# I Hate Green Briars!



## Baymule (May 26, 2016)

I am posting this in Random Ramblings, but if @Sumi wants to move it to the newly created Pasture forum (I am hoping for a forum where we can discuss our pastures)  under Herds General, it's ok with me! (pastures aren't just for cattle......) 

Our 8 acres is overrun with green briars. We have been cutting, digging and burning them. When we pull in the driveway, the pasture on the right has a ten foot strip of grass, the rest is woods, standing dead trees and green briars. The green briars form a wall of impenetrable thorny vines up to the tree tops. There are dead standing trees that are held up by the swarm of green briars. This is the pasture where I keep the sheep and it has their night pen and shelter in it. It is about an acre. When we put the sheep in there, we couldn't even see from one side to the other. There were trails around the outside, but since we weren't interested in cutting ourselves to ribbons on the briars, we just let them be.

This is a winter picture that lets you see just how thick the vines are! Notice the dead standing tree?







Same picture, last week. The gray area at the bottom is newly exposed dirt where the vines weren't so thick and the sheep ate them. If you notice, the vines are stripped at the bottom. Go Sheep!






The sheep have done a fantastic job of clearing out underbrush and green briars. As far up as they can reach, the sheep have eaten holes in the solid green briars. They don't eat the hard, thorny vines, but they strip the leaves and tender shoots. I even snack on the tender shoots, they taste like asparagus. For the first time, we can SEE! I have been walking on the sheep trails, bending down branches for the sheep while they swarm like eating machines. I showed our grand daughter how to do this and she has had a blast with the sheep.








We started pulling the green briar vines down. We hack them off at soil level with machetes, then pull the vines down out of the trees. We drag them to the ever growing 10' strip of "pasture" and the sheep happily munch on the green briars.






We pushed over some dead standing trees, chained on to them and dragged them out with Marigold. It also helped drag out some of the vines.






Last week, we cut, hacked, dragged, and loaded up FIVE pick up loads of green briar vines. We used a long pole thrust through the snarl to fold them over, then I climbed on the pile and stomped it. yes, green briar thorns did stab me through blue jeans. We folded and stomped until they were in a wad of ugly thorns, then stuck the pole through and dragged them up in the truck. We burned a huge pile of them.







Yesterday, we machete chopped more vines. The sheep enjoyed our efforts immensely. We pulled vines down from the tree tops in long strands. We worked at it for several hours until were dripping wet with sweat, hot, and tired. We quit for the day and went in to cool off. This morning we attacked vines again. The sheep helped. It goes like this; Chop vines off at the ground, pull. Find a vine that is not chopped, slash it with machete, pull with both hands, lean weight into it. Find another vine, sheep is standing on machete handle, eating vines. Push sheep out of way, pick up machete, slash vine. Drop machete, pull. Leaves rain down, sheep scramble to be the first to eat them. Pull. Pull hard, heeerrrreeee they come! Vines fall to ground, sheep run to them, get tangled while I am trying to pull them to the pile.

We made a truck load and dumped it at the burn pile. It was starting to sprinkle ahead of the rain predicted for today, so we went in.


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## Latestarter (May 26, 2016)

I dealt with walls of those as a kid. We used to tunnel inside and make "forts" where we could hide. Of course my father wanted to clear the land to make the back yard a "nature preserve". They are a real challenge to eliminate   Another plant we had issues with was wild grape vines. They are tough! Lookin' good and glad you have all those sheep helping you!


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## frustratedearthmother (May 26, 2016)

Baymule said:


> Chop vines off at the ground, pull. Find a vine that is not chopped, slash it with machete, pull with both hands, lean weight into it. Find another vine, sheep is standing on machete handle, eating vines. Push sheep out of way, pick up machete, slash vine. Drop machete, pull. Leaves rain down, sheep scramble to be the first to eat them. Pull. Pull hard, heeerrrreeee they come! Vines fall to ground, sheep run to them, get tangled while I am trying to pull them to the pile.



Lather, rinse, repeat!  

That is seriously some hard a$$ work....  I feel your pain!


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## Latestarter (May 26, 2016)

@Sumi I concur about a new forum entry for Pastures under the Herds General category. There have been several other pasture type threads on various other forums and really, pastures apply to virtually all herd type animals. Would be great to get them all in one place to ease searching for information.


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## norseofcourse (May 26, 2016)

Go sheep!  Isn't it great to see progress?

I'm doing the same thing with my pasture and sheep, they have helped clear out lots of multiflora rosebushes, grapevine, and other stuff.  I will almost (only almost) be sorry to see the rosebushes go, since the sheep love eating them so much.  I wouldn't mind if some of the grapevines stay, the sheep love grape leaves too, and at least they aren't thorny.

I'm also bending over small trees and and other stuff in the pasture so the sheep can eat them - they love it and they are fun to watch (I just tell them 'leave the fingers' if they get too enthusiastic LOL).  The bigger trees I cut down for them, and they learned to come running to the noise of the chainsaw or sawzall.


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## Baymule (May 26, 2016)

And people say goats are land clearing animals........ sheep are right up there amongst the goats in land clearing abilities!


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## Ferguson K (May 26, 2016)

Sheep are the fluffy land clearers.


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## Sumi (May 27, 2016)

I've emailed @Nifty with your request for a "Pasture" section and we'll get back to you all asap


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## Mini Horses (May 27, 2016)

The goats do tend to stand on hind legs and get higher, OR actually climb  some areas, LOL.   Otherwise both do a fantastic job clearing.

Baymule I love the pics!!!   It lets us see your hard work and progress.   Even makes any who have the similar situation see that it can be changed, not easy or fun but, good results.  

By the way, I love those black & white sheep!


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## Baymule (May 27, 2016)

Sumi said:


> I've emailed @Nifty with your request for a "Pasture" section and we'll get back to you all asap


Thank you!!!!!!!


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## babsbag (May 27, 2016)

On our land it is poison oak that rules the world. But my goats took care of that for me. They also limbed every tree to about 6' which is awesome. When the fire prevention people come to inspect they look at the goats, scratch a note on their papers and move on. Fortunately we were not blessed with wild blackberries as many in my area are, but the goats would keep those in control too. And how do I know that...they ate my domesticated vines one year right before berry season. 

I didn't know that sheep were so good at clearing brushing woody land, but I know you welcome their help. Go sheep!!!


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## Baymule (May 27, 2016)

We have poison oak too.  The sheep will eat it but they like the briars better.


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## Devonviolet (May 28, 2016)

Being an hour north of Bay, we have allthe same miserable trip hazards. . . bramble, blackberries & poison ivy (UGH!).

Last year we were happy to finally get the grass mowed. 

Clearing the 1/2 acre pasture behind the goats & chickens was a major undertaking, as we only had a couple gas powered weed whips. The brambles got out of hand very quickly. It seemed like they were intent on grabbing ankles & hanging on, once you got in the midst of the bramble.

This year the riding mower has allowed us to garner control over the pasture.








One time, when DH was working to clear the perimeter fence line, a strand of wild blackberry wrapped itself across his back, sinking its nasty thorns in. It took him a while to get loose. 

Last summer, we didnt have time or energy to stay on top of the brambles, blackberries & poison ivy, in the 10 foot green space between our property & the farmers field next to us. We have permission, from the owner to use it. This year we have been able to cut it with the riding mower - to keep the bramble & poison ivy under control.  The farmer never cuts the rye all the way, so we are able to cut what he leaves for the goats. They don't complain a bit. 

Here it is, freshly mowed. We are able to cut about 5 feet of the grass (Rye) to the left of the mowed area, for goat browse, since the farmer never cuts that far over.




