restoring fields

[IloveJesus]

Hi everyone, thanks all for responding to my earlier thread. I found someone to hay my fields this year, so that saves me from having to buy all the equipment. Now I have to restore my fields, because they were let go. My question is what alternative do I have to spraying round up? Are there natural ways of restoring the field? One guy suggested round up and no till drill!! ( I'm not a big fan of round up), another suggested that the only way with no round up is to turn over and rework the field, which I am ok with, but wont the weeds all come back? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[hosspuller]

Don't discount round-up or its generic. The only other way is tillage. But every time you disturb the soil weed seeds will sprout. Some seeds can lay in the soil for 50 years before sprouting.
I let a field go to weeds and then killed it with round-up. After everything died, I no-till drilled grass seed though the dead weeds. I'm glad the weeds were there since heavy rains would have washed my seed and soil away. The weeds acted as mulch to hold everything together while the grass sprouted.

 

[mikehaugen]

Controlled burn?

 

[Soggy Bottom Outdoors]

Here in old Ky, when I renovate, which may be the same as your restore, pasture/hay ground I bring the fertility and pH up to maximum and reseed. When I do this then "good" stuff can outcompete or outgrow the "bad" stuff. I do spot spray my pastures and hay ground with "Crossbow" or some type of 2,4D product for brush, thistles, briars, multiflora roses etc. About the only time I use Roundup or like product is around barnes or buildings and spots of Johnsongrass in fields.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

I have fescue to get get of forever. Any thoughts on chemicals to use?

 

[IloveJesus]

Thanks hosspuller, yea my neighbour tilled his field about two years ago without roundup and yellow mustard (I presume it was yellow mustard) came up everywhere. Now he has got soy planted and looks good, not sure if he ended up putting on round up or not!

 

[IloveJesus]

@mikehaugen, too big of an area, roughly about 20 acres

 

[IloveJesus]

Thanks Soggy Bottom, good advice. I'll look into it!!

 

[flusher]

Hi everyone, thanks all for responding to my earlier thread. I found someone to hay my fields this year, so that saves me from having to buy all the equipment. Now I have to restore my fields, because they were let go. My question is what alternative do I have to spraying round up? Are there natural ways of restoring the field? One guy suggested round up and no till drill!! ( I'm not a big fan of round up), another suggested that the only way with no round up is to turn over and rework the field, which I am ok with, but wont the weeds all come back? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

Depends on the type of weeds. Around here we have mostly fiddleneck and yellow star thistle. The star thistle is no problem for dry farming hay crops (oats, beardless wheat). We plant in Oct and bale in early May (our rainy season). The star thistle is a hot weather weed that grows in the summer (June-Sept). Fiddleneck germinates earlier in the year (Jan-Feb) and can contaminate the crop. Milestone herbicide will control fiddleneck and not bother the hay crop. If the fiddleneck contamination is minor, most folks just bale it along with the hay crop and use it for sheep and goat feed.

 

[keegs]

ILJ,

I think I have the same goal in mind and I'm also not too interested in using chemicals. I have about 50 acres of timothy with a variety of weeds. I haven't identified all of them but some in the majority are queen anne lace, golden rod, alder, burdock, thistle, a variety of wild berries.... I'd say I have about a 10% weed infestation right now. I haven't done much research on the best methods, but I'm going the mechanical route with mowing and hand removal. We have a lot of grassland birds, fowl, deer, moose etc that I want to consider also. The alder catkins are a moose favorite, the berries seem to attract song birds. Let us know if you find anything (reference) comprehensive on what you're trying to do.

http://www.uwex.edu/ces/crops/uwforage/nonchem.pdf
Mechanical weed control - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[slowzuki]

Keegs, you're lucky, if you can keep it mowed and likely require lime and fertilizer application you will have a nice field within a couple of years.

 

[keegs]

http://www.umaine.edu/umext/pasture/Lessons/PDF/Grazing Lesson 4.pdf

 

[keegs]

Keegs, you're lucky, if you can keep it mowed and likely require lime and fertilizer application you will have a nice field within a couple of years.

Morning slowzuki, I haven't done any actual pricing but from what I gathered so far, lime applications run approx. $90. per/acre. The University of Maine - Cooperative Extension Publications - Bulletin #2491, This Old Hayfield: A Fact Sheet on Hayfield Renovation

I should at least get a soil test. Do you know what the process is for taking samples? Do you just take one or do you sample several areas?

 

[cassandraame84]

If the burdock is the same burdock that I'm thinking of, the roots of that plant can be harvested and sold for a nice chunk of change.

 

[keegs]

If the burdock is the same burdock that I'm thinking of, the roots of that plant can be harvested and sold for a nice chunk of change.

Hi Cassandra.....Funny you should mention this...last week we gathered some burdock root, cleaned it, cut it into thin slices and fried it in butter. It definitely has potential...tasted like a cross between plantain and coconut. Best to gather the younger plants though as the roots get woody as the plant ages. :thumbsup:

 

[MattLynch]

All of the weeds you have are pretty easy to control without chemicals. If you mow down your fields before the weeds start to go to seed (the earliest ones don't start here until July) and then mow 1 or two more times before winter and by the next year your weeds will be almost gone as long as the soil conditions are good for grass.

Haying the field will help a lot too but you should put back at least the nutrients you removed.

 

[Ross71]

Morning slowzuki, I haven't done any actual pricing but from what I gathered so far, lime applications run approx. $90. per/acre. The University of Maine - Cooperative Extension Publications - Bulletin #2491, This Old Hayfield: A Fact Sheet on Hayfield Renovation

I should at least get a soil test. Do you know what the process is for taking samples? Do you just take one or do you sample several areas?

Yes. Get several soil samples, at least one per 4 or 5 acres. Pay someone to do it, get accurate results, and act accordingly. It will save you money overall. You'll bnow how much lime to apply, otherwise you are just guessing.

 

[cassandraame84]

Medicinal Qualities of Burdock

Goldenrod | University of Maryland Medical Center

Included a link for burdock and golden rod. Might as well get some use out of your weeds. My grandma used to be a grey lady and a midwife in the hills of Tennessee and she had notebooks full of what we now call weeds and how to use them. Enjoy!

 

[Egon]

In the area I grew up cultivation would have been used. The field would be cultivated in early spring and kept black till fall. Then a cover crop was planted. Next spring this would be tiled under and the the field was planted. Many times oats or barley were planted in with the grasses to help protect them when they wer small.

50 years ago but it worked then.

 

[keegs]

Yes. Get several soil samples, at least one per 4 or 5 acres. Pay someone to do it, get accurate results, and act accordingly. It will save you money overall. You'll bnow how much lime to apply, otherwise you are just guessing.

Thanks Ross.