If you get it established around the edges then you�ll have all throughout the fields in a few year�s time I believe. It seems to like to grow in patches.

Update on my new dog�..Shelby is 13 weeks old now and growing like a weed. Doing pretty well with the stay, come, and sit commands. Also been working on coming to a whistle command. About time to reach into my pocket and order another tracking collar soon�..3 months to go.

Got a question for my fall plots. I own no equipment to speak of. My food plot has always been mowing 3-4 tines a summer to keep things knocked back (Husky 46-inch cut yard tractor) then overseeding wheat seed early to mid-September. It's green. That's about all I can really say about it.
Would it help the plot effort if I burned the weeds and grass back with herbicide couple weeks before planting? Also should I add rape or any other seed to my wheat to make the plot more attractive to deer?

AC.....The most important thing for you from the standpoint of making it attractive to deer is keeping the field green, healthy, and producing�..(nutrients and good management practices). I got to see a lot of plots last year during Jan and Feb as I tracked for folks. There were a LOT of plots that were either eaten to a putting green or full of plants that were turning yellow, purple, and red. It�s better to keep things simple but in good condition with proper liming and fert applications rather than getting fancy with the mix and letting it go rank due to skimping on things. Especially, as the season progresses and food sources begin to become more slim�.deer will not care so much whether or not you�re growing rape in your wheat��as much as they�ll care whether or not the wheat you're growing is nice and green and palatable. A pound or two of rape is a fine addition to your mix�..it�s cheap and great for adding diversity�..but it won�t matter if the plants don�t have �vigor���.Vigor: physical strength and good health�..robustness�.hardiness.

This is just gonna be a question about several things to see what I need to do. [img:center]http://[/img] [img:center]http://[/img]
These two pics are taken from the same spot. I decided to expand this field which is small into the pines giving me more room. The peas are doing much better in the pines then in the field. That kind of surprised me any ideas why? [img:center]http://[/img]
This field always grows better but for some reason I have a large section where I really have no grass or weeds growing to speak of. Doesn't make sense except around the trees in the field.
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What is this weed? It is taking over part of my field and don't know what to do with it.

Turkeyneck.......Has this field been tilled for past plantings?

Those are two different fields but yes they have been tilled but the last tilling was a one round scratching so it really wasn't disced to dirt. That was last springs planting.

The reason the peas are doing better in the trees is most likely due to more soil moisture. That can be effected by a few factors. One of the most important is organic matter content of the soil�.another is a little midday shade that can keep the soil from drying out as fast�.and another factor is if it�s on a hill or in a low spot. Next time your there, really get down on your hands and knees and compare the difference in the soil in the tree area versus the soil in your field. The improved soil conditions in the tree area is likely going to come from having a lot of built up organic matter in the topsoil�that helps create more favorable conditions. Having tilled in the past�..the field has likely been degraded of organic matter in comparison. That creates unfavorable soil conditions.

The first priority for anyone wanting to use a method like this is to recondition your field and get it back into the same state as that soil in the tree area��THEN�..once that�s accomplished you can focus on trying to grow a few ice cream crops if that�s what you choose to do. At this point in time though�..you just need to focus on amending the soil nutrients and producing biomass to reinfuse the soil with carbon. Turn over some leaf litter in the woods and check out the rich dirt underneath. That's what were wanting. It�s a learning process and asking yourself �Why is that area doing so much better than this area?��.is one of the best things you can do. Once your eyes open up to see the real effects that organic matter is making then it becomes much easier to incorporate managing it as a part of your game plan.

These pics are from several years ago and one of the last tilled plantings I did. I had been heavily tilling for several years and had degraded my soil down to pure sand/silt�..zero organic matter. My Egyptian wheat was really struggling but there were a couple spots of noticeably different growth. The first one was around an old stump and the second place was a spot where I had been piling brush for several years prior�..the difference is due to increased organic matter. This is one the things that first started opening my eyes to the importance of organic matter. Also notice on the right of the first pic how well the "weeds" were producing biomass where it had never been tilled.....still full of organic matter.

Browntop millet update. Check Montgomery County and Macon County plots last weekend. Montgomery field filled out nicely - I would say 80 percent of the 3 acres has a quality stand. It looked like it could use fertilizer so we put out some triple 13.
Not nearly as much rain in Macon County. The half of the field we planted first looked pretty good but not much luck on the half we planted 2 weeks later. All in all looks like we will have plenty of dove feed on fields that otherwise would have had none, with very little effort. Will try some pics when it starts heading out.

Good deal!.....Looking forward to seeing your pics. The rain has been scant out here unless you've been lucky to catch some of these stray storms. I'm finally getting my turn again today with one but its just enough to settle the dust. It'll be dry again in a couple days if it doesn't rain some more..... Day ain't over yet though..

Ok so i have a question about the whole throw and mow process. I am wanting to try this on a powerline for this fall and winter food plots. Is it best to spray to kill everything and then spread out the seed and mow it down? Are there also any types of specific types of plots that work better or worse with this process?

I would spray about 10-14 days before sewing my seed and then mow it down over the top, preferably before a rain. Smaller seeds, like clover and brassica's work best, but wheat and cereal rye work very well. You don't have to spray, but if the vegetation is really thick, i would reccomend it so it will thin out some. The key is for the seed to reach the soil surface.

Anybody just mowed it down with a weed eater? I dont have a tractor w/ a bushhog, and the field is not going to be very big so i was planning just riding on the 4wheeler and weed eating it all

That'll work fine.....I like using cereal rye (Elbon or Wrens Abruzzi). I'd recommend using it for your first attempt. It'll sprout pretty easy.

I'll be using one probably this weekend to knock the weeds down until I can get into the plot and spray it.

Chad

I won't have a club this year for the first time in a long time due to moving. Im going to do a test food plot on the backside of the property. Going to experiment with throw and mow, Denali fertilizer, migjty grow fertilizer, and synthetic fertilizer. Also going to plant 3 clovers in strips to compare them.

Try the sea minerals that westflgator swears by. They're cheap.

Awesome thanks for the advise fellas. I'm gona give it a try in september

Actually you don't even have to mow it. You can spray it, wait about 2 weeks, spread your seed and use a drag and just lay the vegetation over the seed. Just make sure if your using the drag technique that you get a good kill on the vegetation.