Question For Throw & Mow Experts

[Elkaddict]

I’ve toyed around with throw & mow for planting grain and clover with mixed success. I’m hoping to try the same with dedicated brassica plots planted in mid to late July and am hoping to plant into the previous fall’s rye/clover. My thought is to find a way to facilitate crop rotation with less tillage. My intent is to spray, seed and roll with the cultipacker (as opposed to mowing). Depending on the gly kill, I might be forced to spray again. I’m hoping that rolling would break the rye stems and assist in seed/soil contact. Anyone tried this approach? Any opinion on rolling vs mowing. Any sense that rye’s propensity to discourage weed growth might impact brassica germination? Because my last frost date is so late, planting into rolled buckwheat isn’t an option.

 

[shawn cox]

I’ve toyed around with throw & mow for planting grain and clover with mixed success. I’m hoping to try the same with dedicated brassica plots planted in mid to late July and am hoping to plant into the previous fall’s rye/clover. My thought is to find a way to facilitate crop rotation with less tillage. My intent is to spray, seed and roll with the cultipacker (as opposed to mowing). Depending on the gly kill, I might be forced to spray again. I’m hoping that rolling would break the rye stems and assist in seed/soil contact. Anyone tried this approach? Any opinion on rolling vs mowing. Any sense that rye’s propensity to discourage weed growth might impact brassica germination? Because my last frost date is so late, planting into rolled buckwheat isn’t an option.

back before i had a tractor I planted many plots by spraying and 1-2 weeks later broadcasting my seed and just running around the plot in my truck to press the weeds down .

 

[Mennoniteman]

A few random observations; the allopathic effect of rye is mostly against grasses, so it shouldn't have much effect against broadleaf plants such as brassica. Rolling down clover doesn't work to kill it, it takes a lot of chemicals to kill it,, and if the stand is total ground cover it will outcompete and suffocate the new brassica seeding. A short mowing of clover works well to interseed into it if there's no thick underlying thatch that keeps the seed from making soil contact. However, my favorite method to deal with that would be disking twice, seeding, and then rolling with a cultipacker. I realize that your stated goal is less tillage, and I'm a big notill proponent, but a good disking of a field every now and then won't hurt a notill program and helps control weeds and level out the soil plus prepping an excellent seed bed for a late summer crop like brassica, besides saving a lot of chemicals. Eventually some the clover comes back in the middle of the brassica as it recovers from the disking and that's a good thing too.

 

[Elkaddict]

MM,
I understand the issues with clover. It takes a heavy dose to kill, but it will kill. One of my reasons for no till is the after effects of a lambsquarter explosion last year. Any soil disturbance is kicking it off. For this year, I’m going all RR crops in the affected plots to deal with it but I’m trying to find a process that disturbs less soil in the future in case it spreads. It would also be nice to find a no-till solution to mimic LC’s rotation that I still use on 7-8 acres.

I tried to order a GP no till drill over the winter but the local dealer tells me nothing will be available until July or August with the Covid craziness.

 

[dogghr]

No expert but.. I do these plantings in late July or Aug When clover is summer stressed and thinner. Do so after and before a rain event. helps.
My biggest problem is usually too thick growth of grain. It can mat preventing soil contact and/ or smothering growth. That is why my fall overseeding n brassica or clover is <50# and usually just 25 #/ac.
No till broadcasting requires several years of rotational plantings before it begins to have much success.
At this point after 5+ years of no till , I just let the grains/ clovers / brassica reseed themselves w/o much input from me.
Sometimes you have to take a deep breath as the plots can sure look fugly! I’ve got some sequential pics in a thread. Rambling Plots
https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink/to...ling-Plots.6270/&share_type=t&link_source=app
Good luck.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[FarmerD]

Just for some thought. I use a weed wiper/weed wick with a 50/50 solution of glyphosate. It "might" set the clover back a little, but clover is hard to kill. I don't know what equipment you have but I mount it on front of a 4 wheeler and if you had a pull type cultipacker, I would pull it behind and then immediately broadcast your seed.

 

[FarmerD]

I might have let some grass get out of hand, before ......... 4-28-2019

 

[FarmerD]

Well, sorry, I couldn't get the next picture to load, but in 3 weeks all that grass was laying down, but a cultipacker would surely get it started in the right direction.

 

[FarmerD]

Lambsquarter? Try oats?