[big buck 75]

I have rye that I put in last September, I am thinking of just mowing it or disking it down in early september, will it re-seed itself or should I terminate it and replant?

 

[Luv2hunteup]

It should reseed itself. It should be mature and ready to mow in August.

 

[Liver and Onions]

It will reseed, but if this a rye only plot it will be so heavy that many areas will turn yellow from being over-seeded.
Do you plant your rye into a clover plot or is it straight rye ?

L & O

 

[big buck 75]

Straight rye

 

[Wild Thing]

I have rye that I put in last September, I am thinking of just mowing it or disking it down in early september, will it re-seed itself or should I terminate it and replant?

It will reseed itself in late summer/early fall if you mow it or disc it. Once the seeds become hard they are viable and will easily germinate. As L&O mentioned, if the stand is really thick now, it may germinate very thick after reseeding. That being said, many guys do just what you are proposing to maintain free stands of rye every year.

Here is a plot of standing rye on July 31st here on my U.P. property. I mowed it that day or the following day:

Here is what it looked like on September 13th:

and on September 24th. It worked out well for me as it fed my deer during fall and early spring, and then I nuked it with Glyphosate and drilled a crop of sugar beets into it.