Food Plot Seed

[Lew]

It is getting that time of year when I start thinking about what I am going to plant this year. As the food plot market gets bigger, more options are coming out from seed companies. Two products that have caught my attention are from Purina/Biologic. They have Antler Advantage for spring planting and Attractor Supreme for Fall planting. Most wildlife seed companies try to hide what their blend is, but Purina spells it right out in their literature. Antler Advantage is a blend of brassicas, peas and soybeans and Attractant Supreme is a blend of brassicas, annual clover and wheat. Their web page is: www.deerchow.com. I was wondering if anyone has some experience with these products or are they eitirely new for this year. Lew

[Ed Spin04]

Lew, Purina is the new kid on the block for food plot seeds.

Purina has a long and respected history in the develpoment of animal feeds including deer types. No body is perfect but Purina can hold its own.

I actually had a small hand in Purina getting into the wildlife seed business.

About three years ago Dr Grant Woods, (Creator of Biologic seeds) asked me if I would be interested in being the Midwest voice and major distributor of Biologic products. Hell, I was 67 and still owned my engineering business. I didn't need any more complications in my life. I knew of a guy that was the Michigan agent of Purina products and was seriously interested in quitting. Surprise, his reason for quitting was that he wanted to sell food plot seed in addition to the other products. He is a fanatic food plotter.

Long story short, I introduced this guy to Dr Woods and it went from being hired by Biologic, to Purina now thinking about getting into the seed business and keeping this fellow on board to Tecomate finding out and offering this guy the midwest district for their products, which he finally accepted. Biologic and Purina kept their dialogue going and they created a mutual relationship, with Purina benifiting from Biologics seed development to Purinas vast distributorship. I was told that UP Surge was already developed and Purina was given full propriatory rights as an incentive to make the partnership more solid.

UP Surge is a brassica, (forage rape) that is more palatable than any other rape. The northern states deer have less problem getting used to brassica than the southern states, with some landowners having the same experience as FL, (deer do not eat his rape). UP Surge goes a long way in correcting this. So FL, next year plant some Purina blend that includes Up Surge.

[Lew]

Ed, Thanks for the input. When I saw the name Purina and Biologic it sounded good and when I read the descritption it sounded even better. Now with your personnal support, it is definitely something I will be planting this year. When I get a plot undercontrol from weeds, I like having a base of clovers and chicory. But when the plots are new and I am fighting weeds, I like the aggressive nature of annuals. Their Attractor Supreme looks to be just the ticket for planting in August on a field sprayed several times earlier in the summer. Such a plot should provide food all Fall and into the winter as long as deer can get at it. I will also find at least one spot to plant some of the Antler Advantage in the spring. Should be an interesting trial to see how it grows in my area. Lew

[fairfax1]

That was an interesting description of a small slice of the seed business.

Ed, is Bioligic still wholly and privately owned? or are they a subsidiary of some sort of Purina?

And then Lew, I'm not sure I understand your statement on wildlife seed companies "hide their blend".......???

I thought it was a legal requirement to detail the seed variety and the percentage it is in the blend. I cannot recall a package that I've bought or examined in a retailer that didn't have that kind of a label on the bottom or the back of the package.

But Lew, I certainly agree with you that food-plot seeding is a growing business. Indeed, it is an expanding market. If you are a businessman those new but rapidly expanding markets are just too much fun. Almost as much fun as hunting.

[Lew]

Fairfax1, It is true when you buy a bag of seed there is usually a tag that says what is in the bag. However, if you go to the web pages of the seed blend companies, like Whitetail Institute, Biologic, etc. they give a very general description or says something like "scientific blend". On the Purina web page, they says exactly what their product is. For example Antler Advantage is: UpSurge Brassica, Bioroa Brassica, Mairaki Brassica, Journey Pea and Nata Soybean. I prefer to get the full description, it help me learn and evaluate products before I get to the store. Lew

[NorthJeff]

Lew,
What are the percentages of that mix? Basically percentages of brassicas to beans and peas? I'm curious if that would be a bean here...a bean there, or if it's a pretty full mix of brassicas, beans, and peas so you could see a field full of all 3 types of plants.

