Mixing seed for drill

[breddick]

This may be a dumb question but I'll ask anyway. Getting read to plant fall plots for the first time with my SAYA no-till drill. It has two seed boxes (large and small). Up to now all I have planted is soybeans. Simple. large seed box.

Looking at planting some blends for the fall which will obviously have seeds of an assortment of size. Just for example lets say I've got a bunch of leftover soybeans and to give the deer some extra (quick) browse I wanted to mix it with my turnips. For one thing this will help dilute the turnips in the seed bin to maybe help with seed distribution rate. I know the soybeans aren't going to grow much once it cools down so it might work well.

Now for the dumb question. When I mix the seed will the smaller seed stay in "suspension" or will they slowly fall and make their way to the bottom of the seed bin while I plant? My seed bin does not have an agitator. Can I alleviate this issue by stopping and stirring the seed every few passes?

 

[Bill]

Not familiar with a Saya but my Great Plains has a small seed box and large seed box like you say yours does. I couldn’t plant soybeans in the small box or brassicas in the large. They would fall to the bottom.

I use both boxes at the same time. Soybeans or sunflowers would be up front in the big box

turnip, radish, rape and clover mix in the back (small) box.

 

[Bill]

You should also be able to calibrate each box for different seeding rates.

 

[breddick]

Gotcha. Thanks Bill. Yes I knew I could use each box independently but if a particular blend is already mixed. Say Eagle seed buffalo blend. Just wondering if the small seed has a tendency to settle.

 

[BobinCt]

No questions are dumb. It’s only dumb if your afraid to ask then make the mistake.

 

[yoderjac]

I can't speak to your drill. I have a small 4' Kasco no-till versadrill. It has only one box and no agitator. As bill says, I mix the seed and then put a baggie over one seed tube to calibrate. Most of the seeds I plant in the fall can be surface broadcast and cultipacked, so I don't use it. Before I got an independent cultipacker, I would sometimes just disconnect the tubes from the planting shoes and let them dangle in front of the cultipacker. I did not really have an issue with all the smaller seed getting planted first.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Bill]

Gotcha. Thanks Bill. Yes I knew I could use each box independently but if a particular blend is already mixed. Say Eagle seed buffalo blend. Just wondering if the small seed has a tendency to settle.

I’ve noticed it does But not all of it. When I planted last week the radish seed is much large than red clover. I just put the seed in a little at a time. Had it with me in a 5 gallon bucket and just shook it up before refilling.
Maybe that was over kill and I didn’t need to. But it made me feel better....

 

[FarmerDan]

Now for the dumb question. When I mix the seed will the smaller seed stay in "suspension" or will they slowly fall and make their way to the bottom of the seed bin while I plant? My seed bin does not have an agitator. Can I alleviate this issue by stopping and stirring the seed every few passes?

Given a large enough seed load and substantial acres to cover, particles of varying sizes will layer. In a time long ago, we used to mix forage seed (think fescue, orchardgrass, clovers) with blended bulk loads of fertilizer - if the customer insisted on it. It never worked well. Weight, time, and distance "settled" the issue.

Mixing 40 or 50 lbs of seed and putting it in a planter where you are going to cover 10 or 12 acres isn't nearly as challenging. Separation can't be ruled out, but it's probably not a big deal. Or, as a plotter, it never has been for me.

 

[breddick]

I just updated my thread on the Tar River drill which details the things I learned today regarding metering tiny seed.

The question I now have (since I know I must blend it with something) is regarding what to mix my turnips with to provide enough volume to allow planting with the no-till drill. I would love to have some plots that are predominantly turnips so ideally I want to add something that won’t dominate the turnips. My pure turnip patches have been really successful in the past but I’ve always done them with traditional tillage.
Is winter rye, some type of oats, or winter wheat a decent choice?

 

[breddick]

Ok so as I sat here trying to be creative I thought of a possible solution... and please don’t laugh if it’s ignorant.
What about pelletized lime? Pelletized lime is pretty small and really heavy. Any reason I can’t mix 50 lbs pelletized lime + 6 lbs turnips / acre?

Would there be concerns about the lime gumming up the planter? I don’t have a problem with a thorough cleaning afterwards.

By adding lime in could really nail down the amount of turnips / acre planted without having to toss in another crop.

 

[Dogshooter]

Pel lime would work great in this situation.
Kitty litter would be another option.

 

[TreeDaddy]

I do this at every planting

Pellet lime seems to make a good carrier: particularly when broadcasting smaller seeds from a cyclone spreader

bill

 

[yoderjac]

I just updated my thread on the Tar River drill which details the things I learned today regarding metering tiny seed.

The question I now have (since I know I must blend it with something) is regarding what to mix my turnips with to provide enough volume to allow planting with the no-till drill. I would love to have some plots that are predominantly turnips so ideally I want to add something that won’t dominate the turnips. My pure turnip patches have been really successful in the past but I’ve always done them with traditional tillage.
Is winter rye, some type of oats, or winter wheat a decent choice?

I know. You got a new drill and want to use it.... But both turnips and WR surface broadcast well. I use my cheap 3-pt broadcast spreader followed by a cultipacker for turnips. I save the drill for things like beans and corn than need to be planted deeper. The seed metering system in my Kasco CAN plant about anything, but just be cause it CAN, doesn't mean it is best.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[breddick]

I know. You got a new drill and want to use it.... But both turnips and WR surface broadcast well. I use my cheap 3-pt broadcast spreader followed by a cultipacker for turnips. I save the drill for things like beans and corn than need to be planted deeper. The seed metering system in my Kasco CAN plant about anything, but just be cause it CAN, doesn't mean it is best.

Thanks,

Jack

Thanks jack. Honestly there is a little truth in that I want to use the drill. Lol. However some of my soil is pretty bare and I’ve got a pretty high clay content. Some of the plots I’ve sprayed multiple times (just this summer) with glyphosate to kill all weeds and grasses out. In those plots you can look down and see dirt. The cover was killed early so very little to cover the seed. In those areas I really would like to drill. I’ll keep it shallow and some of it might get laid on top of the ground in spots... but that’ll essentially be like broadcasting anyways.

This year I’ll be doing some drilled. Some throw and mow and some conventional tillage (new plots just cleared with the mini excavator). It’ll be a great year to take notes.

 

[yoderjac]

The problem with spraying early, especially with clay, is that it can crust after a hard rain. I prefer to let weeds grow all summer. If there are problematic weeds in the field (marestail for me), I like to mow just before it goes to seed. Non-problematic weeds like ragweed, pokeweed, etc I don't worry about. Summer weeds are typically not a big problem for a fall plant like they are for a spring plant. I prefer to spray right after I plant. I'll usually mow a week or so before so I get even coverage and the weeds are actively growing again. Having something growing as much as possible helps prevent crusting.

Just scratching the top is enough to break the crust for brassica and WR.

Good Luck,

Jack