Food Plots Buckwheat

[megalomaniac]

I have a mixture I'll be planting this summer that consists of laredo soybeans, iron clay cowpeas, sorghum, millet, sunflower, and buckwheat. Looking forward to seeing how well it does.

That's a great mix... I did the same thing 3 years ago in my 8ac plot. I will say this... be careful with the sorgham and millet. It is easy to get too much of that stuff and choke out the expensive plants!

 

[Quailman]

That's a great mix... I did the same thing 3 years ago in my 8ac plot. I will say this... be careful with the sorgham and millet. It is easy to get too much of that stuff and choke out the expensive plants!

Thanks Mega, the mix I've put together is pretty light on the millet/sorghum for that very reason! It's heavily weighted toward the laredo soybeans and cowpeas.

 

[BSK]

I have a mixture I'll be planting this summer that consists of laredo soybeans, iron clay cowpeas, sorghum, millet, sunflower, and buckwheat. Looking forward to seeing how well it does.

Let us know how that works out.

I'm following Mega's lead and just planting a mixture of cheap soybeans (not RR) and sorghum. And that is more about green manure production and weed reduction than food sources for deer. With all of our recent timber removal, deer seem to be feeding more on natural regeneration than food plot plants (in the summer - fall is a different story).

 

[Quailman]

Let us know how that works out.

I'm following Mega's lead and just planting a mixture of cheap soybeans (not RR) and sorghum. And that is more about green manure production and weed reduction than food sources for deer. With all of our recent timber removal, deer seem to be feeding more on natural regeneration than food plot plants (in the summer - fall is a different story).

Will do BSK! The remainder of my summer plots will be a basic mix of RR Corn/RR Soybeans. Easy to manage and control for weeds and of course high value as far as a late season food source.

 

[BSK]

Will do BSK! The remainder of my summer plots will be a basic mix of RR Corn/RR Soybeans. Easy to manage and control for weeds and of course high value as far as a late season food source.

Do you let your corn stand as is, or mow strips in it and replant a fall planting?

 

[Quailman]

Do you let your corn stand as is, or mow strips in it and replant a fall planting?

A lot of times, yes, I'll mow strips in the corn and broadcast wheat or wheat/crimson. It really depends on how well the plots did during the summer and the volume of food produced plus how much time I have to get out to the farm to overseed those areas.
I also try to have additional cool season plots around the farm just to compliment the summer crops being produced.
Next year my goal will be to start focusing on the woodland areas again through TSI to increase native food sources. As you're aware, it's definitely a process!

 

[BSK]

Next year my goal will be to start focusing on the woodland areas again through TSI to increase native food sources. As you're aware, it's definitely a process!

Um yeah... You said about 10 mouthfuls there!

 

[Bgoodman30]

What do ya'll suggest for high quality bottomland soil where weed competition is extreme? I would prefer the RR Corn/Soybeans but obviously that's the most expensive option. We fight weeds continuously down there especially johnson grass. I would like to put something in that would be the best option for weed suppression and cut down on the chemicals. I have some standing corn/ wheat and crimson clover in now.

 

[JCDEERMAN]

We are doing a mix of RR soybeans and RR corn. Mainly so we can spray around knee high to kill back the weeds. We'll be doing this to suppress weeds until they are mostly eliminated. Until then, no more buckwheat or sorghum or anything else in the mix until those are taken care of. I learned that after the last 2 years.

 

[Quailman]

What do ya'll suggest for high quality bottomland soil where weed competition is extreme? I would prefer the RR Corn/Soybeans but obviously that's the most expensive option. We fight weeds continuously down there especially johnson grass. I would like to put something in that would be the best option for weed suppression and cut down on the chemicals. I have some standing corn/ wheat and crimson clover in now.

My opinion is to go with RR corn/soybeans so you have the ability to control weeds with herbicides. The food plot mixture I mentioned in an earlier post has a combination of both grasses and legumes that are not Roundup ready of course so my herbicide options are limited to say the least.

Also, I constantly see people mentioning how costly it is for corn/soybean seed, but for wildlife food plots there's no reason IMO to buy it at retail prices. I've been a member of various conservation groups for 25+ years and I can buy seed at a fraction of the cost. My main costs are fertilizer, herbicide, fuel. Corn, soybeans, and sorghum are readily available through groups like Quail Forever and NWTF. All it takes is a membership and contacting your local chapter.

Hope this helps!

 

[Bgoodman30]

My opinion is to go with RR corn/soybeans so you have the ability to control weeds with herbicides. The food plot mixture I mentioned in an earlier post has a combination of both grasses and legumes that are not Roundup ready of course so my herbicide options are limited to say the least.

