old hay field?

I am cutting a neighbor's worn out hay field. Its almost all grass with weeds. They don't want it worked. How could I improve it for next year?. Would frost seeded june clover be able to get started in the grass?

What kinda hay/pasture do you want in there? I would cut what hay there is. Nuke it with Roundup now. Wait as long as you can, then spray it a second time in late summer.

While this is all waiting, get soil samples. It probably needs lime. Apply the lime. Apply Fertilizer. ASAP.

When you nuke it with Roundup for the second time, do that about 7-10 days before seeding.

Broadcast the cool season grasses, I assume you are going with them, then get an old, wheel disk, set it straight and disk lightly.

Then in Feburary you could overseed with clover.

That is how I would do it in Central Mo. for less say Fescue, or Orchard crass.

That is about the best you can do if they dont want it worked. You are gonna have to work it a little.

Other option would be Roundup, then No-till in a warm season grass. Maybe a dormant seeding in December. Stay real shallow with the Native grasses.

You have to kill out the old existing crap, and the only sure way is two Roundup applications.

You are also limited if they dont want some minimal tillage.

If you are gonna spread it on top of an old existing hay field, then just go out and set fire to a few hundred dollar bills, they will get about as much good out of that.

Good luck,, Gene

If there's room for weeds there will be room for clover. Don't know how much you have ride'n on the hay crop but if the grass ain't choke'n out the weeds a soil test will be $10 well spent. ($10 won't buy much clover seed and will tell you if the ground is worth spending clover seed money on)

Dave

i had good results using milestone about 2 weeks before a hard frost.
milestone is for broad leaf weeds works good on thistles too.

Hi M,
most of my 90 acres of fields were pretty poor when I took them over. Here in New England the soil tends to get acidic, and tests showed I needed about two tons of lime per acre. I found that for the most part proper pH and fertility enables the grass to crowd the weeds right out after 2-3 years.

Find another field if you can't work it they most likely won't allow any chemicals so just move on an let them have their weeds.
Walt