Reasons to grow buckwheat:

• Fits into rotations at a time when fields might otherwise be idle.
• Can be grown as a catch crop where another crop failed.
• Inexpensive to grow because it requires no pesticides and little fertilizer.
• Can be grown with equipment available on most farms.
• Requires little attention during the growing season.
• Mellows the soil and suppresses some weeds.
• Easily raised Organically, at a premium price.

For more information from Cornell University: Buckwheat

High Protein Content

Our fava bean seeds offer high protein due to their nitrogen-fixing ability, aided by beneficial bacteria in their roots. This natural process boosts amino acid production, making fava beans a nutritious choice for forage and soil improvement, especially in cool-season climates.

Cover Crop

Outsidepride fava beans make an excellent cover crop, rejuvenating soil and reducing erosion. This is because they grow quickly, and as a legume, they fix nitrogen to enrich the soil, prevent erosion, suppress invasive plants, and improve soil fertility when turned back into the ground.

High Yield Variety

Our high-yield fava bean seeds boost productivity, perfect for forage or harvest. They are high-yielding due to their robust growth, large seed size, and ability to thrive in cooler climates. Their nitrogen-fixing properties enhance soil fertility, supporting healthy plant development and higher pod production.

High Biomass Production

Our fava beans produce rich biomass, enhancing soil moisture and structure. They grow quickly and develop dense, leafy foliage, which contributes significant soil nutrients. Their large root systems help capture nutrients and moisture effectively, supporting lush above-ground growth.

Fava Beans (Vicia Faba) - A relative of vetch, fava beans have erect, coarse stems and large leaves that grow into a bushy plant. This annual legume is also known as broad bean, field bean, horse bean, and Fababean. There are many varieties, even one for human consumption which is called Windsor bean. The cultivation of the bean dates back to early history where it is native to the Mediterranean region, especially Italy and Iran. In North America, Canada is the largest producer of Fava bean since they produce best in cool summer climates.

Our Fava beans are forage quality. They are not for human consumption.

Common Flax (Linum usitatissimum) - Also known as linseed. It is a flowering, short-lived, annual subshrub. In its native habitat, it can be grown as a perennial, but it is not cold tolerant. The thin, wiry stems that support the flower buds appear delicate, but are difficult to break.  It produces pale blue flowers on slender, but strong, stems in late spring into mid-summer. Flax is a plant known historically for fiber production. The seed is used to produce edible oils and also oils for wood finishing products.

Common flax prefers moist, well-drained, mildly acid, neutral and mildly alkaline soils. It does best in full sun and cannot grow in the shade. The plant tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure. It will tolerate drought and dry or rocky soil, but clay soils can cause the plant to root shallowly that will cause problems for the plant in cold weather. 

It is a versatile cover crop used for soil conditioning, especially effective at fighting compaction and increasing mycorrhizal fungi activity. It is best used in mixes (e.g., with oats, vetch, or peas) to build soil health, as it is non-competitive and can be easily seeded at 20 - 30 lbs/acre.  Its fibrous roots improve soil structure and its flowers attract pollinators and beneficial insects.  As a cover crop, flax helps to mobilize phosphorus in the soil and add organic matter. Plant early Spring or late Summer.

Camelina (Camelina sativa) - is an oilseed that is getting attention for its omega-3 nutritional attributes and as a possible, affordable source for biodiesel. It contains about 34 to 36 percent omega-3 oil. It has many names such as: usually known as camelina, gold-of-pleasure, or false flax, but also occasionally as wild flax, linseed dodder, German sesame, or Siberian oilseed.

Camelina is well suited for marginal soils. According to Montana State University (MSU) research, camelina has a lower break-even cost than wheat and canola. The seed can be broadcast or drilled.  The seeds are dense and small at 345,000 to 465,000 seeds per pound. Yields vary depending on soils and rainfall. Based on MSU research, camelina will average 1,800 to 2,200 pounds per acre under 16- to 18-inch rainfalls. In other dryland research trials by MSU, camelina yields averaged 1,000 to 1,700 per acre. Yields drop with less rainfall and increase when using irrigation. Montana State suggests including camelina in a three- or four-year crop rotation.

Camelina can be grown as a cover crop either alone or more commonly as part of a cover crop mix. Mostly winter camelina is used as a cover crop for a fall to spring cover, but spring camelina can also be used depending on climate and seed availablity.

• Nitrogen fixation: Camelina holds onto nitrogen especially as an overwintered cover crops.
• Pollinator effect: Camelina will bloom earlier than most other flowering species so provides an early nectar source in spring.
• Soil aeration: Camelina has one main tap root that has been shown to help with compacted soils.
• Drought tolerance: Camelina is very drought tolerant once established compared to most other cover crops.
• Other benefits: It can grow well in the shade so good in a cover crop mix. It grows well in low fertility environments. It is also good at helping control erosion.

Common Vetch (Vicia sativa) - Common vetch is a fast establishing, high-yielding winter annual legume perfect for a winter forage, cover crop, pollinator habitat and supports wildlife. It is not winter-hardy, so it is best to be used in southern areas or where winter survival is not important. It can also be planted early spring for plowdown in early summer. It is a viny, succulent, attaining a height of 24 inches when planted alone. It grows faster than hairy vetch in Spring, is more economical for seed, and is preferred for forage due to lower toxicity risks compared to hairy vetch.

