J-birds place
- Thread starter j-bird
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Water is a powerful force...hopefully they have fixed the issue!
That is one tough dog!
That is one tough dog!
j-bird
Well-Known Member
Well it has rained here in one way shape of form since about noon yesterday and is supposed to continue thru the end of the weekend. I sucked it up and put on my big boy pants and went out yesterday after work and planted at least 500 acorns in my SW wood lot. Most where a swamp white oak (I think) - which I have zero of on my place at the moment......I hope in a few decades someone will say, "Where did all these swamp white oak trees come from?" There where a few regular white oaks and some chinkapins in the mix as well. Since I had the place logged earlier I used a lot of the tree tops as shelters and stabbed a hole with a walking stick and stuck the acorn in it or I just found a soft place and stepped the acorn into the ground. I'm sure the critters will find their share but with over 500 of them planted even if just a percentage make it - it was worth a few hours of my time. That section of my property has 1 bearing oak on it - so I figured I would try to help things along. I'll go back to the tree where I am getting my swamp white oak acorns from next week as it has some that where still very green that should be ready by then as well.
I did take a few pics of the brassica I added to the corn plot in the SW where I removed a section of corn because it wasn't doing well.
No tubers forming yet but thus far they seem to be doing OK.
Also looks like the deer are using the logging path just south of this plot location. It runs along the stream and connects a bedding area and a small woodlot on my place......might be a good place to take my climber and try to catch a nice buck trying the scent check that plot when the wind comes from the north. Am I "bad" for not telling anyone else? I don't care.....
I did take a few pics of the brassica I added to the corn plot in the SW where I removed a section of corn because it wasn't doing well.
No tubers forming yet but thus far they seem to be doing OK.
Also looks like the deer are using the logging path just south of this plot location. It runs along the stream and connects a bedding area and a small woodlot on my place......might be a good place to take my climber and try to catch a nice buck trying the scent check that plot when the wind comes from the north. Am I "bad" for not telling anyone else? I don't care.....
j-bird
Well-Known Member
OK - I know some folks think I'm crazy, but today I think I may agree with them.
I went to check on a local source for acorns at a strip mall and in the process I noticed what appeared to be oak trees planted along a bike path route (you know the asphalt ones the yuppies use to bike around town). At a decent distance I thought I saw acorns. So I grabbed the taco bell paper bag I had (as I just finished my lunch) and went to take a look Now mind you it's noon so everyone is out and about and it's 80+ degrees outside.
I found 2 white oak trees absolutely loaded with ripe acorns!!!! I immediately was like a kid picking up easter eggs!!!
I don't have an official count yet. All I know is that I have a BUNCH! The bag actually started to tear because of the weight in it. I picked them off the tree and picked up any that felt "right" (you that have collected acorns know what I'm talking about). The ground was so littered with them I was using my hand and fingers like a rake and getting them by the handful! I'm guessing I collected between 500 and a thousand acorns. I'm sure they will not all be good, but for two small trees this was a gold mine. I also noted they had other what looks like true swamp white oaks as well, but they didn't have any acorns. I will keep this little slice of acorn heaven in mind from now on.
My place lacks white oak so I hope by planting these this will one day at least lead to a few more. I'm gonna be busy this weekend!!!!! This is essentially a large drive-thru bag full!!! it's funny what you find when you just slow down and look.
I went to check on a local source for acorns at a strip mall and in the process I noticed what appeared to be oak trees planted along a bike path route (you know the asphalt ones the yuppies use to bike around town). At a decent distance I thought I saw acorns. So I grabbed the taco bell paper bag I had (as I just finished my lunch) and went to take a look Now mind you it's noon so everyone is out and about and it's 80+ degrees outside.
I found 2 white oak trees absolutely loaded with ripe acorns!!!! I immediately was like a kid picking up easter eggs!!!
I don't have an official count yet. All I know is that I have a BUNCH! The bag actually started to tear because of the weight in it. I picked them off the tree and picked up any that felt "right" (you that have collected acorns know what I'm talking about). The ground was so littered with them I was using my hand and fingers like a rake and getting them by the handful! I'm guessing I collected between 500 and a thousand acorns. I'm sure they will not all be good, but for two small trees this was a gold mine. I also noted they had other what looks like true swamp white oaks as well, but they didn't have any acorns. I will keep this little slice of acorn heaven in mind from now on.
My place lacks white oak so I hope by planting these this will one day at least lead to a few more. I'm gonna be busy this weekend!!!!! This is essentially a large drive-thru bag full!!! it's funny what you find when you just slow down and look.
