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Dear Jeff,
I live in Massachusetts. Two falls ago, a lessee planted
rye in my fields after years of corn. Last year, he let it
go by so that the weeds finally came through. This spring,
when he didn’t return, I put in Sudan grass to try to
slow down the weeds. I've harvested that and just finished
tilling it in. I'd like to put in hay for feed. Can I get
away with it this late? If not, any ideas?
Thanks for any suggestions,
Ken Cranson
Dear Ken,
Sorry for the late response; I’ve been traveling.
Even as of Oct. 5, it’s really too late to get hay started.
You could try timothy grass hay that would work this late,
then frost seed something on top in early spring to get a
good grass/legume mix. You could also plant the timothy with
wheat at this time of the year. If none of that suits you,
you’ll need to think of rye again or maybe a late planting
of spring oats that will winter kill, leaving a nice clean
start for spring yet protecting the soil through the winter.
Good Luck and thanks for your patience,
Jeff
Have some questions to Ask Jeff? E-mail
him directly at jeff.moyer@rodaleinst.org.
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