As hard as we try, we have still not been able to get help putting in fencing, so the goats can get at the woods. We still have projects (like getting in a vegetable garden) close to the house. Our plan (per encouragement from Bay) is to start getting fence posts dug (one at a time) so eventually we can stretch fencing ourselves - without help.


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## Latestarter (May 28, 2016)

The 1/2 acre pasture that you do have cleared looks great.   You have an awesome farmer neighbor as well to leave a swath of rye for you   A lawn tractor is a God send when trying to keep acreage clear... It is just too much to do with a push mower unless you want to be mowing 5 days a week (at our age)... Even as a "kid" teenager, mowing ~1.5 acres of lawn at my folks place because of terrain and obstacles would take an entire day and often more.  Then in wet weather, it would grow so fast, it would need to be mowed again in 3-4 days.

Sorry, I wish I was closer... I'd come help you with the fence.


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## frustratedearthmother (May 28, 2016)

It does look great!   But, isn't fencing a pain in the patootey....necessary - but a pain!


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## Baymule (May 28, 2016)

Latestarter said:


> Sorry, I wish I was closer... I'd come help you with the fence.



Well, you COULD move to TEXAS!!!


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## Baymule (May 28, 2016)

@Devonviolet your place is looking so good!!! Your lawn tractor is a blessing!


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## Baymule (May 28, 2016)

Yesterday we were totally worthless. Exhausted, all we did was lay up in our recliners and drift in and out of sleep. It was 3:00 before I even went outside. I fed all the animals and went back inside. This morning we got rid of a burn pile in the back, then stopped for lunch and to cool off. This afternoon we chopped green briars again and made another load. We dumped it on the burn pile. Another victory.


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## Devonviolet (May 28, 2016)

Baymule said:


> Well, you COULD move to TEXAS!!!


  

. . . and a LOT closer than _Southeast_ East Texas, out in the middle of no where! 

And, I must say, that was awfully sweet of you to at least _offer_ to help with the fencing!


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## Devonviolet (May 28, 2016)

frustratedearthmother said:


> It does look great!   But, isn't fencing a pain in the patootey....necessary - but a pain!


Thanks earthmom! It is a lot of work. But oh so nice when you stop to take a look at the results. 

Fencing IS a pain, but a necessary evil!


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## Devonviolet (May 28, 2016)

Baymule said:


> @Devonviolet your place is looking so good!!! Your lawn tractor is a blessing!


Thanks, Bay! We are so happy that we are able to stay on top of the mowing with our new riding mower. Having a 54" mower deck sure helps!  

BTW, love your new avatar! Thats an awesome shot!


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## Baymule (May 29, 2016)

Devonviolet said:


> BTW, love your new avatar! Thats an awesome shot!



I know you know whose eye that is too!


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## Mike CHS (May 29, 2016)

It is nice to just sit back and think how all that hard work has paid off.


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## Baymule (May 29, 2016)

Mike CHS said:


> It is nice to just sit back and think how all that hard work has paid off.


Thank you Mike. LOL not a lot of sitting back around here though. We left today so we wouldn't go outside and work ourselves to death.  I am looking forward to having all the fence built, all the animal shelters built, all the infrastructure built and in place, so I can heave a sigh of relief and go into maintenance mode.


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## Mike CHS (May 30, 2016)

That sitting back comment was made very much tongue and cheek  since I have a fair idea of what you guys have going on.  You guys have been in hyper mode compared to us but you are getting it done.


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## Baymule (May 30, 2016)

We signed papers on this place September 2014. We had to get the electrical fixed as vandals had but all the copper wiring out from under the house. During the financing process, vandals came back, stole the furnace, AC unit and tore out the breaker box, to the tune of $10,000.  I hit the ground running. Then had to get flooring inside the front door pulled up and new plywood put down because it was water damaged. Then the inspector had to come back and look it over again. I ripped up flooring, kilzed the walls and ceilings, painted, put down unfinished tongue and groove knotty pine, sanded it, white washed it and put down 4 coats of poly urethane. We moved on February 14, 2015, our 19th anniversary.

With all the building, fencing, clean up and everything else we have done, my Mom died last year on Fathers Day, DH had a triple bypass in August 2015, and knee replacement in March 2016. He still needs a shoulder replacement. I call him a classic car that needs parts replaced. I know we will never be "finished" but I sure would like to wake up knowing that I didn't have fence to build or a building project to get cranked up on. I am looking for that day I can move into maintenance mode.


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## Devonviolet (May 30, 2016)

Baymule said:


> I know we will never be "finished" but I sure would like to wake up knowing that I didn't have fence to build or a building project to get cranked up on. I am looking for that day I can move into maintenance mode.



 I'mright there with you, my dear friend! We found our 5 acres in October of 2014 & moved the first week of January 2015. 

We havent had some of the dramatic issues, that you have had. But, are also trying to get fence & infrastructure built.

Maintence mode would be a welcome respite from the work load. 

I do agree with Mike, though . . . it is nice to take a break to sit & enjoy where we have come so far.    

Sometimes DH gets overwhelmed. He then works to the point of exhaustion. I have to remind him of all that we have accomplished.  He seems to do better, at coping with it all, if we do it in bite sized pieces. . . . "Today we mow or weed whip until one tank of gas runs out - then we HAVE to stop!"  Tomorrow is another day.


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## frustratedearthmother (May 30, 2016)

Devonviolet said:


> Sometimes DH gets overwhelmed. He then works to the point of exhaustion. I have to remind him of all that we have accomplished. He seems to do better, at coping with it all, if we do it in bite sized pieces. . . . "Today we mow or weed whip until one tank of gas runs out - then we HAVE to stop!" Tomorrow is another day.



That's a good philosophy!   With the heat onset I've gone back into my summer self-preservation mode. I can work hard outside for about an hour and then I come in to hydrate.  Sometimes it takes another hour for me to drink a big tall glass of water, lol.


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## Baymule (May 31, 2016)

An early start, work until about 11:00, then I'm wiped out.


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## Baymule (Jun 2, 2016)

@Devonviolet and her husband came by to visit with us yesterday! I baked a blueberry cobbler and we had that and tall glasses of cold iced sweet tea. We got to visit and had a great time with them. They both admired our clearing efforts, nothing makes  us feel good like praise from someone that saw the "before" and "during"! Can't wait to be able to show them the "after"! Today it is drizzly rain, followed by showers, followed by more drizzle. Phooey. I wanna go build a burn pile!


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## Devonviolet (Jun 2, 2016)

Yesterday, my DH and I stopped in, for a visit with Bay & her DH. They served up fresh, warm Blueberry Cobbler & (not too) Sweet Tea - just the way we like it.

After a nice long chat, we headed for our truck - to make the hour long drive home. But, first had to check out their progress on the briar cleanup.

WOW!  They have made some amazing progress!  You can actually walk under the trees & see all the way to the fenceline!

We got to go in with their younger Pyr, Trip, along with the Ewes & lambs. Trip has turned into a great guardian, and it was fun meeting the sheep, who were all very curious & a lot friendlier than they were when Bay first got them.

It was fun hearing them bleet, as the talked to us. Their voices are so deep, compared to our goats. It seems like the sheep voices are low and masculine & the goat voices are higher pitched & feminine. The irony of that is, that Bay's sheep are girls & our goats are boys. 

I wish i had my camera with me. Bay's DH had put a LOT of effort, with the chain saw, cutting lower branches off a massive Texas Cedar tree. When we toured the newly cleared woods, the branches were still laying on the ground, surrounding the tree (which I'm guessing is 3 feet in diameter)! Some of the branches were 4 inches in diameter and maybe 15 feet long. The sheep reminded me of our goats, getting right into the midst of the cedar foliage, for a snack.  
*****
  while I was typing this, I got a popup, that someone had posted to the thread. I was going to post, but thought to see what was posted.

