EZ Switchgrass Recipe For Old Fields
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- Опубликовано: 7 апр 2024
- This is a highly proven and EZ recipe for establishing switchgrass on your land BUT, you have to follow these directions completely...
*All 19 of our 2024 WHS Pure Wildlife Blends are available for purchase right now, including our Switchgrass blends! Check out our food plot seed blend website....
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Caught me off guard with a Monday video drop lol. Getting ready to put in a bunch of switch this spring. Thanks Jeff!!
Nice Peter!
Well, with the baby it pushed the Sat video to today 😁 hope it helps! Trying to keep things inline, lol
Hey Jeff, it’s been a while, break time is over. Thanks
Haha...welcome back 😁
Great info, was going to ask you about the need to burn, answered my questions
Building up my switch along the backsides of my property for more cover from the AG fields. Behind the switch i have a small travel corridor planned between the switch and the tree cover for the deer to use. Been keeping busy setting up for spring bears and also getting ready for fall deer season.
Sounds really nice!
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 Fingers crossed everything works out well. I've had a definite uptick in critters around from deer to moose and all sorts of small game critters and birds with the info you have provided and I've applied to the property.
Hey Jeff, always greatly appreciate your info and advice that you put out for us. I'm getting ready to do my final spraying before planting my RC switchgrass. Just curious, have you ever had issues with turkeys eating your sw seed???
Thanks👍🏻
You are very welcome!
A lot of switchgrass edges and pockets to prep for installing on my new farm this year. Trying to get 2years of work done in 1
This helped a lot missed spring green up a little bit though still going to try it
In the whole scheme of things the 2nd and 3rd spraying is by far the most important. You should be good!
Hi Jeff I have some native grass with regular lawn blue grass creeping in will simazine kill that off if it's green already ?
Jeff, I think I screwed up. I have (2) 6.5 acre fields in west central Illinois that I am putting switch around the edges plus a food plot in each. I did the simazine at the end of February 3qts/ac. Last weekend 4/13/2024 I sprayed 3qts/ac of Glyphosate and 2 pts/ac of 2-4D.One field I put the seed down with the simazine, the other with the gly and 2-4D spraying. What are your thoughts?
Dear Jeff,
I'm trying to establish 2.5 acres of switchgrass in Central Michigan and was wondering if I applied Simazine this late in April roughly the weekend of the 19th would my drilled switchgrass be able take hold? I only ask since the simazine won't wear off till mid-June and I'm afraid the switchgrass won't have enough growing time.
Thanks for the time and content...
Hi Jeff, excellent info as usual. I did a switchgrass planting last year in SW Wisconsin and with the drought some parts got overrun with foxtail. Right at the end you mentioned spraying quinclorac, which I would try. What time of year would be good to do that? Thanks!
Hi Brian! I would mow when the weeds are 10-12" high, and then spray 6 ounces of quincloric per acre sometimes in early June...for established switchgrass that is.
Thank you Jeff. Reached out a couple weeks ago about this. Appreciate the vid. Much😊
Do you recommend a special blend for upper, lower Michigan?
Hi Mathew, you are very welcome 😊
If it's up north in MI...UP and northern lower, and also sandy, I would go with our Extreme blend. If it's more mid MI and lower and moderate to good soil I would go with our Northern Blend.
awesome video, just want to clear some things up. south central MN here will be trying to establish switch in what used to be cool season grasses along a marsh for years. last year i mowed and continually treated with 24d to get rid of milkweed and some thistle issues. i will be spraying this week(4/8/24-4/14/24) with the simazine. there is no green in this field as of now although i wouldn't be surprised if i seen it start to green up after this week. am i cutting it to close? in my case roughly how long after the initial spraying of simazine would you expect those broadleaf's to be around that 12'' mark? trying to get a better timeframe of when id be getting my switch broadcasted?
Hi Jack! I would definitely spray Simazine more this weekend than next if you can. I have to do the same in 2 spots and I know I am pushing it...that weather set me back a bit!
The 2-4D/Gly would go down when the weeds are 8-10" high and growing aggressively which I would guess will be by the end of April, 1st of May
Great video Jeff! Question - do you / should you mow the existing grass before starting?
Hi Stan! I talk about that in the video, but no I don't as that will prohibit seed from getting onto the soil later.
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 Thanks Jeff! Been busy getting after that plan Kevin worked up....
Jeff, how would switch do replacing an area of mulcher cleared honeysuckle? The deer just pass through the BH, want to anchor some bedding areas but also have a stand of something substantial enough to resist the BH returning. (would obviously follow your herbicide formula). Thank you sir.
Hi Garrett, it would do very well! You want to hit it with Simazine, then spray 2-4D/Gly twice before seeding. Then plan on mowing in July to control honeysuckle and any briars or other woody debris that comes in. Then plan on mowing when weeds (if present) are 10" in the spring in 25, and then look to hit with 1.5 pints per acre of 2-4D if those bushes or briars persist. I mention briars only because they seem to like growing into those cleared areas after a little disturbance.
Thank you very much Jeff
Do you have luck with tilling? I planned on mowing spraying and tilling around the perimeter of a 5-6 acre field and plant by early May.
You want to follow the directions in this video to a T 😉 Just mowing, tilling and spraying once will not give you very good results, at all. Based on decades of experience and hundreds of clients planting switchgrass , as well as nearly 20 acres of my own switchgrass planting over the past 12 years.
I have never tilled to plant switchgrass...and don't recommend you do. The key is you always need to have 3 prior weed control sprayings. If you are tilling, I would then spray 3 times, 4-6 weeks apart. That gets you into a time period too late to plant them.
