http://www.dewdropdrill.com/index.htm
I was thinking about getting something like this to make my plots a little easier. Most are fairly small and planted on some trails and such. I am fairly inexperienced at this, but put in several plots and planted trails last year and they turned out pretty well. I have a Polaris Ranger 500, a sprayer, a pull behind disk and a trail mower. I was thinking that with this thing I could just mow down the plot, spay, and then plant with the seed drill. Basically skip the disking.
My plots are mostly clover, brassicas, and possibly some winter wheat/oats. Last year I planted just by broadcasting and driving around with my ranger to push the seeds and soil together.
So how much does one of these outfits cost?
r-man - I am interested in your comment that "some plants will not flourish with out the soil being loosened and broken". Would those plants include clover, brassicas, and possibly some winter wheat/oats? No sense on even thinking about this if it won't work the way I want it too.
100% of the fields i walked last year of situations where people complained about plant growth were failures because of one common theme, improper planting depth.
100% of these cases were from expensive new equipment that wasn't properly understood.
Soil conditions, slope, and soil compaction all are factors that come into play. Setting one's equipment once and covering a field that varies in soil type and slope can lead to issues.
Wonder about new cheap equipment, or old expensive equipment.......
Obviously a tractor and heavier equipment would be the another way to go. However, I have my reasons for wanting to avoid going this route... (mainly cost, my food plots are small, and it is one more thing to keep working.)
Kevin
i have use of a great plains drill the homeade drill that ive posted pistures of a broadcast seeder and if i showed people pictures of my test plots, i'd think one would have a hard time identifying how i planted some of these plots.
Instead of cranking up the great plains i have as much success broadcasting, setting the disc down to 1" on the soybean and soybean blends. Then i roll it.
So many food plotters are on a budget. Think out of the box. It's not all about the equipment but how one places the seed.
Heck, around 25 years ago i had customers feeding clovers through their cattle and letting them place it naturally on the ground. We even mixed seed with the manure and manure spread seed.
Frost seeding is done by virtually everyone i worked with/work with who manage intentive graze, this is something many should consider for food plots.
Side note.....i will be doing a trial starting this year showing NO TIL food plot rotations. The key to this is the inclusion of humics, bulbs, frost seeding and alternative forages.