Wouldn't you know Bay was writing about our visit, yesterday, at the same time I was.   _Great minds think alike - right??? _


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## Baymule (Jun 2, 2016)

So you can't go outside to play either, huh? Rain!


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## Devonviolet (Jun 2, 2016)

No, its raining here too.    the grass is getting long & we are needing to get it mowed before the weeds set blossoms & go to seed. 

We also have a burn pile that needs torching!


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## Baymule (Jun 2, 2016)

We were going to get on those cedar branches this morning, but it started raining. BJ was going to cut them up so we could load them in the truck and take to the burn pile, but it's raining. And it is windy, so no burning anyway.


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## Mike CHS (Jun 2, 2016)

We had our 1st rain in several weeks and I guess this is a spring of EXTREMES.

We found out after the rain that all that pretty soil that we brought in for the garden sticks to your shoes like glue when it's wet  At least I now have a few spots from the ton of rocks that I turned up when plowing for the new fruit trees.


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## Baymule (Jun 2, 2016)

I went out in the drizzle to get some pictures, since @Devonviolet bragged on my husbands tree trimming. I was snapping pics and all of a sudden the drizzle went to a downpour. I ran to the house, but was soaked when I got there. Here's pics.







The cedar my husband just trimmed is in the far left of this picture. The alley you see here was cleared last spring so we could get to the property line to put up the fence. It is such a cool place in the summer searing heat!





I walked under the canopy to get this picture. Isn't this a beautiful tree? The branches touched the ground, the sheep have eaten all the green off and it's time to get it cleaned up.





More branches.





This is a very big tree. We love it. We try to truly care for our trees and take trimming them into careful consideration. My husband used to have a landscaping business and he knows how to trim, not butcher, a tree to take out dead branches and shape it up.














We pulled briars out of this tree and the trees surrounding it. We love our trees and have cut very few of them. We are going through this pasture, a little less than an acre, pulling out the green briars, dragging out the dead trees and branches on the ground, cutting dead standing trees and trimming the trees. In this one pasture we have  Mayhaw, Hackberry, Hickory, Winged Elm, an Elm variety I haven't identified yet, native Persimmon, Cedars, Pine, Oak and at least one I haven't figured out what it is yet. Getting the briars out of there is letting sunlight get to the trees and opening up the canopy so sunlight can get to the ground. It is still a work in progress! And I still hate green briars!


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## Baymule (Jun 2, 2016)

Mike CHS said:


> We had our 1st rain in several weeks and I guess this is a spring of EXTREMES.
> 
> We found out after the rain that all that pretty soil that we brought in for the garden sticks to your shoes like glue when it's wet  At least I now have a few spots from the ton of rocks that I turned up when plowing for the new fruit trees.


I hate gooey dirt. The land we sold in Livingston, before we moved, was black clay. Hard a concrete when dry, and would split into ankle breaking cracks when really dry. When wet, it stuck to our boots and would suck them right off our feet. Forget about driving on it, once it took a bulldozer to get our truck out. You got the gooey dirt now, just gonna have to add a lot of compost to it. Over time, the gooey will go away. I wish I could send you some of Texas's rain! Some serious floods going on down here. We are high and dry, but southeast  and central Texas is swimming. Ya'll pray for Texas and all the flooded people.


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## frustratedearthmother (Jun 2, 2016)

Baymule said:


> Ya'll pray for Texas and all the flooded people.


 
Amen, Sistah!


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## Baymule (Jun 2, 2016)

As much as I hate green briars, they are tasty. I snap off the tips and eat them all the time. I have sautéed them in butter and garlic and they are delicious. If you decide to go green briar picking, it must have tendrils. Only the vines with tendrils are edible, or so I've been told.


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## Mike CHS (Jun 2, 2016)

Some strange things are tasty that you would never think of.  Milk thistle is one of those believe it or not.


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## Baymule (Jun 10, 2016)

We finally got back to that cedar tree and cleaned it all up. We made a burn pile and piled more briars on it. It wasn't windy this morning, so we burned it. Here's the tree. It looks so nice now!







Trip is eating his supper in the cooling shade of the trees. The cedar tree we just trimmed is on the left. Hard to believe that just over a year ago, you couldn't see between these trees-we had to hack our way through the brush and briars to get to the property line so we could get the fence put up.


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## frustratedearthmother (Jun 10, 2016)

Looks nice!!


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## Mike CHS (Jun 10, 2016)

I know how much work that is and it's looking great.


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## Ferguson K (Jun 11, 2016)

Has it been a year since you've moved already?


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## Baymule (Jun 11, 2016)

Ferguson K said:


> Has it been a year since you've moved already?


Yes, we moved in February, 2015. Just doesn't seem like it.


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## Baymule (Jun 11, 2016)

This was our burn pile yesterday... DH loves to play in the burn pile.  That's the cedar branches plus LOTS of green briars.






This morning I went out before DH got woke up good, I am a morning person, he'd rather skip mornings. LOL He called me and I told him bring water and the Kawasaki Mule. He did and we loaded up more briars in the back of it. Our neighbor, Robert, came over and we cut down a dead cedar and a dead standing tree, both of which had been covered by green briars.






Then my husband and Robert chained the cedar to the Mule and DH dragged it out. It ripped a lot of briars out with it. The other dead tree fell right over.






Robert asked if we wanted to drag it out of the pasture and we said no, let the sheep eat those briars off. My husband opened the gate to the night pen and I called the sheep. They fell on the briars like they were starving and picked it clean.






We unloaded the briars off the back of the Mule and started another burn pile. Then we loaded up tools and went to the other property line. Robert brought Marigold and we worked on preparation for the fence. We have to wear long sleeved shirts and they are soaked in sweat in no time. We quit today after 12:00. Then I picked 30 yellow squash from the garden. I called a neighbor and we took them 10 of them, we found wild plums growing in a fence row and picked them. While I put up squash, I cooked the plums and got almost a quart of juice. I'll make jelly tomorrow.


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## Devonviolet (Jun 12, 2016)

Baymule said:


> DH loves to play in the burn pile.


What is it about boys & fire?  My brother (when we were young) & son (when he was young) liked fire so much they almost caught the house on fire.   DH loves tending the fire too - although, he does have a healthy respect for fire! (As I'm sure your DH does).


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## norseofcourse (Jun 13, 2016)

It's looking great - good progress, and it's nice to have the sheep help, and get free food at the same time!


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## Baymule (Jun 13, 2016)

norseofcourse said:


> It's looking great - good progress, and it's nice to have the sheep help, and get free food at the same time!


One of these days, I am going to have some PASTURE there! Real grass!! LOL


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## canesisters (Jun 15, 2016)

It's REALLY coming along nicely.  One day - sooner than you might think - you're going to turn around and say, "Hey.. look at that... THAT's a PASTURE!".


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## Baymule (Jun 22, 2016)

This morning my husband and I worked in this pasture for a couple of hours. We trimmed the branches off the dead cedar and cut it up. We made a pile of branches and briars in the back of the Kawasaki Mule and made many walking trips to the burn pile, dragging branches and wads of briars. He wanted to chain onto the trunk and drag it out, but I made him quit. We were both soaking wet to our knees, hot and tired. In this heat, a couple of hours is about all we are good for. And the burn pile grows....


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## canesisters (Jun 22, 2016)

hahaha - I hear Garth singing "And the burn pile grows...."


