Oats, Jerry (Avena sativa) seed, organic
$2.95 – $35.00
Family: Grass (Poaceae)
Annual or overwintering annual hardy to zone 7 to 12
Jerry Oats (Avena sativa) may be sown fall or spring. Produces lots of biomass for building soil. This is a good kind for production of milky oats herb. Traditional usage (TWM): Sedative, anxiolytic, anticholesteremic. Sow 3 lbs per 1,000 square feet; 60 lbs per acre. Grows to 5 feet tall.
Seeds Certified Organically Grown
Question
Amanda (verified owner) –
Do you simply scatter this on the ground like grass seed or do you need to cover it with soil?
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Richo Cech –
hi amanda, make a seedbed, rake in the seed and tamp. if the seed isn’t covered, the birds will eat it. r
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Question
Newbie –
Hi. This may be a silly question but can you eat these? Everything I’ve seen lists these as an animal food. Also, does this produce an actual oat like I could make oatmeal? Or is it for making milky tea? And, I’ve heard this is good to plant beside peas to use as a trellis for the peas? Is that correct ? Thank you!!
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Richo Cech –
Hi Newbie,
Peas will climb up oats. THese oats are the same as what you eat as oat meal except they have not been rolled. THese make good milky oats for tea or tincturing. I have a whole field of peas and oats right now–it was my garden last year and will be again.
Richo
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Lynda –
Could you please tell me if the deer would enjoy this. I want to plant a garden for them to enjoy but have no idea what to plant. Thank you so much!
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Richo Cech –
Hi Lynda, The deer enjoy broadleaved plants like chicory, dandelion and plantain. They will leap tall buildings at a single bound to get to broccoli. Richo
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Lynda Tomlinson –
Thank you so much!!! I love them so much and want to take care to feed them what is good for them. I know now what I am going to plant! Much Heartfelt Gratitude Richie
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Carolyn –
Hello,
Please forgive my ignorance but oats have gotten a bad rap lately. Are these seeds/oats very different than unrolled oats I could purchase from the market?
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Richo Cech –
Hi Corolyy, yes, they are different because these are viable seeds intended for planting and what you purchase from the market is intended for food use. As for a bad rap, this is part of the general proliferation of misinformation meant to disempower the peeps and create mental blockage to self-sufficiency. I’m running into it daily on my various platforms. Oats are a valuable anticholesteremic. And, there’s nothing better for the gut–full of soluble fiber that feeds our immunity (prebiotic). Use the recipe in “Making Plant Medicine” for best results. Meanwhile I look out my window, we’re having our first good winter storm and rainfall, and a pasture that was rocky and weedy that we tilled and planted to oats is now a gentle blanket of cushy green… richo
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Carolyn –
Thank you for this vital information and response. I greatly appreciate it!!
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Question
Nick Notaro –
I am looking for a variety of avena sativa that contains the most avenacosides A and B, avenanthramides, and other nutrients, where does the cayuse rank in this category and which variety of avena sativa would supply this? Also what is cayuse? Is it a variety or something else? Also are there more nutrients present in the grass before the oat seeds form (pre milky stage) or during the milky stage. My goal is to grow and harvest the young grass for the most nutrient density. How do I get the most bioavailability out of the oat grass? I heard fermentation is the best method, do you know how I could do this? I plan to low temp dry the grass and powder it and add it to water. Do you have any advice for the best way to air dry and store the grass to preserve and prevent mold formation once cut and “processed.” Does the cayuse oat grass prevent crown rust or other infections? Any and all information you have would be greatly appreciated.
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Richo Cech –
Hi Nick,
Cayuse is a variety. The species name “sativa” means “cultivated.” The bigger extraction companies have reviewed the different cultivars (varieties) and determined that Cayuse is the best–thats why we grow and sell this type. In terms of extraction, my advice is to harvest fruits during milky stage and make a tincture. You can also dry the milky oat fruits and make a tea. This is the most nutrient-dense part harvested at the most active time. You can find exacting directions in my book “making plant medicine.”
Richo
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Kevin Weinberg –
Hi Richo, thanks for all you do! We’re trying to grow milky oats en masse in Indiana and the Cayuse variety doesn’t appear (affordably) accessible outside of PNW and California. Do you have any more information about that study? Or any suggestions on 2nd choice varieties?
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Richo Cech –
Hi Kevin, I’m sorry I don’t understand this comment. We have organic cayuse oats available and feel they are a good choice for growers throughout the USA. They are the variety of choice for producing the milky oats herb or tincture. This was what we always used at Herb Pharm during my 11-year tenure there as production manager. Richo
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Question
Sandy –
Hi, I am trying to rebuild the soil which has been stripped of on development. What is best to sow?
