Switchgrass

[dbltree]

Goldenrod is always trying to invade in my switchgrass so every so often I hit it with 2-4D. I sprayed about 20 acres of switch and some NWSG for about $40.
Anything with broadleaves starts to wilt within 24-48 hours but it takes awhile for it to completely die.
This pic is about a week later...

 

[dbltree]

Here's a few pics of my switchgrass starting in spring and how nitrogen affects growth.

A mature switchgrass plant in late spring showing almost no growth yet.

Switchgrass in June. This plant is along the edge of the corn and got a good dose of triple 19...notice the switch in the background isn't as tall.

Same plants in Late July again showing the lush green growth comes from plenty of nitrogen.

I side dressed a 100# of 46-0-0 (urea) on my corn the very end of June and I took a pass down thru my switchgrass.

This is about 3 weeks later. Cost me $95 to side dress 5 acres of corn so if one wanted to "perk" up your cover it's not that pricey.

 

[dbltree]

I know some of you are trying to figure out if you have switchgrass growing yet...or not. Been there...done that! Very frustrating the first year!

Here's a few pics of small switch seedlings to maybe give you an idea. Most all of it will be forming seed heads shortly which makes your search much easier.

Many of these I confirmed small seed heads forming although they don't show up in the pics very well.

They spend most of thier energy growing down not up the first year

Hang in there, have paitence...in a few years you will have some of the most awesome cover you could ever hope for!

 

[SWIABOONER]

Not trying to start an arguement just some other points to be made. I agree with your statements about switchgrass being great winter cover. And your exactly right in saying not to plant it in large quanities on your farm. That being said (great winter cover) it is about worthless for producing pheasants and quail. As is any grass dominated stand. Young birds need protein to grow and they get it from insects, and insects are found in weeds and forbs(native flowers) In my experience we see the most bird production in very weedy areas. We seed anywhere from 20 to 70 acres a year to native grasses. We see most of our broods in the newly seeded areas when they start coming up to weeds(button weed, sunflowers, ragweed etc.) Young chicks ecspecially guail need lots of bare ground as well. 50% is not to much. If you think about how small a baby quail is there is now way he can move through a solid stand of grass. That is where the clumpiness of the other native grasses come into play. We plant mainly little bluestem its very clumpy and provides very good cover. Big bluestem is very bad at going down in a heavy snow. Indian grass is a lot better. Don't forget about the wildflowers as they are what's going to give the broods something to eat. So I guess what I'm trying to say that yes switchgrass is great winter cover for holding birds but you need weeds and diversity to produce them.

P.S. don't forget shrubby cover for the quail during the winter. Wild plum and grey dogwood are great native shurbs for quail. I would wager they will use shrubby cover in winter before the switch grass. Providing it is a large enough area so that it doesn't full with snow.

 

[dbltree]

I totally agree...don't plant the whole farm to switchgrass! I have mixed NWSG stands, clover and alfalfa and grain crops all adjacent to my switchgrass.

In my case winter cover is the sole limiting factor for upland birds and protection against poachers for my deer. It's why I strongly advocate pure stands of it in everyone's habitat project. It is however only one piece of the puzzle...not the whole pie!

I find (and most PF research will support me) that a pure stand of alfalfa left unmowed thru the critcal nesting period will be a pheasants first choice for nesting.

Clover and alfalfa will be high on the list for both hen turkeys and pheasants to take thier broods feeding. Nothing draws more insects for small chicks and poults then legume blossoms!

Most wildflowers in NWSG plantings are way too high and generally do not last long in a mixed planting. (nothing against them...just that there is something better)

As I have stated before...take a drive in Jan and Feb...what do you see across this state??? NOTHING!! Fall plowed ground for miles and miles, CRP planted to brome and even NWSG that is flat as a pancake!

Then drive by a switchgrass stand...ask permission to walk thru it. Every pheasant and deer in the area will be calling it home!

