Ok guys I miss the good parts of this thread so we are gonna start doing fall and summer threads. Leave the bulldoodoo for general this is for experiments of all kind right or wrong as long as we learn something from them. If it gets stupid like the other thread one of the mods will be asked to fix the issue. I learned a lot from this mindset old or new it works and that’s all that matters. So let’s get back to helping anyone who would like to know more about it and their experiences.

Sprayed fields last weekend and wanted to plant this weekend but dang it’s gotten dry on us. Anyone got anything going yet?

Yep
Got a whole bunch of corn (35 acres) planted last week of March/first of April. Put the final spray on it a week ago, fertilized half of it yesterday and will do the other half next weekend.
Going to plant some chufas next weekend as well

We're right on the front edge of a natural transition period when the winter stuff begins to brown down......

I spread some millet two days ago on some fields that are thin. Trying to add some biomass with it. Was hoping crimson clover would do the trick last fall but the deer demolished it.

Add a little hairy vetch into your fall mix this year....It'll help fill that void some. Inside of my fenced in yard I had crimson clover that got 15-18 inches deep...It never got over 1-2 inches on the outside of the fence

My crimson and white clover were both knee high when I sprayed last weekend.

That sounds like a good situation just to leave it as it is....Did you have a good bit of white clover?? Was the crimson turning brown??

So don’t take this as harsh criticism…..this is just meant to be constructive conversation. Its just my opinion by I think the best situation that most of us can shoot for from these plots in the summer is to grow a “weedy” patch of white clover…..transition to cereals in the fall….crimson and white in the spring….back to weedy white in the summer. If I had to guess I’m assuming you’re about to plant beans, sunflowers, etc……What will likely happen to them though?? For most folks on small plots those are just gonna be wiped out with nothing left behind….What about your summer biomass? What about the soil improvements from those plants?? None of that is ever seen in this situation. The money spent is just a simple snack for the deer and serves no other purpose. If attraction is what you’re shooting for then you’d be money and time ahead to just take a bad spreader full of corn out there with you every now and again and spread it off into your weedy white clover….The weedy white clover is gonna feed deer and produce biomass, diverse root growth, etc….Its gonna accomplish all of our goals for us.

Going back with I/C peas sorghum and maybe soybean and sunflower. At the lease I’m going with peas sorghum and brown top.

So again this is just for conversation sake….try not to let it make you defensive…..We’re just talking and learning……

How is that mix better than white clover and natural vegetation???......Actually instead of looking at it as simply "how is this is or that better?".....Instead look at ALL the pros and cons of each mix and compare those


If I had to start over again there’s some products out there that I believe would benefit a lot of guys who are in the first few years of this process. One would an inoculant to help bring back the microbial community faster. The other is a black granular product that simulates organic humus. I believe it basically increases your nutrient and water holding capacity. One of the hurdles many have in the beginning is growing enough biomass to get out of the hole. This would greatly help with that I believe. I think this would be money better spent in the beginning rather than trying to grow sunn hemp, sunflowers, peas, etc…. and just watch them get eaten to the ground in a short period of time

Just sprayed a field today that I’m going to t&m brown top millet into for a dove field. I usually disk my dove fields but I’ve gone all t&m on my deer fields so I’m going to give it a shot

I want to get me a good heavy duty finishing mower that discharges the cuttings neatly out the back.....That's way better suited for this than a bushhog....Probably gonna sell or trade my Hustler zero turn and get one soon.

Why don’t you buy an old cotton stalk shredder. They can be bought for next to nothing.

A finishing mower is gonna be a dual purpose piece of equipment for food plotting as well as maintaining the mowing on my property.

If your winter grains and clover are thick enough then you don't have to spray to transition to a crop of millet. Once the clover and grains go to seed and start browning down then their life cycle is finished and mowing will terminate them.

I’m actually dragging thatch more then mowing now. I can’t get a even coverage of bush hogged thatch.

What are these products you’re referring to?

I don't remember nthe specific names....I bet 257 knows the black granular product I'm talking about. As far as the microbial inncoulant.....there's likley multiple ones on the market now. We'll have to do some research

I've never used either one of these type products but I think they would probably be well worth someone trying. When I look back on the important milestones in the process....getting the microbial community going again and increasing my sand's holding capacity were two big ones. If these products can help you restore that quicker then it may cut years off of your initial rebuilding process.