G&H Farms

My plan was to overwhelm them. I was going to have about ten acres of flowers, but the planting didnt go so good and I ended up with less than half that.
That should still make for a good shoot.
 
Minerals/nutrients of increased fish poop are rocket fuel to phytoplankton

Hence the green color from the algae bloom

bill
That is my goal, and I like the color of the water now - but I worry now about to much of a nutrient load over fertilizing the pond. I still have to get most of the catfish gone.
 
That should still make for a good shoot.
With sunflowers, they are planted early enough so that if there is some kind of crop failure, you can follow with millet - so I will also have about three or four acres of millet to go with the flowers. I have found, at least at my place, you can have ten acres of millet and or sunflowers - and you might have a barrel burner shoot and you might not see one. Last year, I had ten acres of millet and did not see one. The year before, ten acres of millet and fast and furious. I always have a lot of doves early Aug - they dont always stay until early Sep and I have not figured out how to convince them to stay.
 
That is my goal, and I like the color of the water now - but I worry now about to much of a nutrient load over fertilizing the pond. I still have to get most of the catfish gone.
I have played with this bloom in a pond and read up on it over the last few years. When you cause the bloom by fertilizing or by feeding then you increase the carrying capacity of the pond by a bunch like for example it use to support 500 pounds of fish and now supports 1000 pounds of fish. Which is great but problem is if you ever decrease the amount of nutrients like you quit feeding anytime in the future then you have a problem, simply more fish than can survive. Also seems to be big change with just short term feeding, did any fertilizer hit ground around pond that could of washed in to the water?
 
I have played with this bloom in a pond and read up on it over the last few years. When you cause the bloom by fertilizing or by feeding then you increase the carrying capacity of the pond by a bunch like for example it use to support 500 pounds of fish and now supports 1000 pounds of fish. Which is great but problem is if you ever decrease the amount of nutrients like you quit feeding anytime in the future then you have a problem, simply more fish than can survive. Also seems to be big change with just short term feeding, did any fertilizer hit ground around pond that could of washed in to the water?
Yes, for sure - there is a five acre field in a half moon around the pond that has been fertilized this year - as last - and the pond has never been this green. BUT, we have also had 30” of rain since Apr 1. It is probably a combination of the two
 
With sunflowers, they are planted early enough so that if there is some kind of crop failure, you can follow with millet - so I will also have about three or four acres of millet to go with the flowers. I have found, at least at my place, you can have ten acres of millet and or sunflowers - and you might have a barrel burner shoot and you might not see one. Last year, I had ten acres of millet and did not see one. The year before, ten acres of millet and fast and furious. I always have a lot of doves early Aug - they dont always stay until early Sep and I have not figured out how to convince them to stay.
Let me know when you figure it out!

I have learned that concentrated birds are better than birds spread over 10 acres when you do not have enough shooters.
 
Eight strands of hot wire encircling the peach tree trunk wasnt enough. Was gonna pick peaches today - been out of town for the last three days and when I got back, wasnt a peach left. Havent lost a peach in a month - until the last three days. Had moved the camera so I dont know what ate almost 75 peaches in three nights. I moved a camera back last night and got two possum pics - but none climbing the tree.

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Bevan’s Favorite the first apple to get ripe. First crop on the one tree I have. They started getting ripe about two weeks ago and most have now fallen from the tree.


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Williams Favorite just now getting ripe. First crop on this tree. Only made six and something got a couple of them. Picked these two today


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The Dolgo Crabapples just starting to get ripe. Young trees. Deer walked one of these trees down and ate even the apples in the top of the eight foot tree. Plan to pick most of these tomorrow and off another tree - hope to get enough to make crabapple jelly. They will probably be gone tomorrow.


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So-so muscadine crop last year. Looks to be a bumper crop this year.


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millet starting to head out good


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about half the sunflowers blooming now
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Beautiful sunflowers! I have to try that one of these days.
 
Beautiful sunflowers! I have to try that one of these days.
They sure are high maintenance compared to millet. I usually dont plant them, but the millet fields were getting a lot of johnson grass, so went with flowers so I could deal with the johnson grass
 
Love those apples!
 
I'm working on getting some early apples going in my orchards. For some reason over ten years ago when I started planting fruit trees, I never even considered the early apples. I was all about fall into winter drop times and missed the boat on the early stuff...now I'm ten years behind.
 
Some of the first apples I have ever picked off any of my trees
Congrats Swampcat, your labor is paying off
 
I'm working on getting some early apples going in my orchards. For some reason over ten years ago when I started planting fruit trees, I never even considered the early apples. I was all about fall into winter drop times and missed the boat on the early stuff...now I'm ten years behind.
I started out with late season apples - a granny smith and a couple of AR Black. I figured out it is an awfully long time to protect fruit until november, plus more consistent watering required for longer period of time for late season apples.
 
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D shaped holes from emerald ash borer. I have a lot of ash acres - maybe 70 acres - or a little more

I have already noticed an increase in understory vegetation due to increased sun light from thinning over-story of dying ash
trees


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If you’re going to cut any start cutting now. The longer it stands the more dangerous it becomes. After a couple of years almost any wind will start bringing it down and they usually break about 1/2 way up or at least mine have
 
Water resources Fluid Watercourse Stream Pollution







Watercourse Wetland Lake Pond Fluvial landforms of streams



Trying to get the culverts flowing in prep for aerial spraying and planting with a drone this weekend. The beavers are quick to stop up the pipes. If there were alligators in here- wouldnt be beavers. Not sure I would trade. Surprisingly, not that many snakes - only saw a few and nothing venomous. Was out up to my neck on a couple of pipes - actually felt nice. Probably go check the pipes again thursday to dig them out again. Always a crap shoot on when to pull the boards. Too early, still water in the impoundment. Too late, a crust on the ground.
 
Sky Water Water resources Cloud Natural environment


At ten acre duck hole before I pulled the boards Tuesday


Sky Cloud Natural environment Vegetation Marsh



Same hole, today. Wish the rest of them looked like this. One other one looks decent, but we cant get a truck into it

two other duck holes only came down a few inches before beavers stopped them up. Going to go down early tomorrow morn and unplug the last two again. I think beav are only working at night. I spent about four hours today up to titty deep, raking mud, moss, and sticks out of the pipes. No gators here - so I have heard - and not nearly as many snakes as you would think - which hints at at least a few alligators around


Bird Bird migration Animal migration Flock Wildlife



herons, coons, and otters enjoying the left overs
 
Been down at the duck lease working the last couple days and havent rode around my ground in the last couple days. Rode through part of the orchard and this Joseph’s apple tree laying on its side. Had a fair fruit load for size of the tree. The whole root ball didnt give way - feels like a root or two down in the dirt broke loose

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The blackberry cage probably kept it from going all the way and pulling roots out of ground. Stood it back up, drove in a t-post and wired the tree over to the t-post, applied another bag of mulch, and watered it. Dont expect much positive to come of this.

Something ate all the peaches off the last of my fruiting peach trees. Got about 50 peaches off the tree in the front yard and no peaches or nectarines off four trees in the orchard. I dont get pics of anything climbing the trees. Hot wire around the bottom


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Probably an oversight by the vermin, but we picked our first figs of the year. Two trees with a lot of green fruit

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Another hole about run down. The biggest hole not nearly where it needs to be, but wont matter - the drone is gonna b here tomorrow


Marsh Wetland Aquatic plant Bog Freshwater marsh



Quite a few fish, turtles, crawdads, and snakes being left high and dry - like these pickerel - but not as many as I would have thought


Fish Marine biology Fin Ray-finned fishes Bony fishes



a little bonus, below



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