What should I do with this Pasture Ground?

[Native Hunter]

It makes sense to have this mix. Were you suggesting that you plant both forbs and grasses, or that’s what naturally occurs for you?

Have you done some native replanting? Mostly native grasses, or forbs also?

I think it depends on what is already in your seed bank. Once you kill cool season grasses, you should get a flush of growth from what is already there. If you have a good mixture of forbs and tall grasses in the seedbank, you might not need to plant anything.

I planted a mixture of grasses and forbs after killing fescue. I got very little warm season grasses from the seedbank, so it was good for me to plant NWSGs. I got a lot of forbs - some desirable and some not so great. I spent the next few years driving my pickup truck through the prairie doing spot spraying with 25 gallon tanks of gly and crossbow in my bed. At places I needed to kill everything I would spray gly, and at places I needed to set back undesirable forbs, I would spray crossbow.

Some of the good forbs already there were - common ragweed, giant ragweed, goldenrod, smooth tick trefoil, and a few others. If I saw a patch of something like Ironweed forming, I would set it back. One of the best forbs for deer I got in the seed I planted was a tall and aggressive variety of partridge pea. It survives and comes back every year despite being an annual competing with perennials. Deer browse it really well and the seed are relished by quail. There were some other good forbs that have given way to the competition, but they can be brought back by disking if desired.

Your area may be different than mine, but this is what worked for me.

 

[omicron1792]

@Native Hunter would you post some pics of your native stands here please? They make me happy.

 

[Native Hunter]

@Native Hunter would you post some pics of your native stands here please? They make me happy.

I like for my friends to be happy, so "yes," I will post some pics. Will be later this evening or tonight. Stay tuned.

 

[Native Hunter]

As requested, here are some pics of my place. Part 1.

This shows the way I walk to my tower blind, and the last pic shows the blind and main plot separated by NWSG cover. This blind is mainly for rifle, but I also have some good bucks come within bow range - especially during the rut. I passed a 150 from this blind at 20 yards last year plus some other good ones.







These pics illustrate what I mean when I talk about tall, thick cover. This is the kind of cover that mature bucks will use in daylight.





These are some nice places with good forbs. It might interest you to know that the purple flowers are from a very desirable plant that came from the seed bank, but the yellow flowers are from seed I planted. The two very desirable species are coexisting nicely.



That is the neighbor's soybean patch on the left. Where do you think the deer bed and run to for cover.



This is a wall of jewellweed. It came from the seedbank and is browsed harder than anything else I know. All I did was kill all of the undesirables so it could thrive.





This is where the prairie joins the tree planting.



See next Post for Part 2

 

[Native Hunter]

Part 2 of 2. I will post some miscellaneous pics here. Let me know if you have any questions.









I should have posted this first.
Yellow boot shape is my 12 acre tree planting.
Blue is ponds and stream
Green is food plots
White dots are stands and tower locations

Link to Oak Planting Thread:

Thread 'The Year of the Oaks'

Mar 19, 2021

Over the last few years, you guys have seen me post a lot about persimmons, apples, pears and chestnuts. I still love all those trees, but this year I’m turning my attention to the oak trees that I set out 15-17 years ago.

The original planting was done in 2004, but we had a severe drought that year, and I did replacements over the next two years on trees that died. So in the spring of 2021, these trees will range from 15 to 17 years in the ground. The area planted is flat upland loam with good moisture but not swampy.

I set around 12 acres in trees. The rows were planted 13 feet...

• Native Hunter
• Replies: 115
• Forum: Native Habitat

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• 

Link to Fruit tree thread:

Thread 'Native Hunter Apples 2023'

Jun 2, 2023

This looks to be a good year for apples where I live. I have some common, as well as some unusual varieties. I thought maybe a few folks might enjoy a thread where I document the apples as they ripen through the year. All of my apples are no spray, so you may see a few bug bites, etc....

I picked my first two apples for the year today. This variety is called Striped June (aka Margaret). They are a small apple ranging from about 2 to 2.5 inches in diameter. The taste is on the tart side, and they cook really well. I've never tried drying this apple but will probably do some...

