JMJ Farms
Well-known member
Last year on one 12 acre pasture I dug up enough thistle to fill up my pickup bed 3 times. This year on the 300 +/- acres that I tend I only dug up 1/2 of one bed full. If you stay on them it will get better.
Neighbors got more thistles than grass
- Thread starter bmoore87
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We had hundreds of acres of thistle...Started digging them up and or taking the flowering tops before it seeded...Took many years to get control. This year i found only 3...Many neighbors have them, our land is clear because i stay on top of them. Not hard to control and luckily, they dont grow year round...Just a spring problem around us..
I have been spraying and killing all broadleaf for 3 years now and just about got there. I had a bad dog fennel problem but getting it under control now. Neighbor said not to worry about thistle in my pastures and the dog fennel was going to take it over! :lol:
tdc_cattle
Well-known member
herofan":rsmklagy said:
I've never heard of it being enforced by law enforcement. But growing up my grandma had me pretty convinced that if I didn't clean her pastures she was going to jail and I didn't want that happening.
Rajela
Well-known member
The way it is here......
http://www.oda.state.ok.us/forms/law/noxweedlaw.htm
more here...
http://www.oda.state.ok.us/cps-weed.htm
http://www.oda.state.ok.us/forms/law/noxweedlaw.htm
more here...
http://www.oda.state.ok.us/cps-weed.htm
Newberry Creek
Well-known member
Oldcrow - What are you using to get rid of the dog finnel?
We have had a major influx of thistle in south Georgia in the last three years. In pastures and along the roadway. I spot spray my neighbors old unused pasture and never say a word. Easiest way to keep it out of my pastures.
We have had a major influx of thistle in south Georgia in the last three years. In pastures and along the roadway. I spot spray my neighbors old unused pasture and never say a word. Easiest way to keep it out of my pastures.
JMJ Farms
Well-known member
I ain't Oldcrow but Surmount will smoke dogfennel. 24d will also and is much cheaper, but you gotta be careful about volitization, especially if you've got any melons or cotton close by.
M-5
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I Use 24d on dog fennel with a lot of success 1qt per acre 16gals water per acre Is what I do. spray it today and tomorrow you should see the Tip limp and drooped over. cows will eat young tender DF except them Mexican cows I bought they like the tops on stuff about 3ft tall. It beats all ive ever seen . they are better than goats at eating weeds.
Newberry Creek":1l9zqmki said:
I use Grazon P+D but have an applicator's license to use it. You can get Grazon that doesn't require it but P+D is cheaper and a little stouter which is what I'm after. It has a year long residual which is the gift that keeps on giving. Because of the residual you won't be able to plant clover for a year. I want always use it but right now I'm on a 4 yr program to eliminate dog fennel. All the spots last year I sprayed look great this year with the occasional miss where I didn't overlap with the spray. Not much may 5/pasture, those get pulled by hand.
Needless to say I have a passion for killing dog fennel and thistle. I also prefer spraying in April as everything is young and tender and most succeptable to poisen.By the way Grazon has 2-4-D in it with a couple other chemicals added. Does a good job for me and keeps things from coming back.
Stocker Steve
Well-known member
In theory, the extension' Weed Control Officer sends a letter to folks that need to do more control.
In reality, the main source of thistle here is land that the extension service accepted into CRP. :roll:
Maybe this is all a job security scam ???
In reality, the main source of thistle here is land that the extension service accepted into CRP. :roll:
Maybe this is all a job security scam ???
hillbillyhammer
Well-known member
what breed are your mescan cows? I might need to get some of those weed eaters! They could live pretty good around my placeM-5":2rycx1sm said:
M-5
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No breed in particular but alot of dairy in these I got. You have to fine the ones where you can count every rib , them kind have been seasoned to survive on anything that grows. Oh and it helps if you need an interpreter to make the deal.
boondocks
Well-known member
we have a bunch of thistle, looks like this and is spreading like crazy through our actual grass, as well as pasture: https://search.yahoo.com/yhs/search?p=c ... mp=yhs-002
Most of it has not flowered out yet. Should we brushhog? Spray? Both? Cows have eaten everything but it (and the multiflora/wild rose) in one pasture, so hope to start there then see what works. We don't usually use chemicals but are not dead-set against it if it will get it under control. Thanks!
