Contributors to this thread:
Temps look good to put corn in the ground. All it has to do is dry out a little.
I am ready to rumble. Planting 5 acres of corn this year. Most I have ever done
I started by knocking down the old corn and soybeans. Soil temps are nowhere near warm enough unless you are in the extreme Southern portion of Wi. My neighbor is a big time crop farmer and I wait until He has his in the ground for a week. This way when its coming up The deer,cranes,turkeys eat His while mine can grow. I am going to plant corn/soybeans and sorghum. I rotate the fields on a 3 year cycle. These are not food plots to hunt over but for winter feeding. I will plant some Winter Rye Later on by the deer stands as well as some rape and turnips. Our deer stands are way to wet (flooded) as they are bottomland hardwoods.
Sorghum is interesting Red. I did it once. I am rotating corn/beans. How does sorghum fit?
I am also going to do alfalfa for the first time myself. Love screwing around with the tractor.
I'm going to try the eagle seed(rr) soybeans this year.. I'm going to have to fence some off if they are going to last till hunting season however.
Been there done that with Eagle beans. Fence them or they will never get over the ankles. I just plant regular beans now at 1/2 the cost of Eagle beans.
Wednesday evening, broadcasted ladino and crimson seed into last years weed free RR soybean plot, untilled. The following weeks rain should get it going nicely.
This years RR soybean seed is a 1.2 maturity, medium tall, medium bush type. This early maturing soybean should allow more time to broadcast clover/brassicas when the leaves start to yellow.
I have done eagle beans as well. Agree, not worth the money.
Thanks for the advice. Should i just get a (rr)forage soybean from my local ag shop or what?
Yes. If you have a turkey fed group our pheasant forever you might be able to get them for free. G
I get my seed from Pheasants forever,Its about $25 a bag for corn or soybeans its RR. and works fine. Sorghun works for a change to the soil but deer really don't eat it.I just broadcast and it works well. Rye turnips radishes I get from local Co-op they know what works best for your area, no need for pictures of deer on the bag.
what pound bag and how many day corn is it
How do You guys handled the spring prep with corn stalks? I always plant something different then the ag fields anyways but even with a 58hp 4wd tractor and implements knocking those stalks down is a real pain so I quit planting corn 10 years ago.
I just bush hog the corn with a JD MX8 and no till beans right in. Simple. The residue is brittle and the drill has no problem going right through it.
My only worry is tractor tires and finding shed antlers in them. I pay some Amish kids go through the field before I bush hog - so far it's been a good investment.
Bull, You ever attend the state Amish auction the first Saturday in June on hwy C, clintonville? Awesome furniture, quilts, baskets, ect.
No but I have heard of it. I should do that
Every year I hire these kids to plant trees for me and/or pick rocks. I really enjoy these kids. So clean cut, hard working and full of simple joy. . Part of my annual enjoyable experiences on the farm
Sometimes I think they have it right
I just brush hogged all my corn last week, not too bad of a job.
Novemberforever, "How do You guys handled the spring prep with corn stalks? I always plant something different then the ag fields anyways but even with a 58hp 4wd tractor and implements knocking those stalks down is a real pain so I quit planting corn 10 years ago."
Before getting a 6' rotory cutter(brush hog), it was just multiple passes with the disk harrow. This is with a 1960 Minneapolis Moline M5, two wheel drive, wide front, and a UO, 11' wide, 36 disk, tow type, hydraulic lift, disk harrow with about 350 lbs of added weight. The disk has wooden bushings and is older than the tractor.
By cutting the stalks first, two or three passes with the disk harrow then I can broadcast and disk in soybean seed. Keep in mind I try to plant corn with strong root and stalk strength so it has good standability through the winter. A foodplotter could use corn with weaker stalk strength so it is easier to chop up/decompose in fall or spring. ;-)
I just brush hog and then a tiller,broadcast corn or soybeans with a fertilizer spreader,the drag. Wausau the bags are normal size, like about 50# PF is good seed. I don't know how many days it is. I don't fertilize or Lime just rotate,What Grows grows, if a bad year for growing I will knock it down and plant some Winter Rye.Thats pretty cheap at local co-op.
