No Till Food Plots - So Easy

[at1010]

Great webinar - if you only want a section of it, watch the last 10mins. Dale shows how in 15 years he increased the OM 7%! That is a remarkable achievement. Although OM is often used as the baseline for success, he also was able to increase water infiltration, microbial activity, etc.

Thanks for following along.

 

[giles]

They have destroyed that plot!

How much fertilizer comes from deer? Any studies on that part of this?

 

[at1010]

They have destroyed that plot!

How much fertilizer comes from deer? Any studies on that part of this?

There are no direct studies on deer and their impacts on soil (that I am aware of). There are a lot on cattle but a few caveats that must be understood.
1. Deer can add micro bacteria to our fields in three ways - salvia, urine, feces.
2. Deer can also not be controlled in the wild - which presents issues of over browsing.
3. When deer browse, they may or may not deposit any in the field in which they are eating - which means OM walked off the field!

In cattle there have been several studies on this, GREEN COVER SEED - has some great information available. They are often doing paddock grazing - this is essentially a highly controlled grazing method specifying weight per paddock/acre and allowed grazing in each paddock for a specific duration of time. Often, the time is set relative to the amount of forage that is removed before allowing them to move to the next paddock. I believe they try to never let the amount removed be more than 50%. This optimizes animal OM deposits on the soil and the photosynthetic engine, in the plants, from stopping if being over browsed.

Hope this helps. Sorry, it is a bit of a grey answer.

 

[at1010]

So to elaborate a bit more - I wanted to share this from GreenCoverSeed 6th addition.

33 days after 80+% of the top forage was removed, the plants never resumed root growth thereafter. Amazing that at 50%, most of the plants had minimal root growth stoppage!

Entire resource here:

https://greencover.com/wp-content/uploads/shrg/referenceguide6th_web.pdf

 

[giles]

Did you weigh any of the does you guys harvested this year? We killed the biggest 2 does I've seen on the property this year and the bigger one dressed out at 100 pounds. The other was just over 90. I have seen a good number of deer on that place this year, just nothing of any size. I chalked it up to the amount of pressure on the property. Now I'm thinking it could be a mix of the two combined. I should've had the teeth sent out to check age. Maybe I'll go get another one and do that....hmmm

 

[at1010]

Did you weigh any of the does you guys harvested this year? We killed the biggest 2 does I've seen on the property this year and the bigger one dressed out at 100 pounds. The other was just over 90. I have seen a good number of deer on that place this year, just nothing of any size. I chalked it up to the amount of pressure on the property. Now I'm thinking it could be a mix of the two combined. I should've had the teeth sent out to check age. Maybe I'll go get another one and do that....hmmm

If memory servers me correctly both does we’re 115-120 dressed. My buck was 185 dressed.

 

[at1010]

Ep 49: Albert Tomechko

Podcast Episode · Beasts Of Burden · 12/29/2021 · 1h 35m

podcasts.apple.com

Got invited to talk to Jesse all about soil - if you are bored, give him a listen. Jesse's dad was Lickcreek on the old QDMA forums who was extremely well known and respected for his deer hunting food plot tips/tricks. Jesse is a great guy and I had a ton of fun speaking with him.

 

[at1010]

Episode #78: Adam Chappell

Podcast Episode · Regenerative Agriculture Podcast · 12/30/2021 · 54m

podcasts.apple.com

This was a very cool podcast from a farmer in AR - really fun to hear his perspective on a very large scale and a wide array of crops!!

 

[at1010]

Another book down on soil health. Wow! Dr. William Albrecht was a genius.

This is not an easy read and I wouldn’t suggest this to be the first book on soil health you read. I read many of the pages multiple times over, to increase my comprehension.

If you are interested in history of cover crops being used back into the late 1800s. Experiments that were done to understand mulch vs. non mulched and the impacts on nitrification on said soils. History of CA to MG saturations and how it impacts yields - how these tests were performed was fascinating. Finding and explaining antagonistic relationships and how it’s not always a linear correlation between two cations because a third ion (for example) may be impacting the others, in that specific soil profile.

The information from Dr. A about how they were inquisitive about how the microbiology impacted soil chemistry as well as plant physiology was WAY ahead of his time. Basically explaining some of the rhizophagey cycle.

All in all - each soil is different. Each problem and success is derived from differentiation in circumstances. The best way to understand what’s happening is to limit variabilities in soil testing, tissue testing and keep learning from others.

 

[at1010]

Got the chance to be on another podcast to discuss soil. It’ll be two parts but as always was a lot of fun!!

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/habitat-podcast/id1362671817?i=1000549160832

 

[at1010]

For anyone interested here is part two - boy was this fun! Always tough to hear yourself though, super critical of myself but I enjoyed the conversation.

Habitat Podcast #166 – Al James – Soil Health Series Part #2 – Improving Soil Naturally, Sandy Loam, Clay, Cattle Pasture Improvements, Herbicide Costs & Weed Suppression

Habitat Podcast #166 – Al Tomechko joins Jared Van Hees on the Soil Health series podcast #2. This is a great informative discussion so get ready to take notes! It is time to think about savi…

habitatpodcast.com

 

[at1010]

One of the many reasons I love highly diverse fall mixes that include rye grain. They feed the soil and wildlife all year.

