Rye v. Ryegrass?
08-23-2010, 12:47 PM
#1
Spike
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: NE Ohio
Posts: 3
Rye v. Ryegrass?
I'm a bit confused at the moment. I'm hunting in NE Ohio and I just got a place cleared and plowed for a plot. Eventually, I'd like to plant some clover here. I don't want to plant clover until I have the soil tested and the pH corrected, but I don't have the time to do that until next spring. I just want to get some seed in the ground so I have something green to hunt over this fall. I know rye isn't of the greatest nutritional value, but at this point I don't really care.
I picked up a bag of annual ryegrass at the local co-op today. Is this different than annual rye? If so, will it make a big difference? Thanks!
I picked up a bag of annual ryegrass at the local co-op today. Is this different than annual rye? If so, will it make a big difference? Thanks!
08-23-2010, 02:16 PM
#4
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Ponce de Leon Florida USA
Posts: 10,079
Cereal grain rye and ryegrass is different. I have read that ryegrass doesn't have a lot of nutritional value and it isn't a preferred food for deer. Plant oats. I made the mistake of planting ryegrass years ago in a couple of plots and have had a hard time getting rid of the stuff.
08-23-2010, 02:38 PM
#5
Fork Horn
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: MN
Posts: 342
Annual ryegrass and winter rye are very different. Annual ryegrass is not a preferred deer food, and it will not survive the winter. Annual ryegrass is great if you want a fast growing lawn, but there are better options for a food plot. Winter rye is a cereal grain, like oats. It will survive your winter, and stay green all winter. Winter rye will become more attractive to deer as the temperature drops, and provide early spring feed as well.
My opinion would be to return the ryegrass and ask for winter rye.
My opinion would be to return the ryegrass and ask for winter rye.
08-23-2010, 02:56 PM
#6
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Hughesville, PA
Posts: 2,590
Cereal grain rye and ryegrass is different. I have read that ryegrass doesn't have a lot of nutritional value and it isn't a preferred food for deer. Plant oats. I made the mistake of planting ryegrass years ago in a couple of plots and have had a hard time getting rid of the stuff.
08-23-2010, 03:02 PM
#7
Typical Buck
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Person Co. NC
Posts: 884
Dont know about there, but here ryegrass(both annual and perennial types) lives through the winter. Deer do not like it, but it will grow anywhere. It is included in several "throw and grow" food plot mixes to make the hunter feel successful, because the alleged "food plot" will at least be green.
Winter rye(cereal rye) is a small grain, similar to oats or winter wheat. It is the most cold tolerant grain. It can survive -30 and germinate at 33 degrees. It is an excellent soil builder with a very fibrous root system. It also scavenges for nitrogen that would be otherwise lost from previous crops.
It will do decent broadcast with no soil prep other than some exposed soil. I have broadcast rye into standing soybeans prior to leaf drop to have a food plot even after the beans have been harvested. I also use it often on first year food plots as a cover crop while the pH is rising for more suitable crops and to help increase organic matter. It does surprisingly well on poor soil, tolerates a Ph down to 4.5
It also has allelopathic properties(keeps many weeds form germinating). More info on that than you want here...(http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/Entom...998/pester.htm)
Sounds like a miracle plant? Close, but at least around here deer like oats or wheat better
.
Winter rye(cereal rye) is a small grain, similar to oats or winter wheat. It is the most cold tolerant grain. It can survive -30 and germinate at 33 degrees. It is an excellent soil builder with a very fibrous root system. It also scavenges for nitrogen that would be otherwise lost from previous crops.
It will do decent broadcast with no soil prep other than some exposed soil. I have broadcast rye into standing soybeans prior to leaf drop to have a food plot even after the beans have been harvested. I also use it often on first year food plots as a cover crop while the pH is rising for more suitable crops and to help increase organic matter. It does surprisingly well on poor soil, tolerates a Ph down to 4.5
It also has allelopathic properties(keeps many weeds form germinating). More info on that than you want here...(http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/Entom...998/pester.htm)
Sounds like a miracle plant? Close, but at least around here deer like oats or wheat better
.