Good score j-bird! In the past I have picked up a bunch of some sort of hybrid red oak acorns from trees that were planted back in the 80's here at work. These trees tend to make every single year but this years acorns are stunted badly and look to be no good due to the drought...people at work look at me like I am nuts or something when I am out there at lunch picking up acorns...
j-bird
Well-Known Member
I had a city employee stop on the road in his truck while I was collecting acorns. He never got out or asked what I was doing, but I'm sure he thought I was trip'n on something...... I saw him there and really didn't pay him much attention. I knew my time was limited - being on my lunch break - so dignity and the like went right out the window! I will keep these trees in mind come next year and years to come. I'm sure the city folks more than likely thought I had lost my mind....but that's ok. I'm sure with today's ease of communication someone reported my activity and they had to come take a look. Not sure what is so wrong with seeing a man on his hands and knees in a public space, sweating like a pig, picking thru the grass????? The things I do for habitat.....
Kabic
Active Member
Just tell them you are looking for a pokemon
j-bird
Well-Known Member
That's funny right there! More like looking for my dignity!Just tell them you are looking for a pokemon
I float tested them last night and counted them in the process. I had more floaters than I had hoped for but it was still well worth the effort.
roughly 30% floated - I will still plant them, but won;t expect much from them. Most I picked up off the ground and when I do that history tells me you tend to have a high "floater" rate. I collected a hair over 1,000 acorns yesterday! I have roughly 700 "sinkers" to plant this weekend as some where already showing signs of pushing a radical.
It was also funny because my wife's face lit up when I brought them in the house....."Are those for Johnny and June?" "Uh, no....I mean #$%@ NO!" was my reply to her. Johnny and June are a male and female squirrel that we named that live near our house and the wife feeds in the winter time.......that's all I have to say about that.
j-bird
Well-Known Member
Let me just say I spent some time observing squirrels up close and they can certainly tell the difference between a "good" acorn and a "bad" one. I wasn't sure they could - I was quickly proven wrong......
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j-bird
Well-Known Member
Well the rain we had that caused the road to wash away also flooded my bottom....as such I have some plots that had a nice layer of silt on them and essentially snuffed out some of my clover and allowed weeds to get ahead. As such I spent part of the day re-seeding some of those areas. I mowed the plots last weekend to knock down what I could and today I broadcasted some BOB clover seed to help thicken up the clover I still have. You can see I had a fair amount of dirt showing.
Once I had those done I went on my way planting some of my acorns (got more to do tomorrow). I went across my south creek and took a peak at my paw-paw patch and found some fruit the coons had not gotten to....yet. I planted a few acorns while I was over there as well. As normal I had some company.....that is buddy. Buddy is part beagle part coon hound of some sort. He is a big pansy, but is the barkingest thing on the planet. He is deathly afraid of deer, but loves looking for them.....if that makes any sense. If I shoot a deer and struggle to find it - buddy will help. He has one tone for trailing the deer in his bark and then you know for certain when he finds it!!!! He has never been trained - just in his nature.
The creek is now back to "normal" level but with enough rain I have seen this creek rise over 6 feet from this level in the past......it floods my entire south bottom field, which it did to cause the silting issues of my clover plots and brought me a nice present of foxtail in my annual plots as well. I got plans for the foxtail though.....gonna slap it with some cleth tomorrow. From what I have seen the deer have picked thru the plot and eaten all the AWP and I know the cleth will kill any oats I still have in there, but I will top sew some winter wheat to fill that void.....after I get rid of the foxtail.
The brassica seems to be doing fine (starting to see some tuber), but I still need to give it a dose of N - maybe when I spread the wheat......Adding the wheat was always part of the plan to help get some cold weather variety in with the brassica, even though I know the deer won't pay it much mind because of the standing corn plot.....at least in this particular spot.
I planted/tossed roughly 3/4 of a gallon of acorns today. Skeeters wanted to carry me off but some of the acorns had radicals starting already so I had to get them into the ground. Not sure how many will make it, but I have to start somewhere. I have another full gallon left for the north side tomorrow......I'll check that annual plot and see how it's doing as well, hopefully I don't have the foxtail issue up there as well, but I'll have some cleth if I need it.
Once I had those done I went on my way planting some of my acorns (got more to do tomorrow). I went across my south creek and took a peak at my paw-paw patch and found some fruit the coons had not gotten to....yet. I planted a few acorns while I was over there as well. As normal I had some company.....that is buddy. Buddy is part beagle part coon hound of some sort. He is a big pansy, but is the barkingest thing on the planet. He is deathly afraid of deer, but loves looking for them.....if that makes any sense. If I shoot a deer and struggle to find it - buddy will help. He has one tone for trailing the deer in his bark and then you know for certain when he finds it!!!! He has never been trained - just in his nature.
