Jerry-B-WI
5 year old buck +
Do you fellas buy seed blends or buy the straight seed and do your own mix? What are the economics of either way?
Seed Mixes
- Thread starter Jerry-B-WI
- Start date
Telemark
5 year old buck +
I do both. I prefer to buy and mix my own, but sometimes because of price, availability, timing, etc. I just buy something cheap and available to get something in the ground.
I think it's more economical to research what you want/need and buy what's right for you, if circumstances allow.
I think it's more economical to research what you want/need and buy what's right for you, if circumstances allow.
SWIFFY
5 year old buck +
My elevator will premix whatever i would like. Its going to be far more cost efficient if I have them mix what I need... If i need 8 pounds of millet for example, I dont want to buy a 50 pound bag. Times that by 10 or 12 other seeds in the mix. Also, I dont know where I would store it all.
If its just a few things Id mix it yourself. It just depends on what youre looking for.
If its just a few things Id mix it yourself. It just depends on what youre looking for.
Last edited:
bigboreblr
5 year old buck +
Sometimes yes, sometimes no........
A great mix for a small plot is plotspike forage feast. Wheat, oats, winter peas, clover, chicory or brassicas too I think. Awesome little mix. If I were to make 10 acres of it, going to a local ag coop and buying what you can will save money. The clover blend plotspike has too I think is a good deal. If you're seeding clover in a new spot, their seed is not coated with rhibozomes. Just some basic red coated clover would do it. I have bought that plotspike forage feast, then make it spread in a bigger plot with a bag of feed oats and a few lbs of clover. Hard to beat that $35 price buying them separately.
My local farmers co-op has alot of decent variety of seed for a fair price. All 3-5 bucks a pound range. Daikon raddish, a few types of clovers, turnips, canola, corn, soy beans, and they have bags of winter rye. I like that they have both coated clover and uncoated clover. I like uncoated clover for frost seeding, so the birds cant get it so easily.
Feed oats work great for me. I test germinate them before planting. IF you cant find rye, oats work. I live in NY. Those oats live until you get a few 20 degree night, or one night before 15.
Those fancy dancy so-n-so on TV hunting show mixes..... Not my cup of tea. Improved varieties aren't that special. There is very little in those bags you cant buy cheaper.
The one exception is that imperial clover. There is an improved variety that lives several years with monthly mowings and makes seed. Haven't found a clover that beats it yet compared to that Ag co-op. There's alot of other basic clovers in there too. I still think that bag is worth it for an acre or less.
The one down side to mixes, larger seed should be planted deeper than little seeds. It's nice to spread oat, wheat, peas, or rye, stir it in a bit with what implement you got, then put the small seeds like clover, raddishes, chicory, alfalpha. or grasses on top.
A great mix for a small plot is plotspike forage feast. Wheat, oats, winter peas, clover, chicory or brassicas too I think. Awesome little mix. If I were to make 10 acres of it, going to a local ag coop and buying what you can will save money. The clover blend plotspike has too I think is a good deal. If you're seeding clover in a new spot, their seed is not coated with rhibozomes. Just some basic red coated clover would do it. I have bought that plotspike forage feast, then make it spread in a bigger plot with a bag of feed oats and a few lbs of clover. Hard to beat that $35 price buying them separately.
My local farmers co-op has alot of decent variety of seed for a fair price. All 3-5 bucks a pound range. Daikon raddish, a few types of clovers, turnips, canola, corn, soy beans, and they have bags of winter rye. I like that they have both coated clover and uncoated clover. I like uncoated clover for frost seeding, so the birds cant get it so easily.
Feed oats work great for me. I test germinate them before planting. IF you cant find rye, oats work. I live in NY. Those oats live until you get a few 20 degree night, or one night before 15.
Those fancy dancy so-n-so on TV hunting show mixes..... Not my cup of tea. Improved varieties aren't that special. There is very little in those bags you cant buy cheaper.
The one exception is that imperial clover. There is an improved variety that lives several years with monthly mowings and makes seed. Haven't found a clover that beats it yet compared to that Ag co-op. There's alot of other basic clovers in there too. I still think that bag is worth it for an acre or less.
The one down side to mixes, larger seed should be planted deeper than little seeds. It's nice to spread oat, wheat, peas, or rye, stir it in a bit with what implement you got, then put the small seeds like clover, raddishes, chicory, alfalpha. or grasses on top.
