Episode #103 - Frost Seeding Tips and Tricks - NO SHORTCUTS!

Published: 2022-02-06
Episode page
Duration: 65 min

In this episode

buyafarm

• Terry thanks BuyAFarm.com for supporting the podcast and says he enjoys hearing directly from the listing agents, who know the properties best. 44:33
• Don says having property agents come on to promote their own listings has been a real positive change for the podcast. 44:51

clover

• For an established clover stand, Don recommends broadcasting five pounds per acre every other spring, half the rate used for a new ten-pound-per-acre planting. 14:26

consulting

• Don shares that after finishing this podcast recording he will head straight to Nebraska and Iowa for more consulting work. 1:57

debate

• Terry urges listeners to get tickets now for the Friday night debate in Shipshewana, noting over 2,000 people are expected to attend. 21:00
• Don says he’s heard buses are coming from Ohio, Missouri, and Iowa to attend the Shipshewana debate event. 21:20
• Don expects the debate with Tony to be friendly overall, with points of agreement and disagreement, ending with a handshake between friends. 22:13

emp

• Terry jokes he’s unfazed by the ice storm power outage risk because he’s been ready for an EMP for years. 62:45 (light moment)

faith

• Terry reflects that people shouldn’t wait for circumstances to be perfect to address their relationship with God or family, just as soil must be prepped before it can grow. 63:57
• Don adds that people shouldn’t wait until their deathbed to make things right, since some people never get that chance. 64:19

filming

• Terry notes Don will be filming new video content in Nebraska with Steve Shields, ahead of next episode releasing on Super Bowl weekend. 64:32

frost-seeding

• Don explains the key to frost seeding is timing it while freezing temperatures still persist and broadcasting seed onto a previously prepared seedbed. 4:51
• Don recommends frost seeding native grasses like switchgrass as early in winter as possible, even back in December or late November. 5:56
• Don recommends frost seeding clovers and alfalfas later, closer to spring, unlike native grasses which should go in earlier. 6:09
• Duane Hopkins taught that if your boot sinks over halfway into the field while frost seeding, it’s too late and you should wait until spring instead. 6:29

illinois-deer-classic

• Don will give a new seminar at the Illinois Deer Classic on the rise and fall of the Illinois deer herd, covering its history and how to turn it around. 20:23

mock-scrapes

• Mike Soyster from Martinsburg, Pennsylvania asks for tips on picking mock scrape site locations while hunting public land timber with mountain laurel thickets. 33:56

raffle

• Terry reports the podcast received many calls this week from people wanting to donate items and help with the charity raffle after last week’s announcement. 24:30

seminar

• Don is fine-tuning his ‘Ultimate Whitetail Nutrition’ seminar and asked the Illinois Deer Classic promoter to let him present it as one of his two seminar topics there. 2:55

shed-hunting

• Terry received a QuietKat rack basket that he says will become Don’s shed hunting container for the roughly 46 sheds he expects to find this spring. 17:24

sponsorship

• Don affirms he and Terry are proud to be sponsored by Victory Chevrolet. 24:07

switchgrass

• Switchgrass seed needs a stratification process of repeated freezing and thawing to improve its germination rates, according to Don. 7:44
• Don’s improved method is to wait until soil temperatures hit 60 degrees, spray the plot to kill germinated weeds, then immediately no-till the switchgrass seed in the same day. 11:15
• Tristan Reed from McBain, Michigan asks whether to plant one large switchgrass field or break it up with open pockets, browse, and shrubs. 45:10
• Jackson Hurley from Northwood, Iowa asks how to speed up getting purchased switchgrass seed planted this spring if soil prep isn’t finished. 50:36

trail-cameras

• A Cuddyback representative warned Don’s seminar crowd that a supply chain issue will hit the trail camera industry this year and urged buying new cameras immediately. 60:58
• Don says Reconyx are American made, possibly the only American-made brand, while other brands source components from China. 61:43
• Mark Phillips from North City, Illinois asks how Don checks trail cameras regularly without causing human intrusion. 55:34

truck-giveaway

• Terry announced last week’s truck giveaway partnership with Chris Yates and Bryhn Craft from Midwest Land Group. 22:17
• The truck giveaway doesn’t have a confirmed start or end date yet, but Terry says it is definitely happening soon. 22:35

Deer activity

• Smokey (history) 47:32
• Mel (history) 47:32

Listener questions

Question: Mike Soyster from Martinsburg, Pennsylvania asks for tips on picking mock scrape site locations while hunting public land timber with mountain laurel thickets. 33:56 — asked by Mike Soyster

• Answer: Don advises setting rope scrapes out immediately so they can weather outdoors all summer for the best results. 35:24
• Answer: He also warns against overdoing it—putting out too many scrapes on a property makes bucks pay less attention to any single one. 35:34

Question: Tristan Reed from McBain, Michigan asks whether to plant one large switchgrass field or break it up with open pockets, browse, and shrubs. 45:10 — asked by Tristan Reed

• Answer: Don says he strongly favors bigger switchgrass fields and won’t recommend planting less than five acres, since small fields don’t put bucks far enough from the dangerous edge. 46:11
• Answer: He adds that bigger fields are better and he avoids breaking them up with trees and shrubs, since that makes prescribed burning much harder. 47:53

Question: Jackson Hurley from Northwood, Iowa asks how to speed up getting purchased switchgrass seed planted this spring if soil prep isn’t finished. 50:36 — asked by Jackson Hurley

• Answer: Don insists there are no shortcuts for switchgrass site prep—skipping steps will make the planting project fail. 51:37
• Answer: He adds that unused switchgrass seed can be frozen for a full year and still lose very little germination when planted later. 54:01

Question: Mark Phillips from North City, Illinois asks how Don checks trail cameras regularly without causing human intrusion. 55:34 — asked by Mark Phillips

• Answer: Don explains most of his trail cameras sit on easy-to-access field edges, minimizing intrusion into cover. 56:03
• Answer: For cameras placed deep in a property’s interior, he sets them right before season and doesn’t check them again until after season ends. 56:11

Sponsors this episode

• QuietKat

Don covered frost seeding and switchgrass establishment in detail: timing frost seeding while ground is still frozen and broadcasting onto a prepped seedbed, seeding native grasses like switchgrass earlier in winter and clovers/alfalfas closer to spring, and citing Duane Hopkins’ boot-sink test for knowing when it’s too late. He described his improved switchgrass method of waiting for 60-degree soil, spraying weeds, then no-tilling seed same-day, and noted frozen seed loses little germination. Listener questions covered mock scrape placement on public land (Mike Soyster), whether to plant large switchgrass fields versus broken-up pockets (Tristan Reed, with Don favoring at least five acres for burning ease), speeding up switchgrass planting without full prep (Jackson Hurley), and minimizing intrusion when checking trail cameras (Mark Phillips). Terry promoted the upcoming Shipshewana debate, expecting over 2,000 attendees and buses from Ohio, Missouri, and Iowa, which Don expected to stay friendly. A Cuddyback rep had warned of trail camera supply shortages.

Unofficial fan project. AI-synthesized from public episodes; may contain errors.