The creek is now back to "normal" level but with enough rain I have seen this creek rise over 6 feet from this level in the past......it floods my entire south bottom field, which it did to cause the silting issues of my clover plots and brought me a nice present of foxtail in my annual plots as well. I got plans for the foxtail though.....gonna slap it with some cleth tomorrow. From what I have seen the deer have picked thru the plot and eaten all the AWP and I know the cleth will kill any oats I still have in there, but I will top sew some winter wheat to fill that void.....after I get rid of the foxtail.
The brassica seems to be doing fine (starting to see some tuber), but I still need to give it a dose of N - maybe when I spread the wheat......Adding the wheat was always part of the plan to help get some cold weather variety in with the brassica, even though I know the deer won't pay it much mind because of the standing corn plot.....at least in this particular spot.
I planted/tossed roughly 3/4 of a gallon of acorns today. Skeeters wanted to carry me off but some of the acorns had radicals starting already so I had to get them into the ground. Not sure how many will make it, but I have to start somewhere. I have another full gallon left for the north side tomorrow......I'll check that annual plot and see how it's doing as well, hopefully I don't have the foxtail issue up there as well, but I'll have some cleth if I need it.
Chestnut Valley Farms
Active Member
Place looks great J. Your fruit trees are really coming along nice! Looks like you will be seeing some results real soon
j-bird
Well-Known Member
Well I got out today and was able to check on the other plot and spread/plant the other acorns as well. I planted/spread a gallon of acorns and then spread the "floaters" in an area where if any of them grow I can see them.....just because I'm curious.
The north plot is doing OK. It's a mix of brassicas, AWP, oats and clovers. I have some grasses moving in as well, but I got a plan. I did see some sign of browse of the oats which was surprising as typically oats are ignored.
So because of my grass issues I mixed a small batch of cleth, crop oil and AMS and sprayed away. I hit the north plots shown here and the south bottom plots shown in yesterdays post. I know it will kill the oats, but I plan on overseeding with winter wheat anyway. I avoid rye now because it gets SO tall come spring time and I battle it with the rototiller. Winter wheat will survive the winter here and doesn't get near as tall as rye and cause the wrapping issues I have fought with rotary type equipment.
I have a perennial plot that needed some "renovation" that I hit with gly earlier and overseeded in the back left, but it seems to be coming along fine. There are my 3 oldest chestnut trees in the perennial plot, but no nuts yet. You can see the soybeans in the ag field will be harvested soon as well. I think the larger and darker green stuff is rape, but I have no experience with it and I know it was in the mix I planted so I assume that is what it is. I'm glad I planted a little sooner than I normally do in an effort to get more "tonnage". I still need to stop by the co-op and get me some urea. I think a good does of N will be awesome - I may do this when I spread my wheat. Hard to think that the annual portion of this plot was a logging deck just a few months ago with skidders and loaded semi-trucks coming and going.
The north plot is doing OK. It's a mix of brassicas, AWP, oats and clovers. I have some grasses moving in as well, but I got a plan. I did see some sign of browse of the oats which was surprising as typically oats are ignored.
So because of my grass issues I mixed a small batch of cleth, crop oil and AMS and sprayed away. I hit the north plots shown here and the south bottom plots shown in yesterdays post. I know it will kill the oats, but I plan on overseeding with winter wheat anyway. I avoid rye now because it gets SO tall come spring time and I battle it with the rototiller. Winter wheat will survive the winter here and doesn't get near as tall as rye and cause the wrapping issues I have fought with rotary type equipment.
I have a perennial plot that needed some "renovation" that I hit with gly earlier and overseeded in the back left, but it seems to be coming along fine. There are my 3 oldest chestnut trees in the perennial plot, but no nuts yet. You can see the soybeans in the ag field will be harvested soon as well. I think the larger and darker green stuff is rape, but I have no experience with it and I know it was in the mix I planted so I assume that is what it is. I'm glad I planted a little sooner than I normally do in an effort to get more "tonnage". I still need to stop by the co-op and get me some urea. I think a good does of N will be awesome - I may do this when I spread my wheat. Hard to think that the annual portion of this plot was a logging deck just a few months ago with skidders and loaded semi-trucks coming and going.
Fish
Well-Known Member
I spent first day of gun season last year at a swim meet. They had a red oak out front in the parking lot and the walkways were littered with acorns. Im sure people thought i was crazy out there in the cold rain picking them up.
