Seed Coatings - and PURE LIVE SEED

The last I looked at the welter's seed catalog.....it was almost all coated seeds now. Seems more coated seeds are being offered all the time. I'm not sure what to think of this? I think there can be some benefits to coatings.....but you definately are buying fewer live seeds.

I do like the convenience of buying from Welter's. The have a fair shipping price on partial bag orders.....and the availability has been really good for things I want.
Until very recently I had not been aware that there was a difference in buying coated seed. Haven’t really processed that I need to start paying attention to it.

I have a really soft spot in my heart for Welter’s. Love their catalog. It’s the first place I bought real food plot seed and I enjoy walking in there. The guys in the warehouse always have a second to visit and I always buy some honey when I’m there.
 
I'm not gonna say seed coatings are "wrong" (or right). But they do provide a means for a little smoke and mirrors price ability for the seed dealers. It may provide them another 10 to 25% profit by coating the seeds.......and it's difficult for us to know the difference. You can see this happening very prevalent in lawn seeds. And they do provide an advantage in being able to see the seed coverage when applying the seeds......IME. The lawn seed buyers have little clue on what they are buying.

If I were in the seed biz.....I suppose I would be looking for ways to increase my margins too. Tho it seems like a deceptive practice. Be aware.....compare apples with apples.
 
You bring up a good point on being able to see the seed that does have the coating. Lots of seed blends right in to the color of the ground when I'm broadcasting and it's pretty hard to see what kind of coverage I'm getting. Oats and rye are easy enough to see but things like clover and brassica seed becomes a guessing game if I'm broadcasting by hand. Put the bright blue color on the seed and you can spot from a distance. I think the coating also keeps the birds from eating the seed? So which is better? Being able to see the coverage and paying more money when birds leave the coated seed alone or broadcasting non coated seeds hoping the birds don't find much of it before it germinates?
 
^ ^ ^ ^ Good points.
 
Outsidepride delivery came in. 40lbs of 60% pure seed crmson clover and 5lbs of deer greens was $120 delivered. Shipping was same $30 with or without deer greens. $2.64 a lb coated, or about $4.40 a lb in terms of pure seed weight. Not sure what colors means to animals, I believe most birds see in color. These seeds are grey coated. Think I didn't do too horrible. There's a 10% off code on the reciept, use RETURN.

The deer greens are 25% bayou kale 25% driller daikon radish 5% purple top 25% jumb summer rape tested 8/23. $14.39 for 5lbs, no coating on those.

Seeing big box stores sell seed over a year old for no price off. Or, the local place bins, who knows how old? My local place is like an extra hour atleast out of my way. I buy my fertilizer from there, bought enough for maybe 3 years last year, so no need to go there this season. Found a more local place for oats and winter rye the past year too.


Hard to see your seeds? Put a tarp at the end of a row or spread some on your driveway. Make some reference marks like spray paint dots at the endges of the field, or use certain trees as reference. I like to get it done in 2 passes usually 90 degrees apart if possible. Sometimes spray herbicide has similar challenges too.
 
I took this pic last night night at Farm n Fleet. Antler King Honey Hole. 34.17% inert matter with 34% of that being the coating.

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Coated seed for Brasscias? Now they trick us a bit with clover. Innoculated and hard seed coat treatments....... But, rapeseed coating?
 
Put out an acre worth of the NW Whitetail clover plus chicory on my plots before this last snow/rain event we had. Uncoated seed that is a deer MAGNET in my area.

Have used plenty of coated clover seed in the past (whitetail institute) and there just isn't a need. Broadcast spreader turns blue, arms are blue...why??
 
Put out an acre worth of the NW Whitetail clover plus chicory on my plots before this last snow/rain event we had. Uncoated seed that is a deer MAGNET in my area.

Have used plenty of coated clover seed in the past (whitetail institute) and there just isn't a need. Broadcast spreader turns blue, arms are blue...why??
For what their seed cost, it should be a magnet.
 
I took this pic last night night at Farm n Fleet. Antler King Honey Hole. 34.17% inert matter with 34% of that being the coating.

View attachment 63429
But there is a YouTube star who will rant until he’s blue in the face that the pretty orange seed coating is needed.
 
Put out an acre worth of the NW Whitetail clover plus chicory on my plots before this last snow/rain event we had. Uncoated seed that is a deer MAGNET in my area.

Have used plenty of coated clover seed in the past (whitetail institute) and there just isn't a need. Broadcast spreader turns blue, arms are blue...why??
I have a screen shot saved from one of their prostaffers dumping IW clover into his spreader. Cloud of blue dust, probably not healthy to breath in. My other thought was, you paid for all that blue dust and now it’s floating away in the air.
 
I still buy the whitetail insistute clover. IT has some good stuff in it. I mix it with other clovers. I think the intiial wow factor is the berseem clover in it. They do have good clover, but their variety of improved ladino is quite small. Like 1/4 to 1/3 of the clover seeds are that one. And then whiddle the amount even more for the coating, you get quite little of the good stuff.

I spread the crimson clover over the weekend. Even worse than I thought, 52% seed coating, bright white as an added plus. Might as well fill it up in a bird feeder to spread it........

About 1.25 acres I spread 50bs of it. Might be a bit overkill. Will find out in a few weeks.
 
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