[Lew]

Good question Jeff. They didn't publish the percentages on their web page so to get that information you would have to Email the company or go to the store and look at the tag on the bag. That is one more piece of information they should list in their advertising. It would make it easier for those of us who study what we plant. Lew

[NorthJeff]

What I don't like sometimes is that seed companies will include say chicory, even brassica, beans, wheat...maybe rye or oats, but it's at such a small percentage the mix might as well be all clover, or all brassica. You think you are planting a good combination or variety that you've taken the time to think might be the perfect planting for a plot...but you aren't really getting a very good representation of one all seed types.

Luv2 had a great mix he planted last year of peas and brassica..might have even included some buckwheat, but I saw his plantings on his property and they looked very well thought out, and very well represented by seed variety. If you are looking for mixing rates, Luv2 could probably give you some great advice on pounds per acre, and let you know what lasted the longest for him.

I suspect, with your deer numbers any kind of pea, bean, and probably even brassica combination you plant early...you'll be planting again in late summer if you expect so have any crop in the fall!

[Lew]

Jeff, I just ordered a bag of Antler Advantage and Attractant Supreme to give them a try this season. When I get the bags, I will let you know the percentages. I also plan to make use of buckwheat this year in my new fields. From what I have read it grows just about anywhere and builds the soil and that is just what is needed for a new plot. Lew

[NorthJeff]

Lew,
I've been surprised at the hardiness of buckwheat. It was able to withstand the drought we had last year, and in more shaded areas it grew quite lush and tall, attracting a lot of foraging during the late summer. I've also found that it grows very well when simply broadcast on dirt before a rainy period....but one frost can cut it down overnight, so beware! I've planted in around 6/1 the last 2 years with much better success than mid-May, at which time I've had a total loss with frosts.

[Ed Spin04]

Buckwheat is not only a forage that can just about grow anywhere but is probably the number one natural soil builder in the entire world. Now that's saying a lot.

If someone knows differant please let us know.

[Lew]

Ed, I have one field that has been tough to get the weeds under control. In August the weeds are 6' tall and choke out any crop planted there. The good news is the field is very fertile and should grow a good crop if I get the weeds under control. I could leave the field fallow and just spray several times during the summer, but, I am impatient and hate have a field vacant for a season. So my plan is to spray in early May, spray again in early June and plant buckwheat. This builds the soil and gives me a crop during the summer. Then around August 15, I plan to spray again and plant a fast growing brassica blend to suppress weeds and give good forage for the Fall and Winter. One of the seed blends we have been talking about, Attractant Supreme, looks to be a good choice. Do you think this an aggressive enough plan to get the weeds under control. The plot is in the WUP. Thanks. Lew

[NorthJeff]

Lew,

I'd go with a more mid to late July spraying on that buckwheat for a couple reasons. First, the buckwheat on good soils grows incredibly tall and thick, so 6 weeks of growing you'll experience a very full field. 2nd, by spraying in Mid-July you can get your brassicas in the ground by early August at the latest. Last year was an odd year, but once you typically get into early Sept. frosts and freezes will severely limit the growth of the brassicas, and once a few accumulations of snow arrive in early Oct, it's completely done growing. I like to get a full 6-8 weeks of good growing before the first hard frosts start coming.

Hopefully you are also planning on planting clover with the brassicas as well. They won't hurt the growth of the brassicas, and it should leave you with enough of a clover establishment to ward off weeds and drought in 07.

[Lew]

Jeff, Those are good ideas from your first hand experience. I wasn't thinking of adding clover, but it is probably a good idea. The Attractant Supreme does have annual clovers, but they may not give that early Spring start the way perennial clovers do. I have plenty of left over clover seed on hand to add to the mix which would give me a head start on next year. Thanks. Lew

[NorthJeff]

Lew, I found the annual clovers that were in the Biologic Green Patch plus as part of our plantings in WI to have a prety weak representations...again, it might have been due to a very small percentage of seed compared to the brassicas in the blend. In fact, for 40 total pounds per acre including brassica,wheat,oats, and annual clover the brassica was about the only thing that had a very good showing..which was pretty good, compared to everything else. In all fairness though, that field was neither cultipacked, or tilled...just broadcasted before a rain.

