– Fertilize and lime according to soil test recommendations prior to planting. With no soil test, apply 150 pounds of 19-19-19 fertilizer as a pre-plant application or top dress after planting.

Buck Forage Oats is an excellent product that has dual uses both as a cover crop and as a fall forage. Planting Buck Forage Oats in August will provide tender forage, providing a food source for deer and turkey into the late fall season. Soil Types: Widely adapted, fertile. Seeding Rate: 100-125 lbs. per acre.

Oats are highly nutritious as well. In well-managed food plots with a neutral soil pH and good fertility, oats can contain more than 25% crude protein. This rivals any other cool-season forage and is well above the levels required by deer for optimum growth and production. Oats are also highly digestible.

MonsterBuck Forage Seed Oats Germination rate: 5-7 days Planting schedule:...

The first 30 pounds is the most important. You need that amount regardless of the soil test to ensure even and vigorous growth across the entire field since residual N can vary quite a bit as you move across a field. Generally, 30 to 55 pounds of fertilizer N seems to be the right amount to apply.

High oat yields require large quantities of available plant nutrients. For example, each bushel of oats will take up approximately 1.3 lb nitrogen, 0.4 lb phosphorus (P2Os), and 1.2 lb potassium (K2O) per acre.

Forage oats is the preferred winter forage crop for beef and dairy cattle in Queensland, due to its ability to produce good- quality feed when most pastures are dormant. Many farmers rely on oats to fatten livestock during the period from autumn to early spring.

BENEFITS OF FORAGE OATS

• Low cost option.
• Fast establishing.
• Rebound well after grazing.
• Suitable for grazing, hay, silage and grain production.
• Drought tolerant.

Plant during Spring or Fall at a rate of 75 to 100 lbs. per acre. Plant at a depth of 1/2 to 1 in. Test soil to find a pH of 5.5 to 7.

Usually, oats can be harvested about 12 weeks after they are planted. In areas where weeds are prevalent, it may be beneficial to swath, or cut, the crop before combining. Weeds will certainly make harvesting more difficult, and the weed seeds and chaff can be difficult to separate from the oats.

Nitrogen fertiliser applications after grazing in oats can help maintain the quality of the feed well into the season. Ideally, forage oat crops should be topdressed prior to rainfall with 50 kg/ha of nitrogen after the first grazing.

For best results, oat should be drill-planted on a conventionally tilled seedbed at a seeding rate of 80 to 100 pounds of seed per acre. Seeding depth can be as deep as 1½ inches, but a depth of only ½ to ¾ inch will increase the rate of emergence, establishment and forage production potential.