount it 50-70% and if you will be using Dual II Magnum herbicide for a soybean/milo planting, Welter Seed has very reasonablly priced conventional soybean seed at $21 a bag!

Conventional Soybean seed

Soybeans are a great option planted alone or in combination with corn or milo but consider what your goals are before purchasing seed. There is a great deal of interest in forage beans these days but if you goal is to attract deer in November through January they are rarely the best option.

Soybeans bred for grain production will dry down well ahead of hunting season and yield 40-60 bushels per acre of a very attractive late fall/winter food source.

Few deer can resist standing soybeans when the snow starts flying!

Driedsoys.jpg


Forage soybeans have the ability to yield tons of high quality high protien forage for summer and early fall food sources but they are at a disadvantage because they will become unpalatable to deer when the first frost hits them right smack in the middle of hunting season.

Deer will refuse to touch any soybeans while they are turning and drying down and normal grain soybeans go thru this proces well ahead of hunting season at which point they again become attractive.

Soybeans9-15-09.jpg


Forage beans are bred to keep producing forage until frost kills them and they are generally low yielding soybeans that offer little to attract deer after freezing. Be aware that deer will completely avoid forage soybeans during this stage and that will most likely be when you need them most.

FrozenSoys1.jpg



It is possible to mix grain and forage soys or to plant different varieties within a plot or a nother option is to grow clovers and alfalfas for equally high quality summer/fall forage.

Each landowner has slightly different needs and goals so no one thing is right for everyone.

Eagle Forage soybeans is a source for forage beans.

Another advantage that comes with planting conventional soybeans is being able to overseed them with winter rye and Groundhog Forage Radish as the leaves turn in late August.

Winterryeinsoys.jpg


That combination of "green and grain" will attract and hold deer literally all fall, winter and spring and at a very reasonable cost to boot.

I'll be planting soybeans and milo together using the Dual II Magnum herbicide and overseeding winter rye and radish in late summer....that's a lott of high quality feed in one place....;)
 
mmmmmm... The sight of dried beans just makes me excited for November! Does everyone have their corn and beans in down in Iowa?
 
mmmmmm... The sight of dried beans just makes me excited for November! Does everyone have their corn and beans in down in Iowa?

I'll be planting soys and milo Monday but most farmers have their corn in although they will need to go back and re-plant some drowned out areas after 14" of rain this month! :eek:
 
My bean plot went in today (thanks Shrek) after discing up the 4 foot tall turnips for the second time this spring. Now I could use a good rain. I have a few bags of rr beans left over if anyone wants them, i'm in DeWitt they're free for the taking. I have a couple bags of corn too but I don't know if they are rr.
 
What is the latest date I can no-till soybeans and still have a decent plot?

You have a while, I planted some in early July last year and they were about 20 bushel per acre beans. Then again it was a really wet year which helped. Normally it is around mid June when bean planters shut down in my area.
 
Like letemgrow said, you have some time BUT if there's neighboring crops that can alleviate some of the pressure on your plot I would get them in as soon as possible. just my opinion.
 
Two years ago my cousin planted some beans on the 5th of July and they went over 40 bpa. You have some time yet. Broadcast some rye into them just before they drop there leaves and you will have plenty for them to eat. Plus an early turkey plot in the spring and some green manure to boot.
 
Beans

Do beans in general take a while to get growing strong? I notice the corn is shooting off like a rocket, and the beans arent doing a whole lot. Does the root structure of the beans develop first, and then it just takes off after a while? I am new to this if you couldn't tell!:way:
 
Do beans in general take a while to get growing strong? I notice the corn is shooting off like a rocket, and the beans arent doing a whole lot. Does the root structure of the beans develop first, and then it just takes off after a while? I am new to this if you couldn't tell!:way:

Usually beans take off pretty quickly but probably wil not have the upright growth (height) of corn by any means.

These are soybeans at two weeks

SoybeansendofMay.jpg


This is corn and soybeans planted side by side at roughly 2 weeks...beans are planted a few inches off to the right of each corn row.

RRcornsoysdblerows.jpg


Corn will get 8' feet high while beans perhaps waist high so there is going to be a marked difference from the get go...;)
 
Paul, just thought I would show a new chemical which can be used on both corn and beans to control broadleaves. We are using a ton of it right now, since we don't have to clean sprayers out when switching from corn to beans.

It is a very cost effective way to control weeds in corn/soybean plots, and does a great job.

Cadet is the name of it, and it usually runs around 5 bucks an acre. It is a post emergence herbicide with residual. So far, it has done a great job on keeping corn and soybean fields clean in our area. It is also a granular herbicide, and the rate is .4 oz to the acre. Very easy to mix for smaller sprayers.

http://www.fmccrop.com/resources/pdf/cadet-herbicide-4-20-09-commercial.pdf
 
Paul, just thought I would show a new chemical which can be used on both corn and beans to control broadleaves. We are using a ton of it right now, since we don't have to clean sprayers out when switching from corn to beans.

It is a very cost effective way to control weeds in corn/soybean plots, and does a great job.

