Author Topic: Spring Plots are In (Read 1563 times)

Land_Owner · « **on:** April 18, 2010, 04:32:57 AM »

Two great weekends of weather and work, back to back, and I am way ahead of the "curve" for this season's plots. I finished discing, lime, seeding soy beans, and final grading of 3 acres. Now I am waiting for rain and the morning birds are filling their gullets with any of the exposed seed. guess I will have to shoot the ones that can no longer fly...

Blue Duck · « **Reply #1 on:** April 18, 2010, 05:17:56 AM »

Nice to have it done this early. Im a couple of weeks behind you.

Land_Owner · « **Reply #2 on:** April 18, 2010, 06:57:32 AM »

I told myself last season, never again by myself, and never again all in one weekend. It wrecks me physically - too hot, dehydrated, exhausted.

So Friday I disced by myself and Saturday had help. I forgot to remind myself that just because I wasn't fertilizing this time, I was still shoveling and spreading lime by slinger, which is a lot more work! The help left after lunch and the seeding and final grading were left to be done by me.

I tried different methods of seed spreading, but ended up doing it again by shoulder mounted hand spreader. Too hot! I was beat.

Sitting on the tractor going over and over the exposed seed dragging a 20' length of chain length fence, making the fields look smooth as glass, I got real tired. Ihope the hog trapping the State is doing adjacent to me will keep the hogs from tearing up the fields as they so often do.

At the end of the day, more work had been expended over the same plots and I was more tired than last year. Well, I at least made it through another planting.

Now, let it rain...

Cecil · « **Reply #3 on:** April 21, 2010, 09:29:45 AM »

Nice to see some one is planting food plots 2 out three plots, I have not been able to plant since fall 2008 to wet. Oh well did get them parshly disced friday before it started raining for two days. Had 1.7 inches of rain by Sunday afternoon back to a swamp, mayby some day!

Land_Owner · « **Reply #4 on:** April 21, 2010, 10:49:17 AM »

Had those conditions a couple of season. Had fires, drought, and hurricane winds on other seasons.

As Gilda Raddner used to say to Jayne Curtin on "Saturday Night Live"..."It just goes to show you. It's always something!"

Hang in there.

Cecil · « **Reply #5 on:** April 30, 2010, 05:17:26 AM »

Well thought I would be able to work the plots Sat, but its raining now!

Land_Owner · « **Reply #6 on:** April 30, 2010, 02:39:45 PM »

The deer are hammering the soy beans. They won't let them get more than 2 inches high and they are staying on them almost all night - full moon and all. One field is now almost barren. I installed two game cameras today to see just how many deer are taking their nightly ice cream social from my fields.

GeneRector · « **Reply #7 on:** April 30, 2010, 03:21:36 PM »

Howdy! In my part of Texas you have to worry about wild hogs rooting up your food plots. I plan to plant a couple of warm season food plots soon. Then about September plow anything remaining under and plant cool season oats and maybe ryegrass. Yes, even deer can ruin your food plots by eating it up before it is ready. I have seen temporary electric fences made to keep deer, hogs, and other critters out of food plots. Best of luck! Always, Gene

Land_Owner · « **Reply #8 on:** April 30, 2010, 04:41:39 PM »

I all season past, the hogs had been thick as ticks on a dog in my woods. Earlier this year the State hired trappers and they took them out by the tons and ran off the rest. Right now, I am having a boat load of deer in my food plots not giving the newly germinated plant any relief. I looked at the cost of electric fence. My irregular fields and disassociated locations means not less than 3 set ups. That drives the cost way up. Maybe one fence could be used to "save" the largest field.

Cecil · « **Reply #9 on:** May 03, 2010, 05:05:48 AM »

We planted Sat ,showered morning and night. maybe they will grow!

Land_Owner · « **Reply #10 on:** May 03, 2010, 12:15:39 PM »

I would wish your plots good luck, but if they perform anywhere close to mine, the deer will eat them to the ground line as fast as the little seeds can germinate. On one hand it sucks on the other it is a good sign of better doe hunting days ahead. I can't get in front of the does in any hunting season. All lands around mine are no-does/buck-only. That's 20,000 acres. Mine is 1/1000th of that.

Cecil · « **Reply #11 on:** May 04, 2010, 04:27:03 AM »

Any time I plant peas the deer keep them cropped, I have had better luck with mung beans they will let them grow longer!

Land_Owner · « **Reply #12 on:** May 04, 2010, 11:00:54 AM »

Gotta check those out. Never heard of them. I am staying out of my fields for the week following setting the game cameras. I will retrieve the memory cards this weekend (unless those cameras were ripped off too - but that was chronicled in a previous GBO thread).

Cecil · « **Reply #13 on:** May 05, 2010, 03:36:24 AM »

They grow better in Loamy soil and warm temps, Might be just the ticket in Fla.

Cecil · « **Reply #14 on:** May 05, 2010, 03:58:16 AM »

Landowner Here is a site with info on mung beans http://www.jeffersoninstitute.org/mungbean.php

Land_Owner · « **Reply #15 on:** May 05, 2010, 08:45:53 AM »

thanks! now I know. I like eating those in salad and wondered where they came from. At 1.5x to 2x the cost of soy beans, perhaps I will stick with beans at $18/50#. I like planting for wildlife. It is satisfying even if they wreck the whole effort in two or three days post germination. Still, I like to see something besides weeds growing in the fields. Perhaps clover is the right seed for that. Expensive though. Hard to collect all of those tiny seeds - one at a time.

Cecil · « **Reply #16 on:** May 05, 2010, 09:20:25 AM »

I only plant Mung bean when I find them in feed grade. Which right now I can't even find seed grade. The only clover I have planted was arrow leaf, Deer were so,so on it. But its also hay clover.

Land_Owner · « **Reply #17 on:** May 05, 2010, 09:54:14 AM »

My plots/fields have no other value, except as wildlife attractants. One crop that had "potential" was Grain Sorghum. It grew like a weed! The packaging said it would attain 48" in height. It didn't stop growing tall until it was 9-FEET. Almost to the top of my 12-foot tree stands.

I am 6'-04". In the photo below the sorghum was IMMATURE. There is a tree stand just over my right shoulder. You can;t see it though. In the "dead looking" tree where the vines are thick and it is easy to conceal.

We thought we were going to have to drive the truck in there to create some shooting lanes. It was also at a time when grain sorghum was being reviewed as a high end quality substitute for corn in synthahol.

Man can I grow that stuff. The deer didn't take much notice. They just wandered through it like it was a shielded playground. Perhaps I should take note of that and try it again.

Cecil · « **Reply #18 on:** May 05, 2010, 10:37:05 AM »

Looks like the same stuff I put in one year Sorghum Sudan, Deer ate it a little when it first came up. Found some mixed cow peas today price $32.74 # 50

Land_Owner · « **Reply #19 on:** May 05, 2010, 11:00:54 AM »

better price than the $38/50# here. We're getting some needed rain and sky cover this afternoon. After three days of over 90 degrees and humidity hovering near 98%. Hot and Sweltering. Little plants making chlorophyl, fixing nitrogen, and growing taller only to have those nasty cloven hooved beasts eat them to the dirt line. Photos of the "usual suspects" this Saturday.

Cecil · « **Reply #20 on:** May 11, 2010, 05:03:28 AM »

Land Owner Did you get any pic's

Land_Owner · « **Reply #21 on:** May 11, 2010, 04:43:52 PM »

Here are a few of the cuplrits. All were after dark.