Spring/ Summer Plots

[Creek chub]

I’m itching to start planning on my spring / summer plots. This will be my third spring / summer messing with deer plots. Lots and lots of mistakes and a few successes here and there. Living in SW Va, poor soil is plentiful in the mountains and I’m slowly improving the soil in some plots. Our pastures are fertile but after not raising cattle for a few years, my family is getting back into beef cattle again but at a lower # of head for many reasons. I can’t say I’m looking forward to square baling again, but man I love the smell of fresh cut hay.

I’m going to try pearl millet once my winter rye dies out on an acre plot on the side of a logging road. My goal is to transition this plot into clover and think I should have enough that to throw and mow a combo of red and white clover late summer.

I have two more plots I’m opening up in the woods. One gets great sunlight so I may experiment with a combo of lab lab and buckwheat. The other is partially shaded and on the advice from this forum, I’m gonna frost seed red clover in the next month or so.

Has anybody planted winter rye in late winter or early spring? I have a 50# bag left. I know it will not reach its max height or head out but I may get a nurse crop benefit

 

[wsucoug]

Not sure what the temps are when you are planting the rye, but if you get some cold nights strung together the rye will head out. I have planted as late as the middle of May, and had the rye head out. This was left over winter rye and I did get a few frosty nights post planting.

 

[Mennoniteman]

I've never had success planting winter rye in the spring, it seems like the rye doesn't know how to grow if it doesn't overwinter. Rule of thumb, small grain in the spring, plant oats.

 

[farmer]

I planted about 50 acres of rye last March, about half did great other half was basically nonexistent. I don’t think it would hurt to throw it out especially if you are just looking for a cover crop or to add organic material. As Mennonite said, oats typically are the best small grain for spring planting.

 

[MarkDarvin]

If it can get dry, i'm a fan of barley in a spring planting. Grows and heads out the quickest, uses the least water of the cereals, and I can mow kill it in time for any fall planting, and I've got a short growing season.

 

[coolbrze0]

I planted about 50 acres of rye last March, about half did great other half was basically nonexistent. I don’t think it would hurt to throw it out especially if you are just looking for a cover crop or to add organic material. As Mennonite said, oats typically are the best small grain for spring planting.

How resilient are the Oats compared to Winter Rye? What kind of Oats do you recommend? We've got a place in the mountains of VA also & I've been experimenting the last year or so. Horrible soil there

 

[Creek chub]

How resilient are the Oats compared to Winter Rye? What kind of Oats do you recommend? We've got a place in the mountains of VA also & I've been experimenting the last year or so. Horrible soil there

I have had better luck with winter rye in mountain land soil. The oats did ok but only after I fertilized again