After kicking around the idea a little I think I'm gonna include a few pounds of yellow sweet clover to the mix. The food plot currently is very exposed (to my driveway and garage) which I'm sure dissuades deer from coming out during daylight hours. I've got 125 spruce trees being delivered for a screen but in the meantime adding some height to the plot itself may help encourage deer to use it during the day as well as adding some tonnage and cover for fawns.
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I was thinking about this particular comment today because I'm a little worried if the seed will make it to dirt, and if so, if it can push back up through the thatch. Went down and inspected a little further this evening.
This is what the plot looks like now. If you look closely some grass is beginning to push up and will green up in a week or two if I had to guess.
Little closer look at the thatch layer. However, if I pull the thatch layer back with my hand you'll see there is good soil access underneath.
I don't doubt if the seed can work through the thatch that it will get good seed/soil contact. My newbie brain thinks I already have half the battle of a decent no till practice in hand and I'm half tempted to throw 80-100lbs of clover, alfalfa and chicory seed mix into this thatch, followed by a quick spray and roll and see what happens.
Any thoughts or words of wisdom? Maybe one of the throw/mow gods could chime in and talk some sense into me?
edit: I have a 12ft disc lined up to turn dirt this weekend but if I can get by without I'd be happy to.
matinc
5 year old buck +
Newbie I am curious how you got that much thatch. Did you crimp that or is it winter kill? SD I am curious on your thoughts. The idea of discing and setting your soil back 3 years is what I am getting away from. If you broadcast can you crimp or cultipack. It's amazing what is growing up through it now. I really hope the group will weigh on this.
Foggy47
5 year old buck +
I'm not sure what kinda grass you got there....and has it been terminated? You call it thatch. Nuked? If you dont want that grass to grow this year....then you need to get it terminated before you plant more stuff.....IMO.
It needs to be growing before you can kill it with Glyphosate. Maybe a pre-emergent would work....but most of that stuff has a plant back issue.
If you indeed have terminated it....then a throw and mow should do the trick....IMO.
It needs to be growing before you can kill it with Glyphosate. Maybe a pre-emergent would work....but most of that stuff has a plant back issue.
If you indeed have terminated it....then a throw and mow should do the trick....IMO.
For clarification
I would certainly wait till the field greens up a bit more, then spray, seed and cultipack or mow.
Someone else suggested disc it 1x to start from a clean slate & employ no till practices from there forward.
For clarification, this is has not been sprayed. This is just winter kill. This field hasn’t been planted with anything in many years, just a fallow field that was hit with the brush hog a few times in the summer.
I would certainly wait till the field greens up a bit more, then spray, seed and cultipack or mow.
Someone else suggested disc it 1x to start from a clean slate & employ no till practices from there forward.
Cool Hand Luke
5 year old buck +
I just started 4 new plots and long strips for switch in old pasture that looked just like this yesterday. Look at my land tour if you want to see. Anyways, I had to get a HEAVY disk from pheasants forever and it took probably 6-8 passes to get the soil to what I would consider acceptable for planting without huge sod clumps. I have a 3020 which is not small and it worked that ol girl good. Only difference is, I nuked most of mine late fall with roundup. I will say that helped a ton because the spots I skipped spraying, took a lot more work. Be prepared to put in some hours on the tractor, I probably went through 45 gallons of gas and spent atleast 6 hours. I think it will be a much quicker establishment though IMO. I'm hoping from here on out, I can get away with just using GLY and a light drag or cultipacker to maintain the plots.
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I’ve been reading your land tour thread, very cool place! I’ve enjoyed following along. After reading this comment I went down to the field with a shovel to check the sod because I was worried about getting seed soil contact.
I tried to essentially get a core sample with a shovel. As you can see here there isn’t a thick sod layer (surprisingly) that the seed would have to battle.
Here is a photo when pulling back some of the thatch & as you can see there is bare soil right under it. You can see the spot where I took a core sample in the top right.
Below is 2 more pics, one of the core sample and another looking down the hole where I took it out.
After doing this I’m more confident the seed will hit soil if I spray after it greens up, throw into the thatch, drag, roll and pray for some rain. As always, I’m open to suggestions
Mortenson
5 year old buck +
Yep 3 minutes of hard rain and you're golden.
Thank you guys for chiming in and for the words of encouragement. I had plans to work in the woods and field this weekend however, my wife and I (a little unexpectedly) had our first child this afternoon so the habitat work is gonna have to take the back seat for a little bit!
Cool Hand Luke
5 year old buck +
Congratulations! Your life will never be the same, for the better!
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
Congrats!!! Kids are THE BEST!! I hope all of you are doing well - Mom & baby especially. You'll be head-over-heels for your little one in no time. Soak it all up, Newbie!
Clover coming in nicely in the little test plot I put in last fall.
Also got the new sprayer attachment hooked up to the tank on the quad. Planning to give the fields another week or two of greening up & plan to throw about 100# of clover/chicory mix and few bushels of rye. Looking forward to the upcoming season
Staggered rows 15ft on center. Hopefully closes in as a screen a little sooner that way
I got this much thatch by complete accident.I was having some fuel delivery issues on my tractor late last year and never got the final brush hogging in. It is greening up now. Will spray it within a week if weather cooperates. Plan to let it resprout and hit it once more & broadcast early May.