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
I have a Penn State publication on all sorts of cover crops that most of us would use for food plots. It says to reduce the amount of highly competitive crop varieties by 1/2, down to 1/4 of their pure stand rates in a seed mix. Highly competitive seeds are oats, rye grain, radishes, canola. The publications advised keeping the seeding rates of less competitive crop varieties near or at their pure stand rates when mixed with highly competitive crop varieties, so they can get established in a field. Less competitive crops are clovers, alfalfa, peas, - legumes in general.
Just passing along the info from the Penn State cover crop publication on seed mixes and seeding rates. FWIW.
Just passing along the info from the Penn State cover crop publication on seed mixes and seeding rates. FWIW.
yoderjac
5 year old buck +
Jerry,
I buy the individual see and mix myself. That gives me flexibility to get the proportions that work best for my situation. I'm also operating at a large enough scale that I can buy 50lb bags of see which is less expensive. The problem with most of the commercial mixes (BOB mixes) is the cost. For a guy doing a half acre plot, the cost per pound of seed is negatable and that is who the BOB companies target. The other issue is that most BOB mixes are not well localized. So, some seed in the bag may do well in your region and soil and others may be a waste, but you're paying for both.
For small grains (WW/WR/Oats), don't waste you time with BOB mixes. Most local coops will sell you basic clover varieties by the pound.
If you're doing QDM, you are operating a a large enough scale that you can buy 50 lb bags. Most see will be viable the next year if you keep it in a cool dry place. If you are just planting small plots for attraction to improve hunting, BOB mixes are more convenient and the money is not a real issue.
Thanks,
Jack
PatinPA
5 year old buck +
I think your plot size and available storage is a big part of it. I have small plots so sometimes it's convenient just to a premixed bag. If you have big plots and need a lot of seed it might be more efficient and cheaper to buy larger quantities of each and mix yourself. Then if you have extra and have a place to store what you don't use, that helps too. I have an old camp on my property that stays pretty cool and dark so I keep bags of seed in plastic containers. Also makes it convenient to buy leftover bags of seed from the big box stores in the winter for the following year. I try to do that for any BOB mixes I buy. Cuts down on the cost significantly.
jsasker007
5 year old buck +
BOB seed has always done well when I did use it but it costs quite a bit more. Sometimes laziness does affect decisions.
Mixing them in a 5 gallon bucket one scoop at a time and getting your hands covered with inoculant is half the fun. Opening a box with six bags of different seeds is like Christmas morning. Reading the seed tags is a fun little science project.
It doesn’t always have to be about the lowest price. Spend a few bucks if you’ve got it. Have some fun. Once you sow your custom concoction, you get to wait and see. It’s like buying a lottery ticket. You know how you buy that ticket knowing you’ll never win but it’s a nice few days of daydreaming about how you’ll spend it? That’s what it’s like for me.
That’s why I usually buy individual seeds and mix it all up myself, because it’s fun.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
It doesn’t always have to be about the lowest price. Spend a few bucks if you’ve got it. Have some fun. Once you sow your custom concoction, you get to wait and see. It’s like buying a lottery ticket. You know how you buy that ticket knowing you’ll never win but it’s a nice few days of daydreaming about how you’ll spend it? That’s what it’s like for me.
That’s why I usually buy individual seeds and mix it all up myself, because it’s fun.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Last edited:
Jerry-B-WI
5 year old buck +
I get leary of the premixed seeds, went to local feed mill and bought a premixed brassica blend that was labeled as a Wisconsin company. First year was okay then the following spring plot greens up and has a bunch of mustard/yellow rocket in it. Google the stuff and technically it's a brassica, but surely not what I want in my foodplot. Nuked it with gly and started over.
I looked at Deer Creek seeds and buying their premixed blends versus buying straight seed and blending to their percentages I can mix it cheaper. Only problem is I end up with a bunch pf left over seed. I can store it.
I'll look around at some other local feed mills and see if they have their own in house mixes or if I can buy individual seeds for my own mix.
I looked at Deer Creek seeds and buying their premixed blends versus buying straight seed and blending to their percentages I can mix it cheaper. Only problem is I end up with a bunch pf left over seed. I can store it.
I'll look around at some other local feed mills and see if they have their own in house mixes or if I can buy individual seeds for my own mix.
Nightvision
5 year old buck +
Large scale: mix your own.
A couple of small plots: just buy a BOB bag
A couple of small plots: just buy a BOB bag
