Seeding

[FarmerIvan]

What is a good method of seeding in tilled up paddocks? I have wood lot/rocky paddocks so a tractor will not work. I seeded in a small area but wild birds around here have been picking at em so I'm looking for a different way to seed.

[farmerDale]

What are you seeding, what is the soil condition? Soddy and lumpy, or relatively smooth? How was it tilled if not with a tractor? Pigs?

[gerold]

Originally Posted by FarmerIvan

What is a good method of seeding in tilled up paddocks? I have wood lot/rocky paddocks so a tractor will not work. I seeded in a small area but wild birds around here have been picking at em so I'm looking for a different way to seed.

Have you got a disc or harrow or something you can drag behind your tractor. If you have a front loader you may be able to hook something on it and drag on the soil.

How big is the lot. Last resort is a pitch fork or spade of something that you could punch the soil with.

[FarmerIvan]

Dale, I'm seeding in a pasture mix for my pigs. Somewhat smooth and somewhat lumpy. And yes my pigs have been tilling it up. I have no tractor to do any sort of work with it. I was thinking maybe using a four wheeler and some sort of cylinder metal pipe roller. Would that work?

[FarmerIvan]

The metal roller I'm talking about, would that work to push the seeds into the ground better? And I'm seeding in about an acre and a half or so. The pigs have tilled up at least a quarter of the lot.

[farmerDale]

If the soil is relatively mellow, and you get decent rainfall, a roller should work. Do you have access to an old diamond drag harrow or the like? This would get the seeds better covered with soil, and then follow with the roller?

[DaleK]

Chunk of chain link fence followed by a roller of some type.

[meiere]

Old bed springs work well. I have also used a fencing panel in a pinch

[NVMEinTX]

Originally Posted by FarmerIvan

What is a good method of seeding in tilled up paddocks? I have wood lot/rocky paddocks so a tractor will not work. I seeded in a small area but wild birds around here have been picking at em so I'm looking for a different way to seed.

I plan on doing this as well. What are you seeding specifically??

[highlands]

We can't machine work our land so we frost seed, seed with the storm and mob seed. These make for good contact between seed and soil after we hand broadcast the seed. Smaller seeds work better as they go into the soil more easily with these methods but even big seeds overseeded work. If you're just doing a small area then hand rake it to get better soil contact with the seeds.

-Walter

[Philosaw]

Another method is to broadcast straw or hay over the area after seeding. I've done this many times and it does keep the loss to birds at a minimum.