Brush Hogging Residue on Pasture

[MissouriExile]

I have been clearing about 40 acres of badly overgrown and neglected pasture.
Weeds, briar patches, Osage, etc, etc covered it all. Somehow underneath all this mess there is a fair covering of fescue grass.
My question is; The Brush hogging leaves the pasture looking like it has just been cut for hay. A fairly heavy layer of cut grass and weeds lies in rows where I mow.
Does this residue need to be collected up or will it decompose and clear up on its own?

A beginner question for sure but I could use the advice.

Jon

 

[MikeC]

Let it lay. It will decompose and add to your soil.

But do be aware that the weeds and brush will come back with a vengeance.

 

[3MR]

It will come up through it eventually. Allthough, if you remove it you will also be removing any weed seed heads you might be leaving in the cuttings.

 

[dun]

Depends on how thick the stuff is. I have areas that we just cut with the old BH that throws the stuff out the side and it leaves stunted/smothered/dead strips. The other BH throws it out the back more like a combine does. Stuff isn;t as thick and the grass grows right through it

 

[Sir Loin]

Jon,
Just keep mowing it at least once or twice per year to control and kill the unwanted growth.
I wouldn't use herbicides or you may kill off your native grasses you want to keep.
Run some cattle on it for fertilizer and to promote the existing grass to grow.
Cattle run third to pigs then goats for clearing overgrown fields.
SL

 

[judge jb]

let it lay until brown and then run your cutter back over it and mulch it up...you would be suprised what an extra trip or two will make.

judge jb

 

[MissouriExile]

Jon,
Just keep mowing it at least once or twice per year to control and kill the unwanted growth.
I wouldn't use herbicides or you may kill off your native grasses you want to keep.
Run some cattle on it for fertilizer and to promote the existing grass to grow.
Cattle run third to pigs then goats for clearing overgrown fields.
SL

I am running 30 head of goats alongside my dozen head of cattle. So far the goats have proven pretty picky eaters prefering small trees and shrubs, followed by grass. I am still debating the herbacides because I want to gradually upgrade the pastures with new plantings for some hay but mostly upgraded forage. currently it's all fescue probably infected.
All these things take time.

Thanks to All.

Jon

 

[ALACOWMAN]

Jon,
Just keep mowing it at least once or twice per year to control and kill the unwanted growth.

• I wouldn't use herbicides or you may kill off your native grasses you want to keep.

Run some cattle on it for fertilizer and to promote the existing grass to grow.
Cattle run third to pigs then goats for clearing overgrown fields.
SL

i doubt he will kill a established grass stand even clover if he times it right and uses a broadleaf on it

 

[dun]

I want to gradually upgrade the pastures with new plantings for some hay but mostly upgraded forage. currently it's all fescue probably infected.
All these things take time.

Thanks to All.

Jon

Learn to work with the fescue and select cattle that can prosper on it. If it wasn;t for endophye infected fescue there wouldn;t be any beef cows in Missouri

 

[msscamp]

My question is; The Brush hogging leaves the pasture looking like it has just been cut for hay. A fairly heavy layer of cut grass and weeds lies in rows where I mow.
Does this residue need to be collected up or will it decompose and clear up on its own?

Jon

That would depend on how heavy/thick that layer is. I have seen a lot of grass killed by windrows laying on top of it.

 

[dun]

That would depend on how heavy/thick that layer is. I have seen a lot of grass killed by windrows laying on top of it.

My point exactly!

 

[msscamp]

I wouldn't use herbicides or you may kill off your native grasses you want to keep.

SL

Generally speaking, most herbicides won't harm grass unless it's Round-Up or one of the aliases Round-Up is commercially marketed under. If all else fails, read the label. Grasses that should not be treated with a particular herbicide are, more often than not, listed. ;-)

 

[Alan]

Well finally a cattle topic I feel I may have something worth contributing to. We bought this place about 7 yrs ago, it had Blackberries 10 to 12 feet tall and covered most the pastures, full of Bull thistle and Canadian Thistle and bracken fern. I bush hogged and started recapturing the pastures about 8 to 10 acres at a time. I ran the tractor through the blackberries with the bucket about a foot off the ground looking for stumps or cars or what ever, followed up with a bush hog. Gave it a couple of days and ran through it again to mulch it up. then it was up to me and a spot sprayer with either Cross Bow or Curtail in it. I pretty much sprayed with the spot sprayer as needed. It took about two years with ferilizer, in my case horse manure, to get a decent looking pasture with very few weeds or berries. We saved to patches of blackberries for ice cream or/and pie. ;-) Don't be afraid to spot spray the grass will come back.

Alan

 

[S&S Farms]

Jon,
Just keep mowing it at least once or twice per year to control and kill the unwanted growth.
I wouldn't use herbicides or you may kill off your native grasses you want to keep.
Run some cattle on it for fertilizer and to promote the existing grass to grow.
Cattle run third to pigs then goats for clearing overgrown fields.
SL

I am running 30 head of goats alongside my dozen head of cattle. So far the goats have proven pretty picky eaters prefering small trees and shrubs, followed by grass. I am still debating the herbacides because I want to gradually upgrade the pastures with new plantings for some hay but mostly upgraded forage. currently it's all fescue probably infected.
All these things take time.

Thanks to All.

Jon

Have any trouble keeping in the goats??? We had trouble keeping in with elec fence when dry wont ground with their small feet. I now know how to fix problem just curious if you had any problems

Jeff