OSR Drilling 2019

[Brisel]

Seed needs soil contact for moisture transfer and retention. That’s all, until you start thinking about treated seed or pre em herbicides.

 

[DrWazzock]

I am going to gamble and broadcast on to sprayed off grass ley, which was paraplowed and then finallyflat roll to tighten it down. Throwing seed on by hand it does get through the thatch to the moist soil underneath. The roller should help as well.

Drilling will require pre rolling then rolling afterwards and I dont think the drill will do much into six inch long dying grass.

Could be wrong though. The drill is a major faff. The broadcaster is a doddle and easy and very accurate.

Should get it done over the weekend ready for rain Monday .... And hopefully not slugmaggedon.

 

[Bob lincs]

Does drilling provide any advantage over broadcasting other than getting depth for preem or complying with requirement to drill if seed is treated?

Is broadcast and roll sufficient or even better? Or is the danger that it can chit then dry out?

I believe that one of the most important factors in growing any crop is giving it a good start and the and the first thing is accurate seed placement . I have seen time and time again people drilling osr ( carful with the combine and carts , bale off the straw , subsoil to help rooting , add a bit of fert and then broadcast the seed into oblivion and hope it grows ) why try and do everything so well and then cock up the important bit . Similar to folks who brag about pulling vads etc at 16k and then moaning that the seed is bunched or laid on top .

 

[Bob lincs]

I believe that one of the most important factors in growing any crop is giving it a good start and the and the first thing is accurate seed placement . I have seen time and time again people drilling osr ( carful with the combine and carts , bale off the straw , subsoil to help rooting , add a bit of fert and then broadcast the seed into oblivion and hope it grows ) why try and do everything so well and then cock up the important bit . Similar to folks who brag about pulling vads etc at 16k and then moaning that the seed is bunched or laid on top .

I’m not having a go at anyone it’s just my opinion
We all have different ideas .

 

[DrWazzock]

I believe that one of the most important factors in growing any crop is giving it a good start and the and the first thing is accurate seed placement . I have seen time and time again people drilling osr ( carful with the combine and carts , bale off the straw , subsoil to help rooting , add a bit of fert and then broadcast the seed into oblivion and hope it grows ) why try and do everything so well and then cock up the important bit . Similar to folks who brag about pulling vads etc at 16k and then moaning that the seed is bunched or laid on top .

Quite right. Well said. I am getting the drill out. This "seedbed" needs all the help it can get.

 

[fingermouse]

Going to start next week grounds still getting compost spread at moment , be as late as we’ve gone for a few years not overly worried drilled up to 20th of sept once or twice and had decent crops though a lot depends on weather afterwards getting that late on
It will be subsoiled then as soon as it’s hazed over the combi will tickle it in and then rolled so a decent seedbed for the best start
Won’t be struggling with moisture for sure
Windozz and still sticking with 35 to 40 plants sq m so around 2.25 kg /ha
Wont be spraying it till I can see it in row either

 

[pgilliat]

Acacia, 6kg/ha mzuri straight in

 

[Wilberforce]

Return to OSR after a hiatus, now seen as least worst break crop option. Elgar going in at 3kg/ha. Followed with the rolls, don't know if it was beneficial but made us feel better. Was going to take some before and after drilling photos but there was no difference with zero soil movement.

 

[DrWazzock]

Rolled the paraplowing a couple of runs and tried the Unidrill but it wouldn't cut through the grass. Tried the Unidrill on the unrolled paraplowing and it would just cut through the grass, but it's undulating. With so little seed in the hopper there isn't much downward pressure even with hitch as low as poss.

Turning into another monumental feck up but carrying on living in hope.

Next year buying the biggest plough and power Harrow known to mankind and doing it properly.

There is just too much grass on the surface for one thing. If this works it's a miracle but the plan is to go spring barley if it doesn't. Can but try.

 

[Renaultman]

Rolled the paraplowing a couple of runs and tried the Unidrill but it wouldn't cut through the grass. Tried the Unidrill on the unrolled paraplowing and it would just cut through the grass, but it's undulating. With so little seed in the hopper there isn't much downward pressure even with hitch as low as poss.

Turning into another monumental feck up but carrying on living in hope.

Next year buying the biggest plough and power Harrow known to mankind and doing it properly.

There is just too much grass on the surface for one thing. If this works it's a miracle but the plan is to go spring barley if it doesn't. Can but try.

Just being nosey but why OSR after grass. If I get grass to take out I normally go for a first wheat, if I get it for 3 years then it's wheat, OSR, wheat.

 

[DrWazzock]

Just being nosey but why OSR after grass. If I get grass to take out I normally go for a first wheat, if I get it for 3 years then it's wheat, OSR, wheat.

Was worried about leatherjackets. But if this OSR malarkey doesn't work then we might get a big plough on the Renault and do a proper job and get some wheat in.

 

[lloyd]

Rolled the paraplowing a couple of runs and tried the Unidrill but it wouldn't cut through the grass. Tried the Unidrill on the unrolled paraplowing and it would just cut through the grass, but it's undulating. With so little seed in the hopper there isn't much downward pressure even with hitch as low as poss.

Turning into another monumental feck up but carrying on living in hope.

Next year buying the biggest plough and power Harrow known to mankind and doing it properly.

There is just too much grass on the surface for one thing. If this works it's a miracle but the plan is to go spring barley if it doesn't. Can but try.

I chopped up grass with a rotavator set shallow in the spring then
MZURI worked well.
Mzuri was having the same problem as you before I borrowed the rotavator.