Clover is really coming up right now. Planted 300 Norway spruce yesterday, start spraying for plots next weekend.
This week of rain will set us up nicely for planting about 1.5 weeks from now. I can't wait
Rjn - my clover is doing the same. Guys brag about rye but I think rye only gives you 2 weeks advantage over clover and clover is more attractive to the deer and turkeys. The stress is over for the deer on my properties.
If we get this week of rain, cold temps ... it is gonna be a while before the soil dries up enough to work, and warm up enough to plant.
... just have to settle for trimming and planting trees. ;-)
I've got sandy loam. 3-4 days without rain and I will be ok. Still have to put down 25 tons of lime and 8000 lb of spring fertilizer. That and bush hogging last years corn are jobs #1. I am planting 5 acres of corn this year. If I could get this in by the 15th I will be in great shape.
Memorial Day week I hope to plant 1 acre alfalfa (overseeding BFO), 3/4 acre sugar beets (trialling mixing in beans) and 5 acres of soybeans
I am ready to rumble
not close yet in southern Clark cnty.- way to wet. we never did get the corn in last year due to the horrible spring. Can't wait to get to it this year, we also brush hog the stalks, we plow and it usually takes a person on the ground to occasionally clean the mouldboards
Way to wet in Waupaca for tractor work. 5/10 maybe.
Agree. Good for trees but too much these last days
Not looking good to plant for at least a week. Ground temp is not good and forecast looks better but not warm enough to germinate corn... way to spendy to plant early and rot in the field for me. Everything will be tilled and ready but seed won't go in for a while yet...
global warming baby... vote tree hugging democrates..they know their stuff ..lol
Discing starts Wed. only for the pumpkin, bean, EW strips.Plant on the 13th.
Agree. The weekend of the weekend of the 10th looks like the start for me. 2000 trees this weekend is on deck.
I got 90 day corn so I don't think it is worth it to push anything.
big work weekend planned, putting a new steel roof on the cabin and planting 100 Hazelnut bushes, ordered 12"-18" size but they ran big and they are all 36" tall. Excited to see how they do, supposedly the wildlife love them?
WD, cage the hazelnuts or they will be browsed and have no chance. I do cement wire, 5 feet tall, 10x6 boxes,t posts, 15 plants/box, no gly as the weeds help sunburn, for about 5 years.
Nov. so you plant in clumps, is this just for ease of fencing?
Yes, once you get them going they have sucker roots. You stand no chance w/o fence. Only certain species are no browse, Norway spruce, buttonbush, spicebush, ect.
I've had a very different experience with Hazelnuts than NF has. I am not saying he is wrong, just different experiences. He does have a much higher deer population than I do that is for sure. The deer never bothered ours. We planted a ton. You have to control the Meadow Voles, they will girdle in the winter. We mow between the rows to keep the grass/weeds down so the hawks and owls can take a few. BC
just bought the fences and landscape fabric and staples for below which turns this into a real job, especially since the bushes came so big will have to dig holes now. We are blessed unfortunately w/ Canary grass which chokes out anything you try to plant, the stuff is amazing
2000 shrubs and pine in today. Also put in 8 more apple trees. Still too wet to get a tractor on the fields. A buddy of mine drove by the ski hill in Wausau and they are still open !!!!
They are def. not still open Bull I drove by it last week. There is still some snow up there in spots, but in no way enough to be open.
Buddy must have been drinking. Real possibility.
Checked with a guy that grows Hazelnuts commercially and he said the only time deer damage them are when they rub them in the fall. He has no issues with the deer eating the nuts either. His property borders a woods.
I planted 10 apples trees this weekend, now those are all protected or they will be destroyed. BC
Finally got on the fields. My corn from last year got bush hogged and we got 25 tons of lime down.
