Self Terminating, fast decomposing, small and hard seeded plants

[BenAllgood]

I'm looking for something either spring or fall planted that will self terminate in late summer, decompose quickly, and that has a very small seed. I was thinking of buckwheat, but in my experience, it didn't last all spring and summer. Cowpeas, soybeans, and corn are good at self-terminating, but have a larger seed than what I'm looking for. I've planted directly into those with zero incorporation, and had good success. Some brassicas are like this, but are there any that do this in the summer?

 

[Catscratch]

Ragweed...

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[BenAllgood]

Ragweed...

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True. and, easy to plant.

 

[4wanderingeyes]

Winter Rye, oats, winter wheat?

 

[BenAllgood]

Winter Rye, oats, winter wheat?

I haven't seen those decomposing fast at the end of summer where I'm at. Usually, they're more of an early summer self terminator. Then, weeds can start cropping up if you don't lay them down or have something like clover seeded with them. (atleast where I've planted them).

 

[yoderjac]

I'm looking for something either spring or fall planted that will self terminate in late summer, decompose quickly, and that has a very small seed. I was thinking of buckwheat, but in my experience, it didn't last all spring and summer. Cowpeas, soybeans, and corn are good at self-terminating, but have a larger seed than what I'm looking for. I've planted directly into those with zero incorporation, and had good success. Some brassicas are like this, but are there any that do this in the summer?

Buckwheat is a good choice. Just plant it later. It has food value for deer for 60 to 90 days. It germinates best in warm soil. 80 degree soil temp is optimal. I can plant up to the 4th of july in my area. After 90 days it will still stand and provide small game cover and plenty of seed and bugging for turkey. It decomposes faster than anything I've seen once it hits the ground.

You can mix Crimson clover with your cereal grain in the fall. Use a light application of cereal grain. In the south, Crimson does act as a reseeding annual but it terminates easily. If you mow it before it goes to seed and get the seed heads, it won't reseed. If you plant it in the spring, oats are a good choice as the cereal component.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[yoderjac]

I haven't seen those decomposing fast at the end of summer where I'm at. Usually, they're more of an early summer self terminator. Then, weeds can start cropping up if you don't lay them down or have something like clover seeded with them. (atleast where I've planted them).

I use a heavy seeding rate of WR (say 100 lbs/ac) as a nurse crop for perennial clover in the fall. When it hits a foot or so tall, I mow it to release the clover. I repeat this the entire first spring. The WR dies naturally, but it never gets tall or fibrous so it decomposes faster than when it allowed to go to seed. If you did this without the clover or use Crimson you could get the desired effect but mowing.

 

[BenAllgood]

What I'm trying to do is create a perpetual food plot that only needs to be seeded by broadcasting once a year and has food available for about 10-11 months. With soybeans, I've planted cereal grains and clover. But, the durana clover I've done like that wasn't really conducive to planting into during late summer, but was overtaken by weeds without maintenance. These couple of plots I'm wanting, I get one shot at maintenance and mowing or disking isn't an option really.

Brassicas die out easily in the winter, clovers pop up fast in the spring, but the problem of planting at just one time without being able to mow is really challenging me.

I'm not really used to doing plots like this (no equipment, but over 2 acres, and one or two days a year to do everything, so I was just trying to work out how best to tackle it.

 

[H80Hunter]

I’ve had good luck with rye and clover basically doing this. Plant rye and clover in late summer early fall. Let rye mature and die down, seed the same thing and mow the rye in the fall. If you get “too much clover” you can spray it when you plant.

 

[H80Hunter]

Though I’ve never sprayed the clover to be totally honest. Worst is just spot spray the worst weed sections.

 

[BenAllgood]

desired effect but mowing.

Was that supposed to be "desired effect without mowing". That's what I'm looking for, but when I've done oats or wheat in the past, it didn't look like I could just broadcast seed into it without some type of incorporation (crimping, mowing, etc)

 

[BenAllgood]

I’ve had good luck with rye and clover basically doing this. Plant rye and clover in late summer early fall. Let rye mature and die down, seed the same thing and mow the rye in the fall. If you get “too much clover” you can spray it when you plant.

Do you think you could seed without any mowing?

 

[H80Hunter]

I think it’s going to be depend on what your definition of success is. You can definitely get rye and clover (and other stuff) growing but it’s not going to look like a magazine.

 

[Catscratch]

I use natives for what you are describing. Sometimes just letting a field go fallow is the ticket. Early successional plants will do their job for the soil and make as good of a thatch as anything we could plant.

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[BenAllgood]

I use natives for what you are describing. Sometimes just letting a field go fallow is the ticket. Early successional plants will do their job for the soil and make as good of a thatch as anything we could plant.

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This is what I keep going back to thinking will best serve me in this situation. I can always go in and spot spray undesirables. Just look at what's growing and kill what I don't want in there. Maybe throw in an annual clover once in a while.

 

[Catscratch]

I use natives for what you are describing. Sometimes just letting a field go fallow is the ticket. Early successional plants will do their job for the soil and make as good of a thatch as anything we could plant.

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This is what I keep going back to thinking will best serve me in this situation. I can always go in and spot spray undesirables. Just look at what's growing and kill what I don't want in there. Maybe throw in an annual clover once in a while.

Exactly how I operate (much of the time)! I have better luck using nature to my needs rather than forcing her to my desires.

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[S.T.Fanatic]

I use natives for what you are describing. Sometimes just letting a field go fallow is the ticket. Early successional plants will do their job for the soil and make as good of a thatch as anything we could plant.

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This works as good as anything else. Just be sure you are able to terminate the natives before they produce seed.

 

[Catscratch]

I use natives for what you are describing. Sometimes just letting a field go fallow is the ticket. Early successional plants will do their job for the soil and make as good of a thatch as anything we could plant.

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This works as good as anything else. Just be sure you are able to terminate the natives before they produce seed.

I don't worry to much about natives going to seed, I can use their seeds the next year. I do worry about invasives though such as pigweed and JG. Those get some special considerations if they show up.

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[TreeDaddy]

Buckwheat is a good choice. Just plant it later. It has food value for deer for 60 to 90 days. It germinates best in warm soil. 80 degree soil temp is optimal. I can plant up to the 4th of july in my area. After 90 days it will still stand and provide small game cover and plenty of seed and bugging for turkey. It decomposes faster than anything I've seen once it hits the ground.

You can mix Crimson clover with your cereal grain in the fall. Use a light application of cereal grain. In the south, Crimson does act as a reseeding annual but it terminates easily. If you mow it before it goes to seed and get the seed heads, it won't reseed. If you plant it in the spring, oats are a good choice as the cereal component.

Thanks,

Jack

arrow leaf clover also acts as a reseeding annual in east texas

bill

 

[Catscratch]

Buckwheat is a good choice. Just plant it later. It has food value for deer for 60 to 90 days. It germinates best in warm soil. 80 degree soil temp is optimal. I can plant up to the 4th of july in my area. After 90 days it will still stand and provide small game cover and plenty of seed and bugging for turkey. It decomposes faster than anything I've seen once it hits the ground.

You can mix Crimson clover with your cereal grain in the fall. Use a light application of cereal grain. In the south, Crimson does act as a reseeding annual but it terminates easily. If you mow it before it goes to seed and get the seed heads, it won't reseed. If you plant it in the spring, oats are a good choice as the cereal component.

Thanks,

Jack

arrow leaf clover also acts as a reseeding annual in east texas

bill

KS too.

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