OK folks, there are some good lessons learned and lessons avoided in this thread. I plan to update this 'blog' with the 2020 plot rebuild and keep it going. Current planning is to try and rehab the older plots by notill and kill the weeds and broad leaves with IMOX.
Every story has a beginning, this one is 1993 right after Desert Storm I, I was stationed at Wright-Pittiful and my brother found a 100 parcel in Coshocton County, we went in with Dad and bought it. 2010 while on my third tour to Afghanistan Dad passed, then in 2013 my brother passed and the farm became mine thru the worst circumstance default. I never thought the farm would be mine, so I hunted gun and "Brown and Down" method as I moved with the Military, raised a family and deployed - deployed and deployed some more. Retired after 30 yrs in 2016 with a focus on Habitat Management and the fact that the neighboring uninahitied farms ~ 2,400 acres of mature woods went from "Brown and Down" to trophy management.
2016 Establishment. There were gas pipelines and oilwell pads on the property ( the only even relativity flat areas) which were completely feral. I had been mowing the feral weeds /fescue and cutting the encroaching woods back since 2014.
I had spent the 2016 Spring going around to each farm neighbor, via county land records as none of the adjoining lots are inhabited - only a very very slight < 10% of the 2500 acres with my farms 100 acres is AG farmed/grass/ponds or otherwise NOT in a mature wooded canopy. I reached out trying to judge the loose Co-Op and development of relationships that would be mutually beneficial.
So I undertook putting in about 3.5 acres of plots with a goal to max the flatish areas I had and minimize the touch maintenance required. One of the neighbors I met did organic farming, I hired him to till the plots for a planned fall planting.
I did soil tests, I highly recommend only getting them done at your local AG feed store and discuss results with the local agronomist for what you want to grow and why. I applied the max AGlime and fertilizers based on the tests then planted Chicory, Red and White Clover and Alfalfa.... This was before I knew how fickle and fragile Alfalfa is. It doesn't matter what you 'Want" to grow, you need to grow the best species based on what the soil tests and environment will support that meets your Management goals. If I had done that I would have planted Birdsfoot Trefoil in the plots instead of Alfalfa and saved some decent $$ - Birdsfoot Trefoil it is a much more forgiving legume. I planted a nursery crop of oats and cereal rye over the Chicory, Clover and Alfalfa. We're all in Ohio so planting was mid Sep, the pic below is late Oct.
The difference in the deer using the plots was remarkable, I stated that I wanted two years to pass between installing the plots and before I moved stands to how the animals reacted to them. Based on trail cams and seeing the results from almost barren fescue and weeds in the flat areas to high grazing fodder it was astonishing.
Over the fall and winter the deer ad other animals ate the 3.5 acres to "chin high" but the first green up, the rye came up first and let the pressure off the legumes which increases the survivability of the young seedlings. FYI, I let the rye bolt and head before cutting to add the gain to the mix of available food. If you do this heed a warning to let the fawning timeline pass and cut slowly to keep any fawn kills to zero.
After the rye is cut, the straw acts as mulch and fertilizer - giving your young perennial plot legumes a big step up. So less then one year from a vitural desesrt of palatable forage to acres of quality habitat. One thing that impressed me was the usage it got from turkey, the increase in rabbits and woodchucks.
Pipeline in June 2017
It was at this point that one should have start managing for pests/weeds in the plots but didn't have a boom sprayer and didn't know about the IMOX brand that kills both weeds. everyone has their excuses as I do... but if you get a good plot catch, it's much easier to keep it healthy then try and resuscitate it. That;s the point of the blog - It's been 4 years with some frost seeding but no "weed control". Other posts in this blog will cover aspects of Ohio pond management, hand land clearing for esthetics and others.
Getting an annual soil test (until you get them dialed in) at a local AG Co-Op and speaking to an certified agonimist is one of the things I can't stress enough. This is the third application of AG lime and should have Pipeline to 6.8pH. That big hoss AGLIME spreader back there is the cats ass. It can carry up to 13 ton AG lime and you can tell the driver how many #'s per acre and Wham/Bam/THANK YOU LOCAL Co-Op it's done - big time clearance, 4x4 it goes almost anywhere. $34/ton with a small charge $5/acre.
So for 2020 - Cutting back some encoraching trees, weed control via IMOX with before/during/after shots and analysis.
