Hope you all have a fun weekend celebrating Memorial Day! We've joined the UA-cam Community and will be posting photos and updates there. We'll be doing more and more over there. Check it out - just got on this week and made a couple of posts . ua-cam.com/users/GrowingDeerTVcommunity
I mow patches of clover in front of my blind every few weeks and leave different taller patches standing. The deer and rabbits are flocking to it. The rest of the farm, mostly fields, is growing up in high weeds and patches of red clover mix where the deer like to bed. Couple of small ponds keep the deer watered, and the grown up fields help hide the deer from being shot by neighboring hunters. I also put out 50 lbs mineral blocks that last for many months and the bucks are coming to them almost nightly. The land owner did not bushhog the farm last season and there seems to be a few bucks of more maturity that were able to survive last year's hunting season.
Eagle Seed's blend had done really well to meet our goals! All beans are in the gourd and we just finished crimping the last field this morning! Time to watch em' grow! -Daniel
Yeah cedars are good to have probably not a monoculture but here in Missouri alot of people and foresters are eliminating them dumbasses in my opinion you want diversity.
I really like hearing about the no till drilling system and the Genesis drill. Looking hard to about if I can get the worth out of that drill. Do you have any videos about the process of starting a new field in the Buffalo System?
There's very rarely any food in cedars and they mature and shade out the bottom limbs leaving no cover. Folks in ag areas, like Iowa, like cedars because that's usually the best/only cover around. Cedars are on slopes, etc., where crops can't be planted. Deer will use any cover there - after the crops have been harvested. Native grasses would be better!
Can't afford one of those fancy drills. Would an older IHC disc drill with heavier springs work. I've seen others that flatten residue then plant in same direction. We've got 6ft reed canary grass growing where beaver dams finally got taken down. I'm thinking of mowing and burning as nothing eats this course grass and starting with your system after that.
If the soil is very mellow the older disk drill may work. However, it wasn't built to do no-till work. The Reed Canary Grass will likely be an issue for years because there will be a big seed base from past years. - grant
would you be able to share your soil sample tests with us to show us how they changed over the years with the use of the buffalo system vs when you were using fertilizer and herbicide? thanks
So if I don't have a No Till Drill, can I broadcast beans in the spring where my plot is without working up dirt? And then roll over the left over standing vegetation once the beans are in the 3-4 leaf stage? Then in the fall simply broadcast a fall blend into the standing beans? It's really that easy?
Isaac, Beans are a very weak seed. They do best when covered with the soil. Many NRCS offices have no till drills to rent for only a couple dollars an acre. Then once the beans reach 4-6 inches and the cereal grain is in the dough stage, you can simply terminated it with a crimper. When it's time to plant fall plots, you can broadcast into the standing beans and begin the rotation again next spring. By keeping the soil covered and limited disturbance (tractor tires and drill), you can build healthy soil, conserve soil moisture, and reduce costs ( herbicide, fertilizer, time, fuel, breakdowns etc). This process, which we call the Buffalo System, takes several years before it is up and running. For example, we have not used any commercial fertilizer for the past 5 years and all our soil samples are nutrient rich! You can find many more food plot and soil build videos at GrowingDeer.com. -Daniel
When your planting soybean and sunflower seeds at the same time...what depth are you planting them at? I noticed they recommend different depths for each.
Jon Wagner - I've been planting blends for decades and haven't had any issues with soil depth. Big seeds like sunflowers and beans will do fine from 1/2" to an 1" deep. I try to plant a bit deeper if the soil is dry and shallower if there's plenty of soil moisture. If seeds are covered and there's soil moisture they will germinate.
GrowingDeer.tv yes I do. Aside from having healthy soil with little work, I feel it takes the extreme weather (too much/too little rain) out of the equation bc the wood chips/mulch are perfectly suited to hold and disperse moisture at the rate needed to keep plants alive.
I heard that if you hunting spot has a lot of cedar trees! It's not good soil for trying to plant!...... is that true and what is your thoughts on that!?.....great video!:)
True and false....it's not any good with cedar trees on it. Once removed, the soil will likely be poor but very likely it can be rehabilitated. You'd be surprised how many native species will come back on their own after cedar trees are killed out.
I have cedars come up in my ag crop fields so they will grow on good soil. Old growth cedars just really zap soil health so it takes it a while to bounce back.
Mike - Burning is the best tool to establish/maintain quality native vegetation and cover. Burning is necessary to keep the vegetation in an early succession/early maturation stage.
