My purty green wheat

theboman · Mar 18, 2003

It's only a matter of time before I turn my winter wheat into the earth. It's so purty, just last week I seen some deer getting a belly full of the green stuff.
It's nearly time again to play in the garden, and this year I have a lot more learnin' on how to plant things.

chrisjbell · Mar 19, 2003

I got lots of deer playing in my pasture, too. I don't really mind them eating the cover crops, but I'm worried that they may decide that I've opened a "deer buffet" and become repeat customers...

theboman · Mar 19, 2003

Me too. Last year I didn't find a deer track in my garden after it was coming up. They visited when it was just tilled then when the garden grew they went away.
I guess the purty green looks more gooder than winter brown/gray.
I'll have one in the freezer this fall, so I guess they are grazing : )
I'll put the ol' yeller barrier tape up this year.

Oh, when should I till it under? I planted late April last year and it'll be my estimated time to plant this year

chrisjbell · Mar 20, 2003

<font color="blue"> I'll put the ol' yeller barrier tape up this year.
</font>

Hey, does that stuff work? I'm trying to figure out how to evict the deer from the garden. (Yes, other than the obvious way of just shooting them /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif.)

I don't know when to till it under. I'm figuring that I'll do mine pretty soon now - should be warm enough to plant here in a couple of weeks, I think. Hope so - got some plants started and they're sittin' out on the porch in the sun right now. Little guys are comin' up and should be ready for the deer in a couple of weeks /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif.

Egon · Mar 20, 2003

Myself and some neighbors have found the only sure way of keeping Deer out of the garden other than an eight foot chain link fence is to keep the garden area tilled every week or so and buy fresh veggies from the local market garden.

Egon

theboman · Mar 21, 2003

If the deer can read it should help. I've heard it works, and a neighbor about a 1/2 mile away has it all around his garden every year and it seems to grow just fine and dandy..hopefully they'll obey the tape.

theboman · Mar 31, 2003

My brother has a one bottom plow and it was suggested that I actully turn the garden with it then use my tiller to chop get it ready for planting.
Will this have any advantages?

What I was told that I may not notice much of a difference this year but in coming years there would be a payoff with richer soil.

You folks are the experts. So I value your input.

Bird · Mar 31, 2003

Bo, there are those who say just using a tiller year after year will leave a hardpan under the tilled ground and that the tiller doesn't usually get as deep as the bottom plow. I don't know whether it really makes a big difference or not. I had a very good garden for a few years using nothing but the tiller; however, I ran the tiller over it almost after every rain year round to keep it loosened up. But the last 3 or 4 years, I did tear it up first (tried both an old single bottom plow and a middle buster at different times) before using the tiller. I did get a bit deeper with the plow and liked that method better personally, at least for my type of soil. You may have different results.

theboman · Apr 1, 2003

I just tilled it all up. It amazes me how well a tiller works. In a day or two (or first chance I get after a day or two) I'll turn it all again, I had quite the wheat patch that was plum full of deer tracks, but then again I can seen them in the wheat each week.

It's my busy time of the year with all the bluegrass festivals, but I think I'll plant a huge garden again, er bean patch, with lots more corn. I had about 2' between the rows last year, I'm thinking 4' this year..