Crimson n' Camo
5 year old buck +
I've spread my lime right after mowing down a crop of biomass. A fresh crop of biomass on the surface really helps to inhibit any water flow across the soil surface.....you want water going down, not across.....
The Throw n’ Mow Method
- Thread starter Crimson n' Camo
- Start date
I've spread my lime right after mowing down a crop of biomass. A fresh crop of biomass on the surface really helps to inhibit any water flow across the soil surface.....you want water going down, not across.....
bueller
Moderator
No worse, and better in most areas. The worst is where I expanded a plot a couple years ago. Makes sense being a pioneer species.
Crimson n' Camo
5 year old buck +
Even very frequent mowing can create pioneer soil conditions because over time it creates nothing but very shallow rooted turf grass.
ncstewart
5 year old buck +
So are y'all spraying to kill vegetation and then broadcasting and mowing? I would like to try this method but am very new to food plots so just want to get it right.
I have very poor soil so I'm not expecting a picture perfect plot but would like to start improving the soil. That being said would a rye base mix be a good start to plant this way?
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I have very poor soil so I'm not expecting a picture perfect plot but would like to start improving the soil. That being said would a rye base mix be a good start to plant this way?
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Crimson n' Camo
5 year old buck +
Yes on both questions. A cereal rye base is one of your best seeds to use (Elbon or Wrens Abruzzi). Go ahead and spray in the beginning. There's actually a way you can do it without spraying but the less you complicate things in the beginning, the better you'll be.
Clover/Alfalfa plot is a little thin in some spots, with some broadleaf weeds taking advantage. So Tuesday I sprayed it with 2-4 db, and overseeded another pound of alfalfa on Wednesday. My deer seem to prefer it over the clover, and it's more drought resistant than the Ladino. Today i mowed it off. The ladino seeds heads were brown and dry so should help thicken it up as well. Rain is moving in as i type.
Late last fall, before i knew what i was doing, i grabbed a bag of Biologic Hot Spot on clearance. I could do without the 25% annual ryegrass, but it does have a good portion of rape, along with a smidge of radish and wheat. I added a pound of purple top turnips and spread it out over 1/4acre. Had sprayed this awhile back, probably too early as there wasn't much vegetation there. So i got real good seed to soil contact, but not much thatch coverage after mowing. I'm thinking it should still go well with most of the seeds being so small. I'll take a pic tomorrow and post it.
Late last fall, before i knew what i was doing, i grabbed a bag of Biologic Hot Spot on clearance. I could do without the 25% annual ryegrass, but it does have a good portion of rape, along with a smidge of radish and wheat. I added a pound of purple top turnips and spread it out over 1/4acre. Had sprayed this awhile back, probably too early as there wasn't much vegetation there. So i got real good seed to soil contact, but not much thatch coverage after mowing. I'm thinking it should still go well with most of the seeds being so small. I'll take a pic tomorrow and post it.
Crimson n' Camo
5 year old buck +
I’ve posted links to this book several times before in my past threads. I’m not sure if anyone has ever actually read it though because I’ve never had a comment made back referencing it than I can recall. If you’re just starting out with this method and don’t fully grasp the concept yet then this book may come across a little odd at first. If your someone though who has already experimented with this method for a awhile and are not still on the fence about it……then I believe this book will really help expand your thinking past just the quote/unquote “Throw n’ Mow Method”….and more into the realm of using what the method really mimics ......and that is a holistic approach.
"The One Straw Revolution"
http://www.appropedia.org/images/d/d3/Onestraw.pdf
"The One Straw Revolution"
http://www.appropedia.org/images/d/d3/Onestraw.pdf
rlb165
Yearling... With promise
Crimson n' Camo, it's been a while, but I've read One Straw Revolution, and watched YouTube videos about the author, Masanobu Fukuoka (sp?). I am intrigued to say the least. If you don't mind, I have some questions:
1. Do you ever annoy your wife and kids by impersonating Carl from the movie Sling Blade? I do, and it just seems like you would too. Just a hunch. Mmm hmm.
