I knew it'd happen so not surprised, but if spending $500-$1000 was something I'd justify sure I'd have thrown in option C, but right now if we got that spare cash it's going straight to paying the land down....I'm getting creative just to justify buying a refurbed Canon G20 before next year lol! Yes, the looking around for a planter to borrow from a farmer we know is still happening, but I'm also not dropping 2-4 bills for renting a weekend either...at that rate I should just go buy one. We'll see how it all shakes out...best case we find a 2-4 row to borrow, if not we buy an extra bag or two of seed and go for it. Either way I'm just excited to have the space finally to put beans in the rotation.
I was joking about the guidance system, just pointing out a single row planter will look like broadcasted seed without one
Be prepared for a plan B if your beans dont grow the first year, whether it be for weather conditions or planting techniques. A full stand of brassicas is second to no one IMO for a food plot. Great attractiveness, early and late season food source, can determine if you need to redo your plot long before season to plant, and generally cheap seed.
This isn't feasible I know but we used to plant beans with a wooden peg. Mark the peg for the depth and walk the rows pushing the peg into the ground drop the seed, push hole closed and move on. Works great when you have 10 kids with lots of energy. Rows how ever might not be straight.
Bare with me because it wont let me upload the PDF but here is some broadcasted soybean planting data I have for one of my trials from the past 3 years. All were broadcasted by hand and then lightly drug afterwards. I have the PDF if someone wants a cleaner version sent. This just gives a guy an idea of the success rate of broadcasting soybeans; at least in my area and experience. There are supposed to be 5 columns but the formatting got screwed up copying and pasting onto here. Hopefully isn't any errors on here but threw it together quick so could very possibly be some. 2014 Plot Treatment Broadcasted Stand % Emergence 108 1 201 1 311 1 405 1 113 2 103 8 0.077669903 204 2 103 12 0.116504854 313 2 103 15 0.145631068 409 2 103 5 0.048543689 103 3 103 8 0.077669903 207 3 103 4 0.038834951 310 3 103 7 0.067961165 414 3 103 12 0.116504854 105 4 517 22 0.042553191 208 4 517 36 0.069632495 307 4 517 50 0.096711799 413 4 517 50 0.096711799 107 5 517 50 0.096711799 214 5 517 27 0.052224371 309 5 517 30 0.058027079 407 5 517 35 0.067698259 110 6 1446 79 0.054633472 211 6 1446 101 0.069847856 314 6 1446 102 0.070539419 402 6 1446 78 0.053941909 115 7 1446 72 0.049792531 213 7 1446 105 0.072614108 308 7 1446 153 0.105809129 415 7 1446 47 0.032503458 102 8 206 8 301 8 412 8 104 9 103 12 0.116504854 210 9 103 9 0.087378641 306 9 103 12 0.116504854 404 9 103 10 0.097087379 101 10 103 14 0.13592233 212 10 103 0 0 305 10 103 21 0.203883495 408 10 103 13 0.126213592 112 11 517 33 0.063829787 203 11 517 31 0.059961315 304 11 517 39 0.075435203 406 11 517 22 0.042553191 215 12 517 0 0 109 12 517 62 0.119922631 303 12 517 52 0.100580271 410 12 517 33 0.063829787 114 13 1446 122 0.084370678 205 13 1446 36 0.024896266 315 13 1446 58 0.04011065 411 13 1446 88 0.060857538 111 14 1446 120 0.082987552 209 14 1446 127 0.087828492 302 14 1446 118 0.081604426 403 14 1446 64 0.044260028 106 15 202 15 312 15 401 15 2015 Plot Treatment Broadcasted Stand % Emergence 101 1 205 1 306 1 408 1 103 2 103 9 0.087378641 206 2 103 3 0.029126214 307 2 103 11 0.106796117 405 2 103 25 0.242718447 105 3 103 3 0.029126214 207 3 103 6 0.058252427 302 3 103 14 0.13592233 404 3 103 10 0.097087379 104 4 517 31 0.059961315 203 4 517 72 0.13926499 304 4 517 33 0.063829787 407 4 517 52 0.100580271 106 5 517 54 0.104448743 201 5 517 73 0.141199226 308 5 517 31 0.059961315 401 5 517 42 0.081237911 107 6 1446 56 0.038727524 202 6 