Getting ready to rumble
We got strips disced for beans, pumpkins, ew today. Chisel plow Friday, disc, pick rocks and plant next week.
here is a shot of the cabin roof almost done. Also got 35 of the Hazelnut bushes in, great weekend. Were weeks away from being able to get into the fields
Is anyone going to plant something that greens up early in the spring? It has the possibility of improving winter survival and drawing in deer early that you can hopefully keep on your land through the summer and into the fall.
"Is anyone going to plant something that greens up early in the spring?"
I do every 8/1. WR/PTT/GGT/FHR/Rape mix. Carries them thru winter and into 6/15. Apples/pears/pumpkins and beans help also.
Rye is the first that greens up in the spring. Clover a close second. I love white clover and so do the deer. WI chicory plus is my go to seed.
Last year I had deer in my clover during gun season and I can't imagine a colder Nov than last year. Great plot. Lasts 3-4 years if maintained.
WI clover is good from April through November. Hard to beat
All WI products are insanely expensive. Here's 1 example on herbacide.
WI Arrest pint size: $27.95 per pint covers .5 acres: $27.95 x 2 pints = $55.90 per acre
WI Arrest gallon size: $138.98 per gallon covers 3.5 acres: $138.98 / 3.5 acres = $39.70 per acre (Rate per acre is approximately 36.5 ounces per acre)
Rural King Tide Clethodim gallon size: $59.98 per gallon plus approximate shipping of $15.00 = $75.00 +\- covers 18 acres +\- (rates can vary from 6-8 oz per acre to a higher rate for tougher perennial grasses. I used an average rate of 7 ounces per acre to get 18 acres per gallon. $75.00 /18 = $4.16 per acre.
Clethodim: $48.50 per gallon includes some shipping. Covers 18 +/- acre (depending on rate used) 128 oz / 7 oz = 18 +/- acres (same as above) $48.50 /18 = $2.69 per acre.
$55.90 / acre WI product (pint size) $39.70 / acre. WI product (gallon size) $4.16 / acre Rural King product (gallon size)
Agree Nov
WI clover is worth the expense. I buy two BOB products. Only two. I thoroughly tested each.
1. WI chicory plus - clover mixed with chicory
2. Buck Forage Oats.
I also plant alfalfa, brassicas, peas, corn, rye and soybeans. The above two products are worth the $.
Don't get me wrong, the others work but if you are looking for an edge these two are worth it
I love all things Antler King.
I am going to try pumpkins this year with out other family members knowledge. They have been dismissive of the idea for a few years, so I am just going to plant them around the edges of our plots and hopefully prove them wrong.
I will report back in 5-6 months.
Wausaw,That is a real nice meat pole
I have had luck not watering mine that I planted 3 years ago. I put a couple bags of mulch around each one which helps retain a little more moisture. That being said they would probably be a little farther along had I been able to water them more often, but a 300 mile drive just doesn't make that realistic. It also really depends on the soil you have them planted in, if it has a lot of clay you don't need to what as often as that moisture sticks around a while. If its that sandy stuff that drys out fast, you pretty much would want to water them every day it does not rain the first summer they are in the ground.
Good luck
I have had luck not watering mine that I planted 3 years ago. I put a couple bags of mulch around each one which helps retain a little more moisture. That being said they would probably be a little farther along had I been able to water them more often, but a 300 mile drive just doesn't make that realistic. It also really depends on the soil you have them planted in, if it has a lot of clay you don't need to what as often as that moisture sticks around a while. If its that sandy stuff that drys out fast, you pretty much would want to water them every day it does not rain the first summer they are in the ground.
Good luck
I've never watered mine and haven't lost any that I know of. Not protecting them from deer and meadow voles are issues we've had in the past. Water when you can, if you want to I guess. BC
I water my new apple trees every week without rain. They recommend 4 days. Never water my 2 nd year plus trees
We made a set up with an empty tote off my tractor shed. It catches the rain water. All I have to do is drive out with the tractor and water. Sometime I need to fill it with a hose but prefer the rain water
This year I am adding 4 water holes so I will have to fill these as well
Farmers are planting corn this weekend boys. Mother Day is my priority but next week it should be game on
Talked to my caretaker. Planning on putting down my 500lb/acre of fert and he hopes to do 5 acres of corn this week.
