How to plant/cover clover without a seeder?

[airbiscuit]

Please post a pic of the roller. There aren't that many moving parts.

 

[part-time-Farmer-NC]

Please post a pic of the roller. There aren't that many moving parts.

Will do, thanks. It's covered in snow for the next couple a days. Gotta remember which corner of my attachment yard I put it in.

When I do I will also put it back on maybe its a linkage/angle issue I wasn't seeing before.

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

Frost seeding

 

[DJ54]

Sounds like perfect weather for frost seeding. Some pictures later this Spring would be great to see how well it worked.

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

I just frost seeded tall fescue last week. It's already buried.

 

[part-time-Farmer-NC]

Sounds like perfect weather for frost seeding. Some pictures later this Spring would be great to see how well it worked.

I will follow up and submit them. Looks like we got about 4-5 inches of fluffy snow here. Only going to get about 33 for the high today, 42 tomorrow. The other plot looks like it may have gotten more.

I am wondering if I should wait until the snow's completely gone Saturday or postpone it until it has passed. Our temps start rising the following week with no projected frost temps in sight.

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

Frost seeding only works if the seed makes soil contact, and you will have freeze/thaw cycles. Without that, it's just throwing seed on the ground

 

[DJ54]

25-30 years ago, I saw a farmer sowing clover seed on top of 3"- 4" of snow. I thought it was crazy, but after telling a few guy that farmed said they used to do it all the time. Supposedly the melting snow would take it right in the soil.

Years later after finding out about the frost seeding method, I thought maybe it did take the seed to the soil surface, then later during the freeze/thaw cycles, it may take it on in. Thinking maybe they were just getting ahead of the game.

Here, if inter-seeding in already established hay field I have ran the disk over it a couple times just to open the surface a bit to get soil contact in late Fall, getting ready for early Spring freeze/thaw cycles. Surface mellows after the Spring freeze cycles. I normally don't see the full potential of what I sowed until the second year after sowing.

 

[part-time-Farmer-NC]

I have sowed clover in my vineyard in the fall when things have died back. A couple of rows did awesome, a few nothing. Even tried sowing in a pasture like area beside my pond and same vineyard. Same time as the vineyard but nothing came up out of it. I may put some seeds out there this weekend and see if it takes.

But if I remember correctly like you mentioned I think it was the second season in the vineyard before I noticed it really taking off. Its been 2-3 years since it first came out, I may need to refresh it. I also wanted to put in a more traffic resistant variety.

 

[DJ54]

I've read where cold freezing weather helps crack the shell of clover seed letting it germinate better. Again, you're basically mimicking Mother Nature using this method.