How do you feel about planting corn on the edges? No till. Then spray the weeds when it starts to come . You might ask why. Well it will add food to the plot, add cover, all in a small plot
You never want to use food, for screening. Corn is marginal for food anyways, and you need a lot of rows for screening. A bigger negative than all that tho, is deer come to the edge of the plot eventually to feed on the corn, and spook because they can see you. Any food source is a really bad choice for screening. Another factor, you can't plant corn year after year in the same spot.
A temporary, non food alternative is better than food...like our Deer F nice screening blend.
Switch only takes 2 years if you follow the directions at a fraction of the cost of corn
What if I mowed it already and is it too late to do simazine or can I skip that?
I mowed to work it up and possibly do round up ready corn this year to make a good seed bed for next year, but it is my main access to a stand that will be used during rifle
Hi Travis, I would still hit it with Simazine and follow the steps. The big thing is getting the seed in the ground. If that looks impossible because of the mowing then you may want to immediately till, hit with Simazine and then follow the steps.
Now when you are giving numbers in volume/ acre (e.g. 3 quarts/acre), what concentration of product are you starting with? For example I see glyphosate at several different concentration percentages. Just trying not to apply too much or too little here. Thanks!
Hi Shane...Gly is usually the only one that changes....but the most readily available amount is 41% concentration, which is the 2 quarts per scre
What chemical regimen should be applied on what has been frost seeded? Thank you
That really depends? If you plant the new RC Big Rock they say it will germinate about 8-10 degrees colder so that means you can Simazine and that's it. Which also means you should have had a couple of chemical controls last year, prior to frost seeding...you always want 3 total chemical controls prior to germination!
If you frost seeded traditional switchgrass, then you should hit with 3 quarts per acre prior to spring greenup, and the 1 pint per acre of 2-4D combined with 2 quarts per acre of Glyphosate after spring greenup and when weeds are 8-10" high and growing aggressively.
I hope that helps 😊
I would like to ask your opinion on something. I am leasing a 40 acre parcel that had about 25 acres logged 2 years ago. I want to plant around 4 acres of food plots. I am going to rent equipment to clear the stumps and slash. What type of equipment would you recommend? Thank you
Oh boy that's a tough one! It depends on the size of stumps and debris. For example a forestry mulcher and a shid steer with a root rake can be great...but not if the stumps are too large. Then an excavator and a dozer may be needed. Often you can do a whole lot with just a dozer.
So many options tho!
Would mixing switch grass in with native grasses be worth it to improve bedding/laydown areas on something like the south side of a hill?
Not at all. Then they lack cover and it's all grass....so no food.
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 okay, thank you!
I have 13 acres that needs to be turned into a food plot this year. It has been corn for the past 20 years. any advice on what to plant/ keep cost down? thanks!!!
Hi Cade, that's a 2 hour in person conversation 😊👍 I own a seed company and I still wouldn't throw something out there without discussing neighboring food, your equipment, time and money to plant, deer numbers, if summer food is even necessary or detrimental, soil type, etc. much of that may need to be turned into switchgrass and edge cover as well. Likely a combination of edge, switchgrass and food plot...likely more Fall/Winter related than summer.
I would recommend hitting the food plot playlist and check out 2023 best food plot mix, 2022, and the food plot vids from the past month in this channel.
Sorry I can't be more specific but so many details needed that can't fully/accurately be assessed here...
When is it too late to spray simazine with regards to temperatures
It really just depends on if nee green has arrived yet. You want to make sure you spray before spring green up...temp doesn't matter unless everything is frozen
Can you grow switchgrass in wooded areas or is it for open areas only
Hi Robert...it has to have full sunlight. At minimum 6 hours per day? Then it really wouldn't matter where it's planted other than having full sun.
Jeff,
I've followed your switch grass tips for a few years and my switch grass is going on year #3, last year it exploded Butttt I still have a little weed control to do this year. Do you recommend mowing the dead switch this spring? What do you typically do with your switch in the spring? Seems like good turkey nesting......Thanks!
Hi Preston, it really is great turkey nesting! I like to wait to mow, when the switch and weeds are about 8-10" high. That does scare me tho with the nesting...pheasants too!
If you wait to mow, the switch will be growing aggressively. It will come back very fast! We mow high, just to get the switch even with the weed growth so the switch can get more sun. Then we don't spray until it's roughly 2' tall. Broadleafs we hit with 1.5 pints per acre of 2-4D and foxtail we hit with roughly 6 ounces per acre of quincloric. MORE, is not better with either.
I bet it will be outstanding this year!!
😁🦌
Very fast Connor 😁
Coming into second year switch; had a significant foxtail issue year one. I've heard you say 5-7 ounces /acre quinclorac; many say 64 oz/acre with 30oz/acre MSO. Why so low from your end? Thanks!
Man that's a crazy amount! Brandin at First Choice Food plots does it for a living and he has never used over 11 ounces per acre and that was for a very difficult/extreme application. And he gets his advice straight from the chemical manufacturer and is paid 10s of thousands of dollars per year to spray. I would go with Brandin!
Even the EPA recommends 5.3 to 8 ounces per acre...easy to check online 😉
64oinced would be just someone talking online that doesn't actually know what they are giving advice for....just copying and getting it wrong, unfortunately. A lot of that out there...
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 Thanks. The mix up here is Quinclorac 1.5L (Drive XLR8) much different animal than Quinclorac 75 DF (what your using). 18% active quin vs 75% That's why the 64oz vs 6 oz.
😁🦌
Twice as fast, haha
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 was an accident, I love these videos though you have helped so much this past season and I can’t wait to kick off the summer!