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No Till Food Plots - So Easy

Stressless

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Keene, OH
Dr Grant just started a interesting series that complement the soil health construct you've been sharing. Not sure I would have listened as closely as I did without doing some reading and listening, sparked by this thread. Thx AI.

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at1010

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Dr Grant just started a interesting series that complement the soil health construct you've been sharing. Not sure I would have listened as closely as I did without doing some reading and listening, sparked by this thread. Thx AI.

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yes sir. He has partnered with some of the best in the industry. A monoculture - unless for farming, doesn’t make any damn sense. I’m happy Dr. Grant has got off the bean only monoculture ideologies. His videos always are solid!
 

at1010

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The idea behind quorum sensing continues to fascinate me. Similar to epigenetic triggers in humans, whitetails, etc. - quorum sensing within the soil micro-biome- is a very real phenomenon that further drives soil building capabilities, rhizosheath creation, and optimal nutrient densities in our food and crops.
 

at1010

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Cont.

The analogy I like to use:

Quorum Sensing is like a baseball team. If you have 6 ball players (microbes) on the field, you are going to have some clear gaps in your defense (soil profile, pathogen defense, etc.). As you increase the number of ballplayers and 9 is now reached (quorum level), you can achieve far greater consistency of play and possibly achieve greatness through this level of 9 is reached, which would be unreachable previously.

Not the best analogy but one that I hope helps folks grasp this fascinating topic.

Hope you all enjoy it!
 

at1010

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A friend of mine was at farm today and took pictures for me.

This is a prime example of what I consider an ideal #wildlifepasture This field is loaded with various growth stages of plants, from various families of plants. I have overseeded this with buckwheat, red clover, spring oats and sunflowers.

From bees to fawns to turkeys to Bucks to soil biology- this wildlife pasture will feed them all!!!

Build Better Soil!!

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at1010

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I am not sure I have shared this one yet, I have listed to this twice and just find it fascinating.
OM without soluble carbon doesn't correlate to healthier crops. We can have soils with lower OM, but higher soluble carbon relative to the soil profile, which results in better responses from plant species. All about creating a functioning system!
I also really enjoyed John's take on deep tillage to help to fix compaction. This is not something he would suggest doing yearly but to fix a bad issue quickly, a deep till followed by well-balanced cover crops and subsequent diverse plants would be most beneficial.

No situation is the same, learning and adapting are always the best!

Build Better Soil!
 
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at1010

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View attachment 127987


Years ago, I would look at this field as a disaster. I would have worked this ground twice by now, tilled in beans, sprayed the beans, waited and prayed for rain, sprayed again, then tilled it all come fall to plant another crop.

Today, you can't wipe the smile off my face when I look at this picture. If you notice there is a doe meandering through this field. Also, note that much of Ohio is very worried about a drought right now. Does this field look like it lacks water to you? The reason is that it is a functioning soil system, taking advantage of the symbiotic relationship with the mycorrhizal fungi network, allowing the plants to become far less susceptible to drought!! This field is a photosynthetic machine - root exudates are being pumped into the soil to feed the biology and help build OM!

We cannot see is the various stages of growth and plants in this picture. but they are there. I suspect that doe is filling her rumen with hairy vetch, clovers, buckwheat, oats, sunflowers, and the awnless rye grain seed heads. Turkeys will come through here bugging and eating the clovers as well. The field would be buzzing from the sound of pollinators, doing what God intended.

Come July-August, I will spray this field, let it dry, and seed right into the standing thatch. If time permits, I will bush hog off the thatch 2 weeks later just to help spread out the layer of thatch. This thatch will feed microbes, but not nearly as much as the constant root exudates being pumped into the soil will. The thatch will help to retain moisture, and keep the soil cooler during the "dog days of Summer", lastly it helps to keep weed competition down.

After that, I will sit back and allow the microbes to go to work, and allow the wildlife to continue to utilize these nutrient-dense fields.

Hope you all enjoy this perspective on why I love Wildlife Pastures!

Build Better Soil!

AT.
 
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at1010

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Crimpers can be costly but I’ve been experimenting with mowing off winter rye, brassica, crimson clover mix and I’m pleasantly surprised.

I know my thatch cover won’t be as even as a crimper but I am ok with this for wildlife pastures and/or even my produce producing areas.

Here is a test strip I did just recently - a bushhog would work better than a finish mower like I used with this tractor.

All that to say - I am really liking the idea of mowing off vs. needing to spray.

DE9A3364-93A6-4884-A6EC-01CFAD6D6EAF.jpeg
 

at1010

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My morning reading is discussing the soluble protein content in alfalfa vs. red clover. This is important to realize for both whitetails to cattle.

Red clover has double the bypass protein of alfalfa - this means it won’t simply pass through the rumen, into the waste. This is due to the tannin levels found in the red clover.

A monoculture is never the answer, but a strong consideration towards add red clover to your next mix, might be wise. Your deer, soil and/or cows will thank you!

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at1010

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Going down - let’s see what these tests are all about.
1. Haney
2. Conventional test, lab 1
3. Conventional test, lab 2

Going to measure the variability between these tests and see what it tells us about soil amendment recommendations vs. active biological availability in the soil. I will also share the differences between both conventional tests.

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at1010

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Here is a video on how I am going to be testing Haney, vs. conventional vs. conventional. The goal is to see how these tests vary, on the same soil, with same sample methods, etc.

I look forward to sharing my results!!

 
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at1010

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This morning I am reading about cover crops being used in a citrus orchard.

Being in Ohio it would be very easy to skip this section as I don’t plan to grow oranges anytime soon.

However, there is always a lesson to take away. My favorite in this article wasn’t the fact this farmer was able to save his trees through use cover crops where even strong pesticides couldn’t help - although impressive.

My favorite part was the excerpt above. How the plants can have a “systemic acquired resistance” - which helps to create more resistance plants and even some microbes produce antibiotics that the plants can uptake.

All of this cannot be possible without a functional symbiotic soil system.

Be it a garden to a massive corn field, these are all things we can consider to help us Build Better Soil!

#ohio #farming #soil #dirt #covercrops #regenerativeagriculture #regen #garden #planthealth #soilhealth @greencoverseed


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at1010

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Inorganic Phosphorus in soils is highly immobile.

Adding inorganic P to most soils, one,results in wasted money and two, its leached or bond up rapidly. Think of a positive and negative magnet coming together, that’s how P acts with iron (for example) - strong bond that will not be solubilized without active and healthy microbes. Meaning, it is not plant available once bonded.

When we add P (the little that is absorbed) by our plants cause our plants to become lazy and the root exudate output and photosynthetic engine doesn’t run optimally.

Here is an example:
We often hear of buckwheat as a great crop for making P bio available. This is true, due to the specific exudates buckwheat releases. However, if our buckwheat is growing in a dysfunctional system - the exudates will be subpar, resulting in minimal root growth, solubilization of P and overall a less healthy crop.

Per PhD Christine Jones - mixes are best to have at-least 4 different plant family species. Without this we will not optimize our soil engine.

Diversity is king!

Build Better Soil!!
#covercrops #soil #soilhealth #dirt #farmlife #farming #farmingforwildlife #garden #gardenlife #organic @greencoverseed


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