yoderjac
5 year old buck +
I'm in zone 7a. Oats are not winter hardy like WR and WW. It really depends on how much time I have available. Generally, I look to plant clover/wr right before the first rain after labor day. Cereal is the most used by deer when it is young. I could easily plant into mid-October here but our archery season starts in early Oct, so I'm done with planting by then. Keep in mind, I'm not looking for any production from fall planted perennial clover. The WR is the food that first fall/winter. I'm just looking for the clover to germinate. Perennial clover will take off the following spring because it has a head start on weeds. The WR nurse crop keeps weeds at bay. It has a chemical effect on weeds as well as simply taking up space. When my WR hits a foot or so tall in the spring, I mow it back to 6"-8" to release the clover. I want the rye to die naturally to allow the clover to take over, but I don't want the WR to get tall and shade out the clover.
Thanks,
Jack
Thanks,
Jack