Anyways, if you plant brassica and clover in late summer on a field with a prior buckwheat crop, and you've basically eliminated your weed competition, expect the both the brassica and the clover to do very well and by July the following year your field will be a great stand of clover. For a "kicker", chicory at about 1-2#'s per acre can be a nice addition as well and offset the loss of production during a time of summer clover dormancy due to drought. At one point last summer, buckwheat and chicory were about the only thing being foraged on my property.

[halfczech]

Since this thread has alot of the food plot gurus posting. I have a novice question to ask. that is I have heard that you should not plant brassicas in the same field more than two years in a row. is this true and if so, how long should a field be kept brassica free before it could be planted with brassicas again?

[NorthJeff]

Halfczech,
That is true..and Ed can answer the specifics. A good way to get around this is to rotate your plantings on the same field...for example, plant 1/3 to 1/2 of the field every year. If you like the brassicas, and most importantly, you deer like the, just rotate your plantings so that you can experience brassica on the field every year on at least a 1/3 of the field. You can plant a clover/brassica blend, so entering the fall months you would have brassica with young clover growing on a 1/3 to a 1/2, and the remainder in 1-2 year old clover.

[Ed Spin04]

When planting brassice in late spring, (early May)You can grow it two years in a row if it's the first planting of brassica in a field. You should not plant it two years in a row in the same field if brassica has been grown there before. Brassica is a host of several funguses, molds and insect pests as are all forage plants, with brassica more so.

You should have the fields separated by some distance, (100 yards or more) for the fungus and molds will overwinter in the soil and can spread the following year to a nearby field of brassica. Also the insect pests lay eggs or overwinter in nearby grassy fields and pounce right back to adjoining fields, so, it is important to separate the field of brassica from year to year.

I have found exceptions to the above. When I plant a brassica in early August, I can plant it for many years in a row in the same field with minimum pest damage.

The following is the reason why. Fungus and molds are aggresive in their growth in cool and moist conditions, (late spring and early summer conditions) most insects lay eggs in late spring and develope into plant leaf eating larvae just as the leaves appear. August is usually beyound the time fungus, molds and insect larvae get establihed.

Don't think that you will completely break the desease and insect cycle. for all plants hosts pests. Example, white mold is a common pest in brassica, with all broad leaf plants also hosting white mold but not in equal infestations. These broadleaf plants include soybeans, peas, sugar beets and even wheat. So, its a problem that you have to deal with but its not the end of the world.

You probably picked up the brassica continuous planting problem in the latest Whitails Journal issue written by Kent Kammermeyer.

Kent called me up a couple monthe ago about this potential pest event and I told him as I have mentioned above. Evidently Kent didn't think my experience of planting brassica in eary august was the right thing to pass on and I sure do understand his reason why.

[halfczech]

Thank you very much NJ and edspin. The deer on my prop in northern gladwin county just loved the brassica in the ultimate blend. They didnt even wait for a frost to drive the sugars into the leaves. They ate it all summer long. I didnt think about keeping brasscia fields apart. Ill now incorporate that into my ever changing plan.:dizzy: Ed hope to see you at the grand rapids hunt expo this weekend.

[Lew]

Jeff, I have the seed content of the two blends we talked about. Attractor Supreme is: Beamer Wheat = 44.83%, Bioroa Rape = 12.68%, Mairaki Rape = 11.87%, UpSurge Rape = 10.08%, Berseem Clover = 6.88%, Omaru Rape = 4.89%, Mammoth Red Clover = 4.80% and Balansa Clover = 2.88%. Antler Supreme is: Journey Peas = 44.32%, B3 Soy Beans = 24.67%, Upsurge Rape = 9.94%, Mairaki Rape = 9.83%, Bioroa Rape = 9.80%. By the way I like the article in Quality Whitetail keep up the good work. Lew