 

[SilliamWhale]

Rolled the paraplowing a couple of runs and tried the Unidrill but it wouldn't cut through the grass. Tried the Unidrill on the unrolled paraplowing and it would just cut through the grass, but it's undulating. With so little seed in the hopper there isn't much downward pressure even with hitch as low as poss.

Turning into another monumental feck up but carrying on living in hope.

Next year buying the biggest plough and power Harrow known to mankind and doing it properly.

There is just too much grass on the surface for one thing. If this works it's a miracle but the plan is to go spring barley if it doesn't. Can but try.

It won't work

 

[SilliamWhale]

Was worried about leatherjackets. But if this OSR malarkey doesn't work then we might get a big plough on the Renault and do a proper job and get some wheat in.

My experience: Don't worry too much about leatherjackets and try some wheat farm saved and plenty of it. There is the old roots of grass for them to eat as well.

 

[DrWazzock]

Drilling into grass with the Unidrill I am struggling to keep depth consistent partly because of undulations after paraplowing and partly because of depth instability due to nothing to limit depth of coulter on my old drill once the disc has sliced through the grass. The disc needs more pressure to cut the grass than it does to cut into the soil so once it's cut through the grass it plummets into the soil. Back the pressure off and the disc just runs on top of the grass. Less length of grass would have helped.

There is no tilth to cover the seed either so it's sitting in the bottom of fairly deep smooth sided slots cut into the clay and turf. The drill press wheels can't close the slots as all the pressure is on discs at the front of the drill.

It is extreme conditions so I am not knocking drill which normally works fine in reasonable conditions.

However, if we get some rain to wash the slots in, it might come to something.

I have had decent stands of OSR with this method before now, but the soil was lighter and not paraplowed and the grass was much shorter.

 

[T Hectares]

Started drilling yesterday, Chicken muck and sludge cake spread this week and lightly worked in and rolled.
A little bit of rain in the forecast for Monday, so it's all going in before then, despite my best efforts of pulling out the Isobus plug on the drill, destroying a tyre on a flint and a heavy shower last night!!
95% FSS Campus undressed, the other 5% being some Cert Campus and Aspire for next year's seed.

Joy of Autosteer #27 - eating a "drillmans lunch" @Ladybird

 

[Grass And Grain]

Rolled the paraplowing a couple of runs and tried the Unidrill but it wouldn't cut through the grass. Tried the Unidrill on the unrolled paraplowing and it would just cut through the grass, but it's undulating. With so little seed in the hopper there isn't much downward pressure even with hitch as low as poss.

Turning into another monumental feck up but carrying on living in hope.

Next year buying the biggest plough and power Harrow known to mankind and doing it properly.

There is just too much grass on the surface for one thing. If this works it's a miracle but the plan is to go spring barley if it doesn't. Can but try.

Had a grass field up the side of a piece of rape this last year. With the 2nd cut the mower and tedder were catching the edge of the rape crop and I could hear the rape seeds shattering out of the pods and flicking into the grass field. Grass is now full of rape seedlings in a 4m strip up that side of the field.

It was the 2nd year of a 2 year ley, so grass is thinning out, a fair bit thinner than your grass, and we've had lots of rain events. Just shows though, that broadcast rapeseed will grow inamongst grass without any cultivation. So might be worth trying to broadcast plenty of HSS and see what happens. Nothing to lose, and just see what happens over the next 5 weeks or so.

 

[DrWazzock]

Had a grass field up the side of a piece of rape this last year. With the 2nd cut the mower and tedder were catching the edge of the rape crop and I could hear the rape seeds shattering out of the pods and flicking into the grass field. Grass is now full of rape seedlings in a 4m strip up that side of the field.

It was the 2nd year of a 2 year ley, so grass is thinning out, a fair bit thinner than your grass, and we've had lots of rain events. Just shows though, that broadcast rapeseed will grow inamongst grass without any cultivation. So might be worth trying to broadcast plenty of HSS and see what happens. Nothing to lose, and just see what happens over the next 5 weeks or so.

Good idea. Where the drilling looks worst I could broadcast some FSS on and get two chances as it were.
Finished drilling it anyway. Very slotty, but some seed is actually in crumb at bottom of slot. Daren't roll it as slot closure would mean it's in over 2" deep in places. Hope the slots catch a bit of rain and the seedlings can grow their way up.

Metering on the sulky seed box on the Undrill didn't work out too badly.
Undrill coped well really. Thought I'd pull the front off it in places but it stood it well.

 

[Grass And Grain]

Good idea. Where the drilling looks worst I could broadcast some FSS on and get two chances as it were.
Finished drilling it anyway. Very slotty, but some seed is actually in crumb at bottom of slot. Daren't roll it as slot closure would mean it's in over 2" deep in places. Hope the slots catch a bit of rain and the seedlings can grow their way up.

Metering on the sulky seed box on the Undrill didn't work out too badly.
Undrill coped well really. Thought I'd pull the front off it in places but it stood it well.

Good luck with it. Keep us all posted with germination success/progress.

 

[snipe]

Drilled most of my osr by the 14 of August, dropped straight in behind flat lift. Was too wet to work the land in any form. Let the tyres down to 10psi and went really well. Just started to rain as I was finishing the last few acres, 10kg/ha ish of conventional seed. 4kg of slug pellets in total with 2 applications. No csfb spray, but not much activity either. Think It might be a bit thick.