Here's a good read to add to the thread. Even if you don't read the article...be sure to take the time to check out the chart showing the nutrient content of some common "weeds".

Old Field Management

Wow, i was really surprised to see that Japanese honeysuckle was on the low prefernce list. The deer love it on my 2 properties.

I've never seen them hammering it anywhere I've hunted. It's funny how different deer are compared to others. Deer have hammered turnips everywhere I've ever hunted, but have heard some say they don't eat them at their place.

That's why I don't put too much stock into lists. I know what deer eat on my places and that's all that matters to me.

I agree N2T. I take what I read about “preference” with a grain of salt on any list I see published. Honeysuckle is readily browsed here too blumsden. IMO, the best way to determine preference is with your own eyes. It just takes slowing down and really getting down on your hands and knees sometimes to inspect different plant species as you walk around your property. You don’t even have to know the name of them. Some of the things they put on preference lists like beautyberry, I’ve rarely ever seen one nipped around here. However, there are many plants that aren’t included on these lists that I see deer eat the hell out of. There’s some little reddish colored, low growing, five leafed briar on my property that you would be hard pressed to find one that hasn’t been browsed. I see them also eating things that would normally be scoffed at from an agricultural standpoint like thistle, marestail, blackberry, and cutleaf primrose. One thing that’s also not mentioned is that on some of these plants there is a certain time frame within its life cycle where they are the most desirable. Some plants may be highly preferred when young but then not touched as they mature.

Maybe honeysuckle isn't browsed where there is better browse available. I agree, i never see any browsing on beautyberry.

This is a good example. French mulberry is browsed on all the places that I hunt.

New growth is beginning to bounce back and emerge despite not getting anything from the other day’s rain event. It didn't even settle the dust here. Hopefully we’ll get something more significant over the next couple days. Much of what is emerging in the field right now is ragweed and pokeweed. I’m happy to see the field transitioning out of the heavily grass dominated system to more balanced mix of grasses, legumes, and broadleafs.

I’ve finally got my maters growing like I want them too. With just about anything you're growing whether it be tomato plants or food plots….this dark green color with lime green growing tips is what you are wanting to see. That’s when you’ve hit the sweet spot.



Dark green with lime green growing tips………



It’s mostly playing here but instead of pinching all of the suckers off of these plants, I’m going to try to train them to fill up this scaffolding system. Gonna have to prune a couple branches. Again the same dark green and lime color. That’s what you want to see……….



…..whether its tomato plants or food plots…………



…..people talk a lot about “What the deer prefer”. The deer prefer healthy, young, vibrantly growing plants and not ones that are struggling to live. That matters first and foremost before worrying about magic beans or the latest special seed blend that brings deer from afar.

http://i1070.photobucket.com/albums/u491/waldrjd/IMG_20160514_142041611_HDR_zpscnjcpzp7.jpg

This what one of the fields looked like this weekend after we limed. We drug them to spread the lime and hopefully some clover seed around and then some millet was spread to try and grow some thing for this summer. The little bit of green is some of the crimson clover that hasn't died and in the shady area there is quiet a bit of white clover.

I got all my plots in, but one. Its rained on me the last 2 evenings while i was bushhogging. Tuesday, i got drenched all the way to the undergarments. I'll take that, as long as we get moisture. I've got a couple of cowpea/soybean throw and mow plots and one with millet and sunflowers for dove. I've gotten a pretty good stand of ryegrass in one plot that i'm going to hit with clethodim. Other than that, i'm not spraying the other fields. Letting nature work for me.

Keep the pics coming. Hopefully we've got another good round of rain coming tomorrow. It should help jump start y'alls fields.

Happy with results using new sprayer for the 1st time. I missed one strip down the right side of plot, but I'll get it this weekend. This plot is 2 acres in size and I'm trying to eliminate some type of grass that grows in clumps and took over 25% of plot. Photo taken 14 days after spraying.

Great even kill on that. What kind of new sprayer did you get?

We got a good bit of rain last week with a couple heavy downpours. It would be awesome if precipitation would fall once a week in the form of a nice slow soaker instead. Unfortunately though, our weather around here tends to come in an all or nothing form. Long periods of dry weather and heavy downpours are far more the norm than rainfall that is consistently “just right” for soil and growing conditions. One of the principles of a no-till method is using an organic matter layer on the soil’s surface to buffer our soil from these extreme weather swings. Not only that but we are also protecting our soil from erosion of topsoil which results in heavy nutrient loss.


Here is a good book to add to the reading list……….It takes a page or two to get started but there is a lot of valuable information in there that relates to what you see me doing in this thread and what many of you are dealing with who are trying to get started. It was written in 1950 so much has changed since then but these principles of weeds and nature are still the same as they’ve been since the beginning of time. Weeds are soil builders.


Weeds: Guardians of the Soil

“It is possible that no soil-improving weeds in the United States excel the ragweeds, particularly the common annual rag, because the latter will establish itself in practically all types of soil. The giant ragweed, often called the horseweed, is also valuable but is more selective in its habitats. And not far behind the ragweeds are the sunflower, the milkweed, two or three thistles, the annual wild morning glory, stinging nettles, annual smartweeds, wild lettuce, and several wild legumes, including sweet clover, the latter the aristocrat of all weeds. All of these wild plants have root systems that forage deeply into the soil and can be employed as mother weeds, or as green manures in a rotation. All of them are soil builders.”

I've often wondered why you couldn't get ragweed seed. Probably wouldn't grow if you planted it on purpose.

Has anyone on here tried planting SH with the T&M method? Forgive me if you guys have already discussed this, I didn't go back and read all the pages. It's been several weeks since I've been on here...

You actually can buy ragweed seed. It's around $400 for a 50 lb bag. It's supposed to be the best chit out there for quail managers.

I haven't. I don't specifically recall anyone else doing it either.

Squash is coming along well. Should be pickin some pretty soon.

I've planted it using this method with pretty good results. As usual, moisture is key. Its awfully dry at my place right now.