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Post by wiscwhip on Feb 7, 2017 13:35:57 GMT -6
I have no idea why, but I have a fascination with switchgrass. Never really had too much around our area, and never planted any, all we had was mostly naturally occurring little bluestem. I will post links to good info in this thread as we move forward. Some of it will be very technical, but I hope it is helpful. Here is the first one...... digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1836&context=agronomyfacpubAt some point I hope to compile my GRIN switchgrass spreadsheet and upload it here as well. |
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Post by wiscwhip on Feb 7, 2017 13:39:29 GMT -6
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Post by MoBuckChaser on Feb 8, 2017 9:32:41 GMT -6
You have to be very careful on where you buy your switch or any CRP grass if you are going into the Gov CRP program. Most state soil and water offices will give you a list of approved vendors that have the correct labels.
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Post by wiscwhip on Feb 8, 2017 9:42:09 GMT -6
Great point Mo! Big brother will dictate what you can use if you are getting money from him, if you are spending your own dinero without the involvement of the Goobermint, you have many more options.
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Post by Freeborn on Feb 8, 2017 10:28:00 GMT -6
Good information on the Ernst seed site. Tells you quickly what you can use for your general area.
Thanks!
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Post by MoBuckChaser on Feb 8, 2017 12:54:30 GMT -6
Palmer Amaranth is now coming in with some of the CRP seed from southern vendors. So whether a guy goes through the Gov on his CRP or not, be careful who you buy from.
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Post by jbird on Feb 9, 2017 12:48:46 GMT -6
Anyone ever figure out which switchgrass variety is that Real World seed sells? I know some folks here don't like Don, and that's fine (that's not what this is about). He has treated me fine in the past. All I know is I got some switch from him in the past and it has done pretty well on my place thus far. In fact it is the only thing in the "bedding in a bag"
Wow - that was interesting! I just somehow went "incognito"......never done that before, not sure how I did it either!!! Damn internet shit!!!
Any way....I'm back!
The only thing in the "bedding in a bag" product of theirs I planted the switchgrass did great, the rest didn't do worth a shit....at least for me.
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Post by wiscwhip on Feb 9, 2017 12:50:09 GMT -6
I have a couple ideas, but no verified proof of what type it is. I might figure it out someday, or find something even better?
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Post by Freeborn on Feb 9, 2017 12:57:45 GMT -6
Anyone ever figure out which switchgrass variety is that Real World seed sells? I know some folks here don't like Don, and that's fine (that's not what this is about). He has treated me fine in the past. All I know is I got some switch from him in the past and it has done pretty well on my place thus far. In fact it is the only thing in the "bedding in a bag" Wow - that was interesting! I just somehow went "incognito"......never done that before, not sure how I did it either!!! Damn internet shit!!! Any way....I'm back! The only thing in the "bedding in a bag" product of theirs I planted the switchgrass did great, the rest didn't do worth a shit....at least for me. Switch and prairie grass for that matter is typically regional and I would bet Don's blend is best for states south of the northern states. Where I am at you only have two maybe 3 choices of varieties and I would doubt Don's blend would work in the north. I saw an article once that indicated you should not purchase prairie grass that originates more than 300 miles from where you are going to plant it. This seems like a good rule and depending on soil you could probably stretch that particularly east to west. |
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Post by wiscwhip on Feb 9, 2017 13:02:42 GMT -6
Freeborn is correct. What many don't realize is that it is not only the latitude that affects the locations switch will thrive, but longitude plays an important role as well. High Tide switchgrass is from the Maryland area, but will not due well away from coastal areas. Switch is either upland or lowland ecotype( with a few "intermediates") as well and those do not interchange fully in planting locations at the same latitude either.
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Post by jbird on Feb 9, 2017 15:02:13 GMT -6
OK - whatever Don had in his mix has done well for me in my bottom land areas where I get seasonal flooding as well as my drier upland areas. Don is in Southern IL if I recall properly and maybe I just got lucky.....hell if I know. I just know it worked on my place and I am looking to get more of it at some point down the road. At the time switch was also the cheapest of all the native tall grasses I could find as well and the seeds broadcast well so it gives me lots of flexibility at least on my place. I will also say once it's established it's pretty tough stuff. I had some logging done and they used an area of my switch as a logging deck.....I thought I was screwed. This was in the heat of summer to boot. Not only did it not kill it, but it almost got back as tall as the non matted areas. I was really impressed.
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Post by wiscwhip on Feb 9, 2017 15:15:58 GMT -6
You are in close enough proximity to his test fields both in latitude and longitude that whatever he has in his mix should be fine for anyone in your general area. I'm 100% sure he sells a lowland ecotype, so them thriving in the wet areas make sense. Another thing is that the lowland types will do better on drier ground than the upland types will do where it is wet, so the fact his seed does well in the upland areas on your place is no surprise either. I wouldn't say he sells a shit product, just that a man could source it much cheaper than he sells it for if one could find out the variety.
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Post by wiscwhip on Feb 9, 2017 15:29:45 GMT -6
I'm interested in KN1(Kanlow Nebraska 1), problem is, it is not sold to consumers because it is an unreleased variety controlled by the USDA - Agricultural Research Service at the University of Nebraska. It is said to have improved winter hardiness over the parent Kanlow and is more resistant to lodging, which tells me it's winter standability is likely better than Kanlow as well. Kanlow is as tall or taller than Cave-in-Rock, so I am thinking the KN1 would be a good alternative to either of them if they ever release it, and it may work a zone or 2 north of where Kanlow will fail due to winter hardiness.
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Post by wiscwhip on Feb 9, 2017 15:37:35 GMT -6
Another variety that may work well for you j-bird is Shelter. Very course stems on what I have seen of it, so it should stand up to snow loads, it just doesn't get near as tall as C-I-R.
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Post by wiscwhip on Feb 10, 2017 7:22:23 GMT -6
At some point I hope to compile my GRIN switchgrass spreadsheet and upload it here as well. I maybe should have posted this somewhere else, but is anyone really familiar with the Google Docs spreadsheets and how they can be shared? I am doing my GRIN switch spreadsheet in MS Excel, but I would rather not upload it here(as they can sometimes be large files) if I could just share it as a Google Doc? If I use Google Docs for the spreadsheet and share it, can it be viewed and filtered by the other members but not edited? I would love for guys to be able to filter it by plant height, stem diameter, etc., but I don't want anyone tinkering with the numbers in the sheet. Any thoughts? |
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