No Till Turnip Food Plots for Whitetails
Whitetail Deer
Are any of you planting NO TILL turnips food plots with success?
I have broadcasted the tiny seed into clover plots late July/early August and have had enough success that I do it regularly.
FWIW.....I'll be trying purple tops again this year. Had good cam vids of deer pulling them out and eating them. I got the latest batch off of EBay. We'll see what happens....
West,
I don't know if you are asking me but I have done purple tops, but mainly now I use the package of Sugar Beets and Winter Bulbs. I have had great luck with them.
You can broadcast small seed, no till style with great success. Sugar beets are particular and prefer attention to detail. If you are a beginner, I would stick to something simple, turnips area a good example. BC
I've planted lots of brassicas with Throw-n-Mow. Always an easy to grow crop (ptt and radishes). Many years of uneaten turnips have turned me off of the crop, I plant mostly radishes instead.
Habitat, assume I spray the plot 2-3 weeks prior to planting & then mow it as short as possible prior to planting. Can I just wait until we have a light rain then broadcast the seed & tamp it into the ground with a roller? Or is that not needed?
The deer ignored my turnips for quite a while the first few months I planted them. I've read they like them better after the frost because the freeze turns the bitter starch to a sugar. I usually rough up the ground with a disc, broadcast wheat and turnips, then run a drag over them.
Hancock, spread seed before mowing. Mowing helps shake the seed down to the soil, and covers it with a layer of thatch. Thatch on top acts a greenhouse to maintain moisture and a humid atmosphere. I've used a roller hanger mower. While it doesn't hurt I've ran lots of side by side tests that say it doesn't help either.
Hancock, spread seed before mowing. Mowing helps shake the seed down to the soil, and covers it with a layer of thatch. Thatch on top acts a greenhouse to maintain moisture and a humid atmosphere. I've used a roller hanger mower. While it doesn't hurt I've ran lots of side by side tests that say it doesn't help either.
I agree with Catscratch, spray, wait until a wet period, spread seed and mow.
Thornton is basically saying seed to soil contact is the key, and I agree also. As you stated in the PM, you read my Micro thread. That rye was seeded over the standing beans without turning the soil, and now the clover was frost seeded into the rye and you saw the results. I usually go a third heavier on seed recommendation per acre when I do it this way, but that is much less expensive than diesel fuel.
FWIW, my best results have been when the soil was turned, chiseled, in the 2-3 years prior to that. Just a hunch that the soil is still loose enough for the roots to work their way in, not sure this will work on very heavy clay and compacted soils. Also, your results probably will not look magazine cover ready as you will have some weeds, but forbs are one of a deer's main annual food sources so I don't concern myself with their presence unless they are varieties like serecia or thistle.
Not turning the soil though helps with weed control and moisture retention much as intended with no till drilling. I would rather have a no-till but they are not in my budget. I documented the Micro thread after experimenting and realizing it worked enough that maybe LOs with a limited budget might find it useful and rewarding, or at least I hope. Obviously a number of variables at play, like your soil type, moisture etc. Rye grain, not grass, is very easy to do and has some benefits in improving the soil and I have found deer like it just about as much as wheat. My grandfather taught me the benefits of frost seeding and I do it with my lawn every year as well.
Hope that helps. GL!
