Need Help with Neglected Pasture

[Crazydad]

So this pasture is about 16 acres of 125 and has the rolling tiers to keep water on it. It was cut for hay about 3 times a year and the hay given to the guy that cut it as way to keep it mowed. That guy and my father both passed about 4 years ago. It has only been cut about 6 times since then. I have some trees trying to take hold. I think they are Gum trees plus a few others. This is a second home so I am not there full time.

My plan was to mow every 6 weeks and hope they give up. I asked a local about selling hay as a way to write off some equipment and he said when it is wet nobody need it and when it is dry you do not have much to sell.

I have a good modern tractor now and a great rotary cutter. What else do I need to do. I do not want to have someone else cut it for now. What do I need to do, spray, till, reseed or plant pine trees for my kids to inherit.

Thanks

 

[LouNY]

Not knowing your location or desires can't provide much assistance.
Looking at your pictures I don't see any hay crop of any value unless it was mulch hay.
For hay it would need at a minimum some fertilizers and broadleaf herbicide.
Or fertilize round up and no-till in some seed not necessarily in that order.
In my mind there is always a market for high quality hay, high digestibility and high protein,
other wise why buy or feed it.

 

[Rebeldad1]

not knowing where you are is hard to reply. best bet is to call the county hay guy. they have lots of info on your questions.
My best answer would be to rent or lease your land out to someone who an use it.
Make a deal and dont charge them. have them convert the field to quality hay and maintain it for a few years. Is it fenced? Rent pasture as well.

Why let it go to waste??

 

[Steppenwolfe]

I am in exactly the same boat. A second property of 55 acres and 30 of it is pasture that hadn't been used or cut in several years. Had a few guys look at it for haying, but I really don't want someone else to have access to my property. So... I bush hogged it in Feb to knock it down and have been mowing every few weeks to knock down anything else trying to get a foot hold. 6 months later it is starting to look like something.

 

[dusty3030]

Where is it?
Yes the sweetgums are taking over.
What is your goal. You mention converting it to pine and reseeding.

Honestly, open pasture / hay ground will be the most labor intensive to maintain. On top of that the chemical / fertilizer / mowing etc is pretty much wasted if you aren't bailing it or running livestock on it. Hay ground / open pasture is pretty much worthless to the wildlife as well.

Converting it to timber. Depends on where you are. Pine plantation isn't a great yield and is a long term thing (20 to 30 years to get a return). It is good for wildlife though and is not labor intensive at all. You'd basically spray to kill out what you have and pay a crew to come in and plant your trees.

An idea I'll throw out is consider native grasses / plants. You can get some cost share from organizations like Quail Forever and Pheasants Forever and possibly from your state as well. Would be similar to converting it to pine plantation in that you'd wipe out what is there now and start over. You wouldn't necessarily do the whole thing the same either. You could strategically plant woody / bushy type cover "islands" and break the rest up into plots of native grasses with fire lanes / trails separating them. It turns your land into a wildlife haven. Small and large mammals, birds, bees and other pollinators, etc. Best part is your maintenance is low after you get it established. No fertilizer needed. You'd only mow your trails / fire lanes a few times a year. If you break it up into sections you manage it by burning the sections with prescribed fire on a rotation (one or two little sections a year).

MDWFP - Old Field Management

https://extension.tennessee.edu/publications/Documents/PB1855.pdf

 

[oosik]

I have a small one acre meadow that is continuous with my lawn. Experience, here, has shown that if you mow your meadow like a lawn - in a couple years it will fill in and become a lawn. That is my goal with this meadow. So - once a week I mow it.

A picture of my Chocolate Cocker Spaniel out in this meadow. He has found something "icky" and wants to be sure that I am watching as he rolls in it.

View attachment 662451

 

[Crazydad]

Property is in Arkansas and fenced good on two sides others need a lot of repair in heavy woods. I have an fenced 4-5 acre area around the house that gets mowed low with a riding mower and the hay there is robust. That is why I thought I could mow it a lot to stop the infestation. The rotary cutter only cuts down to about 6+ inches. I wanted to get the hay back to good shape then maybe invest in bailing equipment or find someone I trust to bail it only when I can be there.

So if get a sprayer then besides roundup and fertilizer I could use it with a wand for keeping burn piles in check.

I have a huge problem with trespassing hunters and dogs running all the deer off my property. So I do not want to lease it in case of any legal actions in the future.

 

[dusty3030]

Gotcha. Well if hay is the goal and you are in Arkansas then I'd shoot for bermuda.
Smoke the sweetgums and other brush with triclopyr. (PastureGard HL brand name but there are others). You can do that now.

Take a soil test to see what lime / fertilizer you may need so you can get it down this fall.

Figure out a plan for a pre-emerge herbicide to put down this fall as well. Wait until spring for your glyphosate. Bermuda is very tolerant of it.

Here is a PDF with some good herbicide info:
https://ag.tennessee.edu/herbicidestewardship-old/Documents/weed_control_pastures.pdf

 

[Crazydad]

Here are some pictures from the cabin/house. I mowed most of it with the tractor a few days ago. You can also see the 1/2 acre pond I am trying to tame and refurbish.

The reason I mentioned pines is because my dad had a guy come in with mules to cut and remove the old growth pines and preserve the natural beauty. He made enough wood and money to build his house and pond. So in 30 years my kids could make some extra money if I convert it to pines. I would think resell value would be good too with a pasture

I might move here at some point when my kids move out on there own, if I can convince my wife to leave to good local restaurants in Austin.

 

[dieselscout80]

Gotcha. Well if hay is the goal and you are in Arkansas then I'd shoot for bermuda.
Smoke the sweetgums and other brush with triclopyr. (PastureGard HL brand name but there are others). You can do that now.

Take a soil test to see what lime / fertilizer you may need so you can get it down this fall.

Figure out a plan for a pre-emerge herbicide to put down this fall as well. Wait until spring for your glyphosate. Bermuda is very tolerant of it.

Here is a PDF with some good herbicide info:
https://ag.tennessee.edu/herbicidestewardship-old/Documents/weed_control_pastures.pdf

That is good advice.

Mowing will NEVER make sweetgums give up triclopyr will kill them.