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## Blue Sky (Jun 22, 2016)

I will never complain about cockle burrs again. You put in some very hard work.


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## Baymule (Jun 22, 2016)

canesisters said:


> hahaha - I hear Garth singing "And the burn pile grows...."



That is hilarious!!! I will be humming that....thanks for the ear worm!



Blue Sky said:


> I will never complain about cockle burrs again. You put in some very hard work.



One of these days, this place will have nice pastures! Anytime you get to griping about cockleburs again, just read this and count your blessings!


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## Mike CHS (Jun 22, 2016)

And the burn pile grows   I finally got my biggest one started last week and the coals were hot for a week.


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## Baymule (Jun 26, 2016)

This morning we hit it again for a couple of hours. We dragged out 3 logs, and two loads of briars and sticks. We cut and dragged out a LOT of green briar vines. We left them along the fence for our new ram to eat and enjoy. There's probably another 2 loads of briar vines after he cleans them up. My husband found a wasp nest and they swarmed and stung the top of his head three times. We ran to the house and put his head under the kitchen faucet and let the cold water run over his head. It helped take the sting out. We sat down to cool off and kept ice on his head for awhile. We went back out and finished up what were doing. Since the wasps were in an area that we are going to be working in, my husband sprayed them with wasp spray. I watched him VERY closely for any signs of allergic reaction, but he was fine. We took showers, collapsed in our recliners and took naps.


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## greybeard (Jun 26, 2016)

I've gotten rid of lots of green briar, but I gave up grubbing it out long ago--it only takes a single rhizome left in the ground to bring the whole patch right back. Spray once, with a mix of 50/50 mix diesel (or crop oil) and Remedy Ultra or diesel Chapparal mix. Spray foliage and stems. You can expect a 90% kill rate the first spraying. Return 90 days later and re-spray anything that isn't brown.

I have also had good luck with a relatively new herbicide called Sendero (Dow product) It was formulated specifically to kill mesquite but TAMU Agrilife Extension tests showed good result on greenbriar as well. (Sendero is less expensive than Chapparal but more expensive than Remedy Ultra)

Herbicide mixed with water will not affect greenbriar--it's foliage and stem are waxy and the diesel/crop oil is necessary  to penetrate the waxy outer covering. The same holds true for any invasive with a shiny waxy appearance to foliage and stem.


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## Baymule (Jun 26, 2016)

Any new sprouts, the sheep or horses will nip off and eat and keep it under control. I have some pretty severe chemical sensitivities and try my best to stay away from chemicals. I can't even walk down the soap aisle at the grocery store without a reaction. So, a-grubbin' I go! Our sheep LOVE green briars and eat everything they can reach. When we pull down the vines, we leave them for the sheep to eat all the leaves and tips off, then pick up the vines for the burn pile.

Property that we had in Livingston was cleared first by cattle, then horses and there wasn't much green briar left after that. I did use Remedy on those @$%%^$# Chinese Tallow trees though.......


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## Baymule (Oct 4, 2016)

Well, we had to take off during the worst of the heat this summer. But we still managed to get a few loads cut out and to the burn pile. We stepped it up the last few weeks and what a difference! We still have a couple of areas to trim up, and a dead tree on the ground to drag out, but we are almost ready to sow winter rye!!!!


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## Baymule (Oct 4, 2016)

FROM THIS
winter picture






AND THIS
spring picture (after sheep have ate up as far as they could)





TO THIS






AND THIS


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## Baymule (Oct 4, 2016)

I walked closer







and turned to the right






and turned toward the road in front of our place


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## NH homesteader (Oct 4, 2016)

Yay! That looks awesome!


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## Baymule (Oct 4, 2016)

Thanks, it will look even more awesome when we get grass growing in there!!


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## animalmom (Oct 4, 2016)

Great exhausting work!  Do you know what the little tree in the last picture is?  The one on the right hand side that is a lighter green with larger leaves????  Inquiring minds would like to know, please and thank you.


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## Baymule (Oct 4, 2016)

I believe that is a type of haw tree. Earlier this year, a tree was blooming, but I couldn't even get to it. Once we hacked our way to it, I saw it was a haw, was hoping for a Mayhaw, but it wasn't, it has purple drupes on it.


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## Ferguson K (Oct 4, 2016)

so much!


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## Mike CHS (Oct 5, 2016)

I really like what you have done with all of your free time. 

It does look great and I know it is another reason to keep before and afters.

Edited to add that I hope you know that I was kidding with all of the free time comment.


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## norseofcourse (Oct 5, 2016)

Big difference!  That's a lot of very hard work, but a great feeling when you look at how nice it is, and think, "We did that!"


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## Baymule (Oct 10, 2016)

@Mike CHS we had some more "free time" today!! 

Back to work in the former green briar pasture today. Today's project was a large cedar tree with dead branches that swept the ground. It has taken us until now to get to it. Our neighbor Robert, came over and operated the chain saw, DH and I loaded the pick up and the Kawasaki Mule. We dragged the branches off at the burn pile and called it a day a little after 1:00 this afternoon. 

Robert sawed the branches off.






I dragged the branches to the truck and mule. My husband piled them up with Trip supervising to make sure we did it right.






Robert trimmed up the branches. The ones with green at the ends went into the sheep night pen, some branches were big enough for future fence posts or at least corner braces and were set aside. We can WALK under this tree now!


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## Alexz7272 (Oct 10, 2016)

That is just amazing! Great job! I hope you get some nice relaxation now, you deserve it!


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## Baymule (Oct 10, 2016)

Alexz7272 said:


> That is just amazing! Great job! I hope you get some nice *relaxation* now, you deserve it!



Huh?


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## NH homesteader (Oct 10, 2016)

I don't think @Baymule knows what that word means!


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## Baymule (Oct 10, 2016)

NH homesteader said:


> I don't think @Baymule knows what that word means!


I do too!! I looked it up..... It does sound better than collapse!


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## NH homesteader (Oct 10, 2016)




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## Latestarter (Oct 10, 2016)

So really... should I bring my chain saw with me on Wednesday? I have no issue with working for my lunch  I can easily afford to lose a few pounds as well... like about a hundred or so    and I'd still be above what the govt says is "ideal weight" for me... They think I should be able to disappear from view if I stand sideways. The powers that be think I should weigh ~ 145 pounds for my height. I haven't weighed that since about 6th grade.


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## Baymule (Oct 11, 2016)

No, you don't have to work for your lunch. You do have to make the expected admiring noises as you get the "tour"


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## Bruce (Oct 12, 2016)

Baymule said:


> Thanks, it will look even more awesome when we get grass growing in there!!



Seems it is still much too shady in there to grow grass. No??

Hope you and Joe had a nice lunch after his closing today  Don't feed him too much, I hear he needs to lose a few pounds


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## Baymule (Oct 12, 2016)

Bruce said:


> Seems it is still much too shady in there to grow grass. No??
> 
> Hope you and Joe had a nice lunch after his closing today  Don't feed him too much, I hear he needs to lose a few pounds



Joe, Devonviolet and her husband came for lunch today, we gave Joe the tour, Devonviolet and her husband have been here before, but they got to see what we have done since they've been here last time. We sat on the porch and ate lunch, visited and had a wonderful time.


