Hi Folks,
Best way by far is way to introduce treefoil is "manure seeding" or the
"coated seed method". Just continously feed about a pound per 100 cows per
day.
(Also feed 1/3 pound of common Ladino/100 cows/day AND throw a quart of mixed
clover seed over each load of manure you spread in the paddocks. Don't
bother feeding the new "improved" clover varieties as the seed isn't "hard"
enough.)
If birdsfoot treefoil is not already present the special birdsfoot inoculant
should be spread somehow on the farm. It might survive passage through the
digestive tract. It probably does survive so put a pinch in the grain mix
with the seed. Also it might be naturally occuring anyway, and might not be
essential.
Anyway spreading a small amount of inoculated birdsfoot trefoil a few times a
year in each paddock should be enough to introduce the rhizobia. But still
feed the seed continously for several years as the primary seeding method.
The rhizobia and the birdsfoot plants will find each other.
There is a multi county area in NY where birdsfoot trefoil had been widely
distributed since colonial times. Seed collected there was promoted as the
"Empire" variety. It was probably introduced by accident in advance of
settlement and was spread by grazing animals and manure seeded.
The same thing also happened in Adams County, OH. The whole county was
naturally seeded in treefoil.
We once plowed a long established trefoil seeding and put that field to
continous corn for many years. When that field was finally put back in sod
(after nearly a generation of men's lives) it immediately reverted to
trefoil. Atrazine was introduced during the continous corn period, and
killed the volunteer plants for many years, but did not eliminate the
treefoil permanently from that field.
The ancient Ohio extension bulletin 401 is a great source of information on
treefoil.
Actually there was once a person in the world who is commonly referred to
as the "Guru" of trefoil.
Here is the text of a private email from him to me in 1995.
The subject of feeding birdsfoot trefoil
seed has always been intriguing to me.I
have seen first hand results of this
practice work. I have also had several
producers tell me they have successfully
practiced this on their grazing
operations. In all cases, these have
been on farms which already have
birdsfoot trefoil seeded into their
pastures. I suspect there is already
adequate rhizobia in the soil waiting to
inoculate the newly arrived birdsfoot
trefoil seeds.
I recently spoke to a shepherd who
successfully seeded a new pasture with a
mix of birdsfoot trefoil and a couple of
grass species by conventional seeding.
The shepherd then allowed a portion of
the pasture to reach seed maturity
before letting the ewes in. The ewes
were only kept on the paddock for a
short while and then turned into another
paddock with no birdsfoot trefoil. You
can guess what happened! She wound up
with the birdsfoot trefoil establishing
in the new paddock via animal seeding.
I am sure this is how a good bit of
birdsfoot trefoil is being spread to new
pastures. The seeding rate is probably
fairly heavy as well.
I am not sure if the digestive process
of the ruminant will allow rhizobia
bacteria to thrive or die. However, I
think some of it probably does pass
through the digestive tract and wind up
in the manure paddy.
By the way, we have had success with
frost seeding, direct drilling as well
as conventionally seeding birdsfoot
trefoil in Michigan. I am sending you a
couple information bulletins on this for
your reading.
Best Regards, Richard Leep
<end quote>
--
Kindest regards,
=======================
F. W. Owen
Owenlea Holsteins
9430 Spencer Road
Homerville, Ohio 44235
e-mail fwo@bright.net
home page http://www.bright.net/~fwo
voice & fax 330.625.2369
=======================
