MONSTER MIX & other seeds

[Guest MarylandQDMA]

Has any one ever used monster mix (from tecomate)? if so how well did it work? how/what did you do prior to planting it?

also i'm thinking about planting an area that stays farly wet all the time (well except winter when it is frozen). it is a low area next to a stream. grass grows there in some areas and others little. is there any seed that can tolarate the wet ground?

thanks

f

[dogdoc]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

mdqc01---one of the best plants that can handle "getting it's feet wet" is trefoil---very similiar nutritionally to alfalfa. It is also a very good northern plant--handling the cold very well. You might check with Onieda man--he has a few blends with trefoil in it.

I have never used Monster mix so can't give you a fair comparison--I think the monster mix plus has lablab in it which is a great warm season legume--similiar to iron and clay cowpeas but handles grazing pressure better.

food plots made easy--click here

good luck

todd

[Guest MarylandQDMA]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

thanks for the info. hows the trefoil do in part shade?

f

[dogdoc]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

[ QUOTE ]

thanks for the info. hows the trefoil do in part shade?

f

[/ QUOTE ]

don't know--Onieda man can answer that better than me---when you say part shade--how many hours of sunlight will it get--most plots will do fine with at least 4 hours of sunlight.

todd

[Guest MarylandQDMA]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

Just Guessing i'ed say 4 or 5 hours of sun, mostly in the am.

i'm thinking i'll plant 3/4 to 1 acre in monster mix (area should get about 7 hours of light) and the trefoil on the other acre (moor shaded). are they both a summer plant? will they work for a fall plant as well? if not could i plant them and then in sept. or early oct. plant a fall mix in the same felds?

thanks for the info.

f

[dogdoc]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

majority of your perineal mixes are cool season plots---I do believe the monster mix is a cool season mix so it is not recommended to be planted in the spring. I think Tecomate makes a mix called Lablab plus---that would probably be a better mix to plant in the spring. Perenials are usually slow establishing plants---so if you plant in the spring and have a hot or/and dry summer--they can die before establing a good root system, whereas annuals only have one season to get done what needs to be done so they grow much quicker. Good annuals would include lablab, cowpeas, soybeans, forage sorghum--and others. If your area has plenty of rain---then you might think about planting cowpeas and mixing in a good clover/trefoil mixture like Onieda man has---the cowpeas will come up quickly and when they die with the first freeze you should have a good clover/trefoil crop. You could hand broadcast some turnips/wheat right into the plot around the first of september. Pick a good day right before a rain and just broadcast right into the plot--the rain will work the seed into the soil and should get pretty good germination.

good luck

todd

[Guest MarylandQDMA]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

if i went with the lab lab or cawpeas and mixed them with trefoil (onieda man's) i'll have all of my bases covered. meaning lab lab comes up fast and protects the trefoil from the hot summer. then when it gets cold (oct) the lab lab dies off and i'm left with the trefoil for the fall and winter months. is this corect. where do the turnips and wheat come in to play? are they in addation to the lablab and trefoil? also what about fertlization, i will fertlize when i palnt and should i then add some in more in sept? also what about keeping the crop cut? is it best to keep trimming the crop back (say 6" tall)?

thanks for all the help.

frank

[dogdoc]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

first--you don't want to cut/mow the cowpeas or lablab--they do not respond well to mowing.

Fertilizing, I would fertilize when planting (soil sample will tell you exacts) with a triple 19 at about 250# per acre then fertilize again the first of september with 100#/acre of 10-20-10.

When to plant the trefoil/clover all depends on you annual rain fall--if you are prone for hot dry summers then I would plant it in the fall---if you have mild wet summers then you can plant it in the spring with your lablab.

Do you have enough land to designate half for warm season and half for cool season. If not, then this is what I would do: Disc up the first of april and plant a combination of oats and cowpeas (iron and clay or lablab). Fertilize with the triple 19 at 250#/acre and if possible disc in 200# of pelleted lime (can get in the garden section at wal-mart--cheapest place I have found for bagged lime). The oats will pop up quick--very palatable---the oats will take a little pressure off the cowpeas to give them a little head start--plus oats are very cheap! The oats will last until about mid-june before maturing out. The cowpeas or lablab should be going strong. Then the first of september disc in your cowpeas (deer should have them mowed down by now anyway) and plant the following mixture. Fifty pounds of winter wheat per acre with 200# of 10-20-10 fertilizer--cover the seed about 1 inch then broadcast on top of the wheat Onieda mans Fall Deer Mix---this is a great mix contains 3 clovers, trefoil, chicory, rye, rape, and purple top turnips---broadcast it at the recommended rate. This will give you a GREAT perenial plot. You will want to mow the plot next spring---to get rid of the wheat and then you should have a great plot that will serve you all year for several years.

The plot will need to be mowed a couple times a year early and late summer to keep weeds down.

todd

[Strut_Buster]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

Tecomatte IMO is a better food plot than Mossy Oak. My monster mix was kept nice and low all season. All we did was roto till thsi area.. lyme and fertilize. Planted and coverd witha drag. Also we sprayed the area with round up prior to planting.

[Ravin R10 man]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

[ QUOTE ]

thanks for the info. hows the trefoil do in part shade?

f

[/ QUOTE ] Not to worry, it does excellent in shade and sun, however like any other plant, can only take just so much when there is no rain.

