Planted a Couple Soybean Plots. Update 2

[Terrific_tom]

Usually I put in my soybean plots Memorial weekend but I was gone on a week long fishing trip so after looking at weather forecast for this weekend [rain] I decided Thursday was the day to get then in even if it meant no other help. Well today my body is telling me I should have waited for help. 10 hours on a ATV sure raises heck with a guys body. Took some pictures as I put the plots in.

The 1st pics are of a 1/2 acre plot that was brassicas last year. This plot was fairly clean and went in like a breeze.

 

[Terrific_tom]

The second plot is a 2 1/2 acre plot which had brassicas in last year. This plot took a lot more work. For some reason I had a very health volunteer crop of clover. There was so much clover I almost left it the way it was. It also had a lot of dandelions that had just seeded out. Normally I can get away with just discing once before planting but with the thick clover growth I had to disc twice before broadcasting seed. The clover should make good green manure. The dandelions came into play as the seeds kept plugging the ATV's radiator so I would have to stop and clean them off. Some more pics.

 

[bueller]

Looks good. I've never planted soybeans so could you tell me a little bit more about them. When do the deer utilize them? Do you add fertilizer during the growing season? Do you eventually till them under and plant something else or overseed to give you a fall/winter crop?

 

[dipper]

The old days when food plotting was hard work, I remember them well. You don't have any rocks to pick . go no till and save yourself. This was from last week. My clients beans are already 6"s. Beans on left, pea on right, short growth is oats-food plotting can be easy.

 

[Terrific_tom]

Looks good. I've never planted soybeans so could you tell me a little bit more about them. When do the deer utilize them? Do you add fertilizer during the growing season? Do you eventually till them under and plant something else or overseed to give you a fall/winter crop?

The deer will use them from the time they start growing until they turn yellow. Then there is a couple weeks when the seed pods are drying down where the deer will not touch them. As soon as the beans dry down the deer will start hammering on them again. With the rotation of brassicas that I do fertilize, followed by the soybeans the next season I don't have to fertilize the soybeans. The soybeans help me with reducing the amount of nitrogen I have to put on the brassicas. I leave my beans standing. I only broadcasted rye once into the beans and that was in a drought year where they were on the thin side. The standing soybeans are as good of a winter crop as you can get. Oh almost forgot they are a turkey magnet too. I usually can get the soybean seed from my NWTF chapter so they are inexpensive .

 

[Terrific_tom]

The old days when food plotting was hard work, I remember them well. You don't have any rocks to pick . go no till and save yourself. This was from last week. My clients beans are already 6"s. Beans on left, pea on right, short growth is oats-food plotting can be easy.

Dipper I don't have the equipment for no-till or the means to access the plots with bigger equipment unless I go thru neighbors property. Oh and I do have lots of rocks. Rocks are probably my second best crop. lol

 

[bueller]

Thanks. The half acre plot isn't overbrowsed to the point where they become thin or fail to produce pods?

 

[bwoods11]

Looks nice! Beans will bring them in.

 

[Terrific_tom]

Thanks. The half acre plot isn't overbrowsed to the point where they become thin or fail to produce pods?

I have a section of clover/chicory that butts up to this plot that helps take pressure off of this smaller soybean plot. Also I do not have high deer density where my land is.

 

[dipper]

Dipper I don't have the equipment for no-till or the means to access the plots with bigger equipment unless I go thru neighbors property. Oh and I do have lots of rocks. Rocks are probably my second best crop. lol

Broadcast and drag, you'll go through more seed but of all things seed can be one of the more affordable things. Especially since your one plot was giving you all that free lush clover. If you want to work your rear off killing perfectly good deer food, it doesn't bother me a bit. Btw-my beans and peas are growing with clover. To each their own I guess.
I'm sure the critters will enjoy it and you'll have a nice plot.

