split soybean planting

[Gator]

I'm making final plans for my first soybean planting. I have a 6.5 acre field which has a clover band around the outside and I want to also outline it in corn (screen) so that will reduce the size down a little. Of the remaining I'm going to plant a type 3 and type 4.8 so I don't have a gap in food the first of Sept. I will overseed the early variety with rye/radish type mix once it yellows. The field currently has a rye/clover mix growing in it. Do I plant the whole field at once (also means killing the existing rye/clover all at once) or do I kill some then plant two weeks later and kill the other half and plant another two weeks later?? If I kill it all at once it creates a gap in the food now but I have a lot more beans sprouting all at once to offset the possible browse issue so they don't wipe out the beans before they get started.

Ideas? What has worked well for you?

 

[Terrific_tom]

How high of a deer density do you have?

 

[Gator]

I don't really know as I've never done a survey. Most I've ever seen in the field at a time is 10 but that's in the winter when I'm the only food around.

 

[Terrific_tom]

You should be able to plant the beans all at once with 6.5 acres and low deer numbers. If you haven't bought your beans yet I would get a little earlier maturity bean for the side that you plan on broadcasting rye/radish type mix into.

 

[Freeborn]

Welcome Gator, good to see you!

Sorry, your in Virginia? Your stress period is winter? Agree with Tom you should be good to go with the whole field. I would think your area has greened up nicely by now with allot of natural browse.

 

[Gator]

Welcome Gator, good to see you!

Sorry, your in Virginia? Your stress period is winter? Agree with Tom you should be good to go with the whole field. I would think your area has greened up nicely by now with allot of natural browse.

Yessir I'm in VA. Everything is extremely green already. I would definitely rather have a food gap now than in Sept. The first 3 years of owning, I had a gap in early Sept (though relatively short) when I tilled the field under to plant and I've been losing a lot of deer (surely not exclusively b/c of the food gap as that's also when patterns start to change). I want to at least see if I retain more deer if I can keep food on the table throughout summer and fall.

 

[West Branch]

I agree with the planting all at once for the beans as well. Even in a low deer number area the deer could get drawn in for browsing and depending on the layout and cover around the field they may end up hammering a large portion of it.

I think Mo had some pictures of planing a mix corn and beans in alternating rows. 4 rows beans and 2 corn if I remember right... And I think he also broadcast brassicas into it for more food. Not sure how it turned out but it looked great in the pictures. A bit different than your plan, but another option to think about.