1446 222 0.153526971 305 6 1446 109 0.07538036 402 6 1446 145 0.100276625 102 7 1446 104 0.071922545 204 7 1446 93 0.064315353 301 7 1446 100 0.069156293 406 7 1446 89 0.061549101 2016 Plot Treatment Broadcasted * 10% of 14/15 Stand % Emergence 102 1 215 1 305 1 414 1 115 2 114 10 0.087719298 206 2 114 21 0.184210526 315 2 114 12 0.105263158 401 2 114 16 0.140350877 110 3 114 6 0.052631579 207 3 114 34 0.298245614 309 3 114 10 0.087719298 405 3 114 18 0.157894737 101 4 569 51 0.089630931 204 4 569 15 0.026362039 306 4 569 46 0.080843585 409 4 569 33 0.057996485 103 5 569 82 0.144112478 213 5 569 67 0.117750439 310 5 569 52 0.091388401 406 5 569 73 0.128295255 113 6 1591 174 0.109365179 209 6 1591 229 0.143934632 312 6 1591 136 0.08548083 403 6 1591 213 0.133878064 109 7 1591 124 0.077938404 202 7 1591 320 0.201131364 308 7 1591 125 0.078566939 412 7 1591 183 0.115021999 111 8 211 8 313 8 413 8 112 9 114 13 0.114035088 203 9 114 29 0.254385965 301 9 114 15 0.131578947 408 9 114 21 0.184210526 114 10 114 6 0.052631579 208 10 114 20 0.175438596 311 10 114 21 0.184210526 402 10 114 23 0.201754386 104 11 569 80 0.14059754 214 11 569 88 0.154657293 303 11 569 77 0.135325132 407 11 569 88 0.154657293 106 12 569 62 0.108963093 201 12 569 78 0.137082601 314 12 569 71 0.124780316 410 12 569 73 0.128295255 108 13 1591 185 0.11627907 212 13 1591 223 0.140163419 302 13 1591 227 0.142677561 415 13 1591 205 0.12884978 107 14 1591 165 0.10370836 210 14 1591 258 0.162162162 307 14 1591 189 0.118793212 411 14 1591 124 0.077938404 105 15 205 15 304 15 404 15
Keep in mind these were broadcasted well before most guys would do it (as part of the experiment) but still plenty late where cool soil temps/frost was not an issue. Planting dates in SW MN. 2014- April 22 2015- April 14 2016- April 13
Ty, I have broadcast soybeans for 5 seasons with excellent results each time. I plant a 3.5 acre field with 4 bags of AG soybeans bought from my local coop. This is your best bang for your buck and the guys working there can help you pick the best bean option. I opted for a variety that had the best shatter resistance. That allowed the beans to stand almost all winter while still holding the beans in the pod. I want more beans than vegetation as I'm using the plot as a post rut/late season hot spot, not really for early season as there's plenty to eat in my area in the early season. I've done it a couple different ways, but the best method I have used is to till the whole plot. This could be accomplished by disking, but I have a tiller and it does a pretty good job of breaking up the soil and providing a nice even seed bed. I then hand broadcast the seed with a bag seeder, and yes that is a B**ch, but I'm too cheap to buy a pull behind or 3pt spreader. I borrow a friends cultipacker and cultipack the field. In the past, before I had access to the cultipacker, I have created my own drag with a log chain, a piece of ladder stand ladder and some old tires. Both methods got the job done. It is true that you will have to drive over the beans when you spray them, but I generally only spray them once when they are 6"-12" tall. I find that the weeds that come up in the beans don't hurt anything and help to provide a little cover later in the year. Your not farming and looking for maximum output, you just need a solid stand of beans that will continue to feed your deer through the winter. My buck last year was a direct result of having standing beans in the late season. Dec. 5th I had somewhere around 15 doe in the field when my buck stepped into the field to scent check it. I got his attention with a couple grunts, he saw my decoy and headed over instead of heading for the does, but if he didn't know they were going to be there, I'm sure he would not have been in the field. These pics are from different years, all in the same plot, all planted the same way.
