questions about brassicas plots

[mxsmitz201]

this is the best picture i have of my brassicas plot, disregard the hut i built lol.

the plot is roughly 1/3 of an acre with massive plants/leaves. if i were to walk through it, it is well up to my knees. deer activity has been slow since i moved the hut there but before it wasnt unusual to see them eating the leaves like it was going out of style, and to my disappointment they love the flowers of the mustard grass!!

anyway there is 2 distinct plants growing, one has a deep root with a bulb 1-2 inches in diameter. the other just a deep route but has very soft velvety like leaves and almost broccoli like stalks/stems, best comparison i can come up with, and of the two, very appetizing as i tried one and it wasnt bad!!! (this is what the deer have been eating)

but my main concern is, is the plot overgrown? i just cant get over how thick and large the plants have gotten, and am worried its unpalatable to the deer. does it take a few seasons for the deer to become accustomed to brassicas? the deer havent discovered the bulbs, and i am afraid once a frost hits the plot will just rot away and stink up the area more than it already does lol

[wdswtr]

They will sweeten up after the first frost, then you should see more of it eaten. One of my plots has soybeans, winter peas and brassicas in it. They are eating up the soybeans like crazy, after the first frost they start in on thr brassicas. Just my observation of what happens here. Winter peas was first time planting them so I will assume they will get attention, well in the winter lol.

[mxsmitz201]

i found a really cool thread on brassicas on a different website ill post the link here... but from reading it i was able to determine what exactly is planted and that in some cases deer wont give it any attention. i guess time will tell.

but check out this link its very informational about planting brassicas...oh and ill never buy tecomate brassicas mix again. although it grew phenomenally with no fertilizer or any attention to it what so ever.

http://iowawhitetail.com/forum/showthread.php?t=15388

[wdswtr]

Why wont you plant tecomate again? I have planted it several times and it gets wiped out from the deer.

Wait till a frost sets in you might change your mind.

Edited October 4, 2012 by wdswtr

[G-Man]

in areas where other food is plentiful deer will ignore brassicas till late season, where food is scarce they will hit them hard. I have one field knee high pretty much untouched, but 1.5 miles away all that is left is the bulbs in another field. Personal experiance 2 years and every deer in the woods will know what your brassicas are for.

[growalot]

Some times it takes a year for them to discover brassica ....if it has never been planted in an area...or they wont touch it until late winter to eat the bulbs...but the next planting...watch out for they'll be mowing it down...depends on the herd...Mine are getting hit hard in one field and not touched in another...but the soybeans and hemp are still trying to grow in those fields so that's their preferred food...plus the clovers...alfalfa and chicory and oats there as well

I personally don't care for the commercial seed...unless they have a sale price better than the ag seeds

[mxsmitz201]

Why wont you plant tecomate again? I have planted it several times and it gets wiped out from the deer.

Wait till a frost sets in you might change your mind.

If you read the thread on the link i posted, they planted tecomate and they claimed it was a lot of wasted seed because there was clovers and chicory mixd with the brassicas. When planted the brassicas just edged out the clovers n chicory so it was wasted seed to them. BUT they never followed up after the brassicas dies off i would think the chicory clover should take over at that point. Any input? Personally i wouldnt want the legumes in the mix because i plan on planting an early season soy and throwing the brassicas in later in the season just like you mentioned and then rotating with winter rye or something.

But i found the container the seed came in and its preferred wildlife not tecomate, i believe it is a local seed company. After reading the seed container and the help of that thread i found, i was able to figure out whats growing. I picked one of each and when my dad saw i had radishes growing he couldnt wait to pick more for his home made horse radish. Not sure how thats gonna work but ill try anything once.

Im excited to see what becomes of this plot late in the season, everything you guys have said is pretty encouraging. There is definitley no shortage of food around so we will see what happens.

[Hunter1]

Your plot looks great.Can't wait to plant mine next year.I just planted 1ac clover & 1/3 ac wild life mix.

[mxsmitz201]

Thanks all i did was prep the seed bed and broadcast it. Lucky to have great soil here. I am going to give winter rye a go next year, no one plants it around here

[wdswtr]

Thanks all i did was prep the seed bed and broadcast it. Lucky to have great soil here. I am going to give winter rye a go next year, no one plants it around here

Wow sure wish I could of caught a break like that! It does look pretty darn good. Come back to this thread after the first frost and tell us how its getting hammered. I think you will see that it will sweeten up good and get used after that frost. Happy hunting!

[mxsmitz201]

ill be sure to do that!!