Clearing land

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CCFARMS

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I have recently concentrated on clearing my land 40 acres. I have owned it about 5 years and have used it for hunting. Its rough and hard to find a level spot on it. I have a spring fed creek that runs through it that just about splits the land up 60/40. This creek averages about 40' wide and 3' deep and as deep as 12'. I would say the creek is as long as 1/4 a mile just guessing. This land is all sloping and has had terraces in place at one time. There is a flood control lake right next to it that my creek feeds and was excavated back in the day for the runoff of this lake, (pond more like). Plumb thickets and Ivy are my enemy, sumac too. I have brush mowed what i can short of a dozer and recently sprayed some Benvin 2-4-d where i hogged. I was wondering what is the best way to clear land. Should i brush mow then plow then spray after the weeds start growing and then plant grass after and few weeks? I'm currently trying to keep it beat back until fall then jump on it before spring. Should I just wait until spring to battle this because i'm wasting my time now? Thanks for any advice.
 
Welcome, where abouts are you located? It helps to visualize your terrain, soil and seasons.

Is the perimeter fenced? It sounds like tough terrain for bushhogging. Disregard this suggestion if you don't like it, but it sounds like a pretty good job for goats. Put goats in there for two or three years, they will attack the ivy and any brush they can reach. Just a thought.
 
OLF":3nysjzih said:
Welcome, where abouts are you located? It helps to visualize your terrain, soil and seasons.

Is the perimeter fenced? It sounds like tough terrain for bushhogging. Disregard this suggestion if you don't like it, but it sounds like a pretty good job for goats. Put goats in there for two or three years, they will attack the ivy and any brush they can reach. Just a thought.

Oklahoma (Stephens county) I have thought of the goat route. It does have fence but not for goats. Goats seem to be the logical answer just haven't done it. The fencing reason only. Damn them goats have gotten high too:) How many i wonder? Thanks for the input. Yes bush hogging is a pain. I despise brush hoggin seems to me to be the biggest waste of time and money when you should have something grazing it.
 
THAt 2, 4, D you sprayed is the only thing I have found that works on sumac. That should work for you.

How much slope? Can you get the terraces back in place?

I would not wait for spring. I'd be over seeding some winter grasses to retain the soil, in a few months. Just plain rye grass if nothing else.
 
backhoeboogie":3lju0olj said:
THAt 2, 4, D you sprayed is the only thing I have found that works on sumac. That should work for you.

How much slope? Can you get the terraces back in place?

I would not wait for spring. I'd be over seeding some winter grasses to retain the soil, in a few months. Just plain rye grass if nothing else.

Thanks, Yes terraces are still visual but need some work. I haven't totally stripped it, I have just now began to mow the thickets and brush but i suppose i should plant something in its place. I just figured it would be better to let these die out and decompose because of all the wood that's left on the ground plus the roots. I have a small 32 hp tractor with small implements that don't' like this terrain. It will do the job for about 50 percent of the area but I'll have to get a dozer sooner or later. Would rye seeding work after thicket mowing with out any ground breaking? This would be a fall thing right? I would say the slope is 3 to 4 inches per foot on average.
 
I would definitely NOT plow ground that is as steep as you describe. Whatever is growing there is better than bare ground.

If you can clear the woody plants enough to let in sunlight you will be surprised at what will come back.

Unfortunately a 30 hp tractor usually cannot handle the mowers you should have. 90-100 hp would be better. May be a lot of chainsaw work or one of these hydraulic tree/brush snips, but again they are not going to work on a 30 hp tractor.

Maybe the place to start is fencing what areas you can and put some cattle in there to get started, especially on the steeper places. I assume since you are on a cattle board you are mostly interested in cattle rather than goats.

Hire someone with a dozer to come in and clear a fenceline for you then clear the inside the fence area one section at a time? I would NOT plow it.

jmho. Good luck.
 
SRBeef":255inde8 said:
I would definitely NOT plow ground that is as steep as you describe. Whatever is growing there is better than bare ground.