 

[wiscwhip]

Looks good. I've never planted soybeans so could you tell me a little bit more about them. When do the deer utilize them? Do you add fertilizer during the growing season? Do you eventually till them under and plant something else or overseed to give you a fall/winter crop?

bueller, we planted them many times at dad's place and it was the same outcome every time. They grow like gangbusters. :DWhen the deer use them depends on when they "find" them, at our old place they usually found them when they were between 6" and 8" tall and they "utilized" (i.e. abused) them until they were nothing but a 1"stick poking out of the ground.:mad: That normally took 3-5 days. By the 3rd week of June we had nothing but an empty field of stubble every time we tried soybeans.:mad: At that point we were scr#w#d until fall because you weren't getting anything to germinate on that sand in July, and if you did, the baby seedlings would be toast in a week or 2 depending on lack of rain. This was when we planted them in 2 separate 1/2 acre plots.

 

[Natty Bumppo]

Looking good. Beautiful looking place you have. Thanks for sharing.

 

[bueller]

bueller, we planted them many times at dad's place and it was the same outcome every time. They grow like gangbusters. :DWhen the deer use them depends on when they "find" them, at our old place they usually found them when they were between 6" and 8" tall and they "utilized" (i.e. abused) them until they were nothing but a 1"stick poking out of the ground.:mad: That normally took 3-5 days. By the 3rd week of June we had nothing but an empty field of stubble every time we tried soybeans.:mad: At that point we were scr#w#d until fall because you weren't getting anything to germinate on that sand in July, and if you did, the baby seedlings would be toast in a week or 2 depending on lack of rain. This was when we planted them in 2 separate 1/2 acre plots.

That's what I was afraid of :(

 

[Terrific_tom]

That's what I was afraid of :(

With the deer numbers down they might make it now.

 

[bueller]

With the deer numbers down they might make it now.

Maybe but I don't think so. We only have a couple plots and all are under a 1/2 acre each. And even this spring we had several pregnant doe feeding on our rye this spring. Every year we seem to have a couple mommas raising their fawns on our property and they eat the heck out of our plots.

 

[Jordan Selsor]

That disk looks like it works good! Dirt looks good too tho

 

[wiscwhip]

Maybe but I don't think so. We only have a couple plots and all are under a 1/2 acre each. And even this spring we had several pregnant doe feeding on our rye this spring. Every year we seem to have a couple mommas raising their fawns on our property and they eat the heck out of our plots.

That is precisely what ate ours every year, couple momma's and 3 or 4 fawns in a half acre plot for a week.... GONE!

 

[wklman]

Usually I put in my soybean plots Memorial weekend but I was gone on a week long fishing trip so after looking at weather forecast for this weekend [rain] I decided Thursday was the day to get then in even if it meant no other help. Well today my body is telling me I should have waited for help. 10 hours on a ATV sure raises heck with a guys body. Took some pictures as I put the plots in.

The 1st pics are of a 1/2 acre plot that was brassicas last year. This plot was fairly clean and went in like a breeze.

I have a question for you tom. What kind of spreader is that and do you use it for more then just beans and fertilizer? I have a food plot in corn this year and will be putting it in soybeans next year the same way as you did here. I was thinking of getting one but was wondering if it would work for brassicas and clover as well.

 

[Terrific_tom]

I have a question for you tom. What kind of spreader is that and do you use it for more then just beans and fertilizer? I have a food plot in corn this year and will be putting it in soybeans next year the same way as you did here. I was thinking of getting one but was wondering if it would work for brassicas and clover as well.

The spreader is a Loyal brand but I believe that you can get the same spreader from Fleet farm. The spreader works well for every thing [fertilizer, peas, beans, wheat, corn, oats, rye] except clover and brassica seed. I use a solo hand spreader for my brassica and clover seed as I think most people do.

 

[Deer Kar]

I have always had great luck with beans. Deer love them and will wipe out a plot in a couple of days if it's to small. When I spray I purposely miss strips and allow weeds to grow . Helps a bit with over brows.