# Winter Wheat



## DaveK (Jul 15, 2002)

Before I ask my question, please let me pleed ignorance first because this will be my first year with food plots. I have a question on winter wheat. Is winter wheat regular wheat that you plant in the late summer/early fall or is it a specific strain of wheat? I called a place up by my property and was told that they have wheat seed for sale. When I asked them about winter wheat, I was told that winter wheat is just wheat that is planted in late summer/early fall. They weren't rude or anything and have always been helpful in the past but I was just wondering if there is a difference. I know that BFO are designed to be much more cold tolerant than regular oats and was wondering about winter wheat.

Thanks,
DaveK


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## Jeff Sturgis (Mar 28, 2002)

Winter wheat will stay green under the snow, where oats, even BFO, will eventually freeze-out and die.

I planted wheat in a new field before, where the initial ph was extremely low, and it did not survive. It got to about 1" and died. At the same time, I planted rye and it thrived. It seems though the wheat is preferred, but if your soil is marginal you might want to stick with something else.


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## chromium (Oct 10, 2001)

A winter wheat such as "Soft Red" has the hardiness to make it through the winter.
I believe that winter wheat is best planted around first frost.


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## DaveK (Jul 15, 2002)

So NorthJeff by saying winter wheat will stay green under the snow, you mean there is a specific strain of wheat that will stay green under the snow- that would be winter wheat.

The reason why ask is because the place by my property doesn't have winter wheat but regular wheat. They told me wheat and winter wheat are the same, the only thing that changes is the planting date. 

If there is a difference between wheat and winter wheat, where could I purchase winter wheat seed (online or store) near Oxford and Gladwin or anywhere in between.

Thanks again,
DaveK


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## Liver and Onions (Nov 24, 2000)

Winter wheat is the regular wheat that farmers have been planting in Mi. for about 200 yrs. Whether you plant wheat or rye or some of both, next May you might want to turn it under for green manure and then plant buckwheat to keep the deer coming into that area during the summer. If you are interested in rye grass do a search under "rye" & "Trophy Specialist". Interesting thread.

L & O


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## hangoo (Oct 3, 2001)

being a farmer (my dads farm) (im just his little work horse)...

...you can plant either white or red wheat....just plant them in the fall, September usually....they will grow up about 2 inches before winter.....like everyone said, they stay green all winter long and once the ground thaws out, they'll start growing like a weed....then by June they will have heads,, and by about the 2 or 3rd week of July, they will be all dried......

so again, winter wheat is regular wheat....


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## Hamilton Reef (Jan 20, 2000)

I just talked to my local farmer at coffee this morning. He is harvesting now and I can get what ever wheat seed I need. I plant the winter wheat during Labor Day weekend. It is up good for the fall hunting season and great green spring starter to help the turkey and deer come out of the winter. I leave it up for the turkeys during the summer both for the grasshoppers and a ton of seed feed. If done right, we can brush hog the wheat and just disk it in to provide green manure and reseed it self at the same time.


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## johnhunter (Jun 17, 2000)

In my opinion, winter wheat may well be the most underrated food plot going. 

It's a tremendous draw once it pops up in the fall, and deer eat it voraciously. 

It provides good (maybe not great, but good) nutritive value.

Deer will paw through the snow to get at it in the winter.

It's one of the first things to green up early in the spring, when deer need green stuff bad.

It's easy to grow.

It's cheap.

If you decide to let it grow, it will provide good food and cover for game birds.

It can function effectively as a nurse crop. My wheat plot from last year got frost-seeded this year with a mix of alsike/medium red/ladino clovers and puna chicory. It is now the most fabulous first-year clover plot I've ever seen.

For me, it's a no-brainer. I plan on doing one straight-up winter wheat plot annually, around Labor Day, in varying locations each year.


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## Hamilton Reef (Jan 20, 2000)

Thankyou farmlegend, you listed all my reasons for using winter wheat exactly.


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## SalmonSlayer (Jan 18, 2000)

Farmlegend, what was the ratio you used of wheat seed to clover seed? I currently have a 1 acre buckwheat plot that has had buckwheat for 2 years now...killing the weeds the organic way! Next spring I want to plant clover...and wheat sounds like the cover crop I want. How does the clover handle the shade of the wheat...ie how much wheat is too much wheat and chokes out the clover? Thanks,

Ben


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## johnhunter (Jun 17, 2000)

There was no ratio, they were not planted together.