If you can clear the woody plants enough to let in sunlight you will be surprised at what will come back.

Unfortunately a 30 hp tractor usually cannot handle the mowers you should have. 90-100 hp would be better. May be a lot of chainsaw work or one of these hydraulic tree/brush snips, but again they are not going to work on a 30 hp tractor.

Maybe the place to start is fencing what areas you can and put some cattle in there to get started, especially on the steeper places. I assume since you are on a cattle board you are mostly interested in cattle rather than goats.

Hire someone with a dozer to come in and clear a fenceline for you then clear the inside the fence area one section at a time? I would NOT plow it.

jmho. Good luck.

That slope number is probably a little high but it does run down hill pretty good. I'll see if i can dig up some pics.
 
CCFARMS":llya2zpe said:
I have recently concentrated on clearing my land 40 acres. I have owned it about 5 years and have used it for hunting. Its rough and hard to find a level spot on it. I have a spring fed creek that runs through it that just about splits the land up 60/40. This creek averages about 40' wide and 3' deep and as deep as 12'. I would say the creek is as long as 1/4 a mile just guessing. This land is all sloping and has had terraces in place at one time. There is a flood control lake right next to it that my creek feeds and was excavated back in the day for the runoff of this lake, (pond more like). Plumb thickets and Ivy are my enemy, sumac too. I have brush mowed what i can short of a dozer and recently sprayed some Benvin 2-4-d where i hogged. I was wondering what is the best way to clear land. Should i brush mow then plow then spray after the weeds start growing and then plant grass after and few weeks? I'm currently trying to keep it beat back until fall then jump on it before spring. Should I just wait until spring to battle this because i'm wasting my time now? Thanks for any advice.

You can use the Remedy-Diesel spray on trees year 'round. You spray the combination around the bottom 12-18 inches of the tree. Generally it will kill the roots, too. I've been doing some folier spraying on new growth that's trying to come up where we've killed trees with that spray. But with the 100 degree temps we've been having, I'm not sure how long that will be effective. We're sort of victims of our success, I guess. The grass is so thick in that paddock because of the rotational grazing program that it covers up the fallen trees from the spraying and it's hard to ride the 4-wheeler around.

We really need a good fire to burn those downed trees and clear the overburden on the grass. But with the fires we've had the last few years, we just can't bring ourselves to light the match. :D

I'd be careful about plowing anything with that sort of slope. Our experience has been that the grass is there. It just needs some sunlight to grow. When you take out those big trees, it'll take off without you doing anything.

You might check with the conservation people about rebuilding those terraces. We were able to get some conservation money to help us with ours.
 
Frankie":13hpg45n said:
CCFARMS":13hpg45n said:
I have recently concentrated on clearing my land 40 acres. I have owned it about 5 years and have used it for hunting. Its rough and hard to find a level spot on it. I have a spring fed creek that runs through it that just about splits the land up 60/40. This creek averages about 40' wide and 3' deep and as deep as 12'. I would say the creek is as long as 1/4 a mile just guessing. This land is all sloping and has had terraces in place at one time. There is a flood control lake right next to it that my creek feeds and was excavated back in the day for the runoff of this lake, (pond more like). Plumb thickets and Ivy are my enemy, sumac too. I have brush mowed what i can short of a dozer and recently sprayed some Benvin 2-4-d where i hogged. I was wondering what is the best way to clear land. Should i brush mow then plow then spray after the weeds start growing and then plant grass after and few weeks? I'm currently trying to keep it beat back until fall then jump on it before spring. Should I just wait until spring to battle this because i'm wasting my time now? Thanks for any advice.

You can use the Remedy-Diesel spray on trees year 'round. You spray the combination around the bottom 12-18 inches of the tree. Generally it will kill the roots, too. I've been doing some folier spraying on new growth that's trying to come up where we've killed trees with that spray. But with the 100 degree temps we've been having, I'm not sure how long that will be effective. We're sort of victims of our success, I guess. The grass is so thick in that paddock because of the rotational grazing program that it covers up the fallen trees from the spraying and it's hard to ride the 4-wheeler around.

