Anyone had success with WGF Sorghum or similar. Looking for a little variety for next year. I would like something deer would eat in fall, but not mess with while it was growing. I would like something with a seed head on it because the area can also flood and would be a real plus for the ducks if it did. Cant plant corn because of hogs. Does anyone have any experience with WGF Sorghum? Assuming hogs will eat it also? Any other suggestions. Deer wont allow beans or sunflowers to grow.
Wild Game Food Sorghum?
- Thread starter SwampCat
- Start date
Catscratch
5 year old buck +
It's gone overnight on my place as soon as it hits the doughy stage.
Bassattackr
5 year old buck +
Interested as well.. Those that have had success.. Any issue with plants not producing heads if you don't spray for weeds? Disc/Tilling here.
Milo does like nitrogen, like corn of course..
I'm considering doing a strip along my soybeans next year.
Milo does like nitrogen, like corn of course..
I'm considering doing a strip along my soybeans next year.
Bill
Administrator
my experience was very similar. It didn’t last long. I watched a small buck eating it. He would bite the stalk below the seed head and kinda zip the whole head off. He got some to eat but most of the grain went flying all over the place.
yoderjac
5 year old buck +
I've planted it as a stand alone crop back when we had high deer numbers. My deer did not touch it during establishment while they wiped out many other crops. The seed heads ripened it late September and my bucks were all over it. Birds love it as well. Last spring I mixed it with my buckwheat and sunn hemp. It grew very well in that mix but there was a problem. In order for me to get my fall plant in, I needed to mow the sunn hemp to plant so the sorghum got mowed as well and the seed heads were not yet mature. I did leave some strips of sunn hemp stand for vertical cover in the fields, and deer hit the sorghum heads in those strips as expected, but most of the sorghum was mowed before it had deer value. In my soil, it germinates well with T&M or min-till as long as I cultipack.
Thanks,
Jack
DrDirtNap
5 year old buck +
Swamp cat, I’ve got the same situation as you have. Can’t grow corn because of hogs. I’ve got plenty of clover already as well as brassicas and small grains in other food plots. I was looking at something to replace the corn and at the same time was not too attractive to hogs. I’ve planted both WGF milo and regular Ag milo (Dekalb). I prefer the Ag milo. Yields better and also some varieties are resistant to sugarcane aphids which is important in my area. Deer readily eat the grain after it matures. But it usually doesn’t last very long before it’s all gone. I have had ale hog issues after planting but so far not after it has grown and matured. This year I experimented with mixing Egyptian wheat with the milo to government it more structure and also provide cover. So far I like what I see. The Egyptian wheat seed heads are lasting longer since they are above the browse line. I’m hoping this mix will be beneficial for turkeys and ducks. Here is a picture of what it looks like. I need to make some adjustments on my seeding rate as well as my mix ratio.
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I really like the looks of that - but in the area I would plant, we also deer hunt and dont think you could see a deer in there. If it flooded and we were to duck hunt, you cant manipulate the planting and I am not sure ducks would land in that. Might be great cover around a duck blindSwamp cat, I’ve got the same situation as you have. Can’t grow corn because of hogs. I’ve got plenty of clover already as well as brassicas and small grains in other food plots. I was looking at something to replace the corn and at the same time was not too attractive to hogs. I’ve planted both WGF milo and regular Ag milo (Dekalb). I prefer the Ag milo. Yields better and also some varieties are resistant to sugarcane aphids which is important in my area. Deer readily eat the grain after it matures. But it usually doesn’t last very long before it’s all gone. I have had ale hog issues after planting but so far not after it has grown and matured. This year I experimented with mixing Egyptian wheat with the milo to government it more structure and also provide cover. So far I like what I see. The Egyptian wheat seed heads are lasting longer since they are above the browse line. I’m hoping this mix will be beneficial for turkeys and ducks. Here is a picture of what it looks like. I need to make some adjustments on my seeding rate as well as my mix ratio.
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SD51555
5 year old buck +
They ever come back for the leaves and stalks? By december, I see leaves and stalks getting eaten down on my japanese millet. I haven't had a high density yet, but I'm working on that for next year.
Catscratch
5 year old buck +
No sir. They eat the grain when it's doughy, takes about a week... then they are done. Stalks and leafs make good cover, no more food. Millet may be different for reserve grazing but milo is done for me once they strip the heads. With that said I always have awnless grazing wheat and clover right next to the milo strips... preferred and palatable?
SD51555
5 year old buck +
By mid november, the bar gets pretty low in my area. I'm gonna try putting down jap millet early this spring. The book says it's a warm season, yet it seems to volunteer all over the place. Gonna be one of those $10 experiments.
Catscratch
5 year old buck +
Cheap enough to not care if it doesn't work. The only drawback I see is the germination temp may put it behind the competition... but I like mixes so if it can work it will work. All abut those interactions!
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DrDirtNap
5 year old buck +
The Egyptian wheat is slowly starting to lodge and fall over. I have this mix in part of my Duckhole. I don’t think it’ll be a problem. We shall see. I did get the Egyptian wheat thicker than I think it should be. I’ll try to adjust in next year’s plantings.
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I grow a fair bit of jap millet. In areas of high deer density, they will graze it during summer and it will then head out in fall. It will die at the hint of a frost and my deer wont touch it after that