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## BreanneRN (Aug 15, 2018)

The irony will come when you finally have the perfect, beautiful pasture up and going and discover that the sheep and goats really like the weeds better...  Maybe you should leave some of those grapevines and rosebushes or transplant them around the fencelines...  They would look pretty there.  This year, I turned my sheep out on the beautiful grass pasture.  They ate up the low growing weeds, mostly storksbeak, then turned their attention to an Arizona Cypress tree that my horses would never touch.  I had to fence it off with cattle panels, which saved it, but the sheep were still eating the bark from the branches of it that were close enough to reach through the panels.  They would only eat the grass when there was nothing else...  Now, I plant their favorite weeds along my driveway and collect the seeds to plant in my annual pasture.  Wild prickly lettuces for spring, purslane, and prickly pig weed are their favorite summer weeds that I plant. Then some oats and sunflower seeds.   Afterall, why have a pasture if they don't want to eat it?  I am going to plant a plot of alfalfa and oat next.  They do really like that.  I let out a 1st time mama ewe in the yard to eat up some bermuda grass that was growing rampant around some shrubs... Went in to answer the phone and when I come outside to find she and the lambs have devoured the Butterfly bush and then went over and ate the sage and buckwheat from the native plant garden!  and nibbled up the rosemary!  All of which is supposed to be "deer resistant"!


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## Baymule (Aug 15, 2018)

@BreanneRN I let lambs quarter, giant ragweed, and wild sunflowers grow. The sheep eat them like candy. I have considered putting us some cow panel squares to protect the weeds so they can go to seed. The sheep like the Bermuda and crab grass that is growing, along with browse and weeds. Mine have never touched the rosemary.


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## Bruce (Aug 15, 2018)

Growing weeds on purpose! Will wonders never cease.


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## Mini Horses (Aug 16, 2018)

Mine grow because I haven't had time to work with it.  Now, the goats love most of them but, some are not GOOD for them and while they shouldn't eat -- sometimes do  sick goat.

I selectively cut out the noxious for them, the rest I leave.  At this time I am "fortunate" to have way more rain and grass and weeds than I need  ---   or that they can even eat!!   So much that in some cases I can't even cut it down.      There are  areas will be "banked" for winter graze.  

It's a thin line between excess and overgrown beyond well being.  You turn into unusable.  I can't go there.   But, I agree with planting variety in pastures, not just usual grass.   I find the feed lot deer grasses -- bagged for that -- work fantastically in my goat pastures!


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## greybeard (Aug 16, 2018)

Mini Horses said:


> Mine grow because I haven't had time to work with it.  Now, the goats love most of them but, some are not GOOD for them and while they shouldn't eat -- sometimes do  sick goat.
> 
> I selectively cut out the noxious for them, the rest I leave.  At this time I am "fortunate" to have way more rain and grass and weeds than I need  ---   or that they can even eat!!   So much that in some cases I can't even cut it down.      There are  areas will be "banked" for winter graze.
> 
> It's a thin line between excess and overgrown beyond well being.  You turn into unusable.  I can't go there.   But, I agree with planting variety in pastures, not just usual grass.   I find the feed lot deer grasses -- bagged for that -- work fantastically in my goat pastures!




Lots to think about in all that.
Consider this..what do you think will happen if something occurs to prevent you from managing your pastures at all for a growing season or 2?

We've all seen it dozens and dozens of times, driving thru the countryside. "Oh, that place used to have such nice productive pastures, now it's all run down and completely overgrown....what happened?"


'Time' & nature......coupled with unfortunate health related incidents are usually 'what happened'..along with poor long term planning. The seeds, weeds, vines, briers, and brush are down there..just waiting for something to 'happen'. 

If we wish to leave it better than we found it for the long term, plan accordingly; otherwise, the next resident will have to do exactly what we did all over again, but hopefully, they do it better and permanently.

There is a tendency to believe "Oh, that's not going to happen here..not to me", but history, far past and much more recent tells a different story.


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## BreanneRN (Aug 26, 2018)

Mini Horses said:


> Mine grow because I haven't had time to work with it.  Now, the goats love most of them but, some are not GOOD for them and while they shouldn't eat -- sometimes do  sick goat.
> 
> I selectively cut out the noxious for them, the rest I leave.  At this time I am "fortunate" to have way more rain and grass and weeds than I need  ---   or that they can even eat!!   So much that in some cases I can't even cut it down.      There are  areas will be "banked" for winter graze.
> 
> It's a thin line between excess and overgrown beyond well being.  You turn into unusable.  I can't go there.   But, I agree with planting variety in pastures, not just usual grass.   I find the feed lot deer grasses -- bagged for that -- work fantastically in my goat pastures!


There are many weeds that I do my best to eliminate, some even though they will eat them.  I selectively cull bad weeds out and help good ones to grow.  Storksbeak is very high in protein, purslane is very high in Omega 3's.  Most of the weeds I grow are very nutritious, easy to grow, annuals that the sheep love.  They seed prolificly if allowed, are way more drought tolerant than most grass species,  They are able to handle the very sandy soil I have here.  And the sheep love them!  It is their  pasture and I grow it for them, so whether it sounds silly or not, I am glad to grow weeds!  I also don't really care what the neighbors or passers by think...  I'm not in to the Smith/Jones thing!  I live in a semi-arrid region with only about a 4 month period of rain...   In the hot season, 5 to 6 months can go by with no rainfall at all, making it very hard to keep any summer grasses alive.  And nothing says "summer" to me like a sunflower growing in a patch of crownvetch!


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## Baymule (Aug 26, 2018)

@BreanneRN you have figured out what works for your climate and it is weeds. Tough, hardy, survivors and good feed for your sheep. I let lambs quarters and giant ragweed grow in a few places in the garden. Went out this morning and lopped them down and tossed to the sheep. Like throwing candy to kids! LOL


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## Donna R. Raybon (Aug 27, 2018)

Some breeds of sheep are good at eating browse and some are not.


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## MiniSilkys (Mar 8, 2019)

Isn't it crazy how you learn in class that goats will eat from top to bottom and sheep along the bottom and then you read about how all these people that have sheep seeing them try to reach things that are supposed to be left by them. Also that sheep are grazers and goats are browsers and then see that they both are! How about those experts? Half of our 45-/+ acres are covered with brambles (blackberry vines and rosebushes) and kudzoo. The kudzoo tries to spread further and further from the creek every year. One day we will get it cleared again. My herd grows little by little.


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## Baymule (Mar 9, 2019)

MiniSilkys said:


> Isn't it crazy how you learn in class that goats will eat from top to bottom and sheep along the bottom and then you read about how all these people that have sheep seeing them try to reach things that are supposed to be left by them. Also that sheep are grazers and goats are browsers and then see that they both are! How about those experts? Half of our 45-/+ acres are covered with brambles (blackberry vines and rosebushes) and kudzoo. The kudzoo tries to spread further and further from the creek every year. One day we will get it cleared again. My herd grows little by little.


A friend of mine inherited his parents house and property. It had grown up, was brushy, lots of vines, etc. He bought goats. He put up cow panels for temporary "pastures" and let the goats eat the "pasture" down to the ground, then moved the cowpanels over. He bushhogged what was left. In a short time he had a cleared off place. As he moved the cowpanels, he planted a mix of grass seeds on what the goats had cleared.

There is no kudzu here, but as I understand it, goats and sheep love the stuff.


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## greybeard (Mar 9, 2019)

Kudzu...the plant that ate the South.


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## MiniSilkys (Mar 9, 2019)

We have lots of coyote too.


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## Baymule (Mar 24, 2019)

*I HATE GREENBRIERS 2019!!!!*

There is a strip on the north side of the house that goes from the backyard to the Sheep barn. It is on a property line. The sheep have had the run of it and have done a LOT to clear it out. Two weeks ago we had some dead trees cut down behind the Sheep barn and cut in lengths. We put it all on a burn pile. 

Today my husband and I attacked the greenbrier jungle. There were several dead blackjack oak trees laying on the ground, covered in briars. It has been an eyesore. 

