Quail trail mix

[Wingman]

I may never have a bobwhite on the place, but at least I'm trying.

1.5# per acre of a western ragweed/ partridge pea/ common sunflower/ clasping coneflower/ Black-eyed Susan mix. I broadcast it and cultipacked it in this afternoon before the rain started. I plan to go back through it and plant a light rate of Laredo soybeans on 38" rows in a month.

It should be decent deer browse if nothing else.

[SWAG]

Will be interesting to see who wins....my bet is on partridge pea and/or ragweed being the persistant winners.

[Wingman]

Common sunflower about 5' tall now and ragweed short but numerous. I've seen a few of the wildflowers but very few partridge pea yet.

[Plainsman04]

Ragweed and partridge peas are good quail plants, especially as brood cover. Hopefully your partridge peas will catch up. May just take a year for them to get going. What are your long term maintenance plans for this patch?

[Wingman]

I'll disk or burn it every third year probably.

[Bayou Hunter]

How did your quail mix end up doing?

[Wingman]

It is doing really well. Those wild sunflowers got about 8' tall, bloomed all summer long and have tiny heads packed with tiny little sunflowers. The ragweed is making seed now. The partridge pea is coming slowly but the wildflowers in the mix did well. I'll take some pics soon.

[stang67]

Is that a blend you can buy?

[DanP]

http://www.turnerseed.com/site/WildLifeMix.asp

[Wingman]

I just had Turner mix it to my specs.

[stang67]

Wonder how hard a time I'd have establishing that in an old fescue, bermuda field.

[Wingman]

Ought not be too hard because you can spray clethodim over it and kill grasses. I'd load it up with a super heavy dose of roundup (1 gallon) or 16 oz of clethodim in the next month before frost while the Bermuda is taking nutrients down to the root.