what's wrong with this rye

Too wet maybe. How’s the soil drainage?

Tom Sawvell wrote:

Too wet maybe. How’s the soil drainage?

This plot is right next to a lake so the water table is right there. When it can it’s a sandy soil so it would drain, but with lots of august rain the lake water level is high and keeping this plot pretty wet.

Is that area of rye in the background that appears to be doing well on a hillside or slope? The photo makes it look that way.

If so, there’s your answer. All grains do not do well in saturated soil and/or under water. The general rule I’ve heard with wheat and oats are 1-2 days of either flooding or root contact with saturated soil and the plants are dead. I think this applies across the board with grain as they are all closely related.

Sorry, it’s a bummer but I think basically you had die-off because of the wet conditions. Still time to reseed or overseed if you’re so inclined.

Grouse

Yep, that is exactly correct Grouse. The green part is on higher ground and the other part of the plot is lower and wetter.

Not the end of the world, the clover I seeded with the rye is doing very well so I am just losing the cover crop.