One of our very well established clover/rye plots is nearing the end of its perennial life cycle (it's ladino clover). This plot is ~.75 acre and has been limed and fertilized over the past 10 years (we've planted a wide variety of things from corn, to turnips, to clover). We're currently entering season 4 of our clover stand, and here is what it looked like in the fall of this past season:
I shot a very nice buck here in late October, and the deer are hitting it regularly even now (there are left over shoots of winter wheat and a few brassicas remaining from last years planting that they're hitting still). To put it bluntly, this plot is working.
Maybe it's my curious nature, but I'm considering a somewhat alternative to this planting this spring.
I'm thinking of tilling this up, replanting in ladino with rape and possibly a nurse crop for the rape. However, my question is this. However, even though the chicory will effectively be more palatable longer into the summer, since it produces so much forage, do I have to worry about over-competition of the clover in the early growing stages? It's recommended to use a grass as a cover crop for the chicory, but I want to plant winter wheat in August not in the spring when I would normally plant the cover with the chicory.
Any suggestions here? Should I just stick with the rye/clover combination? I would really like to get winter wheat and some chicory in there (no turnips which is why I'm leaning toward rape) for late fall/early winter.