Restoring pasture land

[CTW]

Here's a 30 acre section that my grandfather bailed back in the day. The grass is Coastal Bermuda (African Bluestar)and at one point, was monitored in small test plots by Texas A&M because the protein content was higher than corn. Not sure what that means, I would not finish out beef on corn anyway but that's just me. The 2 pictures show the difference of 15 years. Heighlighted are some mature single stem Huisache and a few Mesquite trees. I'm going to get this section back in shape so the brush must go. It just sucks up too much moisture and I plan on bailing it again. I've had some guys that run dozers come out and look at it but as I've seen in the past with other pastures, this tends to leave big hole and encourages massive regrowth if every piece isn't removed. Since this doesn't have to be done overnight, I'd like to tank spray the individual plants using the brush-busters method with Remedy and Diesel. I believe with this method you should be able to push the brush over in about 2 years without disturbing the ground or the nasty regrowth. The areas circled in red is the aftermath of wild hogs. Since then, we've installed field fence with a top and bottom strand of barbwire. Seems to be keeping them at bay for now.

 

[crackerjack222]

Remedy by itself with diesel is not as good as half Remedy, half Reclaim and diesel sprayed on the bottom 12" of the trunk, letting some soak into the ground. Of course, Reclaim is more costly and requires an applicator certificate. Another option is to grub it out with a 3-ph root plow. Grubbing it will be just as effective and faster. You will not get re-growth if you get the root plow blade down about 12" and lift out the bud zone. About 10 years ago I used the grub method on about 150 acres in Gonzales county with good results using my track loader with a special root plow I made for it.

 

[Johnp33]

Years ago my uncle had a D6 with a rototiller attachment that was used to reclaim land it would grind up 8 hardwoods and 4 inch softwoods, it put all the mulch into the ground which kept the ground moisture level a lot higher. In areas that were barren and unproductive they added sawdust about 6 inches and tilled that in. The crops they got off the land were amazing.
I do not know whether it would be cost effective to do this nowadays but it is anouther option.

 

[yellowdogsvc]

If you are asking for options, and for the amount of time you will wait for the trees to let go of the soil after spraying, why not mulch the individual trees then mow it a few times? There's only so much energy in the roots and a couple of cuttings should kill off the regrowth and get some beneficial organic matter back into the ground. Do you have any rocks?

 

[Bigfoot62]

JMHO, but I would rent or hire an excavator. Minimal soil disturbance and it should go pretty fast.
Then, pile with your tractor and burn when it's dry.
Or, like Yellowdog suggested, check into having it mulched.

As far as the hog wallows, just disc and drag until smooth.

 

[cowski]

since you are not in a hurry ,i would kill the brush with diesel remedy.in a couple years shred it or cut off the larger trees with a chainsaw.you need to cut the trees at ground level,where the hay equipment won't catch.i would then pile the trees and burn them.a small utility tractor and chain can handle it.good luck

 

[scollins]

Here's a 30 acre section that my grandfather bailed back in the day. The grass is Coastal Bermuda (African Bluestar)and at one point, was monitored in small test plots by Texas A&M because the protein content was higher than corn. Not sure what that means, I would not finish out beef on corn anyway but that's just me. The 2 pictures show the difference of 15 years. Heighlighted are some mature single stem Huisache and a few Mesquite trees. I'm going to get this section back in shape so the brush must go. It just sucks up too much moisture and I plan on bailing it again. I've had some guys that run dozers come out and look at it but as I've seen in the past with other pastures, this tends to leave big hole and encourages massive regrowth if every piece isn't removed. Since this doesn't have to be done overnight, I'd like to tank spray the individual plants using the brush-busters method with Remedy and Diesel. I believe with this method you should be able to push the brush over in about 2 years without disturbing the ground or the nasty regrowth. The areas circled in red is the aftermath of wild hogs. Since then, we've installed field fence with a top and bottom strand of barbwire. Seems to be keeping them at bay for now.View attachment 290066View attachment 290065

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Range & Pasture

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[CTW]

Thanks for the replies. I've had some success with the Remedy Diesel combo in the past and think I'll try that out in this section. Heard alot about Reclaim as well but I believe it's not worth the extra money. Grazon sounds even better than diesel and Remedy due to the low concentration it needs for a high kill ratio but don't know if it's worth it to get the applicators license.