Hey guys just wondering if anyone has used plotspike seed. I picked some up at TSC for $4.99 a bag figured I couldn't go wrong at that price. Ive never even heard of it before the other day just lookin for some feedback. Thanks
I use it as cover seed for a filler a few weeks after I plant a base plot in my honey hole food plots. It's very easy to grow in my opinion. It's not much to write home about but deer do nail it eventually. It doesn't offer too much from a nutrition perspective so I wouldn't rely on it in that regard.
I would use it somewhere you don't have too high hopes for. The reason stores sell last year's seed cheap is because the germination rate will be much lower than fresh seed. Seeds will last years if they are in a cool dark location where they can breath...like in a brown paper bag or feed sack....Seeds really shouldn't be stored in an airtight plastic bag under fluorescent lights, but plot companies haven't come up with a better method yet. Just food for thought
I am in the same boat. I grabbed 3 bags from TSC.. 2 with the clover in it and one with the brassicas.
Same here. I have 4 bags in all. I've already frost seeded my clover plot, so it's only a matter of time to see how that works. I'll try the brassicas in late summer. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I did a fall oats trial with 7 varieties of forage oats, triticale and winter rye. I will be in year 2 of it. The results would surprise people. Here is some variety options Goliath oats Forage Plus oats Everleaf oats cosack oats
What the hell does your testing on oats have to do with Tractor Supply clearance sale purchase??? Man o man....you are something else.
I will be frost seeding that plotspike clover mix soon. Not sure what boonerville is talking about germination being lower. Most clover/brassicas can sit for a few years and still be fine.. Seed tag I got on my plotspike bags has 6/14 as a date... What tractor supply does is just clearance out their seed mixs they got new in spring. You will be hard pressed to find old /bad seed mixes at tractor supply due to them running a clearance. So I say you can't go wrong watching their clearance shelves. Some crazy deals to be had
Boonerville makes a good point and that is to check the date on the package to be sure. I did pick up a package of seed and found a date of 7/13. Depending on the seed the innoculant expires and should be reapplied. Seed like Antler King Trophy Clover for example prints the innoculant expiration date in most cases its two years after the test date or close to it.
Generally speaking, seed germination drops off sharply after a few months. Many folks are a bit squeemish and touchy about throwing seed out there that will have poor emergence or lackluster seedling vigor. Most "new" seed will have been tested fairly recently for germination % so one can adjust seeding rates for stand population based on that number. Soybeans, for instance, are really touchy about germination and if you're wanting a population of 120,000 plants per acre you don't want to spend $60 per bag for 160,000 seeds (2 bags) if their germination is old and down to maybe 50% and only get a pop of 80,000 (equivalent to one good bag)...even if they are discounted. Germination could just as easily be 20%...the problem is that it's a crap shoot and when we're talking viable windows to plant when conditions are just right, a crapshoot ain't good enough. But to those that it's okay and good'nuff then hey...that's fine and good luck to them but that's why germ is important to some and worth mentioning I think. I don't know how many times I've seen folks plant cheap seed bought on discount, plant it and have no luck at all with it and complain about it not working. When I go and get the bag and look at the date and see it's old seed they seem astonished that old seed doesn't grow well, lol.
Ya soybeans but your clovers and brassicas can go a while on the shelf. I planted 5 year old clover and brassicas that came in fine and rag test a lot of stuff. Picking up a 5$ bag of clover or brassicas on sale with a test date of last July isn't going to matter to 99% of people.
What are you basing that on? Virtually all modern seeds germination rate drops after a few months. Talk to a local farm co op. Coveys point was that it will take 2or 3 of the $5 bags to get the same number of healthy seedlings as one fresh bag.
I plant year old soybeans ( get them for free last few years ) and they work fine for a food plot. Ya on our farm we want the best and latest but most of the food plotters out there dont plant the freshest seeds. Ya fresh seed is the best but I am saying a 6 month to year old clover or brassica mix a guy won't notice the difference vs a brand new batch. More then likely it isn't the seeds fault if brassicas/clovers about 2 years old is what I am saying. There is a notice of arbitration stickers on some buck on bag stuff saying basically if you think the seed is bad here's here's how you file a complaint. No way it would take 3 bags of year old clover or brassica seed to compare to one bag of fresh seed. We (antler king) sell sometimes at shows or like you see at tractor supply Clearance year old red zone (2 types of beans,peas,buckwheat and sunflowers) and that has about a 80% germination rate vs fresh. Seeds have to maintain a 80% germination rate to be relabled and retailed for the record. Far as co ops the bin filled seeds I see arnt always the freshest. They sell whatever they didn't sell last year first. Only thing that is fresher is their winter rye as they normally run outta that and have to wait to some is harvested.