• Native Hunter
• Replies: 404
• Forum: Fruit Trees

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Link to Land Tour

Thread 'A few habitat pics I thought you might enjoy'

Aug 22, 2014

Snapped a few I-phone pics recently I thought some of you might enjoy. I love working on my place and right now is a great time of the year for pictures.

Partridge Pea is tall and blooming nicely now. In the first pic below I see the first clump of Indian Grass this year that has put out a head. In a week or two it should be beautiful as it blooms with the PP.

...

• Native Hunter
• land tour
• Replies: 1,311
• Forum: Land Tours

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Link to Prairie Thread:

Thread 'Take a walk with me through the prairie'

Jun 21, 2020

First of all, this is not a property tour thread. It about plants that grow in a prairie. Most of you are aware that I manage roughly 60 acres of NWSGs and forbs on my farm. I'm going to start a thread using some old pictures, pictures I took this spring, and some pictures I plan to take through this year to show some of the various plants (both good and bad) that grow there.

I will add new pictures and verbiage every few days off and on as time allows. Feel free to interject your own thoughts as well.

The focus of this thread will be:

• The pictures and identifying features of...

• Native Hunter
• Replies: 224
• Forum: Native Habitat

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[omicron1792]

To the OP. If I had 100 acres with 50 acres of old pasture, this is exactly what I would do with the 50 acres.

 

[BenA]

I can't compete with @Native Hunter, but I will say, the cover produced is quick and makes them feel comfortable. But, you need better food than your neighbors or the deer will be in the closest cover to it.

 

[omicron1792]

I can't compete with @Native Hunter, but I will say, the cover produced is quick and makes them feel comfortable. But, you need better food than your neighbors or the deer will be in the closet cover to it.
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You’re doing great too Ben

 

[bigboreblr]

65 acres is alot of acres even with most tractors hunters own. IF you're selling it in a year or two, I wouldn't throw a ton of work at it.

I'd have a farmer handle most of it, if not all your tillable. Then do a corner or two yourself. Or twist the farms arm to put in winter rye after a crop.

Foodplots are the biggest change in terms of time. There can be one quicker than that though.

4 thing I would focus on. Get someone else do your plots like AG, make some basic trails, make a small campsite spot for parking, plant a few trees to make it look good. Handful of apple trees and any spots that need seclusion better. If you're camping there yourself, maybe have electric put in. A short run can be made affordably. Put up a shed and put some nice horns on it. Make it look like a nice cozy setup place.

A friend of mine lives in kansas. He toys with a plto or two sometimes. What he does is mow towards the end of summer and provides water. Water is his best change. He has 2 tanks with banks of 55 gallon drums up high. Uses gravity and a float valve to keep it filled.

What equipment do you own to work on habitat. How far / how often can you show up to work on the property.

There is a looming real estate bust coming down the pike possibly. You might need to ohold onto it for 3-5 years instead of 1-2.

 

[Oleo]

As requested, here are some pics of my place. Part 1.

Beautiful place! That looks amazing. Great work. How did you plant all that (drill, broadcast, etc)?

 

[Native Hunter]

Beautiful place! That looks amazing. Great work. How did you plant all that (drill, broadcast, etc)?

Thanks, I did a gly kill on the existing fescue and then drilled the seed. There is some work involved in maintaining it, but I have enjoyed doing it.

 

[Oleo]

What equipment do you own to work on habitat. How far / how often can you show up to work on the property.

I have a compact tractor with a handful of implements including a kasco seeder that I’m not sure I’ve mastered.

My main farm (the one I keep instead of flip) is just down the road 10 miles. I can get out there 2-3 times a week.

There is a looming real estate bust coming down the pike possibly. You might need to ohold onto it for 3-5 years instead of 1-2.

It’s hard to predict - I got this property at a pretty good price and I feel pretty comfortable with it. I closed yesterday, put up cameras, and got several pictures of this deer in the first night!

 

[Mortenson]

Hang around long enough to shoot that buck.

 

[Mortenson]

A house that's freshly painted with new floors sells better than a dump. I'd grow tall grasses and put a few tree cages up for effect.