Also, I constantly see people mentioning how costly it is for corn/soybean seed, but for wildlife food plots there's no reason IMO to buy it at retail prices. I've been a member of various conservation groups for 25+ years and I can buy seed at a fraction of the cost. My main costs are fertilizer, herbicide, fuel. Corn, soybeans, and sorghum are readily available through groups like Quail Forever and NWTF. All it takes is a membership and contacting your local chapter.

Hope this helps!

It does! I messed up because I forgot to order from Quail forever. I will check with NWTF. I thought about renting it again to be put in bean/corn rotation for a couple seasons just because I know whatever the heck concoction they put on the fields will have it burned down right.. I also can have some left standing.

 

[JCDEERMAN]

It does! I messed up because I forgot to order from Quail forever. I will check with NWTF. I thought about renting it again to be put in bean/corn rotation for a couple seasons just because I know whatever the heck concoction they put on the fields will have it burned down right.. I also can have some left standing.

Agreed with @Quailman. See if it's not too late with NWTF. QF is ordered in aug-sept and is $15 / bag

 

[megalomaniac]

What do ya'll suggest for high quality bottomland soil where weed competition is extreme? I would prefer the RR Corn/Soybeans but obviously that's the most expensive option. We fight weeds continuously down there especially johnson grass. I would like to put something in that would be the best option for weed suppression and cut down on the chemicals. I have some standing corn/ wheat and crimson clover in now.

So, what are you looking to accomplish with summer plots?

Just building soil, to improve fall plantings? Then don't worry too much about the Johnson Grass...it won't co.pete with fall plantings, as it gets killed by first frost. Nuke the ground with roundup, then just plant cheap generic beans, sorgham, and millet to build soil and suppress some of the weeds. Keep doing thus for several years and you will make progress.

If you are wanting a beautiful summer plot to feed deer with little weed competition because you plant to leave the corn or beans standing, you need to go with a preemergent such a meetoachlor or the like plus roundup which needs to go down a month before the RR seed. Then come back with roundup to clean the corn or beans after they are a foot tall or so. Now this is assuming you are drilling. Your local coop agronomist can look at the fields, see what type of competing weeds are most problematic, then make the suggestion on exactly which preemergents to use.

The problem with NWTF or Quail Unlimited is that they are nit guaranteed to get in the seed they expect... so you can pre-order, wait all spring long, find out late May they aren't getting seed, then you are left scrambling at local seed stores buying whatever was leftover. That happened to me 5 years ago... joined Quail Forever, ordered seed for 10 acres. Then, sorry, the distributor didn't deliver... here's your money back.

I want the seed sitting in my garage by May 1st... you won't get that with Quail Forever, even if they get their seed in that year.

 

[megalomaniac]

Oh, the other problem with going for a beautiful summer plot of corn or beans... be prepared to spend $$$ for 150lbs of fertilizer per acre....

My summer plots of grain grasses and beans do just fine with only 50lbs per acre of fertilizer

 

[Bgoodman30]

So, what are you looking to accomplish with summer plots?

Just building soil, to improve fall plantings? Then don't worry too much about the Johnson Grass...it won't co.pete with fall plantings, as it gets killed by first frost. Nuke the ground with roundup, then just plant cheap generic beans, sorgham, and millet to build soil and suppress some of the weeds. Keep doing thus for several years and you will make progress.

If you are wanting a beautiful summer plot to feed deer with little weed competition because you plant to leave the corn or beans standing, you need to go with a preemergent such a meetoachlor or the like plus roundup which needs to go down a month before the RR seed. Then come back with roundup to clean the corn or beans after they are a foot tall or so. Now this is assuming you are drilling. Your local coop agronomist can look at the fields, see what type of competing weeds are most problematic, then make the suggestion on exactly which preemergents to use.

The problem with NWTF or Quail Unlimited is that they are nit guaranteed to get in the seed they expect... so you can pre-order, wait all spring long, find out late May they aren't getting seed, then you are left scrambling at local seed stores buying whatever was leftover. That happened to me 5 years ago... joined Quail Forever, ordered seed for 10 acres. Then, sorry, the distributor didn't deliver... here's your money back.

I want the seed sitting in my garage by May 1st... you won't get that with Quail Forever, even if they get their seed in that year.

This is the field where I have my dove field so I have been doing sunflowers, millet, etc. Then I turn into a fall plot. Definitely don't need to build soil everything grows exceptionally here even without fertilizer including the weeds... Last year we did sunflowers had it burned down clean in May and had 10 foot Johnson grass by July even after spraying it post emergent with Beyond.. I am thinking I might just do the corn route and then I can bush hog some for dove and top sow wheat over it. Then leave some standing and bush hog rows for deer/turkeys. Pricey though...