It's the "traditional" farming practice. No-till farming has been in practice for a LONG time. I personally know farmers that were no-tilling in the 1970's. As agronomist have learned new methods, farmers have adapted. Many large scale ag operations now no-till...however not all have adapted to these improved methods. It's a bit sad as no-till and now the use of cover crops is much better for the environment and for wildlife. If you ever get out to Kansas or areas of large ag - you can actually see the difference between the fields of the farmers that are using no-till and those that are disced/plowed/tilled. I distinctly recall being in Kansas on a day in high wind near two fields. One was a no-till the other had been tilled. The wind was blowing off "dust" or soil from the tilled field. If you remember your history - the "dust bowl" of the early 20th century (1930's) was created by wind erosion and ruined previously fertile farming land. - Tracy for the GrowingDeer team
Yep, I'm a farmer in KS, I've been in a similar no-till only system now since 2012. My neighbor is a big operator farming thousands of acres still in heavy tillage. When we get a lot of rain like recently, the water coming off his fields isn't water, it's mud. Water coming out of my fields with cover crops and no-till is clean and clear. His fields give off a ton of dust when it's dry and they are working and planting, mine might give off pollen from a cover crop. I've not gotten into the roller crimping yet, I still use herbicide but it's a vast improvement over the old way we used to farm, plus when I get livestock I can graze it right across my cover crops.
Hope you all have a fun weekend celebrating Memorial Day! We've joined the UA-cam Community and will be posting photos and updates there. We'll be doing more and more over there. Check it out - just got on this week and made a couple of posts . ua-cam.com/users/GrowingDeerTVcommunity
GrowingDeer.tv I have a farm in Wisconsin come visit some time
GrowingDeer.tv nice video
I’m ooo ok go loo walk
Great vid Grant and the Growing deer 🦌 tv crew Smile More God Bless Stay Safe Guys
Thanks! -Daniel
Looks yummy! Can't wait for them to open here
Thanks!
Great show! Really appreciate you always acknowledging our Savior!
Thanks Daniel! -Daniel
I mow patches of clover in front of my blind every few weeks and leave different taller patches standing. The deer and rabbits are flocking to it. The rest of the farm, mostly fields, is growing up in high weeds and patches of red clover mix where the deer like to bed. Couple of small ponds keep the deer watered, and the grown up fields help hide the deer from being shot by neighboring hunters. I also put out 50 lbs mineral blocks that last for many months and the bucks are coming to them almost nightly. The land owner did not bushhog the farm last season and there seems to be a few bucks of more maturity that were able to survive last year's hunting season.
Great! Nice work!
Man that buffalo blend looks real nice. Yall sure do a good job. All that hard work pays off. GOD BLESS and happy Memorial Day
Eagle Seed's blend had done really well to meet our goals! All beans are in the gourd and we just finished crimping the last field this morning! Time to watch em' grow! -Daniel
Been working hard on my food plots appreciate the motivation
Your hard work will pay off! Keep us updated on your plots! -Daniel
System sounds great. I’d enjoy seeing that grass blowing in the breeze.
You and me both!
Here in Vermont those Cedar trees give the deer a place to go during heavy snow falls.
Yeah cedars are good to have probably not a monoculture but here in Missouri alot of people and foresters are eliminating them dumbasses in my opinion you want diversity.
I really like hearing about the no till drilling system and the Genesis drill. Looking hard to about if I can get the worth out of that drill. Do you have any videos about the process of starting a new field in the Buffalo System?
Brian - There's a playlist on this channel about food plots has has some content about starting from scratch.
Love your videos!
Thanks Robert! We have even more information at growingdeer.com -Daniel
Cedars….I often see a lot of deer bed in cedar thickets. If there’s enough food and native vegetation…should you get rid of cedar thickets?
There's very rarely any food in cedars and they mature and shade out the bottom limbs leaving no cover. Folks in ag areas, like Iowa, like cedars because that's usually the best/only cover around. Cedars are on slopes, etc., where crops can't be planted. Deer will use any cover there - after the crops have been harvested. Native grasses would be better!
Can't afford one of those fancy drills. Would an older IHC disc drill with heavier springs work. I've seen others that flatten residue then plant in same direction. We've got 6ft reed canary grass growing where beaver dams finally got taken down. I'm thinking of mowing and burning as nothing eats this course grass and starting with your system after that.
If the soil is very mellow the older disk drill may work. However, it wasn't built to do no-till work. The Reed Canary Grass will likely be an issue for years because there will be a big seed base from past years. - grant
God bless have a good weekend
Thanks Micah! -Daniel
would you be able to share your soil sample tests with us to show us how they changed over the years with the use of the buffalo system vs when you were using fertilizer and herbicide? thanks
Kyle Krzewina - We have in past episodes and probably will again. Stay tuned!
thank you the good advise
Thanks for watching and enjoy creation! - grant
So if I don't have a No Till Drill, can I broadcast beans in the spring where my plot is without working up dirt? And then roll over the left over standing vegetation once the beans are in the 3-4 leaf stage? Then in the fall simply broadcast a fall blend into the standing beans?
It's really that easy?
