Milo to protect beans?

[Catscratch]

Planted milo heavy with pumpkins and sunflowers in it. Grew tall and THICK. Pumpkins vined to the top and grew hanging fruit. Sunflowers shot to the top and bloomed like they are supposed to.


Deer did not go into the mess! Almost never see sunflowers bloom due to browse pressure.


Beans are king for late season draw. I can't grow beans in my small plots due to deer.


Possible to grow beans in a thick stand of milo? Will they vine to the top and make seed?

 

[Bill]

They will if you use forage beans. Maybe mix ag beans and forage beans so you get some pods.

Did the deer eventually get in there to eat anything?

 

[Satchmogv]

Hoping to get a mix put in this spring that will produce something similar. Maybe just a bit thinner so the deer will wander thru it.

 

[Catscratch]

They will if you use forage beans. Maybe mix ag beans and forage beans so you get some pods.

Did the deer eventually get in there to eat anything?

I don't know that they ever went into it. They made trails around it but I never saw a deer in it. Sunflowers made it, and rabbits ate the pumpkins. Birds were in it constantly! Deer were in it after I mowed it.

I had an exclusion cage. Inside and outside looked no different.

 

[bigboreblr]

The old 3 sisters garden...... Use the mil oto trellis something else. AG soybeans won't trellis.

Got to find a vine bean that the season works with milo planting time. cowpeas maybe. OTher dried bean types might work good too like common black and red kidney beans.

Vetches would work good too. Hairy vetch works good on sandy soil.

I'd try a bit of taller clovers too.

Depending on plot shape and size, you might be able to use milo to fence in a crop that is desrieable later in the growing season. You box in soybeans, they'll just end up making a trail to them. Boxing in corn is a possiblity.

 

[Turkey Creek]

What milo is that?

 

[swat1018]

I don't think anything will live in a thick stand of milo. In a light rate, yes.

 

[Foggy47]

What is a good source for pumpkin seeds? All I ever find is small quantities in small bags. (kinda liking this three sisters approach)

 

[swat1018]

What is a good source for pumpkin seeds? All I ever find is small quantities in small bags. (kinda liking this three sisters approach)

Pumpkin Seeds - Grow Pumpkins from Seed

At Harris Seeds, we offer a variety of pumpkin seeds that grow into many sizes and shapes, perfect for your harvest this season. View our selection!

www.harrisseeds.com

 

[Catscratch]

What milo is that?

 

[Foggy47]

Working on a three sisters mix.....and considering these three

1. NWW Red Milo
2. Pumpkins or squash seeds from Harris (variety?)
3. Collard seed from Deer Creek Seed

Thinking of making two passes with my drill for 10'wide plot through my clover plots (which are now rimmed with Switchgrass). Plant early June or so. Not sure if I could drill the pumpkin or squash seed....but I would like to. Any words of wisdom here?

 

[Catscratch]

Working on a three sisters mix.....and considering these three

1. NWW Red Milo
2. Pumpkins or squash seeds from Harris (variety?)
3. Collard seed from Deer Creek Seed

Thinking of making two passes with my drill for 10'wide plot through my clover plots (which are now rimmed with Switchgrass). Plant early June or so. Not sure if I could drill the pumpkin or squash seed....but I would like to. Any words of wisdom here?

Sparse or thick milo? I kind of think collards would be difficult to grow in a thick milo plot. Pumpkins will vine to the top and hang fruit.

Pumpkin seed varies in size greatly. If you're worried about drilling it you might look at buying a small seed variety over fruiting characteristics.

 

[Foggy47]

Sparse or thick milo? I kind of think collards would be difficult to grow in a thick milo plot. Pumpkins will vine to the top and hang fruit.

Pumpkin seed varies in size greatly. If you're worried about drilling it you might look at buying a small seed variety over fruiting characteristics.

Yeah....but are not pumpkin seeds generally planted in 6 to 8 foot spacing? I could use another legume in place of the collards....maybe forage beans?

The thought on collards is that the deer mostly leave them alone until fall. Therefore reduced browing as they develop. Not sure on rates yet....depending on mix selection. (Maybe lighter on the Red Milo if that allows the collards to grow better. ).

 

[Foggy47]

Diving deeper I did find a piece that promotes collards beans and Corn as companion crops. Would I not be doing something similar???

Read this: https://homegrail.com/companion-plants-for-collard-greens/

 

[Foggy47]

Sounds like radish needs to be added too.......where is SD when you need him?? Grin.

 

[goatman]

I've drilled Green Cover milpa mix with no problem.

 

[Westwind]

This is Green Cover game bird mix planted with a Woods seeder. It’s a narrow strip. I had left over Milpa mix from green cover, the pumpkin, squash and gourd seeds don’t go through my seeder very well. I screened them out with hardware cloth and planted them with a Solo seeder.

I’m eating the squash, the deer are eating the pumpkins and we gave away gobs of gourds and pumpkins at Halloween.

I want to do this better. I really want to do the Milpa mix but they want you to plant corn as the tall component and they want you to plant the corn before the Milpa. I think I would much rather do Milo or a mix of mixed height Milo and sorghum and I don’t want to use the game bird mix. I have added left over sweet corn seed to Milpa mix but it didn’t do much. Good gawd, that would be awesome to have sweet corn work with this mix.

The pumpkins and squash were a blast and a hit with the family. Highly recommend this idea.


My right handed power hitter that played in SEC

 

[Westwind]

There is a lot of good stuff in Milpa mix. Pretty sure you could till or disk, plant it with a Solo seeder and get a pretty good crop.

 

[Foggy47]

I've drilled Green Cover milpa mix with no problem.

That is a great idea. I think that is about the best solution for me. Not sure how the Milo will compete....but this mix and the NWW Red Milo seems like a sound plan.

 

[omicron1792]

Milo will pop up and grow through about anything.

I do think you would need a thinner patch of Milo to grow beans with it.

I use Milo every year with Aeschynomene and Alyce clover. They play together great.