Every story has a beginning, this one is 1993 right after Desert Storm I, I was stationed at Wright-Pittiful and my brother found a 100 parcel in Coshocton County, we went in with Dad and bought it. 2010 while on my third tour to Afghanistan Dad passed, then in 2013 my brother passed and the farm became mine thru the worst circumstance default. I never thought the farm would be mine, so I hunted gun and "Brown and Down" method as I moved with the Military, raised a family and deployed - deployed and deployed some more. Retired after 30 yrs in 2016 with a focus on Habitat Management and the fact that the neighboring uninahitied farms ~ 2,400 acres of mature woods went from "Brown and Down" to trophy management.
2016 Establishment. There were gas pipelines and oilwell pads on the property ( the only even relativity flat areas) which were completely feral. I had been mowing the feral weeds /fescue and cutting the encroaching woods back since 2014.
Cutting the pipeline feral weeds, summer 2016
I had spent the 2016 Spring going around to each farm neighbor, via county land records as none of the adjoining lots are inhabited - only a very very slight < 10% of the 2500 acres with my farms 100 acres is AG farmed/grass/ponds or otherwise NOT in a mature wooded canopy. I reached out trying to judge the loose Co-Op and development of relationships that would be mutually beneficial.
So I undertook putting in about 3.5 acres of plots with a goal to max the flatish areas I had and minimize the touch maintenance required. One of the neighbors I met did organic farming, I hired him to till the plots for a planned fall planting.
Same pipeline - tilled prior to seeding Aug.
I did soil tests, I highly recommend only getting them done at your local AG feed store and discuss results with the local agronomist for what you want to grow and why. I applied the max AGlime and fertilizers based on the tests then planted Chicory, Red and White Clover and Alfalfa.... This was before I knew how fickle and fragile Alfalfa is. It doesn't matter what you 'Want" to grow, you need to grow the best species based on what the soil tests and environment will support that meets your Management goals. If I had done that I would have planted Birdsfoot Trefoil in the plots instead of Alfalfa and saved some decent $$ - Birdsfoot Trefoil it is a much more forgiving legume. I planted a nursery crop of oats and cereal rye over the Chicory, Clover and Alfalfa. We're all in Ohio so planting was mid Sep, the pic below is late Oct.
Pipeline Oct after planing in mid Sep - good moisture and good seed to soil contact.
The difference in the deer using the plots was remarkable, I stated that I wanted two years to pass between installing the plots and before I moved stands to how the animals reacted to them. Based on trail cams and seeing the results from almost barren fescue and weeds in the flat areas to high grazing fodder it was astonishing.
Over the fall and winter the deer ad other animals ate the 3.5 acres to "chin high" but the first green up, the rye came up first and let the pressure off the legumes which increases the survivability of the young seedlings. FYI, I let the rye bolt and head before cutting to add the gain to the mix of available food. If you do this heed a warning to let the fawning timeline pass and cut slowly to keep any fawn kills to zero.
Pipeline just past greenup May 2017
Pipeline cereal rye bolt/heading Spring 2017
After the rye is cut, the straw acts as mulch and fertilizer - giving your young perennial plot legumes a big step up. So less then one year from a vitural desesrt of palatable forage to acres of quality habitat. One thing that impressed me was the usage it got from turkey, the increase in rabbits and woodchucks.
Pipeline in June 2017
It was at this point that one should have start managing for pests/weeds in the plots but didn't have a boom sprayer and didn't know about the IMOX brand that kills both weeds. everyone has their excuses as I do... but if you get a good plot catch, it's much easier to keep it healthy then try and resuscitate it. That;s the point of the blog - It's been 4 years with some frost seeding but no "weed control". Other posts in this blog will cover aspects of Ohio pond management, hand land clearing for esthetics and others.
Pipeline Aug 2018
Getting an annual soil test (until you get them dialed in) at a local AG Co-Op and speaking to an certified agonimist is one of the things I can't stress enough. This is the third application of AG lime and should have Pipeline to 6.8pH. That big hoss AGLIME spreader back there is the cats ass. It can carry up to 13 ton AG lime and you can tell the driver how many #'s per acre and Wham/Bam/THANK YOU LOCAL Co-Op it's done - big time clearance, 4x4 it goes almost anywhere. $34/ton with a small charge $5/acre.
Pipeline Sep 2019
So for 2020 - Cutting back some encoraching trees, weed control via IMOX with before/during/after shots and analysis.