Most of it has not flowered out yet. Should we brushhog? Spray? Both? Cows have eaten everything but it (and the multiflora/wild rose) in one pasture, so hope to start there then see what works. We don't usually use chemicals but are not dead-set against it if it will get it under control. Thanks!
Muddy
Well-known member
Our cattle loves to eat thistles and trampled the thistles constantly.
dave_shelby
Well-known member
I did a bit of googling and found some articles about teaching cattle to eat thistle. Never said what exactly you had to do, just warned about nitrates. Confine them in a pasture with thick thistle and let them get hungry enough? So whats the secret?
Ebenezer
Well-known member
Cow training: either train the cows directly or train guard donkeys and the cows will mimic. Get some cheap pancake syrup or something sweet and put on thistle buds and bloods with animals watching. Might take a time or two but voilà!
boondocks
Well-known member
Interesting solutions....I have some cattle molasses left over from winter. Maybe a dollop of it would be an interesting experiment.
Once the thistle is going pretty well though (like ours), won't it cut up their mouths to try to eat it? It looks pretty, well, thistle-y.
Once the thistle is going pretty well though (like ours), won't it cut up their mouths to try to eat it? It looks pretty, well, thistle-y.
riquezada
Well-known member
Interesting topic. I have a neighbor that is a cattle wheeler-dealer of sorts, with at least 300 head at anytime in the various places he owns or rents nearby. He doesn't do anything to control a Canadian Thistle infestation or weeds onhis side of the fence. My side is practically clear of them. I hate to complain much too because:
I have known him for close to 30 years. 15 years ago he loaned me a bull of the breed of my choice when I had no money to buy one. I can attribute that to me having a mostly Charolais herd today. If something would happen to mine could get a bull of my choice dropped off anytime within a few days until I found another. He'll loan me about anything I need on short notice, such as a loader tractor. I let him cut line fences in two places to move in a mobile home across my property for a relative when there was no other way in. He bought a connecting piece of property to mine and asked if he could use some of my water for a while until he got a meter installed. I said absolutely but showed him an existing water meter on his property. He would do the same for me. That's practically how all the neighbors are in the near vicinity. We share an 8 strand barbed wire fence with one hot wire which we both maintain. Before the hot wire the bulls tore it up and I had a tame pure Brahma bull in with mine. I said it would be nice to have a couple calves from him so he said just keep him a month or two and we'll get him back. We neighbors have a very good relationship which I would like to keep.
I have known him for close to 30 years. 15 years ago he loaned me a bull of the breed of my choice when I had no money to buy one. I can attribute that to me having a mostly Charolais herd today. If something would happen to mine could get a bull of my choice dropped off anytime within a few days until I found another. He'll loan me about anything I need on short notice, such as a loader tractor. I let him cut line fences in two places to move in a mobile home across my property for a relative when there was no other way in. He bought a connecting piece of property to mine and asked if he could use some of my water for a while until he got a meter installed. I said absolutely but showed him an existing water meter on his property. He would do the same for me. That's practically how all the neighbors are in the near vicinity. We share an 8 strand barbed wire fence with one hot wire which we both maintain. Before the hot wire the bulls tore it up and I had a tame pure Brahma bull in with mine. I said it would be nice to have a couple calves from him so he said just keep him a month or two and we'll get him back. We neighbors have a very good relationship which I would like to keep.
riquezada
Well-known member
Oh I forgot to mention on my side in my pastures I thought only the donkeys were eating the thistle blooms but I seen a few cows eating them too. I'm assuming donkey manure is hot like horse manure. So would the seeds get burnt up. Then the cow manure is cold so would the seeds pass through and the cows basically spread them?