If this small plot was only brassicas or beans, it would be gone. By having a diverse blend of brassica, grains and clovers we not only take advantage of the soil benefiting but also the ability to photosynthesize more readily as the rye/clover continue to grow and feed wildlife at the earliest signs of snow melt off and sunshine.

This allows us to have a constant root growing - which means we are feeding the soil and the wildlife. Symbiotic relationship folks!! This is also why and how a cover crop for a garden is beneficial to feeding microbes - as the cold tolerant plants continue to photosynthesize!!

Build better soil.

 

[Stressless]

+1 bud.

After the disaster with over browsing in some experimentation plots (brassica) I hit them w 200#/acre of rye 13 Oct... very late. Those and the plots I left in legumes and then overseeded with rye are the only place the deer are getting any green (that's one of my overseeded legume plots "Bottom" below) rye overseeded into it 10 Sep. I'm sure it's just the rye under that snow with the legumes being frosted out but that rye will grow as soon as the frost is out of the ground, maybe before March hits with 6 days > 50° in the 10 day forecast.

The deer roll in as it grows thru the fall, winter and late winter - March is just about the only thing green around. all my plots are going to mixed legumes which have lasted the last three years almost into Dec and 125# /acre overseeded rye.

 

[Stressless]

Doc Grant lays out a good laymans soil health and why ($$$) it makes 'cents'. Have you heard much on Green Cover as a company seems they bet the farm on cover crops and soil health.

 

[at1010]

Doc Grant lays out a good laymans soil health and why ($$$) it makes 'cents'. Have you heard much on Green Cover as a company seems they bet the farm on cover crops and soil health.

Green Cover is a large COOP that has provided cover crop seed for AG for quite a long time. I have noticed recently that they are often out of key seeds, like chicory, crimson clover, etc. not sure why that is the case.

They do a great job of hiring and interviewing some of the greatest minds in soil health. From Dr. Christine Jones to Dale Strickler - they are all brilliant! Very good youtube watches.

All in all, I continue to love the soil health movement. However, I still think some guys are far too polarized when it comes to pitching it. The idea of "never ever adding anything" seems a bit far-fetched to me. The caveat of this seems to be "if you buy my expensive crimper and no-till drill and seed blends".

I firmly believe in the importance of microbial life and populations in our soil. I also believe we should be cognizant of our base saturations in the soil for both structure and general nutrient availability in the soil. I think we can accomplish a lot with Lime and some foliar sprays, specific to deer plots. Once we have found that balance, I do believe with the correct mixes, techniques, and managing the deer browse levels - we can create some amazing soil and nutrient dense plants.

Just my take. I look at everything on a continuum and try to land somewhere between them all. A great podcast to listen to is AG PHD Radio - gives you the perspective from the larger AG farmer side, who care about cover crops, input costs, base sat % levels, etc.

 

[Stressless]

Yupper, everything has a normal distribution, soil health no exception. Folks on the lower knowledge to folks and companies "all in". I'm not buying a crimper that I'd have to buy a tractor to pull it with - although I can appreciate the processes.

Thx for this thread and all of your experience and energy you share in this area. I'm smarter and making better decisions with the background and info provided. Looking fwd to more.

 

[at1010]

Yupper, everything has a normal distribution, soil health no exception. Folks on the lower knowledge to folks and companies "all in". I'm not buying a crimper that I'd have to buy a tractor to pull it with - although I can appreciate the processes.

Thx for this thread and all of your experience and energy you share in this area. I'm smarter and making better decisions with the background and info provided. Looking fwd to more.

Yep. I might someday have a crimper, but honestly, a bush hog and herbicide works well if you arent anti herbicide.

Thank you for following along! Many more great things to come!

 

[at1010]

We cannot achieve the results we wish without knowing from where they derive - test your soil!

 

[at1010]

Big New for me guys - @bowhunter1023 (please delete if this isn't allowed)

I launched a seed company that focuses on soil health, deer health, garden health, etc.

First release:

We are honored and humbled to officially launch, Vitalize Seed Co. After years of taking calls, emails, texts, etc…it was clear that accessibility on the “how-to” portion of soil building was missing.

We’ve identified that access to high-quality diverse seed mixes, pre-formulated with specific Carbon to Nitrogen ratios, with an easy-to-understand “One-Two System”, was what many consumers wanted and needed to achieve success.

We have set out to offer the highest quality seed mixes that utilize subsequent plantings, maximizing nutrient cycling. An example of this is that our Spring mix will feed the soil, so the fall mix can take full advantage of the natural biological nutrient cycling, reducing our grower’s reliance on synthetic inputs/expensive fertilizer.

There are a lot of great companies in the outdoor industry. Here at Vitalize Seed we look forward to serving food plotters, gardeners, hobby farmers, and full-scale agriculture, and thank you for the opportunity to do so.

Please check out our website for our ECOMM section and our list of distributors.

https://vitalizeseed.com

This is just the beginning!

Sincerely thank you for the opportunity to earn your business.

Albert Tomechko - President and Founder
Jared Van Hees – Vice President and CO-Founder

 

[bowhunter1023]

All good brother. Happy to help you promote the new venture given how much you've contributed to this place over the years. Now if you can convince Jared to jump in occasionally!