Got Soil Test Back...Need Advice

[Soggy Bottom Outdoors]

Good to hear from you Bear. I hope things are going well in Texas. Something to consider is that most pull type spinner spreaders wont spread ag lime very well(crushed limestone rock is to dense/heavy) but pelleted lime is usually fine. A common practice here is to have the fertilizer facility to mix the seed with the fertilizer and do it together. The seed wont spread as far as fertilizer so double spread it. For instance, if the spreader spreads fertilizer at a 40 foot pattern then cut the lbs/per acre rate in half and go over the field twice. You get better seed coverage that way. More simply put, cut the rate in half and spread the entire field at 40 foot then come back and "split the tracks" giving you a 20 foot spread twice.

 

[Bearsixty7]

Good to hear from you Bear. I hope things are going well in Texas. Something to consider is that most pull type spinner spreaders wont spread ag lime very well(crushed limestone rock is to dense/heavy) but pelleted lime is usually fine. A common practice here is to have the fertilizer facility to mix the seed with the fertilizer and do it together. The seed wont spread as far as fertilizer so double spread it. For instance, if the spreader spreads fertilizer at a 40 foot pattern then cut the lbs/per acre rate in half and go over the field twice. You get better seed coverage that way. More simply put, cut the rate in half and spread the entire field at 40 foot then come back and "split the tracks" giving you a 20 foot spread twice.

I bought a bag of the Ag Lime to mix into our garden compost and the soil in some raised beds last weekend. I was curious if a spreader could spread it so I dumped about 5 lbs in the lawn spreader and just like you said, it didn't work very well. I figure the feedstore/mill place renting the spreader already knows that and will probably only offer pelleted lime. I only plan to do a couple 1/2-1 acre plots, so while maybe not a bulk discount like a large acre farmer would get, it should still be cheaper and easier than buying a ton or two by the 50lb bags and spreading. I need to remember to call tomorrow and get actual prices. Back on the farm we always did Lime months ahead of fertilizer or seed. The food plot seeds I bought say similar so this first pass will just be lime then disk it in, wait and spread seed and fertilizer in a month.

 

[Soggy Bottom Outdoors]

What's commonly used as a food plot in Texas?

 

[Bearsixty7]

What's commonly used as a food plot in Texas?

I actually hunt in southern Oklahoma. Not sure about common, but what I have seen suggested is 40lbs cowpeas, 40lbs oats, 10lbs arrowleaf clover per acre. Some of what's available locally that I've found is forage oats, triticale, forage turnips, and red clover mix. Another is cereal grains, clovers, rape, and radish.

To note, even though I'm in my fifties, My dad wasn't a hunter so I never really hunted much regularly until the last 6-8 years (I shot skeet and sporting clays for the last 30+ years and I shot 3-4 pheasant in NE about 20 years ago with some co-worker friends on a hunting trip), mostly to get my son out there. We're a pretty good dove blasting team and that was our first hunting together and we usually get more than the other fathers and sons. But no luck deer hunting yet.

Here's one of my "hunting stories". Last year I had a couple decent 4pt & 6pt bucks go by out between 100-200 yards from the stand of the lane I'm hunting but I was holding out for this huge 8 point that was captured on the cameras. It was late in the season and this big buck slowly appeared about 70-80 yards away in the lane, first one to ever cross there that close but looked like a 6 pt in the brush and I only had a 30 foot wide opening between the trees.
I scope him and try counting tines and judging his size and then take aim then back to his antlers as he's slowly crossing the lane from treeline to treeline never turning his head. He gets to the other side and I figure if I can still get a clean shot I'll settle for him but I can't he's now in the thick brush and I can just see the top of his head. He for some reason turns and I clearly see 8 points and there may have been more lower! Argh!
BIL said later why didn't I just grunt to stop him and get him to turn. Well yeah, If I was more experienced I might have thought to do that. LOL!
Oh well, I still love hunting and just being outdoors even though I'm 0 for 4 deer hunting. each year has given me more opportunities but I guess I'm to selective still.

I also come to realize the majority of the Bucks where I hunt are scrawny and need better forage and attractant so that's what I hope to achieve this year.

 

[Soggy Bottom Outdoors]

We do a spring and fall planting here. Spring is usually cow peas or forage soybeans with red or ladino clover. Sometimes I値l plant yellow corn depending on what neighbors are planting. Fall is Austrian peas, clover, and crop crop wheat.

 

[3gunr]

food plots can be addicting. I enjoy working the soil and planting as much as hunting, Turnips radishes oats and winter rye are my go to seeds, Lime fertilize till cultipack seed cultipack again , pray for rain. & months till deer season ,cant wait, I am putting 10 acres in crp this yr so i will have a lot to get done by May, Should be fun.

 

[Farmer495]

Your pH is good, not sure what commercial blends you have available, but I'd pick one close and do it in one pass.

For example blends I have used

550 lb/acre of 12-24-24 would almost give you your N & K with a 92lb/acre surplus of P.

670lb/acre of 18-6-18 would give you exact P&K with a 50lb/acre N surplus

 

[RalphVa]

I'm a master gardener and retired chemical engineer. We had a little bit on soil analysis during our training, but our local agent was the only one authorized to read the soil sample results when they came back from VT. I really like the Clemson report MUCH better and agree that their recommendation to use the 15-0-15 fert fits your analysis. You're only low on potassium (the 3rd one of those fert NPK #s) and probably on N, which is too movable to analyze.

Don't really think you need lime, because your pH is 6.2. I'm happy if it above 6 (vs. our natural 5.5 in Va), and it takes A WHOLE LOT to get to an ideal of around 6.5-6.8. If you want to get some lime, I'd just mix it it 50/50 with your 15-0-15 fert and apply it the way you've usually done it, maybe a tad heavier because you have the lime mixed in, and it will dilute the fert.

Ralph

 

[Bearsixty7]

food plots can be addicting. I enjoy working the soil and planting as much as hunting, Turnips radishes oats and winter rye are my go to seeds, Lime fertilize till cultipack seed cultipack again , pray for rain. & months till deer season ,cant wait, I am putting 10 acres in crp this yr so i will have a lot to get done by May, Should be fun.

This will be my first time doing it, but it is kind of exciting, the researching, planning and an excuse to use the tractor more!
Then the hopes of bigger and better Game this Fall!

 

[RalphVa]

If this was my field, and if it was in Ky, and if I was to use all of my 30 years of experience in the fertilizer business I would recommend 100lbs of Urea(46-0-0) 100 lbs of (Dap) 18-46-0 and 100 lbs of muriate of potash per acre. That would give you a blend of 64-46-60.Your soil sample calls for 70-39-60. I used 100 lbs of each just to keep it simple. Or plan B would be 300 lbs of bagged 19-19-19 per acre which gives you a 57-57-57 blend and if the filler in the triple 19 is lime that may help with your pH. Some other things to consider. If you can find Potash in bags or can can locate a drawbar pull fertilizer buggy/spreader apply some Potash/DAP in the fall (Sept/Oct). Most drawbar pull spinner type spreaders will not spread less than 100 lbs or product per acre very well. if you are in a area that has limestone quarries you might find someone to haul you out some ag lime(crushed limestone rock). Much more cost effective them pelleted lime but much more difficult to spread. Let me finish by saying I'm not trying to tell you what to do. It's your place you do as you please. All of my experience is in KY and Indiana but may be helpful in your situation. Holler back.

He's already high in Phosphorus (the P in NPK of fert #s) but low on Potassium (the K in NPK). He needs the 15-0-15 that Clemson mentions.