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This is my first time to try cover crops. I'm going to 
seed some crimson clover and hairy vetch today. I bought 
hulless oats, hoping to actually harvest some of the oats, 
but I thought it was killed by frost and was going to 
plant that in early spring. Rob, what kind of oats did you 
plant with the clover? I'm assuming it's colder in VA than 
here, and our first frost will be happening any time 
now...so how is it that you can grow oats now?

--Sage
Way Out in Texas


On Tue, 11 Nov 2008 09:24:15 -0500
 "Lynn Wigglesworth" <lynnw1366 AT hotmail.com> wrote:
> Rob; It's always a nice surprise when a plan comes 
> together. Are both fields 
> going to be pasture or do you rotate them to be 
> pasture/field crops? My 
> pastures are all permanent, and over the years I've 
> tried overseeding with 
> various forage seeds..one year I tried Newman Turner's 
> suggested seed mix 
> (he was a British pasture expert). His mix is similar, I 
> think to Salatin's 
> 'salad bar' pasture...lots of deep-rooted perennials. 
> Some of the seeds 
> took, some didn't, but I have a nice, diverse pasture 
> now. With my new 
> fence, I have 35 acres fenced, but only about 10 acres 
> is nice pasture...the 
> rest is wooded/brambles with some grassy spots. I've 
> cleared some of the 
> brambles with a brush hog, but it's a lot of work.  I've 
> been thinking about 
> getting goats to help clear the brambles so I can have 
> more grass (the sheep 
> are too scared to go into the woods...what a bunch of 
> wusses). My goal is to 
> have enough pasture so I only need hay when there is too 
> much snow to graze, 
> and I'm hoping I can make that much hay myself so I 
> don't have to buy any.
>
> Lynn Wigglesworth
> Tioga Co. PA
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Robert Walton" <waltonrp AT gmail.com>
> To: <homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, November 11, 2008 7:24 AM
> Subject: [Homestead] Crimson Clover, cover crops
>
>
> > Hey all,
> >
> > I planted my 1 1/2 acre field to crimson clover/oats 
> > last year. It
> > grew fine for acid soil with low fertility. This June 
> > and July were so
> > dry, I could never get in to till the ground up, so I 
> > ran the goats in
> > it to keep down the ragweed. It got limed in August and 
> > it's rained
> > pretty good since then. I went in the other day to bush 
> > hog it off for
> > winter and low and behold, the clover and a decent 
> > amount of oats has
> > reseeded. I know some of the clover seed was hard seed, 
> > but the field
> > is so full of clover, I'm going to leave it and just 
> > seed a few spots
> > that are bare.
> >
> > Good deal. Small successes are a good thing!
> >
> > The other field is a half acre and I'm seeing it today 
> > to oats and a
> > pasture mix: grass/clover, I'm adding a little alfalfa, 
> > maybe it will
> > grow. Garden is tilled up and gets oats/crimson clover.
> >
> > I was gearing up to till that 1 1/2 acre field. Good 
> > saving on gas,
> > time and seed. It got started early so it might even 
> > provide some nice
> > oat and clover winter pasture.
> >
> > Rob - Va
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