Actually, my point was more that it COULD take several bags of old seed to perform as well as new....one never "knows" and that's the problem. If I have a little plot left that's unimportant and I have some seed laying around that's old, sure...I'll try it and hope for the best. If I have two plots that are my only or two best spots...no way am I going to chance 80% germ old seed. 80% sucks, it's too iffy, seeds that are viable tend to produce a weaker seedling and don't perform as well and in real world conditions...you're likely to get much lower than a true 80% germination. Some species are far more resilient than others as far as losing germ, small hard shelled seed like clovers or brassica that are old are going to perform better than larger soft shelled species, beans and peas are the two most touchy about storage that I've dealt with. It also makes a big difference how old it was when it was originally packaged. It doesn't matter if it tests 80% if it's two years old the seedlings aren't going to perform worth a darn with either one. If guys want to take a chance on it then they should try it, we've probably all done it at some point or another. All I'm saying is treat it like gambling or playing the stock market...don't risk anything you can't afford to lose because at best it's a 50/50 chance of producing something you're happy with. Most food plotters don't plant the freshest seed because quite frankly, many are ignorant (< not derogatory) and don't know any better and the rest of that lot are trying to do it on the cheap and are reckless weekend warriors. They will all gain an education the first time they grab a bunch of old seed, throw it in the ground late and quick and wind up hunting over a crappy plot. In that case there's blame to go around but top of the list was old seed performance. At that point, no amount of complaint filing is going to get you a killer plot that season...it's just a loss over saving $5 a bag because seed was old and on sale. Facepalm moment right there.
I agree with ya. Sorry if I went off on a ramble. My main point is a tractor supply seed mix with a date of summer of 2014 is going to be just fine planted in 2015. Most plotters throw seeds down a little heavy side so the little germination lost won't matter.
In response to an above comment... seed legally needs to be retested each year. A number of companies leave their seed on shelves and in warehouses. Putting a new sticker over top of an old tag is only acceptible when that lot number has been retested by a certified seed lab. The germination count of seed can drop rapidly from one year to another based on a number of factors. The factors are : temperature humidity type of bag the seed is in The only seed that will not change in germination % is that put in a freezer. Anything else can and will change. I can attest to this as i work for a primary grower and distributor. We sell seed to many private label companies and some of the biggest companies around and also the competition. The seed world is smaller than most think. So, tag reading 101 is one frequent topic i discuss at every seminar i do. There is a huge reason for this. Watch for even more crack downs on illegal tags. I can say that will 100% certaintly. Why take a chance on any seed that is over 12 months since it's last testing date? Always germ any seed thats in question before you plant. It only take 7 days to get it in a pot of soil to be sure. Seed never increases in germ count and can drop by as much as 50% in a year depending on species and the factors above. We test every single lot at least once a year and the big boys that buy from us also ask us to retest seed that is approaching that 12 months period of time. No one reputable wants to fail a germ test. It could put you out of business or given the title like one orange bagged company known in circles as "the 50-50 company"....no one wants the stigma.
Yeah, it might be okay...depends on what it is and how it was stored and what kind of packaging it is in. If you have to throw it down on the heavy side, then the discount isn't much of an advantage. Might as well have bought new seed to start with and not have to be concerned about it. Yep, good info there. Well no one wants to get pinned with the stigma but there's always the temptation to try to get by with re-purposing old seed and sneaking it through. I've been burned several times with both food plot seed and grain production seed, it's a pet peeve of mine to be taken advantage of and have old seed pawned off on me. I spent $15K one year on beans that come to find out were old seed and actually tested 80% germ. They would sprout in a wet rag, inside the house but once planted in moist soil they would just rot. Actual germination in the field was maybe 20% at best...anything worth doing is worth doing right. Whether it be a $100,000 ag crop or a $150 food plot.
Good info. I still think a average guy looking for a deal can't go wrong with a 6 month old seed tag tractor supply clearance sale B.o.b seed.
I concur, the knowledge of it being older seed the planter just needs to consider that and maybe seed touch heavier than normal to overcome the germination rate that will be slightly less most likely.
