Winter Rye or Winter Wheat??

[dogghr]

Lickcreek spent a lot of time defending his love for WR on the old forum,and took a lot of abuse about it at times. Was thinking of all his knowledge as I mowed this week.
So I did my mowing of my plots readying for fall plantings. I have used both rye and wheat, sometimes a mixture, sometimes not, over the years. My observations….. yours may differ.

Winter Wheat
Deer love both but really do like wheat in the fall and winter
I see little use of seed heads in spring/summer by game
Wheat is cheaper in my area.
Wheat greens later in spring
I don't see as much browse of wheat in spring green up, perhaps because its is latter than rye.
Both can be over seeded into early Nov. Good for brassica plots that have been browsed heavy.
Wheat tillers more ( in plant growth) so if manual tillage is to be done, is a bit harder especially if using a rototiller.
Good grain cover crop for most anything.
Some weed control if planted heavy to canopy, but on its own, not so much.
Provides fawning cover early summer but often is beat down by then with rains, wind, and animal traffic

Winter Rye, the grain not grass
A bit more expensive since all farmers now cover crop in winter with it
Early spring green up almost before anything.
Deer browse it heavy in fall and again in spring as soon as it reappears.
Doesn't tiller as wheat thus is easier to use with tillage especially if using rototiller
Residual seed gives good fall recropping which can be a plus or minus depending on thickness
Excellent soil building qualities especially in mixes
It will grow anywhere including the bed of your truck
Can be over seeded into Nov and will germinate with temps into the 30s
Used in crop rotations as mixtures, helps promote excellent soil nutrients, ph, and OM
Makes great fawning cover early summer
And most important, not much anything better for inherently suppressing in a variety of ways weeds and grasses

My opinions, you may add or argue or subtract

 

[OkieKubota]

I get better deer fuselage of fall wheat and spring wheat heads but I prefer WR as I use it for cover crops and soil builder in my Rocky ridge top soil. It suppresses weeds in my newly dozed plot areas...

 

[Triple C]

Great thread dogghr. I like WR because it's basically bomb proof. So easy to grow and deer readily use it from emergence in the fall thru green up in the Spring. Helps in suppressing weeds. If I were limited to planting only one thing for deer it would most likely be WR. Easy on the budget and like you stated, it will grow anywhere.

 

[Rempump870]

I like WR for all of the above mentioned reasons plus it can be easily planted with minimal equipment. The root structure of WR is great for the soil, lots of roots that hold soil and moisture. I have found doing a late July planting with WR and Oats and then a late August planting of WR helps to draw in deer and turkeys. When the oats get a seed head in late September, the turkey and deer eat them off. The oats also bring in other birds and wildlife. The WR and clover are providing the greens and the oats provide a little seed.

 

[Jason Broom]

Wheat won't grow on northern Michigan blow sand.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[dgallow]

Local soil and environmental resource concerns should guide cover crop seed selection......further down that list is 'palatability', 'preference' and grazing....you need to be thinking 'soil health first'! IF you are in an area which is dominated by warm season forages, just about anything green plant becomes a 'target' in the winter diet. In areas where cool season forages are common, the animal has more selection opportunity among plants and may show less preference. What is more important?.....that the animal eats this one plant in winter?....or that both the soil and entire forage base becomes more resilient to environmental stress over the long term?

Areas with spring aphids issues (like our area), will see more mileage further into spring with cereal rye and triticale than with wheat (aphids and wet soil issues take out most wheat in April)....that means more grazing days per ac and fewer pasture weed issues with rye or triticale. Mixes of rye, triticale and or wheat can help with the pest issues and may lower the per acre seed cost.

When choosing cover crop components from an economic standpoint, soil health standpoint, and grazable forage , we want 'high mileage plants'....that is plants which are 'proven' on our ranch to tolerate infrequent grazing from October through June. IF we have perennial forages in the mix which extend grazable forage into July and break dormancy in late August even better!

If you really want to build soil, then look harder at C4 than C3 grasses.

 

[dogdoc]

For me it is 6 in one hand and half a dozen in the other. So, I purchase a pasture mix that is half wheat and half rye. Get the best of both and I do feel wheat is preferred but oats are preferred over both.

 

[catscratch]

Every time I plant plots with wheat and rye in them, they walk through the rye to graze the wheat. I planted awnless wheat last fall and this became a common site this spring. She mowed down the wheat heads even though the plot was full of clovers and chicory.

With that said, I'm still going to incorporate rye in my plots for the soil building and weed suppression properties.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[dogghr]

If you really want to build soil, then look harder at C4 than C3 grasses.

Good bit of one of those C4 grasses on my place and its polite name is Fescue. Can't argue with the soil building. But like a person who has the "I" disease, it can't let anyone else get in on the conversation. Dense matt of carpet 10 inches thick. But I do allow it to grow in my plots where I've worked hard to eradicate it. Just won't turn my back on it or it will manipulate the conversation again.

Every time I plant plots with wheat and rye in them, they walk through the rye to graze the wheat. I planted awnless wheat last fall and this became a common site this spring. She mowed down the wheat heads even though the plot was full of clovers and chicory.

With that said, I'm still going to incorporate rye in my plots for the soil building and weed suppression properties.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

I knew as I was typing this thread that my Kansas friend would lean toward wheats. Can't argue and the deer do love it over rye in the fall and early winter. But what else can you say living in a state with 82000 sq miles of wheat? And a beautiful sight in late spring before harvest, blowing in the wind.

 

[lakngolf]

I agree on deer preference of wheat over rye, and oats over both. I plant mix of wheat oats and sometimes broadcast rye after covering. Rye was used for years as winter crop for cattle so anywhere I mow in September I will have rye in late October.

 

[Jason Broom]

I planted a mix last year that included triticale and my dad reported seeing deer pulling it out of the ground and eating it, roots and all. He was really excited about it and wanted to make sure we planted something similar this fall.

 

[catscratch]

Good bit of one of those C4 grasses on my place and its polite name is Fescue. Can't argue with the soil building. But like a person who has the "I" disease, it can't let anyone else get in on the conversation. Dense matt of carpet 10 inches thick. But I do allow it to grow in my plots where I've worked hard to eradicate it. Just won't turn my back on it or it will manipulate the conversation again.


I knew as I was typing this thread that my Kansas friend would lean toward wheats. Can't argue and the deer do love it over rye in the fall and early winter. But what else can you say living in a state with 82000 sq miles of wheat? And a beautiful sight in late spring before harvest, blowing in the wind.

Lol, I've never made it a secret that I like wheat.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[JFH]

Wheat won't grow on northern Michigan blow sand.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

Truer words never written!


Sent from my iPad using Deer Hunter Forum