Fall Food Plot Prep for No Till Drill

[Albuds]

Need input on best way to prepare food plots for fall planting with no till drill.

Haven't been down for a while but expect food plots now likely 2-3 feet deep in whatever has grown up since spring. Want to improve bio mass and soil so do not want to cut and herbicide fields. Have access to roller/crimper.

Options would appear to be:

1. Bush hog next couple of weeks, let things continue to grow and roller/crimp before planting

2. Bush hog next few weeks and plant into existing growth without roller/crimp

3. Do not bush hog, roller/crimp just before planting and plant into remaining material

4. Bush hog just before planting and plant into remaining material

Also, if i roller/crimp do i do so before or after planting

Thanks in advance for any input you may have

 

[Crimson n' Camo]

What about just running the drill through it at planting time with the summer veg still standing???

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

What about just running the drill through it at planting time with the summer veg still standing???

This is the rout I would take. I would then crimp if I had a crimper available. It will not terminate your weeds but crimping this time of year generally will keep them flat for the remainder of the year.

 

[Crimson n' Camo]

Wont the drill likely lay a lot of the vegetation down as it passes over it??......If you have a heavy stand of summer biomass I think I would be hesitant about crimping it over the top of the seed you drill in. You may smother out the seedlings, especially small stuff. JMO but I think if I were going to do anything past drilling in the seed it would be to run the bushog over it with the mower raised up enough that you're just clipping the tops out of the summer stuff and throwing down a light amount of "hay" on the ground

 

[yoderjac]

I tend to agree if you are talking about a better no-till drill. Not all drills are created equally. I have a small 4' Kasco no-till versa-drill. It does not handle debris well. When I use it, I have to manage the vegetation. If growing vegetation is too thick it will constantly clog. If the the field has been recently cut and there is loose debris, it will constantly clog. So, I need to mow long enough in advance that the clippings have a chance to decompose but not so far in advance that the regrowth gets too thick. I'm not saying my drill won't work, just that I'm constantly stopping to unclog it if I don't manage the vegetation.

I doubt this would be an issue for a large drill.

Once more consideration is what is growing when you plant. If you mostly have summer annuals they will die on their own. If cool season growth has started, you may need to terminate that. If you don't want to use herbicides, that could be problematic. Crimping works well with some crops if you get the timing right. It works well for Winter Rye. Many folks that want to crimp plant specific crops like WR that keep weeds at bay pretty well and can be terminated by crimping.

I think you will need to experiment with different approaches to match your conditions.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Albuds]

We planted summer plots for the first time in many years last spring using Green Cover Summer blend. Too dry when we planted and then no rain for some time resulted in almost no germination. Won't revisit summer plots again.
So whats in my fields are left overs from Green Cover Fall Release planted last year, wild grass and other weeds. As I've done more research on crimping it becomes clear it is really intended for use with certain crops and at certain times. Doesn't appear very effective on weeds.
So I'm thinking best approach may be to spray with herbicide early, then plant into this followed by either crimping to lay it down or bush hogging.
Thoughts?

 

[yoderjac]

We planted summer plots for the first time in many years last spring using Green Cover Summer blend. Too dry when we planted and then no rain for some time resulted in almost no germination. Won't revisit summer plots again.
So whats in my fields are left overs from Green Cover Fall Release planted last year, wild grass and other weeds. As I've done more research on crimping it becomes clear it is really intended for use with certain crops and at certain times. Doesn't appear very effective on weeds.
So I'm thinking best approach may be to spray with herbicide early, then plant into this followed by either crimping to lay it down or bush hogging.
Thoughts?

I would suggest the following approach for best results if you are willing to spray herbicide:

- Mow now to keep it from being a jungle if the weeds are too thick.
-If it has grown back up and the thickness will be a problem for your drill 2 weeks before you want to plant mow again.
-New growth sill start in those two weeks making the herbicide more effective. I find that sometime when a spray a weed field that is overgrown, some weeds will protect others from good herbicide contact. If the weeds are low enough that you can easily get the boom of the sprayer over the top of the weeds, you don't need to mow.
-You can spray and drill the same day or the next day. Allow enough time between spraying and drilling to allow the herbicide to be absorbed.

(I'm assuming you are using a broad spectrum contact herbicide like Gly. If you are using other herbicides, check the label for any soil residual effects to time your planting accordingly).

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Nightvision]

Drill it then spray it. Or if the field is large enough, try a few different things. One may work better than the others. A lot would just depend on how tall and thick your weeds are.

 

[Tree Spud]

Forget the roller crimper, you'll waste your time on weeds & grasses.

Brush hog the field and then overseed with 100 lbs,acre WR, 6 lbs/acre medium red clover, and 5-6 lbs/acre PTT.

 

[yoderjac]

Forget the roller crimper, you'll waste your time on weeds & grasses.

Brush hog the field and then overseed with 100 lbs,acre WR, 6 lbs/acre medium red clover, and 5-6 lbs/acre PTT.

That is a pretty high rate of PTT. I like to keep my PTT rate down to about 2 lbs/ac in a mix like that.

 

[Tree Spud]

That is a pretty high rate of PTT. I like to keep my PTT rate down to about 2 lbs/ac in a mix like that.

When broadcasting, especially with a thatch layer, always better to go heavier as germination % will be impacted.

 

[omicron1792]

When broadcasting, especially with a thatch layer, always better to go heavier as germination % will be impacted.

Why would you broadcast after the bush hogging rather than before?

 

[yoderjac]

When broadcasting, especially with a thatch layer, always better to go heavier as germination % will be impacted.

I think the OP is using a no-till drill. Point well taken on adjusting broadcast rates based on thatch.

 

[Tree Spud]

Why would you broadcast after the bush hogging rather than before?

Air flow from brush hog very likely to push seed around where is will pile up.

 

[omicron1792]

Air flow from brush hog very likely to push seed around where is will pile up.

Never thought of that. Thanks for the reply

 

[yoderjac]

Air flow from brush hog very likely to push seed around where is will pile up.

If I'm broadcasting (which I usually do) I prefer that order as well. Once the field is bushhoged, the plants are horizontal rather than vertical making more of a mat that decays. I want my seed under that mat so it acts like mulch. I feel like I get more seed on soil when I broadcast while the previous crop/weeds are vertical. If I'm going to spray, I usually don't bushog. I cultipack instead. This lays the weeds down so they act as a mulch holding in moisture from dew if it doesn't rain soon. Nothing wrong with bushhogging but I don't need to do both and cultipacking help with seed soil contact.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Tree Spud]

Never thought of that. Thanks for the reply

If I'm broadcasting (which I usually do) I prefer that order as well. Once the field is bushhoged, the plants are horizontal rather than vertical making more of a mat that decays. I want my seed under that mat so it acts like mulch. I feel like I get more seed on soil when I broadcast while the previous crop/weeds are vertical. If I'm going to spray, I usually don't bushog. I cultipack instead. This lays the weeds down so they act as a mulch holding in moisture from dew if it doesn't rain soon. Nothing wrong with bushhogging but I don't need to do both and cultipacking help with seed soil contact.

Thanks,

Jack

It would still make sense to go over the broadcasted field with a cultipacker to improve seed to soil contact. It will also help to shake small seeds loose that may hang up on the cut debris.