This morning we started here. 




 

Two hours later we did this. 



 

And this. 



 

We made two more loads in the Mule. Hours later we could see progress. We were tired, dirty and time to take showers and quit. 

I don’t know if you can see a difference, but that’s 3 loads of briars and dead rotten pieces of oak trees gone to the burn pile. 



 

The war on Greenbriers continues.....


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## B&B Happy goats (Mar 24, 2019)

Does the war on greenbriers ever end ???


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## Baymule (Mar 24, 2019)

Burn pile.


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## Bruce (Mar 24, 2019)

Oh boy, weenie and marshmallow roast at Bay's!


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## frustratedearthmother (Mar 24, 2019)

Progress is progress!


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## Baymule (Mar 24, 2019)

There's a bunch of trees in there that we want cut. We're swapping 4 Australorp laying hens to a neighbor for cutting them down, then into fireplace lengths for our DD and family.


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## CntryBoy777 (Mar 24, 2019)

Well, we have moved our "battles" a few miles, but there certainly is a bunch of that stuff all over this 1.2acres.....
Sure looks Good!!.....and I know ya will feel much better when ya light a match.....


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## greybeard (Apr 1, 2019)

B&B Happy goats said:


> Does the war on greenbriers ever end ???


It mostly did for me. Only lasted about 2 years, but this place was covered with them at one time.  I have a few left on the 60 acres of cleared-from-forest pasture, but their days are numbered as well. My sister, about 5 miles up the road from me has been battling it for 20 years on 5-6 acres, trying to grub and dig up each and every tuber. I've seen her with some nearly as big as a watermelon and so heavy she had to carry them in a wheelbarrow.
She will never ever ever get rid of them........they will outlast/outlive her, and probably the life of whoever gets the property after she is in the ground herself if they follow the way she was doing it.. She will get rid of the _visible_ part of them, but once she gets to where she can't keep it cut down or grazed down by her husband's hair sheep, it will be right back. The tubers are energy storage vessels of extreme efficiency and duration, and they continue to grow even if the above ground part of the plant is gone. _Similax_ also reproduces by seed and the viability studies of seeds within the seedbank of old growth _similax rotundifolia_ show to be at least a decade long. Plants coming up from seed 'can' be controlled by cutting and grazing, as those individual plants have not yet developed an extensive tuber in which to store energy, but the tubers from older plants ensure the plant will come right back as soon as something happens to allow the above ground growth.

What is above the ground is the least important part. What is below the ground can sit there patiently for years and years...waiting for 'something' to happen.......that 'something is almost always
1. The landowner gets too old to keep it cut down.....or
2. Livestock (for any number of reasons) is removed for a period of time. 1/2 of one growing season is what is usually required in the southern USA. (It's an evergreen and grows year round so that means within 6 months of stock removal or rotation, all those cut down vines will reappear.

It's kinda like our lawns. We can mow/cut them every week from now until eternity and they just keep growing back...greenbrier has a LOT more tenacity than our lawns.

Most states have laws requiring that all known flaws in property be divulged when selling. IMO, the existence of invasives such as underground greenbrier tubers should be included in that disclosure form.


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## Baymule (Apr 4, 2019)

This morning we lit up the burn pile. I sharpened up the machetes and we hacked on green briars. I put the Sheep on the pipeline to graze, Ringo grumbled at me because he didn’t get to go. 

We did two loads on the Mule  and quit. It’s looking better.


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## HomeOnTheRange (Apr 4, 2019)

Sweet!  Nice job


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## CntryBoy777 (Apr 4, 2019)

Have ya ever had so much Fun reducing those to Ashes??.......looks like BJ was looking at his Beautiful truck again.....


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## Bruce (Apr 5, 2019)

I had @CntryBoy777 show me greenbriar. I can see why you are not enamored of them, spikey viney things that they are.


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## Baymule (Apr 5, 2019)

Back to hacking green briars today and picking up pieces of dead trees. We made 4 loads to the burn pile. We are tired. 

We cut a couple of young elm trees, I laid them aside so the sheep could enjoy them. Carson decided to snack on them too. 




 

I rolled up big balls of briars, thought about making a green briar snowman, but decided to burn the hateful things. 

In the background behind me, you can see the portable building. On the other side is the extended roof that is the sheep barn. 



 


We still have more to do, but have made major inroads. BJ picked out the trees he wants to keep, the rest will come down. 



 

We’ll finish cleaning up this patch and get the trees cut. If I stand in the same spot and turn around, I see  more mess. This is next to the end of the house, would like to get this cleaned up as well. Eventually I want to build a gazebo, BBQ screened hut and a playhouse for the grands. You can see the end of the house. 



 

There are some nice trees in here that we want to keep. We want to plant redbuds and dogwoods too. Look at this huge grape vine. 



 

Standing at the corner of the house, looking at that patch, notice the deep sand. @Bruce we have to put the Kawasaki mule in 4WD to get through it. 



 

The blue tarp is over the Sheep hay bale. If I ever get a dog house built onto the sheep barn, we’ll take away this fence that connects the back yard to the sheep barn. Paris will never give up her back yard unless she has her own place in the barn. She doesn’t share very well. It works for now and maybe by next summer we can start on sprucing this patch up.


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## CntryBoy777 (Apr 5, 2019)

Y'all have come a loong way, in the short time ya have had it....and ya ain't sitting on your keester, just waiting for it to disappear....and the many stories and laughs it "bloomed" into.....


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## Bruce (Apr 5, 2019)

Maybe you should dig a big pond, then you can charge people to come to the beach!


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## CntryBoy777 (Apr 5, 2019)

When the tropical moisture comes around.....the water can add up quickly....so, sand is much better for it to filter down much quicker than the clay......could fill a small pond rather quickly, but "holding" the water becomes difficult....and if ya have the water for long....the skeeters will "tote ya off"....


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## Baymule (Apr 5, 2019)

@CntryBoy777 you will have your own green briar wars. Sharpen up your machete and build a burn pile. For you, work in the winter. For us, it is spring and fall. We work in the summer from daylight to maybe 11 AM to 12 or 1 PM. Then we are wasted the rest of the day. We worked today until 2 PM and we're tired and sore, but it sure is a good feeling to see another clearing.


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## CntryBoy777 (Apr 5, 2019)

Yeh @Baymule we sure do have our own....
 .....it runs up the trees and is as long as the trees are tall.....


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## Bruce (Apr 6, 2019)

And they are TALL and BIG, some of those Florida trees at @CntryBoy777 and @B&B Happy goats must be 4' across.


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## B&B Happy goats (Apr 6, 2019)

We have poison (ivy) vines that are 1" in diameter  growing up the trees.....once i cut a section out of the vine and remove it from the tree, then i start on the root pulling. Have been doing this for two years....pull, get the rash...heal up...go pull again...
Problem is, I can't  find it in the winter to pull it....tween the poison stuff and the green briars, it's  enough to drive ya crazy


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## Baymule (Apr 6, 2019)

@B&B Happy goats next time you pull poison ivy, wash off in a weak solution of Clorox water and you won’t break out in the rash.


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## B&B Happy goats (Apr 6, 2019)

Baymule said:


> @B&B Happy goats next time you pull poison ivy, wash off in a weak solution of Clorox water and you won’t break out in the rash.



I will try that for sure,....... i am so allergic  to it and seem to be fighting poison ivy  all summer.       Thank you BAY


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## Baymule (Apr 27, 2019)

A few weeks ago, Russell came over and cut trees. We left the tops for the Sheep to enjoy. Today we started cleaning up the limbs and tops. The battery died on the tractor so we went to  Mineola. O’Reily’s didn’t have one that size, neither did John Deere, so went to Alba to  a Kubota dealer and got one. Since we were in Alba, we went to the cafe for lunch. Then home, installed the battery and Marigold started right up. We got a lot done, still have more limbs and tops to drag out. It sure looks different from when we started.


