Growing thoughts: What are you worried about this season?

[SD51555]

Seems each year we have new things to worry about. Some years its too much water, too little water, weed troubles, too many or too few deer, heat, bugs, money, etc. What are you thinking about this year? Are you doing anything differently to manage through it? If so, what?

My biggest concern this year is we have another drought year, and it worsens significantly. I'm most focused on duff duff duff, standing living duff, and dead laying duff, durable duff, all-season duff. I'm making every drop count by holding every drop I get and preventing the sun from cooking any off of exposed soil. I've still got exposed soil from my excavation project last summer. I'm throwing all kinds of ideas at it to get it covered before it gets hot and dry.

 

[4wanderingeyes]

My worry is I took on to many projects this spring, and I wont have time to do them all.
I try not to worry about rain, because there isnt much I can do about it, other then water stuff if it is dry.
I also dont worry about money, if I want something, and I have the money, I buy it, if I dont have the money, I dont buy it. I buy needs first. My wife is the one who worries about money, but if I dont tell her what I buy, or how much, then she worries less.

 

[homerj1]

 

[SwampCat]

CWD - I do a lot of work to keep deer in number and quality around my place. In our state, when your county goes into the cwd zone, they open up the regs so you can kill them all to save them - starting with the bucks. If quality deer hunting goes away, we will have nothing left to hunt but crows, coons, hogs, and squirrels. As much as folks cuss hogs - they are going to be the savior if you like to hunt. We have already lost our quail, rabbits, turkeys, and ducks.

 

[IkemanTx]

We are already WELL into a drought this year. My house has only received 2.1 inches of rain since January 1, and we only had 30% of our normal rainfall in December as well. We spent all of February and half of March in a burn ban, and there continues to be no rain events in the 10-day forecast.

My gut feeling is we enter the summer way behind in precip causing reservoirs to start low, and the weather continues into a common rain-free (ultra high temp) Texas summer. I am worried that it will be a repeat of the 2011 or 1980 summers, with 70+ days over 100°. If that happens after this dry winter, we will most likely lose large mature trees across the entire landscape.


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[Mortenson]

CWD - I do a lot of work to keep deer in number and quality around my place. In our state, when your county goes into the cwd zone, they open up the regs so you can kill them all to save them - starting with the bucks. If quality deer hunting goes away, we will have nothing left to hunt but crows, coons, hogs, and squirrels. As much as folks cuss hogs - they are going to be the savior if you like to hunt. We have already lost our quail, rabbits, turkeys, and ducks.

Same here. Snipers just wrapped it for the year. I wonder what they left us.

 

[PrairieShadow]

Rain and EHD. They go hand in hand.

 

[SD51555]

Any of you dry guys take the opportunity to go dig your low spots even deeper when it's dry?

That's the one thing I'm going to take advantage of if it is dry again this year. I've got a small (very small) pond I started digging last year, and ran out of time to finish. I wanna get back and get that thing down to about 6' and widen it out enough so it don't back slide too much. Come to think of it, I might get to see that this weekend with water in it for the first time. It probably won't last long given how dry it is underneath it all.

 

[TreeDaddy]

A dry spring in east texas would be a killer because everyJuly 1, 2 switches get "throwed"..........

Heat:ON
Rain:OFF

bill
"

 

[bigboreblr]

Not too worried about much this year. I am building a food plot seeder so I can make more plots quicker. However, with the price of fertilizer and lime going up. I am laying back on new plots.

However, it takes alot of work to get a spot ready to plant, so I can prep new areas for next year. Get the overhanging branches trimmed, taming the tall wild stuff, getting a 1st till on the ground, even if it goes fallow or just throw some rye in there.

Gas is my biggest concern. My lease is 4 hours away. MY brothet in law's 450 acre corn / bean field is 2 hours away. I work 1 hour way too. My weekend project up north costs $130 to get there n back.

A bit concerned about an early frost on my apples trees, but not much I can do about that.......

IF you primarily plant for fall, a dry spell help with the weeds. Expecially if you can time your herbicide a bit before a rain. Not too close though.....