We really need a good fire to burn those downed trees and clear the overburden on the grass. But with the fires we've had the last few years, we just can't bring ourselves to light the match. :D

I'd be careful about plowing anything with that sort of slope. Our experience has been that the grass is there. It just needs some sunlight to grow. When you take out those big trees, it'll take off without you doing anything.

You might check with the conservation people about rebuilding those terraces. We were able to get some conservation money to help us with ours.

Thanks Frankie some good info there.
 
You're welcome. If you're planning to buy restricted herbicides, you'll need an applicator's permit. The Stephens County Agent's office has the packet for getting this license through OSU. But Remedy is not a restricted herbicide.
 
Frankie":3gcxwv19 said:
You're welcome. If you're planning to buy restricted herbicides, you'll need an applicator's permit. The Stephens County Agent's office has the packet for getting this license through OSU. But Remedy is not a restricted herbicide.

It used to be, that's why I had to get a license. The only thing I need a license for now is Grazon and I don;t use much of it.
 
The goats may be high, but if you'll get them now and turn them in until spring, you'll greatly increase the number of goats that you own. You should make a few $$$ off the goats to help with the additional fencing costs.

1 doe + 1 buck normally = 2 kids. Between now and next spring, you can probably get two litters per doe.
 
grannysoo":y9egrvsd said:
The goats may be high, but if you'll get them now and turn them in until spring, you'll greatly increase the number of goats that you own. You should make a few $$$ off the goats to help with the additional fencing costs.

1 doe + 1 buck normally = 2 kids. Between now and next spring, you can probably get two litters per doe.

I hear you granny but why in the heck are they so high? All i hear around these parts are "registered", high quality blah blah blah. I really don't know what kind of maintenance is needed other than a good fence but they seem to be a little high for something that doesn't do nothing but eat weeds. I guess i should raise hoppers and sell them to people that eat them (Chinese?). Who eats goat? I have never heard anyone I know or any restaurant that is pushing goat meat in my area. There has to be a reason. Could it be the high bs economy brought on by fuel? I can't see goats doubling in price for this.
 
grannysoo":uqjyc6qi said:
The goats may be high, but if you'll get them now and turn them in until spring, you'll greatly increase the number of goats that you own. You should make a few $$$ off the goats to help with the additional fencing costs.

1 doe + 1 buck normally = 2 kids. Between now and next spring, you can probably get two litters per doe.
True words !! Goats ain't bad eaten either ! :roll: :roll:
 
CCFARMS":3lzibk8e said:
Oklahoma (Stephens county) I have thought of the goat route. It does have fence but not for goats. Goats seem to be the logical answer just haven't done it. The fencing reason only. be nice them goats have gotten high too:)

Who says you have to buy them? Check around and see if anyone has goats for rent. There are quite a few people who keep goats and rent them out for this exact reason.

How many i wonder?

1 cow equals 8-10 goats, depending on their size. I've got 2 juvenile deliquents - one is 6 months old, the other is 4 months old - that have discovered how to get out of their pen and, in a couple of weeks, they have put a serious hurting on an elm tree that I've been trying to kill for 3 years. Anytime I'm home to make sure they don't wander out onto the highway, I turn out a pen of 30 doelings to help them out. I'm thinking it won't take long. :lol: :D
 
We just had a man come over and use one of those Bobcat's with the tracks and a mulcher on the front. Did a great job turning downed trees, weeds, scrub brush into mulch. They can only mulch up trees that are about 4"-6" around or smaller but it was a great start and looks super! Here are a few pictures.
 
msscamp":2whw8q96 said:
an elm tree that I've been trying to kill for 3 years. Anytime I'm home to make sure they don't wander out onto the highway, I turn out a pen of 30 doelings to help them out. I'm thinking it won't take long. :lol: :D [/b]

Much more fun than just spraying roundup or breaking out the chainsaw! :clap:
 

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