Not in my experience. I Planted it between pine rows in sandy soil and it did quite well with just some fertilizer. A little lime wouldnt hurt though.

A pH of 6.0 to 6.5 is good for most grain crops. It' s only the legumes like clover and alfalfa that need basic (>7) soil (generally).

Dan O.

benhunting, thanks!! Do you need to disc the soil for Oats and wheat?
Dan, The area' s I want to plant in rye have a soil PH. of 4.9 to 5.8, can I still plant these area' s without lime? thanks, Pike

Yes, you should work the soil in order to get good seed soil contact. I have broadcast the seed in clearcuts without discing in the past with Ok results. This usually requires more seed than when planting on a proper seed bed. Working the soil and pressing the seed will also prevent the birds from eating it all before it gets a chance to germinate.

J pike,
Everyone pretty well answered your questions, except for the pH. 4.9 is getting very low. From my limited knowledge, I would say that it will grow. For grasses (like rye,wheat and oats), pH is not as critical as it is for legumes. The advantage of having a pH near 7 with grasses, is that any fertilizer that is applied will be more available for the plants to utilize. So you will get more bang for your fertilizer buck if you bring the pH up higher with lime which is generally cheaper.

I would also disc before planting if time and terrain permits it. Depending on what I plant, I generally just lightly disc after seeding. This works well with rye, oats and wheat where planting depth is not as critical as it would be for clover. Like someone said above, you can just top seed grains on bare ground, but the birds and the weather will play a major role on its successs. If there is a major vegetation growing on these roads, success will be reduced. Shade may have some factor on the logging roads as well. Good luck.

greg

Add lime to anything that is below 6.0. Start handling, it' s a bad job but the payoff should be great. Liquid lime might be the answer if you can haul water to mix it.

J Pike,

According to our MSU extension agent, on all of there forage testing, annual rye was the most tolerant of low ph. At the same time, I have experienced a total die-off of rye on a field in the mid-4' s for ph.

The difficulty of applying lime is often exagerated. All of my lime recommendations for my 9 food plots totaling 5 5/8 acres and ranges of 4.1 to 5.0, were around 4 tons per acre. During the past 4 years I' ve put out over 28 tons of lime, with around 6 tons put out by hand. It is relatively easy. You just get the powdered, bagged lime-I pay $50 a ton, open the end of the bag, and walk with it spreading the lime about 4' to 5' as you walk a normal pace. At this pace you spread around 4 tons per acre, and 2 guys, and 2 ATV' s can get the job done of applying 2 tons, on a 1/2 acre, in under 2 hours, if you have to make 15 minute round trips to pick up you lime at 500#' s per ATV at a time. Get 3 or 4 guys together, and I bet you could spread 4 or 5 tons in a 1/2 day or less. I know you can, because I' ve done it.

Another thing, every plant has it' s optimum ph level. Spread the recommended amount, and your plantings will be much more productive and worth your time. I' ve only ever used rye for my first plantings on a new field, and that' s it, and even then I always mix some clover and brassicas. You' d be surprised how fast clover can take on a new field, with the right amount of lime applied.

Try spreading the lime by hand, it' s pretty easy and I' d never let it keep me from a good planting, especially if you are working with just a few acres, and have a partner or two to help.

Jeff...U.P. of Michigan