[Guest MarylandQDMA]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

1 of the 2 acres i'm going to plant is in a low area and stays damp/wet during the summer. any wories there? most summers we have drout like condations and hot (90+ deg. F), last summer it was cool (80+deg. F) and WET. Onieda man can you tell me more about your mixes?

thanks all for the input.

frank

[dogdoc]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

Once you get the trefoil established it should do great in the damp area!

todd

[Guest MarylandQDMA]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

[ QUOTE ]

this is what I would do: Disc up the first of april and plant a combination of oats and cowpeas (iron and clay or lablab). Fertilize with the triple 19 at 250#/acre and if possible disc in 200# of pelleted lime (can get in the garden section at wal-mart--cheapest place I have found for bagged lime). The oats will pop up quick--very palatable---the oats will take a little pressure off the cowpeas to give them a little head start--plus oats are very cheap! The oats will last until about mid-june before maturing out. The cowpeas or lablab should be going strong. Then the first of september disc in your cowpeas (deer should have them mowed down by now anyway) and plant the following mixture. Fifty pounds of winter wheat per acre with 200# of 10-20-10 fertilizer--cover the seed about 1 inch then broadcast on top of the wheat Onieda mans Fall Deer Mix---this is a great mix contains 3 clovers, trefoil, chicory, rye, rape, and purple top turnips---broadcast it at the recommended rate. This will give you a GREAT perenial plot. You will want to mow the plot next spring---to get rid of the wheat and then you should have a great plot that will serve you all year for several years.

[/ QUOTE ]

i think this is what i'm going to do. thanks for the help

frank

[Guest MarylandQDMA]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

where can i get the oats (web or store)?

thanks

frank

[dogdoc]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

any co-op or feed/seed store will have oats. Very cheap---7 bucks/50#

[Guest MarylandQDMA]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

what is the planting rate per acre?

[dogdoc]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

[ QUOTE ]

what is the planting rate per acre?

[/ QUOTE ]

If you are planting it with cowpeas then I would plant 50# cowpeas with 50# oats per acre. If you plant oats alone then double to 100# of oats per acre..

todd

[Guest MarylandQDMA]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

wanted to pull this post back out of space.

I feel it is time to start thinking about a plot, for I never got one planted this past fall. looking back I realised there were some things that need to be cleared up.

First:

1. I'm assumeing that the lablab or cowpeas is a one time deal? meaning, I'll only get a one summer plot out of them.

2. do/will I need to replant them each year?

3. same qustions as 1 & 2 but reguarding oats.

4. Onieda mans Fall Deer Mix is this strctly a fall mix or does this just mean it is best planted in the fall?

5. what will come up the following year and when (using this set up)?

Disc up the first of April and plant a combination of oats and cowpeas (iron and clay or lablab).

Fertilize with the triple 19 at 250#/acre and if possible disc in 200# of pelleted lime (can get in the garden section at wal-mart--cheapest place I have found for bagged lime).

The oats will pop up quick--very palatable---the oats will take a little pressure off the cowpeas to give them a little head start--plus oats are very cheap! The oats will last until about mid-June before maturing out. The cowpeas or lablab should be going strong.

Then the first of September disc in your cowpeas (deer should have them mowed down by now anyway) and

plant the following mixture:

Fifty pounds of winter wheat per acre with 200# of 10-20-10 fertilizer

Cover the seed about 1 inch

Then broadcast on top of the wheat Onieda mans Fall Deer Mix. This is a great mix contains 3 clovers, trefoil, chicory, rye, rape, and purple top turnips

Broadcast it at the recommended rate.

This will give you a GREAT perennial plot. You will want to mow the plot next spring---to get rid of the wheat and then you should have a great plot that will serve you all year for several years.

6. as stated in question 5, i should plant the oats and cowpeas in april, HOWEVER, I need to spray with round up prior to planting anything. depending on the spring, I figure I will not be able to spray untill at least the 2 week of may. because of this should I omit the cowpeas and oats (to make sure I did in fact inilate(sp) all the weeds before I plant the fall mix/weat). Or would it be ok to plant them at the end of may?

Thanks

F

[dogdoc]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

ok--sorry you didn't get your plot in this year. I only have one change for you over the advise i gave you last year. This is what I did this year. I wanted to start a perennial plot but didn't want to leave the plot empty all summer so instead of planting cowpeas I planted roundup ready soybeans. These soybeans are totally resistant to the affects of roundup. This way you can spray the plot during the summer to eliminate every weed and grass in the plot but still have a great forage for the deer to feed on.

I sprayed the plot the first of April with round up and two weeks later disced and planted. I planted 75# of RR soybeans and 50# of oats per acre. Fertilized with 250# of triple 13. The oats popped up quick and gave the soys a little chance to grow. The oats stayed green until about mid-june. Once the oats started to die I sprayed the plot with round up and killed everything but the soybeans. I sprayed the plot again late July. I had this plot lookin' great--no weeds, no grasses, just a big plot of soybeans. The first of september i disced under the soybeans and planted just like stated above.

Onieda mans Fall mix does contain some annuals also. These will only last one season--they include the brassicas and the winter rye. The clovers, trefoil, and chicory will come back every year as long as the plot is maintained. Proper mowing and proper fertilization. Actually, the clovers, trefoil, and chicory never die. They will go into a winter dormancy and quit growing until spring but once it starts warming up they will start growing again.

Now---don't procrastinate again this year and get the plot planted!

good luck

todd

[Guest MarylandQDMA]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

thanks todd, that sounds like a plan. where did you get the RR soybeans? can I get them at any southern states (along with the oats). also what kind of price am I looking at for the RR soybeans?

also do you think I should till up the field now before the ground frezzes? I was thinking that be tilling now, some of the seeds might pop up only to die in the cold winter. your thoughts?

Thanks for all the help.

Frank

[Guest MarylandQDMA]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

man this post got lost, in less then 2 days. my questions still stand above.

[dogdoc]

Re: MONSTER MIX & other seeds

sorry---missed the last question.

The RR soys cost me about 24 bucks for a 50# bag.

You could disc now but I doubt many of the weeds seeds will germinate unless the soil temp is above 50 degrees.