Planting turnips over soybeans anybody?
02-29-2012, 09:59 AM
#1
Spike
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Iowa
Posts: 36
Planting turnips over soybeans anybody?
Been reading a little on planting turnips over soybeans. Ive heard of several guys starting to do this so they have some late season food left after the soybean harvest. Anybody out there doing it? If so, when do you over seed the turnips? Good or bad experience? Im in southern Iowa, Zone 4
02-29-2012, 02:37 PM
#2
Typical Buck
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Person Co. NC
Posts: 884
If you time it to match up with the leaf drop, that would work best. I'm not real sure if your growing season is long enough for that work. I've done it with winter rye, but never turnips. My deer will not touch them.
03-02-2012, 01:48 PM
#4
Fork Horn
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: ONTARIO
Posts: 128
Are you thinking of planting Turnip second?
The deer prefer soybean spring to mid/late summer, when they want the high protein. Turnips are only good after the first frost. For some reason, after the first frost the starch in the Turnip turns into sugar and then the deer hit it. After it has been frosted several times the Turnip tuber starts to rot and becomes like super candy for them. That is when they dig up the ground to eat the tuber, even the leaves are eaten only after the first frost which works out good for hunting season.
The soybean is for the first half of growing season to help with bigger, healthier deer. The Turnips only help as a hunting season attractant.
Sorry if I didn't understand the order in which you are going to plant (had a few beer), but I hope this helps with your future plans.
The deer prefer soybean spring to mid/late summer, when they want the high protein. Turnips are only good after the first frost. For some reason, after the first frost the starch in the Turnip turns into sugar and then the deer hit it. After it has been frosted several times the Turnip tuber starts to rot and becomes like super candy for them. That is when they dig up the ground to eat the tuber, even the leaves are eaten only after the first frost which works out good for hunting season.
The soybean is for the first half of growing season to help with bigger, healthier deer. The Turnips only help as a hunting season attractant.
Sorry if I didn't understand the order in which you are going to plant (had a few beer), but I hope this helps with your future plans.
03-02-2012, 03:03 PM
#5
Fork Horn
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: MN
Posts: 342
I think in southern Iowa turnips after soybeans should work well. You may want to select an earlier maturing variety of soybean for your area to give the turnips a little more time to bulk up. The deer by me go crazy for turnip foliage once it is the only greens left (about Nov 1), and they will dig through the snow until all of the bulbs are eaten. Maybe try a smaller area this year to see if they will grow, and if the deer in your area like turnips.