Common vetch grows on a wide range of soils. It does well on loams, sandy loams, or gravelly soils, as well as on fine-textured clay soils as long as there is good drainage. Although common vetch tolerates short periods of saturated soils, it does not tolerate extended flooding. Common vetch tolerates pH of 5.5 - 8.2, but optimum pH is 6.5. It is used successfully as a cover crop in vineyards and orchards. In vineyards, common vetch is less likely to climb trellises than hairy vetch.

• Soil Fertility and Health: A nitrogen fixing legume, common vetch converts nitrogen into soil-available nutrients which reduces the need for synthetic fertilizers. It acts as an excellent green manure, adding significant organic matter.
• Erosion Control and Weed Supression: The extensive, deep root system holds soil in place. As a fast-growing, dense cover crop, it acts as a living mulch that reduces weeds and soil moisture evaporation.
• Forage and Livestock Feed: Common vetch is high in protein (up to 25%) and is used for hay, silage, and pasture, particularly for cows, sheep, and deer. It can be grown in mixtures with cereals like oats for enhanced forage.
• Environmental Benefits: It supports pollinators, such as bees, with nectar. It is also used in phytoremediation to accumulate contaminants in the soil.
• Crop Rotation: It is an effective nitrogen-adding component in crop rotations, improving soil for subsequent crops.

Sugar Beets (Brassica vulgaris) - Not only do the roots of sugar beets supply a good shard of the U.S. table sugar, but they also make great annual deer food plots. Deer relish both the foliage and the large, sugar laden root. Sugar beets can be a very useful cover crop, especially on salty soils where few other plants succeed. Sugar beets can be finicky to establish, requiring very good seed to soil contact to germinate. This can be accomplished with good planting eqipment, such as seed firmers, on the planter or drill. Pure stand seeding rate is 10 - 15 lbs per acre, and seeding depth is 1/4 - 1/2 inch. Planting date for cover crop or deer forage can range from late spring through August, with earlier plantings giving higher yields.  Mature plant heights range from 1 to 2 feet and grow best in full sun.

Sugar beets are increasingly used as a late summer planted, winter killed cover crop to manage soil compaction, help to suppress weeds, and fixate nitrogen.  Their deep taproots penetrate hard or clay compacted soils making them ideal for aerating and improving soil structure before planting new crops. They provide high-quality forage for livestock and wildlife and thrive when planted in late summer, with a minimum germination temp of 40F for planting and a cold kill temp around 25F.

Livestock Forage Option

Our winter-hardy Bayou Kale seeds for planting outdoors provides nutrient-rich forage for livestock and grows in cooler weather, giving cattle and sheep a highly digestible and palatable food. Its smooth, large leaves and high leaf-to-stem ratio ensure efficient grazing throughout the season.

Nutrient-Rich Green Manure

Bayou Kale seeds for garden offers soil enrichment with its nutrient-rich crops. Its deep taproots aerate and break up compacted soil, improving water retention. As a cover crop seed and plant, it helps prevent erosion and adds nutrient-rich properties to your soil for future seed planting seasons.

Large Volume of Leafy Growth

With its robust leafy growth, our Bayou Kale Seed is suitable for attracting wildlife to food plots. Its large, sweet-tasting leaves are nutrient-rich, providing a valuable food source for deer, cattle and other animals during the colder months, suitable for rotational grazing.

Cold Hardy & Drought Tolerant

Bayou Kale is highly cold-hardy and drought-tolerant, making it a resilient choice for tough climates. Its ability to grow in both cold and dry conditions allows it to provide long-lasting forage. Our kale mix variety continuously grow even in the harsh weather, benefiting wildlife and livestock.

Bayou Kale (Brassica oleracea) - is a winter hardy member of the Brassica family that is highly digestible.  It is known for its large, palatable leaves. and can provide up to 25% protein. High digestible forage for deer that is ideal for extended grazing in wildlife food plots providing quality winter forage. Kale has the highest cold tolerance of all the Brassicas, good winter hardiness and a high leaf to stem ratio. It may be grown both as a spring and early fall crop for winter grazing. Kale grows best in cooler weather with cold days and nights which will sweeten the leaves especially if subjected to a fall frost. Remember that Kale grows large leaves and may over shade other plants in your food plot. Kale prefers a pH of 5.5 to 7.0.

Bayou kale is a mid-maturing forage brassica with a smooth leaf, and a nutty flavor that is sweet to human taste. This kale variety has a smaller stem but can grow up to 3 feet tall. Bayou has excellent regrowth when rotationally grazed, and the stems are more palatable than forage rapes for cattle and sheep. Used in food plots for deer as well as upland game birds, animals will eat the Bayou first when planted beside other food plots.

When planted in late summer or early fall, it is considerably more winter-hardy than radishes and helps control erosion. The spring green-up of Bayou kale is similar to forage rapes, while its seed size and crop management are similar to other brassicas, like turnips. Seed should be planted at 6 - 10 lbs/ac when planted as a single specie and 2 - 3 lbs/ac when mixed with other crops. Recommended planting time for Northern Regions is summer when night time temperatures are consistently below 65 degrees. Planting should occur July - September for the Midwest and September - October for the South.

Forage Kale has show to help in opening up the soil because of its tap roots. As a cover crop kale can be planted in late summer or early fall; using it as a winter crop helps protect the soil longer from erosion.

Product Specifications:

• Excellent regrowth
• Forage brassica
• Good winter hardiness
• Great for food deer food plots
• Protects soil from erosion
• Use for: pasture, food plot, cattle forage, livestock grazing, cover crop