I always offer experimental mixes for 1-2 years before release to the public to field staff members and grandpa ray outdoors program members. All bowsite members get 10% off of anything they buy from me. There are a number of you on here who are G.R.O program members and offered this product. I decided to offer all of this this product 1 year before release and it's called FAST GRO
Fast Gro is a warm season mix that contains sunn hemp, buckwheat and sorghum. It is designed to fixate nitrogen (from the sunn hemp), smother weeds, give bees food, suppress weeds and give some really fast growing palatable feed for the deer (sunn hemp). I attached a picture of the sunn hemp. This mix i planted last year and the deer went wild for it. Sunn hemp can get to be 6' tall in 60 days and if the deer eat it right down to near the ground, it is one of the few forages that can handle close grazing pressures. The sorghum the deer will not eat but i have it in the mix to keep at least something on the ground to help suppress weeds and build up soil organic matter when you kill it off or til it down. Buckwheat is a great pollinator.
It doesnt need much rain, it handles a lot of heat and needs heat. It would die if there is a killing frost on it so we don;t want to plant it early in the north.
Fast Gro Sunn Hemp 50% sorghum 25% Buckwheat 25% g
$2.15/lb $43 per acre Planting dates: Once the soil hits 60 degrees and no threat of frost Planting depth: ½”
so any of you who want a solution to warm season food plotting. This mix will take you to the fall and then come back and plant/overseed your fall mixes.
to order [email protected] 608-235-0628 m-f 8 am-5 pm cst
I'll try to document my process/progress here. The deer are already hitting my clover big time so I'm very interested to see how this will impact their interest in the clover.
Howard
I planted sunn hemp last year and this resulted in this experimental mix. Deer love it and yet why i sell it in cover crop seed and deer mixes is the ability to grow 6' tall in 8 weeks and it's ability to fixate 100 units of nitrogen. WIN-WIN
My goals are to fixate nitrogen or scavenge nutrients once during the year. Add organic matter once during the year and to provide highly productive forages as many days a year as possible.
I'll have some pictures of this mix coming soon from field staff and program members.
After turning these plots I disked down to as fine a seed bed as I could then rolled them with the culti-packer. I broadcast my seed and 150lbs of 19-19-19 between the two plots which are just under an acre combined. I then packed them again perpendicular to the first packing and seemed to get pretty good coverage of the seed. Now I just need some rain. We've only had about 1/2" of rain in the past 3 weeks.
Howard
where about are you from? I live in Kingston, MI.
The sorghum is a fast growing photo period sorghum.
another option is sunn hemp, buckwheat and lablab and/or cowpeas.
Many might not know this but i can custom mix anything.
Healthy soil... proper pH, high organic matter, the correct amount of n-p-k but 81% of you are short on sulfur....sulfur is HUGEEE and no one in the industry talks about it. My clients have been adding extra ams for years and it makes my job easier balancing animal diets.
Next people need to treat soil like your treating those deer. To grow productive forages you need "microbes." I bring up my seed starter and foliar plant foods all the time and for good reason. Your "opening up the soil" You want a lot of worms, beneficial fungii and other living micro organics, just like we want them in animals and even in our guts.
Humics loosen th soil, resulting in higher oxygen levels. Humics help "chelate" the fertilizers you put down as well as help uptake what nutrients exist in the soil. Humics also help reduce water run off and reduce plant diseases and stresses. So, when it's dry....GRANDPA RAY'S thrives.
Everyone focuses on whats above the ground and that's improper thinking. When my education plots were sstunted because of cold temps and no rain, a smart old mentor of mine said to me...John, relax, your growing a powerhouse and they will explode when mother nature helps.
ROOTS are our powerhouse and thats why i put organic growth promoter on all my seed mixes. I am the only company in the US to use totally uncoated seeds that also have organic growth promoters on them. It's why you see my fast grow looking so well. A field staff member has already clipped his SOIL BUILDER mix 3 times this year.
Some of you have seen my 5 foot tall brassicas from a couple years back. It wasn't rocket science why they were that tall and why the deer pounded them 1 day after opening day of gun season. I'm no rocket scientist. This is all basic agronomy.
So again here is my secret to my success proper pH high organic matter levels proper major minerals and sulfur plant growth promoters liquid seed starter foliar plant foods feedings 1-3 times per growing season whoooollaaaaaaa
Here is a picture of the fast grow from a guy in kansas at 30 days.
