Does anybody do fallow fields?

[sailinghudson25]

I'm talking about just letting whatever grow in a tilled and fertilized spot and then just moving it periodically.

 

I have about a 1/4 acre of cleared maple tree forest I raked cleaned, burned the branches and spread ash, added some lime and 12-12-12, and then let mother nature deciede what she wanted.   I got yellow clovers, trefoil, and dog's ear in there now.  The deer seem to enjoy it more than the clover this summer.

 

I left this spot alone because it had more rocks in it that the other spot.  It is alsohas  more bumps and dips, so I am worried about flipping my tractor in there.  Tempted to pick the rocks out, till it up with some discs, and put some cereral grains and clover like the rest.

 

Think I should leave it alone.  I only got 3 acres on this spot to work with.

[landtracdeerhunter]

I have about 20 acres, that wasn't seeded for years. What the government calls wild hay. It has legumes, grasses, and some weeds. Deer & turkey have fed off these spots for years when fresh, through the spring and after the 1st hay is removed. I can use the new regrowth to draw the deer in for summertime observational purposes. Turkey come in , more for the jumpers, I believe. Woodcock are showing up more too. Better than trail cams, live action during peak nutritional growing stages.

Everyone has stopped growing hay around me. It works quite effectively. I don't worry about a few weeds as they also have nutritional value. Oh and baleing the hay reaps it's benefits also, LOL.

Edited August 9, 2015 by landtracdeerhunter

[Berniez]

White-tailed deer do eat grass, but they do not eat a whole lot of it. Contrary to popular belief, deer consume only a small quantities of grass and usually only when it is young and tender. In general, grass makes up less than 10% of a deer’s annual diet. Forbs and browse make up the majority of whitetail food.People commonly see white-tailed deer eating in fields of grass, but are they eating the grass itself? Probably not. During the spring and fall, cool-season forbs, commonly referred to by people as weeds, are available and abundant. These are the plants that deer are looking for among all that tall grass! 

Stay away from anything with any fescue in it,  Just keep the field green and lush with all kinds of broad-leafed weeds and the deer will be there.

[growalot]

I Have a B-) a c 'redfield I'm w poo r ok B-) now to go cornflakes back that"fallow" ..it is going into beardless WE and red clover this fall..your raked lined against then buck wheat and a fall Ww again third year will be a beef type pasture planting with redeeming soybeans in the mix...then it will be a fall mowing each year after that...I plans at ahead...

[growalot]

I posted the above to show you how screwed up this Kindle is...I cried Ted every thing twice and still that's what I got!!

PS. Cried Ted was ...corrected

Will repost on PC tomorrow

Edited August 9, 2015 by growalot

[wooly]

I Have a B-) a c 'redfield I'm w poo r ok B-) now to go cornflakes back that"fallow" ..it is going into beardless WE and red clover this fall..

 

 

Maybe it would have been easier if he just asked check "yes or no",lol

Sorry grow, I couldn't resist,lol

I'd love to hear how you grow cornflakes to fallow though!

[growalot]

Watch it get this right....@&&&-$$$$ (/++&$-- kindle!

[G-Man]

Natural grasses and.legumes are a great way.to go , I have started setting some.portion of my larger food plots aside and let them go fallow, makes.great.nesting and bedding cover as well as forage, I would.mow it 1x every 3 years or 1/3 of it a year just to keep woody plants from growing.

[growalot]

OK so I'm on the PC so should be some what coherent...

 Short version of that answer...one acre that is getting worked up and planted for 3 years. Then into a good beef cattle type hay mix and left to grow with 1 mowing a year...I'll probably go with a Sucraseed mix with some other tall growing grass or even a grain rye...This will not be mowed until late so the rye should just reseed and I have found that the southern reseeding soybeans actually re seed some what up here as well...I will put a fair amount of them in the last planting. I'm working the field first because it's my last section of open land to smooth out and de-rock some...but I want it to be a cover and bugging area for birds and the deer love bedding down there even though it is in the wide open and fallow right now. They have beds every where on it....