The fun has started. Hopefully he can get the beans in and I can do the alfalfa and sugar beets Memorial Day week
I planned on planting corn this upcoming weekend but the rain might just put a damper on things for me. I have 25 Tamarack, 25 Apples and 25 Service Berry's coming in this week to plant. My son and I turkey hunted this weekend and got a lot of prep work done. Fun times! BC
1/2" of rain set us back this morning
Got all mine in yesterday before the rain. Now will not do anymore planting until the last week of July first week of Aug.....tunips/rape/radish.
Planted my corn on Saturday. Mostly sandier soil. I was amazed it was dry enough to get thru the low spots. Tilled and replanted part of our clover field also.
I am jacked up. My caretaker got in 5 acres of corn and laid out 8000lb of fert today. 5 acres of beans tomorrow. I am on the board. Rye is mowed to 3" and clover plot is mowed down. Game on
Why so much fert? bad soil or what? That would be enough fert for me to do 27 acres.
I been putting down 350-400lb acre of calcium and potassium sulfate - sweetens the plots and gives me an edge. I treated 16 acres if food plots yesterday
We got 5 acres of beans in today.
2 more acres to go of alfalfa and beets
The weather barely gave me the windows thru 7 days(14 hours per) to complete a long list of things to do.
1) Planted/caged 30 apple and pear trees. 2) Plugged 200 sandbar willow,100 9bark, 500 dogwood. 3)Dug 2 new waterholes. Buried my JD 2550 beyond the axles hitting a spring while digging. The neighbors 8 wheel White popped me out. 4) Installed 5 new big game legacy stands. 5) Brushed specific limbs from 9 gun towers, changed out/filled all propane tanks. 6)Chisel plowed, disc, picked rocks, fertilized, planted, packed 4 acres of beans, 1 acre white clover, 1100 yards of EW.(18 hours on the tractor) 7)Shed hunted, counted winterkill. 8) Dropped 3k at the GB Cabelas installing a trolling motor for my Canadian trip in July.Ouch! 9)Gave a land tour with 2 buddies from this site. Great suggestions. Doing more berm work and speckled alder next spring. 10) Met with the forester for a winter logging. 11)Installed a pier ladder for swimout. 12) Shed cleanup. 13) Got to MPLS. for my Son's college graduation. Great moment.
made 2 more waterholes. Buried my JD beyond the axles when hitting a spring.Big game legacy stand to the right installed.
More berms being installed.
Direct lightning hit on an old maple. The stand I built in 1980 was blown out of the crotch. Always bring a 1 iron with You. Not even God can hit it.:)
Getting me jacked up Nov, my work week starts Friday. That berm is something, wow.
I have most of my plots in. 1.4 of alfalfa and 3/4 acre sugar beets is all remaining
Cool pictures
November - wow, that didn't leave a lot of time for drinking beer?
Nov my caretaker called, we got a couple of inches of rain last night. Our plots should have gotten an awesome soaking.
We put in two watering holes this week, perfect timing as well.
Yes, timely rain and my ag renters check cleared. All good.
Spring planting done. Alfalfa and sugar beets got in perfectly. Rain tomorrow. Now focus will shift to spraying and mowing till mid August.
I am pumped
My ag renter got his corn in and the 57 acres of beans go in tomorrow. My fall mix seed is ordered and ready for 8/5ish.Woodies in all the boxes. Awesome weather. Happy memorial day and thx to all who served.
Amazing how fast things pop with the right weather. This morning my oats, corn, beans and alfalfa all have popped. Sugar beets even are emerging.
Weather forecast is awesome
Corn and Soybeans have been in for over two weeks and popping up, good to see. I planted about 2 acres of Deer Creek Seed with the technical assistance of Nutritionist (from this site). I am really excited to see how that looks. I planted it over a week ago.
This year, no complaints from me about the weather. It's the first time in two years that I can say that. I'm hoping for a normal weather pattern, we shall see.
I have 4 fall plots to get ready for an August planting. 1 is about an acre, the others are small, 1/4 acre or less.
