Overseeding Timothy and Clover

[pleasantpasturesbeef]

Mom let me go ahead and hay the acre of grass growing around our front pond!! I've been trying to turn our 20 acres of land into food producing land, since I hate to watch it sit there and do nothing, and I also get really sick of mowing 10 acres every week! (Well, the drought has helped put an end to that, kinda.)



But they got 90 bales out of that section, and even tho they're not as tightly packed as the ones I usually buy (so I don't have to lift bales half my weight lol) I thought $2.50/bale wasn't too shabby.



I would like to oversee that whole section down there with Timothy and purple clover, but I have no idea what I need to look for in seed since our family has never done hay before! What should I be looking for in coated seed to know if I'm getting the seed I need at a reasonable price?? Any hay tips appreciated!!

 

[Named'em Tamed'em]

First of all good job! Talk to your local agg extension office. They will know what's best in your area. Good luck moving forward!

 

[pleasantpasturesbeef]

Thanks! Yeah, it's pretty exciting to finally be using the property for something other than a park Ok, I'll have to look up who that would be.

 

[WFfarm]

I would look for certified clover seed. It should have less weed seed in it. We bought some clover seed from a local farmer that he harvested. Used it to frost seed on some pastures. The clover came in well, but we also got some weeds that we've never had before. We are in the same area as you. We've been trying to figure out the best way to reestablish some hay fields too. Seed in the fall, frost seed in the spring or early summer? We spayed in early fall to kill out the goldenrod, milkweed, and white daisy. It did a fairly good job knocking them back, but it also takes out your clover too. But the Timothy has come is nicely.

$2.50 a bale is a bargain, even if they're light! Not much available under $4/bale around us.

 

[CalumetFarms]

Looks good! Great idea to speak with your local extension office to find what works around you. A website I used for bulk seed last year is https://covercropexchange.com/
Good to browse around and see all the varieties, they're reasonable even with shipping. If there's a co-op or feed mill near you that has a no-till they'll often rent it by the acre, could save you on seed by drilling it.

 

[pleasantpasturesbeef]

Thanks for the link! It looks like a good resource.

Does anyone know of anything specifically offering organic? We were kind of hoping to be able to seed the ground with organic seed if possible.

 

[chevytaHOE5674]

If the plan is to use it for hay i personally wouldn't plant clover. All the grass will be dry enough to bale and the clover will be green and wet.