Spring planted brassicas!!

[Big E]

I live in Norhtern MN and for yrs I've planted my brassicas in the fall with ok results. After having turnips the size of marbles and rape about 6" tall I decided to go against the grain and plant in the spring. WOW did this work! The whole thing about deer waiting until the 2nd hard frost was a bunch of   in my neck of the woods. Deer were eating it from the get go. With protein levels at 40% I had some healthy fat deer all yr long. They used this plot from June-March of this yr. We shot a deer off of it in every month of the season. Sept-Oct-Nov-Dec. I had Turnips the size of basketballs and some big bucks in there too I might add. Here are some pics to prove what I'm talking about. The pictures on the home page of this website of the 3 bucks are off of this same plot also.

[Big E]

I'll post more pics and info when I get home but look at the dates at the bottom of the pictures. From June into August. I'll see if I have my other pics from october to January at all too.
 
  If you're going to try this make sure you kill off your weeds before you plant! I'd spray at least 2 times at least 2 weeks apart before planting. Weed control is a must in a spring planted brassica field.

[Plauer]

Hey Big E! I couldnt agree more!! We planted our brassicas in the spring of last year as well and had the same results. How ever this year we are going to wait until the first part of august to broadcast our rape seed in with our soy beans. We are going to have 8 acres of beans and rape mix. That should draw and hold deer on our property all year long. We also have two acres of clover for the deer as well. I think the key to attracting and holding deer is to see what your neighbors are planting, and try and plant something totally different. That is exactly what we did this year, and it should work great! Thanks "E" for coming out to our food plots and going over a few things with us!

[Big E]

No problem at all PLauer. I put my beans in this weekend. It takes about 10 days to germinate so you should be good if you get yours in now.

Here is what I started with and ended up with last yr.









this was in about the begining of August here. You can see how big it is already has another month of good growing weather.....along with the fall rains.

[dakids]

We planted 2 acres of brasicas 2 years ago.  The deer leveled the field before the season started.  The turnips were all dug out by oct. 1st.  Last year we planted oats and the deer eat them all year long.  When the oats were ripe we mowed them off and they reseeded themselves and we had a new crop in time for the season.  we have thinned out the deer heard the last 2 years with the help of the timberwolves so we are going to try a 2 acre plot of turnips and sugar beets this year.  We had 9 to 15 does that called our land home 2 years ago.  they have been reduced to only 3-5.     

[Mayfly]

We planted 2 acres of brasicas 2 years ago.  The deer leveled the field before the season started.  The turnips were all dug out by oct. 1st.  Last year we planted oats and the deer eat them all year long.  When the oats were ripe we mowed them off and they reseeded themselves and we had a new crop in time for the season.  we have thinned out the deer heard the last 2 years with the help of the timberwolves so we are going to try a 2 acre plot of turnips and sugar beets this year.  We had 9 to 15 does that called our land home 2 years ago.  they have been reduced to only 3-5.     

Thats what I like to hear! I am putting in a late season brassica plot. I plan to start working here in the next week or so and planting late July!

[Mayfly]

Hey Big E! I couldnt agree more!! We planted our brassicas in the spring of last year as well and had the same results. How ever this year we are going to wait until the first part of august to broadcast our rape seed in with our soy beans. We are going to have 8 acres of beans and rape mix. That should draw and hold deer on our property all year long. We also have two acres of clover for the deer as well. I think the key to attracting and holding deer is to see what your neighbors are planting, and try and plant something totally different. That is exactly what we did this year, and it should work great! Thanks "E" for coming out to our food plots and going over a few things with us!

Pictures Posted For Plauer

[Big E]

Here's two of the 3 deer from the banner picture. We called the one Junk Buck due to his messed up right side and the other is Curley. Curley got his name because of his G2 was curled back. Both were 10 pointers.

 Junk was 4 1/2 and weighed 220 dressed out, Shot rifle opener chasing a doe about 200 yards off the food plot in the pics.






  and Curley was 3 1/2 and was shot Muzzeloader and only weighed about 160. He was very stressed out from the rut. Not a ounce of fat on him. He was shot coming back off of a food plot in the morning.





By posting these pics I'm not trying to show off by any means....I didn't shoot either of them....I raised and fed them all yr though! Spring plantings of brassicas do work and will hold the deer on your property while giving them AWESOME nutrition.
 Watch out that you don't OVERSEED your brassicas. They will get stunted and turn yellow. Think about how big the turnip will get when growing for that long. One seed needs a lot of room and it's a tiny seed. Give them plenty of fertilizer. Remember they LOVE nitrogen.