I keep a one gallon ziplok in the fridge loaded with acorns to plant in the late winter. I stick them in then. But i guess with white oaks you gotta plant in the fall.
And i hear you on flooded plots. Sure brings in the weeds. Glad the dog is ok and the wife avoided the wash out.
I keep a one gallon ziplok in the fridge loaded with acorns to plant in the late winter. I stick them in then. But i guess with white oaks you gotta plant in the fall.
And i hear you on flooded plots. Sure brings in the weeds. Glad the dog is ok and the wife avoided the wash out.
I hope you get the results you want with the Clethodim... I must be the only guy on the planet that stuff does absolutely nothing for but perhaps I am spraying at the wrong time and in a drought and that is causing my issues. Sorry to hear about your flooding issues...some get lost of good rains and some of us get none. Makes a huge difference on what we can accomplish...
j-bird
Well-Known Member
I have had good luck with cleth - I get best results with some crop oil and AMS as well (the AMS fights my hard water and provides some N that the grasses seem to like as well). I tend to mow first and then give the grass a few weeks and then spray or spray when its small but actively growing. Spraying mature grass in the heat of summer tends to not be as effective. Rain is one of those things that you need what you need and you can have too much. Normally my flooding is in the spring before we plant so it isn't as bad - I just have the debris to clean up. The silt on plants however tends to put a hurting on them. And we saw what it did to my culvert!
lakngolf
Well-Known Member
I like your approach, j-bird. I have this or that in the plot, "but I have a plan"
Can't beat a man with a plan. Stuff looks good and the winter wheat addition will help. I like planting wheat. When I first starting food plot planting in the early 1990's my Dad suggested I try feed wheat, which he could get with a big load of other stuff for $4.00 per 50lb bag. I planted a lot of it.
Can't beat a man with a plan. Stuff looks good and the winter wheat addition will help. I like planting wheat. When I first starting food plot planting in the early 1990's my Dad suggested I try feed wheat, which he could get with a big load of other stuff for $4.00 per 50lb bag. I planted a lot of it.
j-bird
Well-Known Member
Spent some time out today and found some interesting things.....yes I should be hunting....I know! Today was our archery opener!! I was spreading more acorns.
Found a bedding area where there wasn't one before. This area is on a point/ridge on the south side of my property that overlooks my south bottom field. There were a few small rubs and obvious beds in the dirt.
Up north 2 winters ago I cleared out a strip of timber to release some oaks. Today I went by and something caught my eye on a burr oak tree.....it was acorn for the first time! The squirrels have found it, but I did find one on the ground. This tree had NEVER produced an acorn previously that I am aware of and it was pretty full.
I also tried my hand at my first at a water hole. I picked a spot where the deer liked to travel next to some thick cover where they like to bed. I dug a shallow hole with my front end loader and then used a shower curtain of all things to line the bottom. My soil lacks the clay to have a hole hold water for a long period of time. This hole is only about 4 feet square, but hopefully it will serve it's purpose.
Also pulled my trail cam cards and I have a picture of an OK buck. I am guessing he is 3 years old - he is a clean 8 pointer that is nice and wide, but lacks tine length. I would like to see he grow another year, but he does fall within our harvest guidelines so he may not make it. He is still running with a smaller 2 yr old 8 pointer based on the videos I was able to get. I would really prefer to get a swing at his daddy!!
Found a bedding area where there wasn't one before. This area is on a point/ridge on the south side of my property that overlooks my south bottom field. There were a few small rubs and obvious beds in the dirt.
Up north 2 winters ago I cleared out a strip of timber to release some oaks. Today I went by and something caught my eye on a burr oak tree.....it was acorn for the first time! The squirrels have found it, but I did find one on the ground. This tree had NEVER produced an acorn previously that I am aware of and it was pretty full.
I also tried my hand at my first at a water hole. I picked a spot where the deer liked to travel next to some thick cover where they like to bed. I dug a shallow hole with my front end loader and then used a shower curtain of all things to line the bottom. My soil lacks the clay to have a hole hold water for a long period of time. This hole is only about 4 feet square, but hopefully it will serve it's purpose.
Also pulled my trail cam cards and I have a picture of an OK buck. I am guessing he is 3 years old - he is a clean 8 pointer that is nice and wide, but lacks tine length. I would like to see he grow another year, but he does fall within our harvest guidelines so he may not make it. He is still running with a smaller 2 yr old 8 pointer based on the videos I was able to get. I would really prefer to get a swing at his daddy!!
