Property Changes at Pheasant Hollow

somich

5 year old buck +
We're changing our property from CP4D to CP38E Pheasant and Monarch and will be doing a lot of planting this year and likely next. We'll be converting about 47 of our 90 acres with some changes in grass/wildflower plantings and the addition of trees and shrubs.

Here are the trees/bushes and grasses ordered so far.

Trees/Bushes
6 Chestnut crab
9 Magenta
6 Sargent
6 Zumi
9 Dolgo
9 Prairie Fire
12 American plum
39 American Hazelnut
25 Winterberry
6 Chokecherry Aronia
25 Ninebark
17 Nannyberry

Grasses/clovers
40# Sideoates Grama
50# Indian grass
50# Big Bluestem
50# alsike clover
15# ladino
20# medium red

Lots of wildflower that I didn't list but, I can if someone would like.

This is just a start on our property change and is only part of what we'll be doing.
 
Been itching to do some wildflowers up at camp. Tempted to pick up some lupine, because deer up in northern canada like it.

Thats a good sized tree list. MAke sure you can plant them well in your time frame. Also, watering during a drought.
 
My neighbor did wild flowers 2 years ago. So far all I see is weeds. I was interested in the monarch program myself. May still have look into it at some point. Good luck with the project it sounds interesting.
 
My neighbor did wild flowers 2 years ago. So far all I see is weeds. I was interested in the monarch program myself. May still have look into it at some point. Good luck with the project it sounds interesting.
Its kind of like a native grass planting typically takes awhile to get going, but if they arent controlling weeds and didnt have good weed control before hand it might be a big bust.
 
I tried native grass establishment at my home place it just looked like weeds and languished for 15 years I finally decided in 2021 to spray it to control the queen ann’s lace that was taking over. Last year the native grass looked the best it ever has but nearly all the forbes were gone so not a good option for wild flower establishment. This is why I’m so reluctant to destroy the original native grass hay meadows on the farm. If the states NRCS offices were actually concerned with native grass conservation at all they would pay landowners the difference between row crop rent and hay ground rent it literally costs me $2500 a year to not row crop that area in lost rent. I’m ok with that loss but many people wouldn’t be and the native grass would be destroyed. I’ll get off my conservation soap box now.
 
Where is your pheasant property ?
 
This is the layout I've working with the for 15+ years. The cool season grasses and warm grass areas are going into the Pheasant Pollinator program.

Instead of the 2= 1/2 acre food plots there will be about 5.5 acres and they will be spread out around the property. This year they will be predominantly clover and rye (time concerns) as time goes on they will be combo clover sorghum.

The tree areas were 5000 of the white spruce and white pine. Lots of other trees and bushes have gone in over the years .

I'll hopefully be getting a forest mulcher to finish my perimeter trail on my middle west side.


1673745919509.jpeg
 
I've trying to break down our property into sections to make planning somewhat easier. Here's what I've come up with so far.
I plan to do more to these pics and keep them updated.

This is my SE field. I'll need to add pollinator plants and some clover.
Road surface Grass Asphalt Rectangle Wood




This my center east field. Sets wet often. You can see the access path on the east side.
Brown Groundcover Grass Bedrock Geological phenomenon




This is our center field. It is currently cool season grasses and will need the most work adding NWSG, wildflower seeding plus the tree and bush planting. You can see the current food plot to the east side. It's longer N-S and is kind of split up with an apple tree and bushes. You can see the evergreen rows on the north.
Ecoregion Soil Font Landscape Screenshot




This is the north field The northeast corner is walnuts, large and small. The north property edge is a lot of sumac and has quite a few buckeye trees.
You can see the evergreen rows on the south.
Brown Grass Soil Landscape Rock




This is the NW field. The field to the west will get some pollinator work and trees bushes. The current west food plot is center south. The field to the east will get pollinator.

Brown Groundcover Terrestrial plant Map Grass




This is center to the west. This needs mostly pollinator and grasses. The evergreens to the south is the edge of our crp.

Brown Grey Grass Terrestrial plant Pattern
 
I’m a tree guy so I’d try and work a deer orchard into a more centralized location on your place perhaps in this location of the cool season grass field.
2DABB51A-AB45-42CF-AD0E-DC0738894210.jpeg
 
I’m a tree guy so I’d try and work a deer orchard into a more centralized location on your place perhaps in this location of the cool season grass field.
View attachment 49023


Thanks, for the input. That area sets very wet most of the year.

I'm hoping to put several of what I'm going to call pods in that field. They would contain 3 crabapples, some hazelnut and other berry bushes.

Hopefully, as I gather more ideas I'll start putting items on the layout.
 
I’m a tree guy so I’d try and work a deer orchard into a more centralized location on your place perhaps in this location of the cool season grass field.
View attachment 49023


I'm sorry it took so long to respond. I was tying to break the property into smaller areas for discussion and I couldn't do it.

The area you have circled is really wet a lot of the year. The western end is reed canary grass and I hope to kill the RCG and put Red Osier D in that and several other areas.

This is my simplistic plan.crop whole prop kinda.jpg
 
Your original plan is fairly similar to what our plans are for a mostly pasture farm we just bought in MO. I'm very interested in your experience with the CRP programs. We are planning on enrolling in EQIP and eventually CRP for eligible acres.
 
Your original plan is fairly similar to what our plans are for a mostly pasture farm we just bought in MO. I'm very interested in your experience with the CRP programs. We are planning on enrolling in EQIP and eventually CRP for eligible acres.


Our property was in CRP when we bought it 25 years ago. We either would need to repay for 5 years the owners collected or remain in the existing contract; we stayed with the contract. The crp areas had been in corn and beans and that let it be in the program.

The paperwork hasn't been bad. It was a little more last year when we went from just the CP4D to the Pheasant/Pollinator CP38E. The office people seem to know the written stuff but, seem to have little connection to real world.

The field people have been good to work with. I've had my plantings and layout visited a few times, with very positive feedback.
 
I had decent growth from a mix from American Meadows,My issue with the plans are like what I ran into re enrolling a wetland CRP. They required me to plant forbs and from what I've seen NWSG and switch grass will choke out forbs and water will also kill them.FSA required me to replant every 2 years if they saw a loss during inspection.It was going to cost me to be in the program.
 
I had decent growth from a mix from American Meadows,My issue with the plans are like what I ran into re enrolling a wetland CRP. They required me to plant forbs and from what I've seen NWSG and switch grass will choke out forbs and water will also kill them.FSA required me to replant every 2 years if they saw a loss during inspection.It was going to cost me to be in the program.


I've been very happy with the real world attitude of the people that came to inspect the fields. A state forester did the tree areas and two groups did the grass fields. I hope that continues with the flowers and forbs in this program.
 
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