 

[Barndog56]

I'm worried about my public land hunting spot. I hunt right on an edge between a pine stand and an oak stand. My set is in a pine tree so I either catch them leaving the oaks in the morning or entering them at night. I walk through a big open field to get there. A couple of weeks ago DNR went through the open field and cut down every tree except a handful of oaks scattered about. Most were small junk trees, but there was a stand of 15-20 foot tall pines, each about 10 feet across.

So what I'm worried about is once things dry out a bit they're going to bring in equipment and start cutting in the woods. So far they've just used a chainsaw. The other nearby public spots that have been cut recently become basically unhuntable. They cut everything but oaks, haul all the logs out, and leave all the trash behind. You really can't walk through it when they're done. Then all the stumps sprout back up along with lots of new growth and it gets so thick I'm not sure deer can get through.

I'm sure I'll be able to find a way to hunt it, but would prefer it stay the same.

 

[hillrunner]

We need rain, that's my main concern. Everything else is easy if you have enough rain.

 

[Native Hunter]

Barring any catastrophes or unexpected illnesses with me or family members, this should be an easier habitat year for me since I will be retired by June or July. One thing I will keep a close eye on is the 15 or so Blue Hill trees I planted this spring. If we go into a drought, I will definitely be hauling water to them. I have high hopes for those trees and want them to get off to a good start. Everything else is well established and should do fine through a typical drought.

If we don't have a late freeze this year, my mast crop from established trees should be incredible. I'm talking tons of fruit and nuts if it ends up as expected.

 

[Natty Bumppo]

I am worried I won't have time to get everything done this summer I'd like to get done. I've got several new plots going in, some huge, multi-day brush piles to burn, several dozen trees to buck up and split, plots to lime...same stuff all you guys do. But I am also doing a complete kitchen remodel. Wife and I have been socking away the cash to do this for 5 or 6 years now. I'll do all the work myself. I have a feeling it's going to consume most of my summer.

 

[Bill]

I never get everything done and it's never been the end of the world. used to eat me up. Now I just accept it. It's more fun that way.
This year throw in I'm more looking forward to fishing and it could be a terrible year at the farm.....

 

[buckdeer1]

I feel for you guys in states that think they are "managing" deer instead they are just ruining everything.Like you said killing them in case they are going to die.Is there anything your state hunting organizations can do by lobbying.I too will never get everything done but as long as family is healthy not much else matters,Just got my yearly PET scan today,makes you think about things.

 

[Nightvision]

I really don’t worry about much. I can’t do anything about it and deer and food plots do not pay my bills.

Im not happy about fuel prices. That will cut into my extra “play” time on my tractor but I will still pay the extra to take my son and his friends water skiing, tubing, and fishing.

I can always work to earn extra money but will not always have time to spend with my son. Priorities!

 

[TreeDaddy]

I feel for you guys in states that think they are "managing" deer instead they are just ruining everything.Like you said killing them in case they are going to die.Is there anything your state hunting organizations can do by lobbying.I too will never get everything done but as long as family is healthy not much else matters,Just got my yearly PET scan today,makes you think about things.

prayers for a good report

bill

 

[Kev]

Hunting, food plots, deer etc, etc, are my escape from life's "worries". I can't do a darn thing about drought, ehd, cwd, & the way a state "manages it's deer herd, etc., so why worry about it? I grew up in a family of "worry-er's", Instead of trusting the Lord, they worried. Didn't do one bit of good. In fact, they suffered for it. I vowed a long time ago not to worry about much. Don't get me wrong, I have concern's about our country, my kids, health, etc. , but I've chosen to have faith. In the big scheme of things, food plots & ehd are really not that important.

 

[g squared 23]

I ordered way too many shrubs and trees this year, I’m not sure where I was thinking of putting them. I’m not worried about it, but have a lot of work ahead of me. I’m cutting out turkey hunting to get the habitat work done, but I still feel like I’m coming out ahead.

I did have some die off on a couple of apple trees, I’m concerned I either killed or set those things back. Did some major surgery today on a couple others I didn’t like the shape of, I always wonder if it’s too much. But I feel like I haven’t done enough in the past and ended up here, so we’ll see what happens.


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