Making A Pasture

[Baymule]

The giant Bermuda is 2 months old. In our newest pasture, #3, the oak stumps have sprouted back out along with the green briars. I let the sheep out on it a short while ago. Sure enough they went for the lambs quarters first, green briars, pigweed, oak sprouts then Bermuda tops. I’ll let them clean up the weeds for awhile then put them up so they don’t damage the new grass. Supposed to wait for 90 days, but what the heck. So far, no fertlizer.

 

[Bruce]

That sheep next to the dog looks like it got a BAD toupee!

 

[Baymule]

That sheep next to the dog looks like it got a BAD toupee!

@Ridgetop and hher husband are camped in Weatherford, Texas. When they head for home in a couple of weeks, they are going to camp in this area and come visiting. She packed shears and is going to give me shearing lessons. @Devonviolet and her husband will come over and we'll do fecals under the microscope while the guys grill meat out on the pit. A regular BYH party!

 

[Baymule]

I started a forestry mulching thread.

https://www.backyardherds.com/threads/forestry-mulching.39904/#post-618472

I thought it a wise idea to give it a thread of it's own with appropriate title. Search engines will pick up the titles and maybe that will bring new people to BYH.

 

[Baymule]

We bought 40 square bales in the field some weeks ago. They were bales too green, went through a heat, molded, mildewed and rotted. So today we used 15 of them to make a series of baffles on the pipeline to help control erosion. There were wet places on the floor boards of the trailer so we stacked the rest of them against the fence. Needed the trailer empty anyway.

Most of the hay was black and rotten. A few bales were fluffy but knowing they were packed in with moldy bales, no way we would feed it to our animals.

The rest of the bales will be usd in a like manner.

The guy we bought them from tried to give our money back but we refused. We weren’t mad, told him we would use it as mulch. He’s baling another field and insisted on giving us 40 bales from it.

 

[B&B Happy goats]

Good for him ..........I sure hope you take it

 

[Bruce]

The guy we bought them from tried to give our money back but we refused. We weren’t mad, told him we would use it as mulch. He’s baling another field and insisted on giving us 40 bales from it.

Stand up guy!

 

[CntryBoy777]

If that is a patch where ya are gonna grow grass...I'd throw out some seed under the hay...thin enough on the hay so the seed will push through it....if it is already seeded...then throw out some winter rye grass...it will grow and hold the hay to aid in the erosion control...don't have to throw much....plus it will keep the hot sun rays off the roots and hold moisture for the roots to grow....

 

[Baymule]

This is the second time we have done hay baffles on the pipeline. They do help. I will plant crimson clover and rye next month.

 

[Baymule]

@farmerjan will you talk to me about orchard grass? Is it a summer or fall/winter grass? What kind of heat can it take? Does it reseed and come back or does it die back and come back from the roots?

I am looking at grasses, I want a good mix. Around here, there is a lot of monoculture with coastal Bermuda being the golden standard. My sheep eat everything else first, then the Bermuda grass. I have crab grass and they like that, but it curls up and dies back in the August heat. Bahia is a survivor summer grass and they like it. There isn't a whole to choose from in summer grasses.

Bermuda will have to be the main grass with whatever else I can get to grow. they love giant ragweed and lambs quarters so much that they strip off all the leaves. Might need to plant them some patches of those, if I can get it to grow somewhere besides my garden. LOL