Cereal Rye or Wheat.

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Lbass

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 22, 2019
Messages
91
City & State/Province
SW Missouri
I've planted both in the past. Never side by side, which I should probably do just to prove to myself which I like better. I've generally stuck with the Rye because they say it grows later into the fall and earlier in the spring giving me grazing when I need it. However, I've talked to the neighbor and he's willing to sell me bin run wheat. This years price is 5.00 a bushel. I could plant a lot of wheat at that price compared to the Rye I got for 16.00 per 50#.

Is the rye really providing more grazing or am I just wanting to believe the market hype? The wheat, from what I remember, didn't grow in much colder weather than fescue, but the calves sure looked good.

I might go over and fill up my pickup bed trailer, plant a few strips right down the middle of that rye. You know, for science.
 
Sorry, updated the location. Southwest MO

I'm the only person I know that grazes rye or ryegrass here. They say they sell quite a bit, so someone grazes it. Pretty rare for someone around me to plant wheat unless its a drought year. They use wheat because its grown for grain here. Abundant and cheap.

Most people feed hay. On tight years the bigger guys plant millet or sudan grass, bale and feed that later.
 
Here in East Texas, I prefer rye over wheat even though wheat is cheaper. Rye does better in our sandier soils. It is more cold tolerant. I overseed rye with ryegrass to extend the grazing season.

This is where grazing management comes into play. I overseed into bermuda sod and have to be warry not to shade out my warm season grass
 
Bought some more seed today. Decided that asking questions is good, but just trying it is better. So i'm going to make a bunch of test plots to make future decisions.
Plot 1, 50# Rye/ 12.5# ryegrass
Plot 2, 50# Rye/ 25# Austrian Peas
Plot 3, 50# Rye/ 2# Forage Turnips (may be to late in the year)
Plot 4, 50# Rye/ 15# Hairy Vetch
Plot 5, 75# Rye
Plot 6, 75# Triticale
Plot 7, 100# Wheat, Bin run.

Planting 40 acres of the mix in Plot 1. The rest will be however big they are when the seed runs out. Anywhere from 1 acre for the Turnips to 3 acres for the Bag of Vetch. The Triticale, Vetch, and Peas will really have to do something to justify cost in future years, I'm excited to compare Plot 1, 3, 7.

Would like to see what Oats could do before it gets to cold to shut them down. Need to read a bit more on varieties. Feed store has "Bob Oats"
 
I planted "Jumbo Rye" at half a bag per acre 4 or 5 years ago and haven't planted it since in one patch. Do no-till Austrian Winter Peas into it with a conventional drill in the fall. I get 2 cuttings off it and let it go to seed. Even though it's an annual doing that and running a light disc over it as part of the pea planting ensures a returning crop. Wheat never did that for me.....Peas are worth their weight in gold.
 
Bob oats does fine here. Way back when planting in prepared ground we would seed @ 100 lbs. but that also helped ensure enough would survive grazing and trampling in the mud to bale hay off it to. Before ryegrass was a sure thing we would mix about 10 lbs of it in with the oats.
 

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