Thank you for your help! Sandy
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Admin Richo Cech –
Hi Sandy, In that situation, probably best to scatter a little compost, spread RED CLOVER, rake and tamp. Red clover seems to rebuild the soil faster than anything. Oats in this case not a good quick fix.
Richo
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Art (verified owner) –
I have some oat seed packed for use in 2018, are they still viable to plant this spring?
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Admin Richo Cech –
definitely
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Rebecca –
I have rust on my oats. There is often a little on the lower leaves but it is on the seed as well this year. Is this at all harmful for consumption and is it still possible to use for medicine? Thank you.
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Richo Cech –
Hi there, I’m not familiar with this problem. Most of us hand-harvest the seed at milky stage. Harvest only healthy seeds. Richo
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Question
Laura Kalognomos –
how many seeds do you think roughly, comes in a packet of the oat seeds?, and also, they are good for milky oat tops right? i am purchasing so i can gift my classmates some seeds along with some medicine i have made from milky oats for as part of my project for herb school!
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Admin Richo Cech –
Hello Laura,
Thanks for staying in touch. 1 packet (5g) of oat seeds contains appx. 170 seeds. Yes, this is the type for “milky oats.”
Richo
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Carl (verified owner) –
This Cayuse (Avena sativa) can be use as a tea for drinking?
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Admin Richo Cech –
Yes, this is the type that is used for making milky oats extract, oat straw, etc. Don’t panic, its organic!
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leila rezvani –
hi there! we graded a new plot with river sand and added a good layer of aged manure compost but it’s still pretty sandy. in your experience, do milky oats do OK in sandy soil?
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Richo Cech –
Hi, Frankly this sounds like a good substrate for most plants I know. People don’t work with sand enough. As long as the plot stays moist until the seedlings get their roots down, then sandy should be fine. r
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Bea –
Are these seeds green in color? How do they differ from the ones that are brown?
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Richo Cech –
Hello Bea, What we’re selling here is mature organic oat seed that has not been hulled and is ready to plant. Herbalists harvest the resulting plants early, when they are green and full of milk, in order to produce “milky oats” dried herb or fresh plant tincture. Richo
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Bea –
So unless I plant these and harvested them in the milky stage they wouldn’t be ideal for drinking? They are actually the brown seeds…
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Richo Cech –
yes, correct.
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Marion (verified owner) –
My oats are starting to set seed and I’m noticing some brown powdery stuff coming out of the shaft along with the a few of the seed heads. Any idea what this could be? I’m located in North AL zone 7b and I suspect that it could be a result of the climate I’m in, we get a lot of fungal issues because of the humidity. Just wanting to double check that it’s not toxic since I’ll be drying the tops for use in teas in the future.
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Richo Cech –
hi marion, that doesn’t sound like something you want to make tea of. choose only whole, perfect seedheads. you can look up “ergot” online and make sure its not that–your description doesn’t seem to fit, but do check. richo
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brianproessler –
Hello, I’m interested in growing oats to have oatstraw for making tea. Would this be a good for this? If so, when would I harvest for oatstraw? I’m in zone 5a. Thank you.
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Richo Cech –
Hello Brian,
Yes, this is a good organic oatseed. I grew 0.9 acres of it this year with excellent results. Generally herbalists these days strip the immature seeded tops for making into tea. If you’re after the straw instead of the tops, then I would harvest when still green so there is some goodness in it. Oats can be fall or spring planted so the maturity would be dependent on that. Spring-sown oats take about 70 days to maturity. Richo
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Kate –
Hello, would this be the same grass as is used for cat grass?
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Richo Cech –
hi kate, i think so. richo
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Richo Cech –
hi lisa, you’re in a zone 7 so you can sow the oats in the fall and reap the benefits in the spring. meanwhile if you need milky oats for tea or tincture we have that too. r
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A.L. –
Do you have a recommendation of when to plant these during the Fall in zone 8B for harvest during the milky oat stage?
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Richo Cech –
Hi Al, thanks for writing. it wouldn’t be much different from what we do here in southern oregon==we plant with the first fall rains which equals out to about sep 15. it is good to get the stand established before the onset of very cold weather, but the grass will continue to grow slowly through the winter. milky oats harvest is in spring to early summer. richo
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A.L. –
Thanks so much richo – appreciate your advice!
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