Broadcast winter wheat or winter rye?

[bigboreblr]

I did about 1/10th of an acre of oats clover mix at my home. I made a rock garden with dahlias and lilacs and pushed back a 100 yard line of brush on the edge of the front lawn. Nothing has touched it, rabbits, woodchucks, or deer. Find it very intersting. Just wanted some quick roots to prevent erosion while my prize lawn of weeds n clover take over....

Besides broadcasting, are you doing anything else? Mowing cultipacking..... Far as cultipacking goes, I think no till folks need something with some weight because our soiled is already compacted way more than finishing a disced a harrowed field. I think those homemade 16 inch diameter concrete culvert rollers may be doing better than the typical 9 to 15 inch diameter cultipackers folks use.

I'm limited to an ATV for the most part. I do have tow behind discs and spring harrows. I have successfully seeded plotspike forage feast which has oats and wheat. Spread, lightly scratch, then drive over it. It's worked for me in the past.

There are very experienced no till guys on here. but, I have played alot with spread n weedwack food plots in remote areas at my camp.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

I would say that if deer are hitting PTT hard early in the year, it is saying something about the availability of other native foods during that period. I know that here, when we have a poor acorn crop, deer hit our PTT hard and early along with everything we plant.

Same here. Acorns are the favorite food when plentiful - bad acorn years, our plots get hammered harder. When we plant WW and WR separately, the WW gets hit first - for whatever reason. The WR gets hit too, but not like the WW, at least in the early going. We LOVE the WR for under-snow food & early spring growth when good food is scarce.

 

[yoderjac]

Same here. Acorns are the favorite food when plentiful - bad acorn years, our plots get hammered harder. When we plant WW and WR separately, the WW gets hit first - for whatever reason. The WR gets hit too, but not like the WW, at least in the early going. We LOVE the WR for under-snow food & early spring growth when good food is scarce.

That is not unreasonable. Each type of cereal has a different time when it is more attractive than others. I just find that difference down in the noise compared to other factors deer use to choose what, where, and when to eat.

 

[bigboreblr]

Peplin,

When you add clover and brassicas to your Rye, the deer will pick through the rye to eat that stuff. You could easily spread your rye, clover, and brassica mix and leave it alone till next late summer and do it again. Many folks will broadcast maybe 4-6 lbs/ acre of clover seed in the winter. If your plot is weedy and needs more control, some do summer buckwheat or even a spring oat or barley spot.

I am new to the sustaining no-till stuff. however, just clover n weeds has been good to me the last few years.

Far as turnips go, I did a spring planting of clover, oats, and trunips last year. deer enjoyed them all summer, there was a few left by fall time too. I thought they would of died off in mid summer, but they kept going. even with some bad chomps out of the bulb, they'd heal over and keep growing. Kind of thought they would of been bitter. Maybe they were, but the deer used them for food. This is in a very rural mixed birch/cherry/spruce forest area in the adinrondacks. no ag or even much fallow field areas, just varied levels of logging regrowth. so, they could of been less fussy than the average bushytail.

 

[Peplin Creek]

Peplin,

When you add clover and brassicas to your Rye, the deer will pick through the rye to eat that stuff. You could easily spread your rye, clover, and brassica mix and leave it alone till next late summer and do it again. Many folks will broadcast maybe 4-6 lbs/ acre of clover seed in the winter. If your plot is weedy and needs more control, some do summer buckwheat or even a spring oat or barley spot.

I am new to the sustaining no-till stuff. however, just clover n weeds has been good to me the last few years.

Far as turnips go, I did a spring planting of clover, oats, and trunips last year. deer enjoyed them all summer, there was a few left by fall time too. I thought they would of died off in mid summer, but they kept going. even with some bad chomps out of the bulb, they'd heal over and keep growing. Kind of thought they would of been bitter. Maybe they were, but the deer used them for food. This is in a very rural mixed birch/cherry/spruce forest area in the adinrondacks. no ag or even much fallow field areas, just varied levels of logging regrowth. so, they could of been less fussy than the average bushytail.

It’ll just be a broadcast into existing vegetation without cultipacking

 

[Tree Spud]

To me ... there is no better choice other than WR. High germination rates, will germinate on the poorest soils. Great winter food and then spring green up along with OM. Plus allelopathic characteristics for weed suppression.

 

[pilotpip]

It's interesting how different deer will eat different foods. When I was in northern Missouri near the Iowa border they would hammer winter rye. Now hunting south of 70, and they haven't touched the stuff the last few years. We've also had mild enough winters that clover seems to stay green most of the time.

 

[yoderjac]

It's interesting how different deer will eat different foods. When I was in northern Missouri near the Iowa border they would hammer winter rye. Now hunting south of 70, and they haven't touched the stuff the last few years. We've also had mild enough winters that clover seems to stay green most of the time.

Yep, when pressure, location, and other factors are accounted for, what they chose seems relative to what is available.