Was out at farm yesterday working the dog and got a real good chance to look the pasture over and do some reflection on the goals we started with and how some have changed.
Originally we bought the place just to hunt, it isn't big but was about all we could afford at the time. We have tried to do as much with it as we possibly could to make it better for hunting, mostly deer and turkeys...along the way the goals changed a lot. Got into the habitat part of it heavy and started taking a huge interest in all the nature on the place...plants, birds, bugs, animals. Started really wanting to get the place back into good shape after over a hundred and fifty years of rotated crops, got more concerned about bringing the soil and native plants back and what we were doing and could do. In the beginning I was lucky enough to have a state biologist to help with the planning then I found this site and really started searching the internet and reading up on things that I could do. Putting in wetland ponds and the native grass pasture was a lot of work early on and took a few years to start seeing results...the shrub strips will take some more time.
To some of the local farmers the place looks like an unkept mess and they tell me that, I just smile. My goals aren't their goals. I hardly mow, I hardly spray..I've got weeds and no crops except for the fruit and nut trees and the ground around them looks like a jungle, I'm raising bunnies and fawns and poults along with a whole lot of other stuff!
I've learned more about plants and bugs and birds in the last five years than I could have ever imagined...and some of the hunting has taken a back seat. I still like to deer hunt (but it's buck only now) and I love to bunny hunt (but I only take a few)...our family has lots of other places to hunt this place is for relaxing and enjoying gods creation!
I was really looking the pasture over hard yesterday and of all the things we have done and planted the native grasses and pollinators have had some of the biggest impact on the place. It took about three years for the grasses to really start looking like something, this year it is really on. We planted Indian/switch/big&little bluestem and have had a few others just come on their own. Our soil is a little loamy and a lot of hard clay, the native grasses throw roots over ten feet deep and create a sub surface biomass that is literally incredible. Whatever good things are going on above ground what is happening below is tenfold.
I like the diversity, did not want a monoculture of anything, if down the road it starts leaning that way we will reassess and do a little disking and replanting. For now the plan is to do some conservative mowing every few years.
Here are a some pics from yesterday;
The top of the spoil pile from the front pond, grasses are thickest there almost to thick, the pheasants really like to dive into this area to hide.
Some of the grasses further back in the pasture;
Trails in thin spots with partridge pea - clover and weeds;
And the grass gives the quail some good places to hide from Darcy;
A picture perfect point
And my favorite way to see the native grasses, over a bird dog with a quail flushing!
