mowing millet Q's

[Darron]

I have a couple questions about my millet plot. I planted millet in a section of my perennial plot that stays wet. The millet has taken off, but has yet to seed out yet.

1. When should I mow my millet down?

2. When I do mow the millet, will it reseed itself next spring?

[dogdoc]

was the millet planted for deer or ducks? It's still early so don't worry about it not seeding out yet. If it's for hunting ducks then you can't legally mow it and hunt. If you are planting for deer and want the deer to eat the seed heads in the fall/winter for carbs then you don't want to mow it. If it's for other game birds to have seed thru the winter then mow it once the seeds are mature (turn brown).

[Darron]

dogdoc,

The millet was planted primarily for turkeys, but I had no idea deer would eat the stuff:confused: If I left the millet up through the winter, will the turkeys eat the seeds off the plant? I would assume once the seeds dry out they would fall to the ground providing food?

This spring, will I get a volunteer crop of millet or will I need to mow, disc, and re-seed?

Thanks for your help dog doc.

[Tominator]

I mow my millet down in September, but I grow it for the doves. If you let it stand it will be fine, but if you want it on the ground, easy pickens for the birds, mow it a week or so after the first frost, when it turns that light tan color. If the seed was not a hybrid (which I doubt in millet) there's a good chance you will have volunteer millet next year.

[Darron]

When you mow your millet, do you mow it as close as you can to the ground? I will definetely mow it down by next spring and re-plant something next to my clover plot. I thought about trying Penningtons turkey mix next year by it, which is a mix of chufas and millet.

The one thing I do like about millet is it prevents weed growth big time. My millet plot has hardly any weeds in it because it is choking everything else out.

[dogdoc]

if it was japanese millet then the seeds will fall off very easy and you will get a volunteer stand--but probably not to thick and you will probably be disappointed with the volunteer stand.

[Tominator]

When you mow your millet, do you mow it as close as you can to the ground?

Just enough to knock the seeds off the stalk so the birds have easy pickens.