Good times. BC
still mud in southern Clark county. Really chomping at the bit to get the dirt turned over. Hopefully can get plowing this weekend
Planted 2 acres beans and 2 acres corn. Interested in how they do since they were both broadcast and disced in a few inches.
1" rain this morning. Hope to get a farm report soon. Great growing year so far. My caretaker is mowing my clover plots tomorrow already!!!!!
My corn is about 8-10 inches tall and beans are 6-8 inches. Getting rain when needed.
Impressive. Where are you Lama. Southern WI?
Mowed 3 acres of clover today. Beans and corn up 3-4" and looking good. Oats are up on alfalfa field I planted. Not seeing much on the sugar beets yet but I hear it takes 3 weeks for them to emerge
Lots of deer sign. Season looks to be off to a great start.
South central. Been working the soil for years. Planting WW and rye then rotate to turnips and radishes to corn and beans. What really has helped was switching to radishes. The root goes very deep and keeps the soil aerated plus it puts nitrogen back into the soil.
Land right next to the food plots is putting them in. It has been a fallow field for 20 years. Mowed it and ran the disc over it and it looked like sand compared to my field.
our fields finally dried out enough in Neillsville and we got our corn in yesterday, thank goodness for 78 day corn
Corn and beans are in great shape. Deer are mowing off the oats. Alfalfa just coming in behind the oats.
Deer sign is fantastic. Should be growing at rate the deer don't have a chance to beat me now. Time to get them fat and healthy.
Got a report this morning. Caretaker couldn't sleep, went and sat in a box blind to see how the deer were doing.
He saw 15 in my 1.4 acre newly planted alfalfa plot. I am going to buy another plot watcher to help assess the attractiveness of alfalfa vs WI clover. I planted the alfalfa with oats as a nurse crop about 5/26
Cameras out in 2 weeks boys. Population looks good. Antlers?????
Beans are about 5 inches. Saw a buck last week that was beyond the ears, slowly gettin pumped.
I have 5 acres of beans around this alfalfa field up 4-5". Deer didn't touch them. All went for the oats/alfalfa.
This could plot may really help me finally grow decent beans. Normally in Sept I don't have any leaves left.
Nice buck if out past the ears already. Cameras out in 2 weeks.
My corn is just about knee high now, not everywhere but most of it. My beans are getting pounded and are not getting above 8 inches as the deer are eating the new growth fast. No biggy as I will be mowing them down and planting turnips/radishes anyway.
Lama. How many acres of beans do you have?
I increased mine from 2.5 to 5 this year to try to get some to grow. I have a medium /high deer population.
Total of two acres. 2.5 of corn.
Lama - you and I are doing a very similar food plot strategy. I plan to drill oats and brassicas into any defoliated beans. Hoping 5 acres and the alfalfa field gets some bigger plants this year and I only have the edges completely destroyed.
I have 2 acres of cannamaize in. Some of that field i interseeded eagle beans and another companies beans in row and in between row so that they crawl up the corn stalks.
I have a plot of a new experimental brassica blend in last week, an experimental spring green mix, and also small test plots of: crimson clover berseem clover buckwheat egyptian wheat Lablab refine soybeans a 4 bean mix rutabaga sunflowers and i have small plots of various combinations of grain mixes, peas and oats, peas and triticale, peas and barley
Just ordered my fall plot mix from Jmar. 24 bags of winter rye, 25 lbs. Ptt/GGt/Fhr/3 bags of rape. plant 8/5ish, enjoy till 6/1/15
November. There will be another Orange County Ca hunter in Waupaca county opening day 2014. My sons is in engineering school and is bringing a buddy. Thought of you.
I am getting more excited as this year goes on. We have plenty of deer in the area
Sprayed today. Last time before fall planting.
Corn looks great - knee high. Soybeans 8". The deer finally are hammering the beans. Alfalfa, beans and clover are withstanding significant browse pressure.