Isaac,
Beans are a very weak seed. They do best when covered with the soil. Many NRCS offices have no till drills to rent for only a couple dollars an acre. Then once the beans reach 4-6 inches and the cereal grain is in the dough stage, you can simply terminated it with a crimper. When it's time to plant fall plots, you can broadcast into the standing beans and begin the rotation again next spring.
By keeping the soil covered and limited disturbance (tractor tires and drill), you can build healthy soil, conserve soil moisture, and reduce costs ( herbicide, fertilizer, time, fuel, breakdowns etc). This process, which we call the Buffalo System, takes several years before it is up and running. For example, we have not used any commercial fertilizer for the past 5 years and all our soil samples are nutrient rich!
You can find many more food plot and soil build videos at GrowingDeer.com.
-Daniel
What sprocket size worked well for your soybeans on the genesis
When your planting soybean and sunflower seeds at the same time...what depth are you planting them at? I noticed they recommend different depths for each.
Jon Wagner - I've been planting blends for decades and haven't had any issues with soil depth. Big seeds like sunflowers and beans will do fine from 1/2" to an 1" deep. I try to plant a bit deeper if the soil is dry and shallower if there's plenty of soil moisture. If seeds are covered and there's soil moisture they will germinate.
Thank you.
Are you familiar with the Back To Eden gardening system? Very similar philosophies, and I have had very good success with it. Give it a look!
Very neat! Do you use this system? Thanks for sharing! Keeping the soil covered is very important and beneficial. -Daniel
GrowingDeer.tv yes I do. Aside from having healthy soil with little work, I feel it takes the extreme weather (too much/too little rain) out of the equation bc the wood chips/mulch are perfectly suited to hold and disperse moisture at the rate needed to keep plants alive.
Cool! Sounds like a neat system! It's amazing how much "mulch" layers help with water -Daniel
I heard that if you hunting spot has a lot of cedar trees! It's not good soil for trying to plant!...... is that true and what is your thoughts on that!?.....great video!:)
True; fresh cedar needles poison the soil for anything but cedars, its part of how they ensure only their own seeds grow below them.
RyDaddy ok thanks man now I know!:)
True and false....it's not any good with cedar trees on it. Once removed, the soil will likely be poor but very likely it can be rehabilitated. You'd be surprised how many native species will come back on their own after cedar trees are killed out.
Brent thanks I might just have to do that
I have cedars come up in my ag crop fields so they will grow on good soil. Old growth cedars just really zap soil health so it takes it a while to bounce back.
Is that sunflower seeds mixed in with the soybeans? if so, why ?
Probably for pollinators and diversity. Deer love sunflowers and so do bees.
It is! Sunflowers are a great forage for deer, add lots of biomass to the soil, and pull different minerals! -Daniel
No trapping videos this year?
Fred4 Outdoors - Yes we had several trapping videos. Check out the past episodes!
y’all need to make some more predator management videos
Clay and I tried to get on coyotes this winter/spring but they always gave us the slip. We may try hunting some this summer! -Daniel
What to do if you can’t burn
Mike - Burning is the best tool to establish/maintain quality native vegetation and cover. Burning is necessary to keep the vegetation in an early succession/early maturation stage.
Don’t have no till drill?
Mike - We have several episodes where we share our techniques of using hand tools to establish food plot crops.
Hope the beans grow up the sunflowers????
They should do great! We will see :) -Daniel
I got shot with a BB gun on the shoulder two drunk guys tried Kidnapping me but I ran away some big dog that was chasing deers almost bit my face off
Walter - Are you certain you are sober?
Why do farmers plow their fields than
It's the "traditional" farming practice. No-till farming has been in practice for a LONG time. I personally know farmers that were no-tilling in the 1970's. As agronomist have learned new methods, farmers have adapted. Many large scale ag operations now no-till...however not all have adapted to these improved methods. It's a bit sad as no-till and now the use of cover crops is much better for the environment and for wildlife. If you ever get out to Kansas or areas of large ag - you can actually see the difference between the fields of the farmers that are using no-till and those that are disced/plowed/tilled. I distinctly recall being in Kansas on a day in high wind near two fields. One was a no-till the other had been tilled. The wind was blowing off "dust" or soil from the tilled field. If you remember your history - the "dust bowl" of the early 20th century (1930's) was created by wind erosion and ruined previously fertile farming land. - Tracy for the GrowingDeer team
www.growingdeer.tv/2018/05/18/why-the-buffalo-food-plot-system/
Yep, I'm a farmer in KS, I've been in a similar no-till only system now since 2012. My neighbor is a big operator farming thousands of acres still in heavy tillage. When we get a lot of rain like recently, the water coming off his fields isn't water, it's mud. Water coming out of my fields with cover crops and no-till is clean and clear. His fields give off a ton of dust when it's dry and they are working and planting, mine might give off pollen from a cover crop. I've not gotten into the roller crimping yet, I still use herbicide but it's a vast improvement over the old way we used to farm, plus when I get livestock I can graze it right across my cover crops.
always that one hater