Getting the most out of your forage or turf crop starts before the seed is even in the ground.
One of the keys to a successful seed production field is good planning — take it from BrettYoung Seed Production Specialist, Jason Henderson.
“The best time to begin that planning is in the fall prior to planting,” he said. “Your local BrettYoung Seed Production Specialist is here to help you at every step.”
Henderson said there are a few reasons why fall planning is crucial. Fall, he said, is a great time to scout your fields in an effort to select your best options going forward. He noted growers will want to exclude fields with challenging weeds or apply fall herbicides to them to reduce or eliminate those hard-to-kill perennial weeds for the next season.
Fall is also a great time to consider your crop rotation and nurse crop options.
“You may want to give some extra consideration to the length of the season and the standability of the crop as those characteristics will play a part in how well the forage or turf seeds establish,” said Henderson. “And once you select your nurse crop, additional planning can help to ensure the field is going into winter with the ideal amount of tillage, thus simplifying seed bed preparation in the spring for those crops.”
Fall also offers a good opportunity to review soil tests and create a fertility plan. Henderson said when seeding forage and turf crops under nurse crops, growers need to take care to ensure a plan is in place to look after the nurse crop’s fertility requirements as well, along with any Phosphorus and Potassium that may be needed for the forage and turf crop.
“This is important as fall or spring will be the last opportunity to incorporate those products into the soil as you establish the turf or forage seed crop,” he said.
To learn more about fall planning, contact your BrettYoung Seed Production Specialist.
