Oats or Rye??
- Thread starter Satguy
- Start date
j-bird
Well-Known Member
Going to depend on what you want. I like the idea of adding both. The oats will be a better early season draw, but the cold weather will kill them. The rye will grow well into the fall and will be the last thing to continue to grow and will survive the winter and come back come spring as well. So if you are looking for one aspect or another then choose accordingly.....but like stated....nothing wrong with adding both.
Your oats may make it through the winter depending on severity of winter. Here in Oklahoma they can live all the way through. I am planting oats for first time this fall because I have done WR for 3 years mainly as soil builder over rock and I have had some amazing stands of WR but see little use by deer in them. WW draws deer and I have fall, winter, and spring usage. I have read they like oats even better so I am excited to try them...
Satguy
Active Member
What variety of oats are you looking to plant? Welters has Buck forage oats $34.50 for a 50# bag. I am not sure on what variety to plant.
Chainsaw
Well-Known Member
Here in zone 4/5 two separate plantings are best because the optimum planting dates varies. Brassica goes in about now and rye/ oats/ wheat and clover go in sept.01. Oats beats rye for fall attraction here but the two planted together are equally eaten and rye helps our deer in the early spring with the first green food of the year, hiding cover for June fawns, and weed prevention for clover.
Satguy
Active Member
Can I just overseed the clover plots I have with oat seed and will it germinate?
Buck Forage Oats is what I have...
Someday Isle
Member
I have all of one year's experience using both oats and rye. My experience was that the oats got used heavily from almost the time they came up. They died out with our second heavy frost and my winter rye got used all winter through the early spring until it got too mature and the deer moved on to native food. It was interesting the way they hit the rye. I have about an acres worth of food plot trails and the rye was 6-8 inches tall one weekend in mid November and by the following weekend it was like someone took a lawn mower to it and it stayed no taller than 2 inches until late spring. I had enough of a good experience with it that I'll be using equal parts rye and oats for the foreseeable future while I work on improving my soils and opening up my trails. My very limited recommendation is to do both if you can.
Elkaddict
Well-Known Member
I agree with Dave. Separate plots are the way to most take advantage of the different plot characteristics. Separate plots will also promote movement between the plots. LC got it right.
Triple C
Well-Known Member
Bout the only BOB seed we buy. I love the Buck Forage Oats and so do deer. Down here, they make it thru the winter and deer just hammer them.
I have planted buck forage and standard co-op oats and winter wheat side by side in a food plot and there is no difference in use by deer at my place. Buck forage oats are almost four times as high and when you are buying seed by the ton, there is not enough difference to spend four times the money for buck forage. However, I have read where buck forage oats are more cold hardy than regular oats - and it that is the case - in your area it might be worth the extra expense. Winter wheat does better for me on my soils anyway, as it tends not to yellow as bad during periods of wet weather, and doves much prefer the wheat seeds in the summer over oats.
Bullwinkle
Active Member
The only reason I'd plant rye is if I wanted early green plots in the spring
Deer hardly touch rye in my plots in the fall. There are much better attractive plots for the fall than rye including oats
Deer hardly touch rye in my plots in the fall. There are much better attractive plots for the fall than rye including oats
buckhunter10
Well-Known Member
I buy the oats at TSC and ill tell you the deer hammer them. Last year I did plat rye with my oats. I did have a nice green carper this spring which was nice.
Bullwinkle
Active Member
Wheat is good too but I've always heard it's tough on the soil so choose oats instead
Maybe I have wrong info on this. Got it years ago on QDM site
Maybe I have wrong info on this. Got it years ago on QDM site
What do you mean - tough on the soil - that it takes more nutrients out of the soil than oats? Could be - I would have figured about the same. I have planted a lot of oats, also. Wheat just doesnt yellow as bad on my ground as oats / plus, I like the wheat seeds to keep my doves around until the sunflowers get ripe. Seeing as how all the wheat plant gets returned to the soil - not really sure how that is so hard on the soil - but maybe so.
Mennoniteman
Well-Known Member
What I like about oats above other crops is if you plant in September it's the best plot for the first day of gun season on December first. Clover, brassica, rye, corn and beans don't have quite the attraction that a green oats plot does in gun season. And they're one of the cheapest and easiest plots to put out. All those other plantings have their time and place in my rotations, but oats is the go to plot for late fall.
Rempump870
Member
I'm in south central Wisconsin. What do you guys think is the earliest I could plant oats some oats? I am going to do a WR/Oats/AWP/clover/radish mix. Then a couple weeks after this planting, broadcast some WR. Do a layered food plot of sorts.
Mennoniteman
Well-Known Member
I like to start early on fall plots, but just put out a strip, and then add to it, kindof like your layered approach. That way it keeps many options open, I have plant maturity in stages, and the opportunity to replant if drought hits. I'm in zone 6 and I did an acre of LC brassica mix today in what will ultimately be a 4 acre fall plot with several different components. 10 lb of seed for $15 is what I lose if it turns dry. And it's raining on it right now! IMO get started early, but don't invest too much too soon.
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