2. I read your post where you experimented with Seed Balls. Have you tried them on a larger scale? Or, are you getting sufficient germination with Throw n' Mow, so that it's not worth the effort of coating seeds with soil, clay and compost?
Thanks!
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1. Do you ever annoy your wife and kids by impersonating Carl from the movie Sling Blade? I do, and it just seems like you would too. Just a hunch. Mmm hmm.
2. I read your post where you experimented with Seed Balls. Have you tried them on a larger scale? Or, are you getting sufficient germination with Throw n' Mow, so that it's not worth the effort of coating seeds with soil, clay and compost?
Thanks!
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ncstewart
5 year old buck +
Was an interesting read. Little different but gets ya thinking for sure. For a guy like me with very little equipment tho the general idea is nice. Figuring out how to make it work in your area tho I think will take time. Sounds like it took him a long time of trial and error to get a system down. Thanks for sharing that tho Crimson. You alright for an Alabama fan!
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Crimson n' Camo
5 year old buck +
1) No...:D
2) I've never experimented with the clay balls on a large scale but they do work. You need a cement mixer though to be able to do anything of significant scale. If you had one of those I think it would be a pretty simple process. I'm getting good enough germination on the things now since I've been no tilling for a few years that its really not needed. If you had some really crappy ground though and were just trying to accomplish the initial steps of reclaiming it...then it may be well worth doing to help establish some vegetation. It'd be fun to experiment with anyways. I thought about trying to find a cement mixer on CL just to play with the idea but never have.
Crimson n' Camo
5 year old buck +
Yeah, it's a little different and why I think many folks probably never read it. The more things you absorb like that though....the more you begin to understand the concepts and principles.....as well as having a little more perspective on the broader picture of things.
I have hard and soft mast tree orchards around my property as well as my test field (foodplot) I show....apples, pears, peaches, plums, oaks, chestnuts, etc.....Over the last year and half or so I've started managing them in a manner like described in the book....a more holistic approach. I've still got a ways to go to get it anywhere close to what the author in the book had....but here lately when I walk out in the morning times to sip on my coffee and let the dogs play.....I see all kinds of butterflies flittering around....an amazing amount of bees.....hummingbirds zipping around.....grasshoppers jumping through the grass, etc......I'm starting to see just a little glimpse of what that Japanese farmer saw when the book describes all the animal and insect life that was present. It's pretty cool.
Crimson n' Camo
5 year old buck +
As a matter of fact...... I was standing there sipping coffee and watching Otis run after field mice this morning when I look over and this little guy's just looking at me.
ncstewart
5 year old buck +
Are you broadcasting and rolling or do you drill?
I'm liking the idea of just letting nature take care of the kill by timing temps and then rolling down and planting your next plot into that. Seems like if a guy can get his own system it would drastically reduce time, fuel, fertilizer, equipment cost plus helping out your soil/land.
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I'm liking the idea of just letting nature take care of the kill by timing temps and then rolling down and planting your next plot into that. Seems like if a guy can get his own system it would drastically reduce time, fuel, fertilizer, equipment cost plus helping out your soil/land.
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Crimson n' Camo
5 year old buck +
I broadcast and mow……..Here’s an example of one way you can do it. This pic was taken during the process of mowing my winter rye crop after it browned down earlier this spring. I mowed it down so I could spread some lime. My pH still needs to come up. I didn’t plant anything but if I were going to…..this is how I would do it. No herbicide has been used. Again though, there’s all kinds of variations and options that one could choose to do.
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Crimson n' Camo
5 year old buck +
Here's the same process repeated in the fall with the summer vegetation....again no herbicide was used, just timing. This is a week or so after mowing as the seedlings are just emerging.
Crimson n' Camo
5 year old buck +
......and this is a few weeks later after the field filled in.