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## B&B Happy goats (Apr 27, 2019)

Lookin really good,..... hard work pays off when you get to see the results


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## Bruce (Apr 27, 2019)

Was Marigold's battery old?


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## Baymule (Apr 27, 2019)

Bruce said:


> Was Marigold's battery old?


Yup. We bought her in October of 2014, she was 2 years old with 198 hours. Still original battery.


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## Bruce (Apr 28, 2019)

I'm sure she appreciated her new battery and will give many more years of service.


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## Baymule (Apr 29, 2019)

We finished up dragging branches and tops to the burn pile. We dragged 4 more bundles, done. There are 2 more trees we want down, then we’ll clean up that mess.


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## B&B Happy goats (Apr 29, 2019)

Looks great !  You guys work well together


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## Rammy (Apr 29, 2019)

Of course they work well together. Bay tells DH what to do, and he does it. Isnt that the way its suppose to be?


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## Baymule (Apr 29, 2019)

He does build a good burn pile, and I didn't tell him how to do it. He's not exactly a farmer type, he does his best to help. LOL


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## Bruce (Apr 29, 2019)

Looks like a set of pallet forks would work well for that task.


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## Baymule (Apr 29, 2019)

Bruce said:


> Looks like a set of pallet forks would work well for that task.



We have some. This was branches and tops with limbs sticking out in all directions, would have been hard to stack them on pallet forks. We wrapped a chain around the big ends and dragged them to the burn pile.


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## greybeard (May 1, 2019)

landscape rake works wonders for that. It'll grab limbs that stick out same as it will trunks or bare limbs. I've cleaned up acres and acres of tops and limbs that were left after the log skidder got done here, with a 35hp 2wd Ford tractor and 5' wide landscape rake. One of the best $250 investments I ever made.  Most of the time, I worked for hours without ever having to get off the tractor and when I did get off, it was just to rotate the rake so the tines were facing backwards.
To heck with all that climbing on and off, tying on, dragging then untying.


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## HomeOnTheRange (May 6, 2019)

I heard from a little mouse that today is a very special day.  It is a day that should be celebrated with reverence and dignity! 
@Baymule HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!


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## Mike CHS (May 6, 2019)

greybeard said:


> landscape rake works wonders for that.



I'll second that. It does wonders on a gravel driveway also.


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## Senile_Texas_Aggie (May 31, 2019)

Miss @Baymule,

I am posting this video, just so you will feel cooler: 




Senile Texas Aggie


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## Baymule (May 31, 2019)

I would be ok getting hit with a snowball right about now. LOL 

Today we lit the burn pile. BJ fell off a ladder, about 4 feet. He’s sore all over. So our neighbor Robert came over, there was still a lot of tops to drag out of our “new” pasture and a lot of small logs that will make firewood. Since he was being so helpful, I gave him the tractor and I did the grunt work. Back and forth to the burn pile. Drag up tops, briars, LOTS of dead limbs from the corner where I want to build a BBQ hut and grand daughters playhouse. Started at 6:30 AM, stopped at 1:00 PM. I have a step counter on my phone, I walked 6 miles! I came in, took a shower, we went to Walmart and TSC.


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## Mike CHS (May 31, 2019)

When I'm doing a lot of tree work, I use the heck out of my landscape rake.  It doesn't do much good in confined spaces though.


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## Baymule (May 31, 2019)

I’m done for the day with 7.2 miles walked today. Doing the laundry now.


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## Senile_Texas_Aggie (Jun 1, 2019)

Miss @Baymule,

If there is any way you and your DH can afford to do so, you should consider getting a grapple for Marigold.  Once you see just how useful it is you will wonder how you did without it.  It will flat save your back.  I love my grapple.  It makes easy work of picking up brush, limbs, small trees, and even big trees (if you cut them to reasonable length).

Senile Texas Aggie


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## Baymule (Jun 1, 2019)

A friend has a grapple that we have used before, it is handy. It may sound crazy, but I like the hard work. It keeps me in shape, burns calories and I sleep good at night. LOL


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## Baymule (Jun 16, 2019)

I ordered giant Bermuda grass seed and sowed some on our newly cleared patch. I also sowed seed in two other pastures. I've been watering it every day and it is raining now. Sure needed the rain. The grass is sprouting now, tiny green shoots.


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## frustratedearthmother (Jun 16, 2019)

I don't know why - but seems like seeds sprout better with rain water than hose water.. ..and we have a well so it's not like our water is treated with anything.


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## Baymule (Jun 16, 2019)

frustratedearthmother said:


> I don't know why - but seems like seeds sprout better with rain water than hose water.. ..and we have a well so it's not like our water is treated with anything.


Because rain brings down the nitrogen that is in the atmosphere. After the grass is up a few inches, I'll fertilize it, but right now, this rain-nitrogen boost is VERY much appreciated.


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## Finnie (Jun 8, 2021)

Hi all, I’m resurrecting this classic thread for @Wyndsong 

 Hi Wyndsong!


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## Senile_Texas_Aggie (Jun 8, 2021)

Hi, Miss @Wyndsong!

This thread is definitely worth reading for the humor Miss @Baymule has spread throughout!  There are some others on here that have a great sense of humor, such as Mr. @Bruce. The sense of humor I share is more of The Three Stooges type:


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## Bruce (Jun 8, 2021)

Mr. Senile Texas Aggie does not do himself justice!


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## Wyndsong (Jun 9, 2021)

Senile_Texas_Aggie said:


> Hi, Miss @Wyndsong!
> 
> This thread is definitely worth reading for the humor Miss @Baymule has spread throughout!  There are some others on here that have a great sense of humor, such as Mr. @Bruce. The sense of humor I share is more of The Three Stooges type: View attachment 85781


Classic humor! Loved them as a kid and the keystone cops.  No that doesn't really age me, I was watching them on reruns. LOL


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## Wyndsong (Jun 9, 2021)

I've learned so much reading through this thread!  AND found some others to stalk!  LOL  I've got a lot to learn living in the city my whole life and now I'm on 6.5 acres.  We don't have briars, that I know of, but we do have virginia creepers.  They are all over our property.  We also have wild black berries and some American Beauty berries too.  There's a small family of deer that live on or near our property that we see regularly that love to eat them.

We have to fix our permimeter fencing before we get any sheep.  As well as get some out buildings and figure out how to split up our acreage for the sheep and our veggie garden we want to grow.  Plus we have to fix the dam for our pond.. which is currently mostly a mud swamp overgrown by everything.

Thanks for tagging me @Finnie !!


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## Finnie (Jun 9, 2021)

Wyndsong said:


> Thanks for tagging me @Finnie !!


You’re welcome. Now I have a new person to stalk! On all the sites!


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## Bruce (Jun 9, 2021)

Wyndsong said:


> Plus we have to fix the dam for our pond.. which is currently mostly a mud swamp overgrown by everything.


Sounds like something you might want to dredge out before letting it refill.


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## Wyndsong (Jun 9, 2021)

Bruce said:


> Sounds like something you might want to dredge out before letting it refill.


That's exactly one of the reasons we bought the tractor for and now realize that it probably can't handle the slope.  LOL  I kind wonder if goats/sheep could clear it out easier than we could by hand!


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## Baymule (Jun 9, 2021)

@Wyndsong here is my fence thread. Learn from my mistakes!






