Preventing Excessive Volunteer Rye

[H80Hunter]

Hi all,

I planted two small plots in the LC Rye mix last fall (with great success). This spring, everything going as planned as the Rye is starting to form a seed head and the clover is exploding. The Rye is reasonably thick but by no means choking out the clover.

Here's my question: I plan to mow this, lightly till and plant the same LC mix again in August (western Wisconsin).

Do I need to do anything to prevent a problem wih volunteer Rye?
When does the seed become viable (approximately)?

I know my options are basically mowing or cleth but I'm less sure of the timing aspect. It's not super thick so leaving it stand is preferable but I don't want to have issues with the next plot.

 

[OkieKubota]

I have never had issues with volunteer rye grain. I let it go to seed and never seem to have any come back on its own...I use the rye grain for my throw n mow for fall.

 

[dogdoc]

Birds eat most of mine.

 

[H80Hunter]

Yeah im planning to plant more of it so not a huge deal just something that occurred to me looking over the plot today.

I'll probably mow the plot a couple weeks before tilling and planting fall plot. I'll use a lighter Rye seeding rate and I can overseed if necessary.

 

[Jason Broom]

Hi all,

I planted two small plots in the LC Rye mix last fall (with great success). This spring, everything going as planned as the Rye is starting to form a seed head and the clover is exploding. The Rye is reasonably thick but by no means choking out the clover.

Here's my question: I plan to mow this, lightly till and plant the same LC mix again in August (western Wisconsin).

Do I need to do anything to prevent a problem wih volunteer Rye?
When does the seed become viable (approximately)?

I know my options are basically mowing or cleth but I'm less sure of the timing aspect. It's not super thick so leaving it stand is preferable but I don't want to have issues with the next plot.

The key part is in bold: If you let those rye seed heads harden off, then you mow and lightly till them, you'll have WAY too many seeds in your fall plot next year. The following spring it will choke out anything else in the mix. Ask me how I learned THAT lesson!

If you're going to mow it, do it before the seed hardens. If you mow after the seed hardens, as part of a throw-n-mow plot, do NOT lightly till or disc the plot. Either one of those efforts, or a lot of turkeys eating seed heads, will mitigate for the risk of too much rye in your 2017 Fall plots.

 

[Chainsaw]

Once I mowed rye at just the right time (late July as I recall) and then disked it and there was too much population. In the twenty years since I just leave it standing and as dogdoc says the birds eat most of it. The cover it provides standing in the clover field is excellent.