Texas Spring/Summer Thread

[pacerron]

Ron, the only black oil sunflowers I've ever seen will come up volunteer under the bird feeder. Since I mow the lawn, they never get a chance to get going. I did move some dirt once that had some seeds in it and had a nice big bloom until a 'coon decided he wanted it. Sorry, but I can't tell you if the bagged seeds are good to plant.

Ok, Dennis must be at work. Good thing somebody makes money on this forum. I think most of us just spend it

The experiment with the black sunflowers is on then. May not last long if we don't get some rain. It's like August up here. My wife soaks the garden plants every other evening to keep them alive, we hope, but compared to a rain that's like spitting in the wind..
The deer stop by the pond to drink at all hours of the day. They are back to their old trick of drinking all the water out of the bird bath at night, probably while they are looking at TV through the window.

 

[Western]

Ron, your right!! Working nights is getting harder on the "spine":laughing:

Two main types of Sunflower seeds and a ton of varieties. The first is Oilseed, the small Black ones usually found in birdseed since it has a very high oil content, (used to make SF oil ) The second is the White and Black striped and is the bigger seed, a basically non-oil seed used for baking breads and confectionery type stuff.

I have planted both types from "birdseed" as well as the small black ones (Maximilian I believe) from the seed store. I have had far better luck with the small Back oil seed. This year my little "trial plot " did poorly, got up to 3" and then got dry, but this is on a 2-3% slope so bottom land would be great. From what I have seen, the Striped varieties tend to grow taller with bigger heads.

Heres and interesting read from our state Wildlife Dept.

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_rp_w7000_1152.pdf

 

[jinman]

I have planted both types from "birdseed" as well as the small black ones (Maximilian I believe) from the seed store. I have had far better luck with the small Back oil seed.

Dennis, if you'd like more Maximilian sunflower seeds, I'll save you some. I have a gazillion that come up wild on my place. The only thing that stops them is a really dry year. Right now, the plants are about 3' to 4' tall. They'll go 7' tall or more before they bloom later in the year. They sure seem to love my clay soil.

 

[Western]

Jim, I like them, mostly for the dove. I never liked them when they got in my hay fields, but the 2,4-d usually cleaned them up. Your sure right about the weather for them, this year has been tougher than I thought, at least on my place. The high winds and 90+ temps have really been drying my place out.

Pete Delcus said for the year, we are over 3" for rainfall, but for the month of May we are 3" below. According to him, we are listed back in the "drought" conditions again and it is slowly moving towards East Texas...again.

 

[NativeSon]

Yeah we're really needing to get some rain out here in East Texas. Western you're right about that wind, it has dried everything out and doesn't look like it will let up. We're looking at possible rain Tue or Wed. It better come soon.

Charlie

 

[jinman]

If it rains, I'll have to pump out my pond again, but I don't care at all. I'd be pumpin' with a smile on my face.

 

[pacerron]

If it rains, I'll have to pump out my pond again, but I don't care at all. I'd be pumpin' with a smile on my face.

Have all the fish been moved to a temporary hotel?
Which one?
With all the ponds/tanks you are developing you should have
gotten a © copyright on "orthis" for the Rockin Anchor Ranch

 

[jinman]

Have all the fish been moved to a temporary hotel?
Which one?
With all the ponds/tanks you are developing you should have
gotten a ｩ copyright on "orthis" for the Rockin Anchor Ranch

Without turning this into my pond thread, we have gotten all the fish transferred.

. . . and remember. Orthis pond belongs to TxDon.:laughing:

 

[Western]

The way the weather pattern is they showed last night, it will take 3 disturbances in concert to give us a chance of rain, that is asking allot of ma nature. I hope she can hold it together, but for now in my area it is a 20% probability

Charlie, I went to work in SE Texas (Palestine) Monday, on the way down, as I was driving between Eurika and Cayuga (sp) saw something I have never seen. As I was driving behind another truck/trailer, I noticed an oncoming semi. Suddenly the semi lights started bouncing around, the truck swerved and kept going and passed me. Seconds later the truck I was following, swerved to the shoulder. As I approached the spot, there ways 7-8 dead and dieing pigs (wild I'm sure) some still, some crawling around, the road looked like some one had put a stick of explosives in a bucket of red paint. The pigs where maybe 50-75# . I am glad I didn't hit that "herd" in my 1-ton! BTW, I saw dead hogs the rest of the way to Palestine, so they must be every bit as thick in E. Texas as every one says.

 

[foreman Etexas]

The way the weather pattern is they showed last night, it will take 3 disturbances in concert to give us a chance of rain, that is asking allot of ma nature. I hope she can hold it together, but for now in my area it is a 20% probability

Charlie, I went to work in SE Texas (Palestine) Monday, on the way down, as I was driving between Eurika and Cayuga (sp) saw something I have never seen. As I was driving behind another truck/trailer, I noticed an oncoming semi. Suddenly the semi lights started bouncing around, the truck swerved and kept going and passed me. Seconds later the truck I was following, swerved to the shoulder. As I approached the spot, there ways 7-8 dead and dieing pigs (wild I'm sure) some still, some crawling around, the road looked like some one had put a stick of explosives in a bucket of red paint. The pigs where maybe 50-75# . I am glad I didn't hit that "herd" in my 1-ton! BTW, I saw dead hogs the rest of the way to Palestine, so they must be every bit as thick in E. Texas as every one says.

I live about 15miles from palestine and wild hogs are plentifull around here. Here is some of there destruction . I was able to get 2 behind my house last week,biggest we have shot is 450lbs on our place. It is a constant battle with them in the hay meadows and pastures, I am always dragging and fixing there mess...Total kill in one year between us and the neighbor was over a 100 pigs