Couldn't have asked for better conditions thus far. It will be interesting if my fertilizer work and alfalfa get the 5 acres of soybeans to Sept with leaves. The deer are making an impact right now
The corn I drilled into the old alfalfa field is a little spotty. I think the drill didn't get through the sod and residue. We've sprayed it twice, next year I should have bare dirt and left over beans to drill through next year.
If it would ever quit raining! I might be able to get done. I had two plots get flooded out and just got back in them last night and replanted with eagle beans. I have 3 fall plots that I need to work up and respray before planting time. At least my two acres of corn looks good, even though they got in a little late.
We got hammered yesterday with rain as well. Fortunately my plots are in good drainage areas and well established.
My buddies are putting up my redneck blind for me tomorrow. This is a dream set up. Water hole and in a grassy, shrubby meadow between two destination feeding plots with 12 yard killing strips on each. From this stand you will have corn, soybeans, oats, peas, rape and turnips within 30 yards.
I can't wait to hear how it turns out.
Corn waist high and looking great. Beans 8". Clover plots look fantastic and actually appear to have the most use right now. New alfalfa plot 6" and a little spotty. Sugar beets look better where mixed with soybeans (trailed straight sugar beets vs mixed with beans)
More rain today. Soybeans don't like wet feet, the rest of the plots should be ok with this wet year. Corn is really busting away right now.
Same report here. 8/1 on the fall/winter mix.Lots of deer out mid day as the deer flies are unreal.
I do a little different in the fall than you do Nov. Picked up my fall seed today. 4 bags BFO and 1 bag AWS peas, 6lb rape and 3 of turnips. 2 acres of oats and 1 of brassica
Also putting potash and boron on the alfalfa. Fun to play around with this seed. Bought another plot watcher yesterday, plan to cover all my clover and alfalfa plot to see if the deer prefer clover or alfalfa. Deer sign right now says clover. Plot watcher will be the real test
24 bags wr/3 bags rape/25 lbs. ptt/fhr. same mix for 19 years.
Nov - it's interesting to me how you're so successful with that recipe. I think it is because your land is the best in the area for habitat and the deer are there. Plus you have a huge population and when the corn comes down, they have to eat something. No baiting should help you big time. I would guess there is 1000's of pounds of corn piles that keep deer in that swamp.
I think I have 1/2-2/3 the deer you do. I am in big woods compared to you and mostly rolling hardwood. I don't have the best habitat but it is improving slowly. I need to plant for attractiveness.
I have done multiple trials of rye vs oats. Rye is useless to me in the fall. Deer will not touch it, end up in oats every time. I guess I never planted just rye and didn't give them a choice, maybe then they would eat it? Most years I plant a little rye for the spring green up, skipping this year since the soybeans look so good (they have leaves) I don't want to drill into them. This may change by Sept.
Kind of interesting. Would be nice to have such a simple formula and be so successful. Amazing to think the deer eat 12 acres (guessing based on your recipe) of rye and brassica. That's a statement in its own self.
Clover is doing wonderful. Corn waist high and deep green in color, couldn't be happier on the corn. Soybeans are 10" tall and beating the deer. 1.3 acre alfalfa field is a little spotty but the deer are keeping it mowed. No sign if having to cut it anytime soon. Sugar beets look awesome but I planted them too thin. Some are 2' apart. Next year I need to figure out a no till drill setting.
Interesting camera observation - multiple picture of a set of triplets. No shooter bucks but lots of deer. The most attractive plot on the cameras and plot watcher is an in woods clover plot. WI chicory plus continues to impress me.
Only had cameras out a week and checked them to make sure they were set correctly
I planted this EW on 5/10 on all foodplot edges and any remaining road views. Already 6 feet tall and 6 feet wide. Darn, no shining fun.
I'm planting rape, purple top turnip, and groundhog radishes this weekend. The soybeans we planted in early June look about as good as they get. I will broadcast winter rye into beans around 9/1.
Looking great November
I plant fall plots last week of July. Can't wait. Hope to sit in some stands with my wife and her new telescopic camera and get some pictures
Never curse the rain. We could use some. Corn starting to curl. Not a good time to dry out
