WI Steve

I' m from central Wisconsin and now that it is getting closer to planting season I have some questions pertaining to planting clover. Anyway, heres my situation. I have a couple acres of previously cropped field to work with. It was seeded with Alfalfa about 5-6 years ago but since then has been taken over by grasses and weeds with only a little alfalfa still left. The site is somewhat low and can tend to have standing water in several spots during wet times of the year. I plan on soil sampling and spraying with round-up after green-up. However, I still have many questions.

1. Do I need to plow or would it be better to just disk alone if I can get away with it?
2. At what stage should I apply the fertilizer or lime? Before disking and/or plowing? After? Can the fertilizer be mixed with the clover seed to provide a more uniform spreading of the seed from the broadcast spreader?
3. What clover or clover mix do you think would work best in my situation?
4. After seeding the clover is it best just to cultipack it or should it be incorporated into the soil with a drag or something first?

Anyway, any help would be much appreciated. Thanx

Russ otten

OK, I' ll try to get you started. Get your Roundup or whatever on the field, Give it a week to work, spread the recommended lime and disk. Smooth up the field with a drag or any type of substitute, chain link fence, old bedsprings, etc. I see no reason why you can' t combine the seed with the fertilizer. If you have a cultipack, use it. Don' t bury the seed deep, press it in. In fact, having no cultipack, I try to plant right before a rain. Seems to do just as well. After it comes up, use fertilizer without Nitrogen in it. Check with your Coop or extension office for the most adaptable seed for your area, even check with a few farmers, they' re in it for a living. There have been many threads on this subject, go back more than 30 days and try to bring some up.
Russ

Dan O.

If the fertilzer or seed get even slightly moist the fertilzer solution on the seed will be very strong. The seed may get burned. Even if the fertilizer isn' t wet the seed will be coated with fertilizer dust. Unless someone has had good experience doing this I' d take the extra time and plant seperately.

Dan O.

wigmap

I' m with Dan O. on the fertilizer. Fertilizer combined with anything at the wrong time can burn it up. spread the fertilizer then the lime and disc it in. Let that get some rain and soak in. Then plant. Mostly I have drug plots but if you can seed right before a rain i think it does work well.