Your thoughts about RYE??
 

we have some area' s on our property were the soil' s PH. is very low, ( needs about 4,000 to 7000 lb' s of lime per acre, we cant get a lime truck into these area' s or much equipment and we just cant afford to buy enough lime for these area' s with all the other planting we are doing in area' s with near perfect soil. The thing is these 1/2 to 1 acre clearings are perfect for hunting plots, these clearings are the middle of the thickest area' s of the property where as the other area' s are more of a feeding type of plot' s. I would really like to plant something in these area' s, next year we will probably plant them in corn, but we would like to do something this year, from what i hear deer love to eat Rye but its not that much of a benefit to them, low in protein (from what I hear ??) and also high in fiber, but these plots are more for drawing deer out of the thick cover. Would rye be a good choice? or is there something else that we could plant that PH. isnt a factor. Thanks, Pike

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

Try a wheat/oat/rye combo. I plant this with pretty good success in the more acidic soils.

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

Darn good drink. Especially Canadian Rye. LOL

Farmhunter has recommended it many times. The mixed plot that I put in last fall was mildly successful but I have too much other food around.

Dan O.

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

Rye is good for alot of reasons, deer do like it alot in the fall, but the best reason is the extensive root system it puts down by the end of May the following spring - it pulls nutrients up from 2-3 feet down - thus preparing the soil for the next planting. Mow it, and plow it under before planting corn, it makes good green fertilizer when plowed under for a corn crop the next summer. Its cheap, and worry free once planted in the fall.

Rye is easy to plant and offers excellent carbohydrates in the fall, until snow exceeds 6" depth. Depending on the other forage in your area, you may find that you will ALWAYS want a rye plot in the area come fall.

Good luck -

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

Thanks for the help guys!! Im not too concerned about other food sources as competition, we have 1,250 acres in SE. Ohio, other than the 20 acres of 85 day corn that the farmer we allowed to plant and the 10-12 acres of clover we will be planting in the fall, the 10 or so acres of rye wont have any competition from any other Ag crops or food plots from the 6,000 or so acres that border us except from the normal natural browse, our neigbors are what we call grass farmers, ( if they plant anything at all) and the mast crops usually get gobbled up pretty quick by the deer and the billion turkeys on our property. last winter the deer were digging up the grass on the logging roads like crazy for food, if the rye works we will plant all 17 looging roads in rye next fall and the clearings I am currently talking about in corn and leaving it stand all winter and it will also give us miles of rye. thanks again for the help. Pike,

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

Here' s another 2 cents worth. The rye is cheap and when you disk it under it will re-seed itself. Good for building up the ground. terry

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

lawn farmer, thanks to you aswell!! Pike

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

J Pike.

I would go with the combination of rye, oats, and wheat. If you plan on disking it in to reseed, wait until it is fully seeded out and the stem has lost the green color. Wheat can also be reseeded the same way. I have good luck buying feed quality grains for planting which is a lot cheaper then buying seed quality. I am sure you may have thought of this, but planting this on logging trails, may be great for the deer, but not so good to hunt over since the deer will be disperse over a larger area. Good luck.

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

If you plant rye get the Marshall variety. I plant a 9 acre field of it every year.

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

Hi-wall, Thanks I will try the Marshall variety.
Greg, Does wheat and Oats require a soil PH. of 6.5 or above? And yes I have thought about the disadvantages of planting the logging roads, But unfortunately we dont have very many open area' s and the only clearings that would be suitable for bowhunting over have bad soil, but at present the deer are feeding anyhwere they please anyway and our property is no better or worse than the 6 thousand acres that surround us, infact before light and after dark we see just as many deer leaving and crossing the dirt road that surrounds our property as we do crossing the dirt road and comming on our property, some times one night we will see a buck leaving our property and the next night he will be comming on property, what we are trying to do is plant as much food near the middle of our property as possible to keep as many bucks on our property as we can, ( or atleast spend the majority of their time on our property) if we dont plant the logging roads we can maybe plant 35 acres if we do utilize the logging roads we atleast double that and though it may be harder to pattern the deer by planting logging roads, 70 acres will provide alot more food than 35 acres, and we still will be able to pattern the deer alot better then we were able to last year because we will know wich direction they will be heading once they leave their beds, where as last year they could go in any direction because there wasnt any better or worse food in the direction they chose to travel that particular day. Pike

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

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.

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

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.

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

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

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

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.

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

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

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

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.

RE: Your thoughts about RYE??
 

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