Cadet is the name of it, and it usually runs around 5 bucks an acre. It is a post emergence herbicide with residual. So far, it has done a great job on keeping corn and soybean fields clean in our area. It is also a granular herbicide, and the rate is .4 oz to the acre. Very easy to mix for smaller sprayers.

http://www.fmccrop.com/resources/pdf/cadet-herbicide-4-20-09-commercial.pdf

Wow! That is exactly what I need Brian! The label does not mention milo but since it is a broadleaf herbicide I bet it will work on my soybean/milo planting!

Thanks a bunch...I'll add a link to the herbicide thread too!:way:
 
Paul, just thought I would show a new chemical which can be used on both corn and beans to control broadleaves. We are using a ton of it right now, since we don't have to clean sprayers out when switching from corn to beans.

It is a very cost effective way to control weeds in corn/soybean plots, and does a great job.

Cadet is the name of it, and it usually runs around 5 bucks an acre. It is a post emergence herbicide with residual. So far, it has done a great job on keeping corn and soybean fields clean in our area. It is also a granular herbicide, and the rate is .4 oz to the acre. Very easy to mix for smaller sprayers.

http://www.fmccrop.com/resources/pdf/cadet-herbicide-4-20-09-commercial.pdf

What size of packages is Cadet typically sold in?
 
My friend Mike from up in WI, sent some pics of his corn and soybeans and my gosh... I have to say he has one of the prettiest farms I have ever seen!

MikesFarm.jpg


His corn is doing great!

MikesCorn6-9.jpg


and beans as well!

Mikesbeans6-15.jpg


and well watered with 4" of rain...all at once! :eek:

MikesRainGuage.jpg


If he never sees a deer he can certainly enjoy the view!

MikesCorn6-15.jpg


Brian mentioned earlier a post emergence herbicide safe on both corn and soybeans called Cadet...$5 an acre to boot!

Cadet Herbicide

Cadet provides and option where conventional corn and soys were planted together.... ;)
 
I checked with my friend Brian for a little more information on Cadet herbicide, a post emergence broadleaf herbicide safe for both soybeans and corn.

Cadet is sold by the quart at $350 so perhaps a bit on the pricey side for small plotters but it is an option for non-RR corn and beans.

Cadet - Tank mixed with a glyphosate or other postemergence broadleaf herbicides– 0.4 to 0.5 oz/A
Used alone or with postemergence grass herbicides – 0.6 to 0.9 oz/A
Corn – Apply from 2-leaf up to 48-inches tall
Soybeans – Apply from 1-trifoliate through full flowering

Butyrac 200 (2,4-DB) is also safe for both corn and beans but Brian warns not to apply it within 24 hours of a rain (not possible around here this year!) and not when it is excessively hot.

Apply .07-.09 pints per acre on soybeans (see label)

The Dual II Magnum has provided pretty good residual pre-emerge weed control with the exception of some velvetleaf here and there so I'll probably spot spray 2-4DB at $75 a gallon.

Roundup Ready crops are easy, but sometimes seed can be more expensive then conventional seed with conventional herbicides or in my case planting soybeans and milo together....;)
 
Roundup Ready crops are easy, but sometimes seed can be more expensive then conventional seed with conventional herbicides or in my case planting soybeans and milo together....;)

It is always good to swap different herbicides/sprays to help keep weeds from building up a resistance too a particular one. Using cadet and regular corn/beans may end up being the same price, but we also get to throw a curveball at weeds that may build up a resistant to gylphosate.
 
My friend Mike sent some pics of his corn and soybeans for the end of June...wish mine looked like his!!

Note again how Mike has various strips and blocks of crops rather then one crop type...very well done!

MikesBeans6-29-10.jpg


The University of Illinois Extension IPM Bulletin is a great source of information that one can sunbscribe to via email.

The Bulletin

Great informational articles such as this one: Can Flooded Corn Be Salvaged?

Even if your corn is not flooded this year there is great information on N uptake and usage in that article.

Another source for great information is Iowa Farmer Today’s Crop Watch Blog

With articles such as this one about Potassium deficiency in corn

Even though "just a food plot" too many of us they seem just as important as those crops that someone depends on for a livelihood so much can be learned from Extension Agents and farm/crop reports.... :way:
 
Mike's farm

Definitely one of those amazing farms, I'd like to be like Mike!

He has a very good set up of multiple food plots, I compare it to humans going to the mall, the deer have several options and that seems to really draw in the deer from other properties.
 
Thanks Paul for posting and thanks for the compliments. The corn and beans are amazing this year. The corn has to be 8 feet tall now and is has just started tasseling. Hopefully the weather continues to stay warm and we get some rain every 4-5 days at least. I was just reading the Agri-View farm paper that I get and I saw that Cadet herbicide was going for $225.00 a quart; I don't know if that is bulk pricing or what but I thought I that was a lot better than $340-$350 that I have been seeing. That was a company in Iowa by the name of Wickman Chemical; which is located in Atlantic.www.wickmanchemical.com. I actually think I am going to give this herbicide a try next year to get away from using glyphosate every year.
 
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