omicron1792
5 year old buck +
Welcome my man! Patience is the hardest thing for us all! But this thread teaches if you keep living roots in the ground year round it will heal and thrive.
The Throw n’ Mow Method
- Thread starter Crimson n' Camo
- Start date
PatinPA
5 year old buck +
Checked in on my plots last week. Not much luck with brassicas this year but the oats are coming in nice. Filled in the bare spots with a bag of rye I just hand spread. Got about 3" of rain over the weekend so it should be good. Oh and I found my lost bag of yellow sweet clover so I put that out in my main plot. We'll see what happens with that. Now I just need some bucks to show up. All I've been seeing lately is a spike and a raggity 6 point.
omicron1792
5 year old buck +
Great job. I’ve never had a lot of success broadcasting oats. I bet you end up getting more brassicas than you think.
PatinPA
5 year old buck +
I've had a lot of luck broadcasting oats. Seem to grow really well for me and my deer love them. Never had much luck with brassicas but my soil is pretty poor.
omicron1792
5 year old buck +
My deer love oats. Maybe they just eat them before they come up tall!
FarmerDan
5 year old buck +
I could never get a surface broadcast oat to grow either......
PatinPA
5 year old buck +
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...hRcnDA5lfwmDS37sLfxq4zmKtpAmA_cBoC8G0QAvD_BwE
This is what I used. It was even left over bags from last year that I bought for a discount and let sit in a tub all year. I'll take a pic of them next weekend. They're coming in nicely. Looks like a beautiful green lawn. I don't till or even cultipack.
FarmerDan
5 year old buck +
I got to thinking about this after I said I never got surface broadcast oats to germinate. I think I never bought a bag of certified seed oats for a food plot! I always plant(ed) a good bag of plump horse feed oats. It grow great when planted IN the soil. Think it makes a difference, seed oats or feed oats? Ever the eternal debate.
S.T.Fanatic
5 year old buck +
We just plant oats that we’re harvested out of the field. Always get a good crop surface broadcasted.
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PatinPA
5 year old buck +
I've tried feed oats but I tried them on a roadway with a complete failure. Haven't actually tried them in a plot. My local tractor supply always has these at the end of the year on discount so I just grab them and store them for the next year.
omicron1792
5 year old buck +
I would consider throwing some rye over the top after a few weeks. Looks good
Brian662
5 year old buck +
Due to time and forecast, the rye got put on when the picture was taken on Monday.
omicron1792
5 year old buck +
Perfect. I think rye is the foundation of the throw and mow. And deer like it too!
FarmerDan
5 year old buck +
In my mind oats are one of those grains that vary a lot in their composition. Some are big and plump while others are little more than sheath and seed coat. Generally, south of the Mason-Dixon we cant grow a good oat and i think it has implications for seed germination. A good bag of horse feed oats are grown in the upper midwest. And many come from northern Europe. We debate the value of certified seed oats. I have thought some about it. Now I’m in favor of using them
Bearswamper
A good 3 year old buck
So, I am trying to read this thread from the beginning, but may have missed the answers to these questions:
1/ Once one starts employing the Throw and Mow method what parameter would dictate bringing out the disc again? I am thinking it would help reduce the bio-mass so that larger seed forages are afforded better soil contact. Is the main drawback to working the soil due to causing long dormant weed seeds to germinate?
2/ If broadcasting fine seed forage into a biomass mat left from application of Glyphosate , does one increase the seed rate vs. over bare soil.
1/ Once one starts employing the Throw and Mow method what parameter would dictate bringing out the disc again? I am thinking it would help reduce the bio-mass so that larger seed forages are afforded better soil contact. Is the main drawback to working the soil due to causing long dormant weed seeds to germinate?
2/ If broadcasting fine seed forage into a biomass mat left from application of Glyphosate , does one increase the seed rate vs. over bare soil.
omicron1792
5 year old buck +
You want the biomass. It acts like a slow release fertilizer, shields the soil from sun and erosion, acts like a sponge to hold water. You really want to avoid the disc if possible, but it’s not terrible to light disc at times.
You do have to manage smaller seeds. Sometimes you need to mow high a couple of weeks before seeding, then mow again at seeding. Mulching mowers or flail mowers work well.
For fall planting you really don’t have to use gly. Mowing will terminate most weeds, and what it doesn’t the change of seasons will. Herbicides need to be used at times for problem weeds, but part of throw and mow is to lower herbicide usage. Your plots don’t need to look like a farming magazine. Good weeds along with forage you grow is all beneficial. Goal is to get soil in harmony with microbes and plants. Grow things known to do well in your region.
Bearswamper
A good 3 year old buck
When we first started doing our plots ourselves (vs. having the FT farmer of the gang doing them) we were disappointed at why our crops didn't look like crops done by "real" farmers. But the number of deer using the forage was the same. It is a mindset that is hard to overcome. I now realize this fact, but some club members still expect "farming magazine" results.
omicron1792
5 year old buck +
My man. Any advice from me or others is because we have been right where you are! I still like pretty fields, and I’ll tell you I get them now too. But it takes time. There is a dip when you switch to no till/regenerative ag. Plants take longer to come up. They are spottier. But if you stay the course they turn the corner.
This is my first year without synthetic fertilizer. I’m not spraying my fall crops. I’m literally going over my fields twice. Once in spring to crimp and plant at same time, once in fall to plant. Talking about a change. Check out my thread called green cover to look at some of my transition. But I stand on the shoulder of giants. Many on here have been doing it a long time and use no fertilizer for years and minimal herbicides. It can be done. With persistence and patience you will get great results with Much less work.
Check out wild things posts and sd1455 (I think that’s right). Both have done great with regenerative ag.
Welcome my man
FarmerDan
5 year old buck +
Short answers to your questions - and they are only my observations and opinions. I want to then discuss my ambivalence about throw and mow and the differences between production agriculture and food plotting - but I will resist my temptation.
1. As I see it one of the biggest drawbacks of throw and mow is getting seed into a position to germinate. You know the golden rule - good seed to soil contact planted at a proper depth in appropriately firm soil. With throw and mow you will know when to drag out the disc because you are dissatisfied with your seeding expectations. Certain seeds/crops are better suited for throw and mow than are others.
2. Yes, up your seeding rates. How much is an art. Seed will germinate in the biomass if it stays damp/wet long enough to trigger germination and allow the radical, that initial root, to find its way into the soil. Will the seed get to the soil surface? Again, your judgement comes into play. Throw and mow requires a lot more management skill, consideration, and judgement than a "traditional" seeding. Or just more luck. I suspect germination rates in throw and mow are anywhere from 10% to 70% of what you would get from seed planted "properly."