That reason alone is my guess as to why it's worked for you. Cultipacking beans into a fluffy soil bed will yield 100x better than any other tillage method when broadcasting.
I'm sure it makes a difference, but on the other hand, last year I didn't plant anything and still ended up with a beautiful field full of soybeans. The winter wasn't too harsh and come April, the standing beans still had pods that were holding beans. I brush hogged the standing beans in preparation to till the field. Mother nature stepped in and we had an extremely wet spring that didn't give me an opportunity to get in and till. Believe it or not, those volunteer soybeans started to come up. I sprayed them as usual and I ended up with a very nice stand of soybeans again, with no work. That was probably a 1 in a million deal, but those volunteer soybeans really saved my butt. I would equate those soybeans to broadcasting over bare ground without cultipacking and letting the rain create enough seed to soil contact for germination. I would love to get a planter to make the process easier, but I'm thinking about working a deal with farmer that farms the ground to the south of me. Maybe he will plant if for me if I let him harvest the majority of it, but leave me a couple strips.
Without getting too wordy about the details of the trial, that is exactly what we are looking at. Volunteer soybeans and their effect on nematodes and aphids in corn. None of the rest makes any difference for this particular conversation at all but just the research I'm working on. I would put planted and volunteer beans on two totally different topics though. Sent from my XT1080 using Tapatalk
Sky thanks, and everyone else. It sounds like what I suspected is confirmed. So long as proper moisture happens post broadcasting and good soil to seed contact is accomplished you will have beans quite easily. Sure need a slightly higher seed rate and such...but much cheaper than buying a planter for sure. The idea of driving on the beans has been brought up as a negative to spray...not too terribly worried about this at all as the plots are not for crop income but for deer....lose a tire width on the quad isn't a terrible thing for me personally. If I really am bugged I can always walk and do by hand injuring fewer. The idea of failure also came up and to have a back up plan, no doubt. Anytime I plant plots whether for me or recommended for clients I always stress there is no guarantee. Weather is in God's hand, all we can do is do what we can to ensure if proper elements happen we have germination (ph test, proper seed bed, fertilizer). I'm going to plant these early enough to ensure yellowing right around the time (approximate obviously) for a normal seeding time for fall plots as I'll be overseeding the beans with brassicas and/or cereal grains.
Rather then buying bag seed try to find a farmer that will sell you some beans from a dryer. As long as they were planted Round-up Ready they are produced as such. And as long as you plant them for the deer it is perfectly legal according to contracts and patents.
Seed ran through a dryer with heat can have the germ killed in them. Planting bin run beans is also a good way of spreading weed seed. They should be okay if just forced air dried but should be ran through a cleaner first. Roundup ready beans also aren't much of a solution these days. Roundup is a fairly cheap grass killer here but isn't worth a damn on much else.
Ty, in the last picture I posted, you can see the effects of driving my tractor through the field to spray. That picture was fairly early in the season, and they were no where near maturity. They will still canopy out and by the end of the growing season, I couldn't tell where I had driven. My tires were probably 3 times wider than a quad and my tractor was much heavier. I don't think the quad would do much damage at all.
Just remember that as soon as the beans have emerged, anything that you, nature or wildlife does to them, they're done and will not regrow. Corn on the other hand has until V6 to live through stress above ground and still be OK.
deer don't even like soybeans.........................................................................! ha hahahahahahaha