						Non-Climb 2"x4" Horse Wire Fence
					

There have been a lot of fence discussions here on BYH. As many of you know, my husband and I bought a home on 8 acres and moved 160 miles to be close to our DD, DSIL and our precious 2 grand daughters. There was nothing here but the house. Nothing. We had a house in town and acreage outside of...



					www.backyardherds.com
				




The 4” square woven sheep and goat wire is cheaper than the 2”X4” non climb wire and comes on a 300’ roll instead of a 200’ roll. Haha, I can give you lots of study material. @Finnie got you started!


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## Bruce (Jun 9, 2021)

4" Sheep and goat should keep out foxes, regular field fence with 6" openings will not. Yes I paid the price of not knowing that. Do NOT buy welded wire, it is weak.

What tractor and how much slope? I bought my Mahindra 1533 TLB to dredge out my pond behind the barn when it went dry. Used both the bucket and backhoe. The "base" was all muck, no traction on it but we are on ledge and I was going to stop any time I couldn't put the "pond end" bucket down and lift up that end of the tractor. As long as I dug out the muck down to the ledge I was good. Still I had to self rescue a few times and a couple of those I wasn't sure I wouldn't need to call Al down the road and have him pull me out. The slope wasn't too steep though. This picture might give you a decent comparison to yours. I was able to go in from 2 directions and eventually drive through on the left edge. Lots faster to come in from the south and drive the collected muck out the north east end to dump than back up and carry it around. This picture is when the pond is filling back up.




This picture is from when I had started to clean it out. You can see the cracked dry clay/muck I was digging out. When the pond is full it covers the bright green grass on the far side. I would have dug out more in that area but there was an issue with DW, DD1 and tadpoles. You can read about it in my journal. There is no water source other than snow melt and rain so it drops every year. On really dry years it went dry. Not great for the fish and frogs.


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## Senile_Texas_Aggie (Jun 9, 2021)

Miss @Wyndsong,

As Mr. @Bruce mentioned, he has a journal and it is well worth reading.  It is located in Forums => Social (grouping) => Members "BackYardHerds" Journals => Bruce's Journal.  Among his many other adventures, he describes in detail the fun he had in excavating his pond.  It might give some ideas what to do or not do.

I hope you will consider starting a journal, if you haven't already.  If you haven't done so already, could you mention in what part of the country you are located?

As for having lived in the city your whole life, that is what my Beautiful Gal and I did our whole until we retired and moved here to western Arkansas 3 years ago.  So read other folks' threads for how to do things right, and read my thread for how to do things wrong!

Senile Texas Aggie


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## Bruce (Jun 9, 2021)

Yep, STA and I are FAMOUS for earning the Zinger™ award! Do what we THINK we are going to do, not what we ACTUALLY do


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## Wyndsong (Jun 10, 2021)

Bruce said:


> What tractor and how much slope?


We've got a little Kubota.  I think it's the smallest sized one.  This is our pond... not sure if you can see the slope in this picture, and this was taken around the first of the year, the water is lower than what it shows now.  The slope i'd say is probably 45 degrees maybe more?  It's definitely not going to be easy getting down there on foot either.

The damn was broke when we bought the place, and they took the price to fix it off of the price of the house.  We talked to a few landscaping companies and it'd be WAY too much to hire someone.  But of course we have to figure out how to fix it ourselves.  LOL  I'm sure we'll have fun doing it after it starts getting cool again and the bugs go back to you know where!


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## Bruce (Jun 10, 2021)

So you've got a BX subcompact. I think they are 4WD so that is good. Does it have a backhoe? If it does it makes self rescuing easier.

I agree, I wouldn't think once let alone twice about taking my tractor down that slope. You would have to dig a "road" down to it from farther out. If you don't have solid ground in the pond, I think it would be best to have a big winch set up to haul the tractor back when you lose traction. Drain the whole thing before you start.

It took me a lot of hours to get my pond cleaned out. The parts guy at the tractor dealer said he'd never seen someone come in for the 50 hour maintenance parts (filters) so soon.


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## Cotton*wood (Jun 22, 2021)

FYI


Bruce said:


> 4" Sheep and goat should keep out foxes, regular field fence with 6" openings will not. Yes I paid the price of not knowing that. Do NOT buy welded wire, it is weak.
> 
> What tractor and how much slope? I bought my Mahindra 1533 TLB to dredge out my pond behind the barn when it went dry. Used both the bucket and backhoe. The "base" was all muck, no traction on it but we are on ledge and I was going to stop any time I couldn't put the "pond end" bucket down and lift up that end of the tractor. As long as I dug out the muck down to the ledge I was good. Still I had to self rescue a few times and a couple of those I wasn't sure I wouldn't need to call Al down the road and have him pull me out. The slope wasn't too steep though. This picture might give you a decent comparison to yours. I was able to go in from 2 directions and eventually drive through on the left edge. Lots faster to come in from the south and drive the collected muck out the north east end to dump than back up and carry it around. This picture is when the pond is filling back up.
> 
> ...


FYI: The 4 inch fencing will NOT keep out foxes.  We have 4 inch fencing, and after one of the snows this last winter, traced the fox prints all over the property.  They go right through the fence.  And then this summer, saw one go through the fence.  It's a shame.....


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## Bruce (Jun 22, 2021)

That is disconcerting!!! I have 4" on the west side of the "pasture". A good part of that has the (poorly) fenced garden on the east side but there is about 40' of 4" including the gate. Might need to do something about that. After the fox came through the 6" on the west fence it got covered with 2x4 knotted on the other side of the posts. If a fox can get through 2x4 and 6" I guess there isn't anything I can do!


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## Cotton*wood (Jun 22, 2021)

Bruce said:


> That is disconcerting!!! I have 4" on the west side of the "pasture". A good part of that has the (poorly) fenced garden on the east side but there is about 40' of 4" including the gate. Might need to do something about that. After the fox came through the 6" on the west fence it got covered with 2x4 knotted on the other side of the posts. If a fox can get through 2x4 and 6" I guess there isn't anything I can do!


Not 2 X 4, but 4 X 4.  We have a whole lot of foxes in the neighborhood.  They're really beautiful, and I see them out on the road, and in the pastures, and in the woods, and perhaps they've had one or two chickens of ours, but our LGD keeps them pretty well away.  We had a near-slaughter a couple weeks ago--chicken feathers everywhere (from at least three different chickens, judging from the color), and a bunch of chickens in the trees, and our LGH absolutely panting (which he NEVER does), but only one minor injury and no deaths.  (And it was back into the chicken tractor for them!).  Our fence is designed to keep the dog in, and it's his job to keep everything else out.


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## Baymule (Jun 22, 2021)

Cotton*wood said:


> Not 2 X 4, but 4 X 4.  We have a whole lot of foxes in the neighborhood.  They're really beautiful, and I see them out on the road, and in the pastures, and in the woods, and perhaps they've had one or two chickens of ours, but our LGD keeps them pretty well away.  We had a near-slaughter a couple weeks ago--chicken feathers everywhere (from at least three different chickens, judging from the color), and a bunch of chickens in the trees, and our LGH absolutely panting (which he NEVER does), but only one minor injury and no deaths.  (And it was back into the chicken tractor for them!).  Our fence is designed to keep the dog in, and it's his job to keep everything else out.


Maybe you need another dog!


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## Bruce (Jun 22, 2021)

Sounds like the many foxes came in on all sides. Poor dog. Glad he managed to mostly keep them from the chickens. My fence was also originally meant to keep a LGD in but after 3 weeks of him doing his job barking off predators at night my DW couldn't take it anymore and I had to give him back. She never managed to appreciate and sleep through the "keep the heck away" barks.


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