[Big E]

Here are some pics of what my brother and I found this yr on this plot. Another bonus with late season food sources. Had we planted this in the fall and our turnips not had time to get big they would've wiped this plot out in a couple weeks. Instead they had food from June-March.

[Big E]

Found these pics of the deer still eating the turnips on this plot in late December. The date is obviously wrong. Anyone that has a older model wildview knows when the batteries get low the date always goes back to Aug of 05.

This one the date is right.

[Big E]

Even the spikes get big with all of the protein they get from brassicas in the summer months!


Look at the bucks piled in this field and it's only August 

[Big E]

Sprayed this plot again after spraying it 2 weeks ago and planted some Egyptian wheat for a screen so I can walk to my stand also planted some corn to make a travel lane up to 15yds in front of my stand. Next week the brassicas go in.

[Big E]

Well the brassicas are planted and the plot is Fertilized with urea. We had some rain while I was up there so no urea was wasted.
This is what the urea looks like. I just apply it with this hand spreader. Cheaper than renting a spreader and I need the exercise.

Purple top turnips starting to germinate.

My cousin gave me some peas so I threw those in there too. We figured we'd give the deer something to nibble on. They germinate fast and you can just broadcast them.

[Big E]

I had to replant some brassicas this week. I rotated the fields and didn't have a big enough field of them to handle the grazing. The deer have already destroyed my 1 acre plot of brassicas. I just went in and put more seed down and put down a lot of Rye right in with it so if they wipe it out again I'll at least have a bullet proof backup.
 Anyone else have deer in their brassicas already?

[dakids]

The edges and corners are grazed to the ground and the rest will be lucky to make it to the bow opener.

[bowhunter73]

My plot near Hinckley is getting hit pretty good. They are hitting my metro plot as well, but not too hard. My cameras in the metro show a drop in deer #s this year and that’s fine or else they could have destroyed it already.

[LandDr]

The biggest issue with spring planted brassicas is that the growing season is longer than if planted in the fall.  With the longer growing season, the brassicas can get to a flower stage before the killing frost, which then causes them to become woody and less palatable...and potantially not desirable nor as much protein.  Much like radishes in your garden that go to seed...not very good to eat.

With northern MN, the shorter growing season helps and the poorer soils may also help slow the growth to allow better timing and results.  If I planted brassicas in the spring in central MN on good soil, the plants would be like wood and the bulbs would be like a hollow gord...not so desirable.  It all has to do with timing and what words best for your area and your soils.

I have heard more people talking about deer grazing on the brassicas before the freezing...that was not what it used to be like.  Either the deer have nothing better to eat (brassicas versus twigs/bark/pine cones/etc) or they are developing a taste for the early brassicas.  It is interesting how this is happening though because early brassicas do not taste very good...just try it yourself and compare it with a sample later season after freezing.

Land DR

[Mayfly]

I have heard more people talking about deer grazing on the brassicas before the freezing...that was not what it used to be like.  Either the deer have nothing better to eat (brassicas versus twigs/bark/pine cones/etc) or they are developing a taste for the early brassicas.  It is interesting how this is happening though because early brassicas do not taste very good...just try it yourself and compare it with a sample later season after freezing.

Land DR

I planted my brassicas in the beginning of July. Seemed to work out perfect with all the rain we got this year. The main reason that I planted this plot then is so that I could  hopefully direct more deer through the area and also provide something for them around the beginning of Sept. I wanted something with a higher yield that they couldn't wipe out so I went with a brassica mix. Since the plants started to come up they have been hitting them and its getting a little heavier now. The majority of the browse seems to be taking place during daylight hours as this is a plot tucked back in the woods. It seems to be working perfect. I have tried eating the Turnips and they are pretty darn good. The first bite is a tad bit bland but it finishes with a great taste. The deer are not yet digging them up, they are just eating the foliage. So far so good. I'm not sure if I would plant them in spring but mid-summer worked perfect!

[bowhunter73]

I did plant 2/3 of my tilled area in the metro early however I just planted the other 3rd this week for the same reasons the Land Dr talked about. The large field has produced tons of huge turnips for late season feed and the new plot should be up and tasty for early season.

 

[Hogdreamer]

I did not plant until mid July.  Mainly because I was too busy earlier in the spring and summer.

Deer have not begun eating this or any of the other small plots I have planted.  The appear to have lots of other food they enjoy this time of year.

Hopefully come hunting season they will get hungry for what I've planted.  The plots are growing pretty well and there is still more growing season to go yet this year.

[deadeye]

There are almost no acorns by me.  Deer are feeding in the woods on leaves, ferns and grasses.  For some reason, they don't like to venture out in the fields yet.