Fixing Equipment and Planting for Winter

Last year around this time I planted some ryegrass and turnips in my front pasture. It was a little late in the fall and an early hard frost last December set back my crop. Just as the seedlings emerged, and early frost bit about half of them to the ground.

But some of it grew, and I was able to graze my cattle in the field a few times. I’m not sure it cut down on any of the hay I had to feed. My bigger goal, however, was to increase the biomass in the pasture. I hoped for a lush field that I could mow down, thus adding some organic matter to this sandy, gravely field. That never happened.

So I’m going to give it a try again. And again, I’m late getting started.

The first problem was a flat tire on the grain drill. I finally got that fixed this week. The next problem were the 17 dry-rotted rubber tubes on the grain drill that are supposed to deliver seed to the furrows. I couldn’t find any replacement tubes for my old Massey-Ferguson 33 grain drill, which was manufactured sometime in the 1960s, I believe. Most of the tubes were broken, and some were missing entirely. When I planted last year, most of the seed just dropped on top of the soil, which isn’t a major problem for ryegrass, since it can germinate on top of the soil.

But if I wish to plant oats, winter peas or wheat, those seeds require planting at the proper depth. So I wanted to fix my grain drill.

I looked and looked for replacement rubber tubes, but I guess there’s not much of a parts aftermarket for 60-yearold farm implements. Then I discovered Shoup Manufacturing, an Illinois company that provides replacement parts for farm equipment. I called the company and their support staff asked some questions about my equipment. Luckily, they sell a universal tube, the “U-100,” that suited my needs. I ordered 17 of them and replaced them this week. If you have an old grain drill with missing tubes, you might want to give this a try.

Now I need to plant something. I’ll probably again plant a mix of ryegrass and turnips. One of my neighbors planted some oats a few weeks ago, and he timed it just right. He’s got a nice stand of lush green forage. I know more about growing vegetables than winter forage crops. I could use some advice.

I know ryegrass can germinate in temperatures just above freezing. But is it too late to plant oats? What about wheat? Are there advantages to growing wheat versus oats or ryegrass? I don’t want a monoculture of just one crop. I like the idea of diversity. What other crops should I include in the mix to increase biomass? I’d like to graze the cattle on it, but I’m more interested in boosting the field’s biomass and biological diversity. Send me your suggestions at andy@fayettecountyrecord.com.