cball

I haven't seen buckwheat mentioned here . It's a big crop in Maryland and west virginia ,deer love it.Have you fellows not heard of it?

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cball

From what the farmers tell me buckwheat will grow in poor soil,I know it grows good around northern West va.You can't keep the deer out of it..

farm hunter

I tried buckwheat a couple times. It will grow on poor soils, but really likes Nitrogen. It can come in really thick, and was a good choice for us reclaiming a pipeline right-of-way that was full of goldenrod. When fertilized, on decent soil it grows almost shoulder high. I was impressed at how the deer took to it in the early summer (spring planting) but disappointed with its fall potential. We get frosts in September and October and it didn't fare well. When it went to seed, I thought the turkeys would really be in it, but they weren't - they rather scratched for black cherrys or ash seed in the woods. The deer showed no interst in the hardened seed.

When do the deer in your area feed on it? Its not a real common crop in upstate NY.