A Puzzle - Turnips & Wheat - Do They Get Along?

[Semisane]

One of the guys in our hunting club planted two small plots in mid-September with a mix of purple top turnips and wheat - fairly heavy on the turnips. He got great germination of the turnips and very poor germination of the wheat. Other plots in the same area planted with the same wheat seed but no turnips had excellent wheat germination. We can't figure out why. Have others had this happen? Is it likely that the germinating turnips had an allelopathic effect on the wheat, preventing its successful germination?

 

[Smallplot]

What were the planting rates? I would think they should do ok as long as the turnip ratio was low.


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[Native Hunter]

My opinion is that if limited moisture is available, the turnips do a better job than wheat of harvesting the moisture. Once a turnip germinates it can withstand a lot of dry weather and hold its own pretty well. In my experience, wheat can do okay during a drought if it is established, but needs a lot more moisture to get established in the first place. Two years ago we had a dry spell in the fall and I had both wheat and rye not germinate until the next spring. However, the turnips did okay in the fall despite the dry weather.

Not sure if this explains your situation, because I don't know what your weather was.

 

[4wanderingeyes]

I plant them together, with no issues.

 

[yoderjac]

PPT rates need to be kept low in a mix. I often plant PTT with Winter Rye and a legume like crimson clover. I always keep the PTT rate to 3 lbs/ac or less. They grow fine together. The WR and CC provide a fast attractant. WR keep growing at low temps. Deer hit my turnip tops typically after we get a hard frost. Bulbs are hit hard in Jan and Feb here provided we don't have a bumper mast crop.