I planted a wheat plot in the fall, nothing else, except about 200#/a of 20-10-10.

I frost-seeded clover which I inoculated, roughly 1/3 by weight each of Regal Ladino, Kenland Medium Red, and Alsike clovers. About 4 lbs/acre each. Plus about a pound of Puna Chicory in the mix. I broadcast it with a spreader drawn by my quad in mid-March, right on top of the snow, which made it easy to see where I had been! I also broadcast about 200#/a of 6-24-24 at that time.

This June, once the wheat had developed seed heads, I mowed it.
No kidding, it's now the best looking first year clover plot I've ever seen. 

Much of the credit goes to mother nature, who has provided perfect growing conditions for clover this year. I give Ed Spin the rest of the credit, for all of the knowledge he's generously shared with us in his book and on this site.


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## bishs (Aug 30, 2000)

That practice of frost seeding clover into winter wheat is popular in my area. The farmers broadcast red clover into their wheat in March. When they harvest the wheat, the clover is growing well. Then they plow the clover in later in the summer. They gain both organic matter, and nitrogen in the soil, from the clover. They use red clover because of the "volume" it produces in a short period.


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## SalmonSlayer (Jan 18, 2000)

okay, so you planted wheat and fertilizer in the fall and the wheat grew in the fall and spring...(same planting) Then, you frost seeded clover and fertilizer without doing anything else to the ground in the early spring. Then did a prayer to the foodplot gods and got good growing weather. Then mowed the wheat when it went to seed and was taller than the clover in the summer.

sounds like a plan to me...when is a good time to put in the winter wheat? will it attract deer by hunting season?

thanks!

ben


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## bishs (Aug 30, 2000)

Thats right. There is another way that works very good also. Disc in the wheat in the early fall. Then broadcast clover seed and roll over it. The wheat will protect your small fall clover from deer. If the clover stand looks thin. Frost seed clover again in March.


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## johnhunter (Jun 17, 2000)

SS, bish is right on the money. 

Wheat is easy to establish; last year, I prepared my site with multiple Roundup applications, and dragged it with a flexible-toothed harrow, broadcast the wheat seed and fertilizer, dragged it a bit more, then ran over it several times with my quad. At the time, I had neither a disc or a cultipacker. It came in great. 

As to whether it will attract deer during the hunting season, absolutely yes. When it comes in good and green and looks like a lawn, the deer will attack it with gusto. At that time of year, it is a more powerful draw than clover. The first time I hunted near my wheat plot last season, I was alerted to the presence of deer by the sound of them ripping it out of the ground with their mouths. As I watched them, I actually worried that they would wipe out the plot to the point where it wouldn't recover in the spring! They went after the wheat with darn near the same fervor that I've seen them devour white oak acorns or green soybean plants. Their heads were down constantly, and they fed on the wheat like vacuum cleaners.


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## Liver and Onions (Nov 24, 2000)

SS,
Late August or early Sept. for both rye & wheat. With a little rain. you'll start seeing deer in about 2 weeks. In the early spring, nearly every deer within a mile will be feeding there unless other "green" fields in the section spread the deer out.
It doesn't get any easier than wheat & rye.

L & O


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## DaveK (Jul 15, 2002)

How has your results with wheat and rye through just broadcasting in the fall when combined with a little bit of help from the rain gods? 

Should it be worked in a little?

Thanks


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## Liver and Onions (Nov 24, 2000)

You will need to cover the seed with dirt. If the ground is nice and soft from just being worked up, then running over the area with a section of chain-link fence or bed springs will work.
I've never done this, but it might be interesting to plant two areas...one to wheat and one to rye and see which the deer prefer. 

L & O


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## Jeff Sturgis (Mar 28, 2002)

Most any tests I've seen have shown preferrance as:

1. Oats
2. Wheat
3. Rye

But on the other hand, rye is the most soil tolerant, and can very easily be established by just broadcasting on bare ground before an expected soaking rain. In fact, our local MSU exstension agent conducted a test of many forage type seeds on poor soil, and rye beat anthing else that can virtually be planted for tolerance of poor sites, especially low ph.


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