Here is an interesting link to a thesis done in South Dakota. It comapares DCN (Dense cool season nesting cover) made up of Crested wheatgrass, alfalfa and brome, WCN (Warm Season nesting cover) made up of Switchgrass, Big Bluestem and Indiangrass and pure alfalfa stands.

Nesting Thesis comparing nesting cover types

The DCN and WCN was prefered largely because they were CRP plantings, left undisturbed..which of course is the key.

The alfalfa fields surveyed all were being intensely cropped with 4-5 cuttings. So in these cases the alfalfa was not high enough in the spring and nests were almost sure to be destoyed by haying equipment!

Most of us on this forum are dealing with acreage in the CRP program so whatever we plant is not going to be mowed during the nesting season.

One key thing from this study is that the dominate species in the WCN comparison...was Switchgrass

My CRP habitat is comprised of all types of nesting, feeding and winter covers and I would encourage those who can, to diversfy thiers as well!

 

[locust]

I'm in my first year of a CP25 mix being planted on my place...supposedly with a bit more switchgrass thrown in.. and it appears it is doing ok so I can't wait to see it next year. I've tried planting dogwood/wild plum and I've just had a hard time keeping the invading grass from smother them...any tips to help get these established from your experience? I'd love to have them get established...but it appears my plantings from two springs ago were overriden..I just can't seem to mow/spray close enough to the small seedlings to keep the competition from them...I tried planting the quail packet from the DNR...any tips would be appreciated and maybe I'll try next spring again.

 

[dbltree]

Quote:
I'm in my first year of a CP25 mix being planted on my place...supposedly with a bit more switchgrass thrown in.. and it appears it is doing ok so I can't wait to see it next year. I've tried planting dogwood/wild plum and I've just had a hard time keeping the invading grass from smother them...any tips to help get these established from your experience? I'd love to have them get established...but it appears my plantings from two springs ago were overriden..I just can't seem to mow/spray close enough to the small seedlings to keep the competition from them...I tried planting the quail packet from the DNR...any tips would be appreciated and maybe I'll try next spring again.



Try this post for a lot of info on herbicides, weed mats etc. to help in the battle with weeds and grass around trees: Tree Planting

It is a real battle the first few years

 

[Muddy Fork]

I have a small ditch that runs between two fields that I have to use to excess my woods when hunting. It is about 6' wide and I need to plant something to give me cover when walking it. I've thought about plant switch grass with some white cedars spaced 6' apart. I want any thoughts about this and also what switch grass grows the tallest? I have a few other acres in CRP filterstrips and CP-33 in NWSG mixes. This ditch leads to one of my filterstrips.

 

[JNRBRONC]

My guess would be that if you have 6' tall switch grass in this ditch you are using as an access route, you are going to jump lots of deer bedded in it when making your way to your woods.

 

[Muddy Fork]

It's a 6' wide 2-3' deep ditch. They could bed there, but I have better bedding cover and no other way to get to my woods and I thought the more cover I'd have walking across the field the better.

 

[TimberPig]

I would agree with jnrbronc about the bedded deer problem. You might be ok if you kept the switch in a narrow band like 20' wide. I wouldnt plant switch in with any type of tree though, one fire and your trees will be toast. You might consider a couple rows of shrubs like dogwoods too, they grow pretty fast. White Cedars = deer candy from what I have heard, you would probably have better luck with red cedars surviving.

 

[JNRBRONC]

A brome waterway with red cedars. The cedars might hide you on the way in, still worry about busting deer on the way, but you can't prevent that. Sneak in under darkness for morning hunts, but what about evenings?

Sounds like a case for a stroll inside a double bull blind!

 

[dbltree]

I wouldnt plant switch in with any type of tree though, one fire and your trees will be toast.

I'll second that...don't ask me how I know

If you decide to plant, I prefer Cave N Rock switchgrass as one of the tallest rankest forms of grass cover.

I can't say if it will work as you hope, but it will provide excellent cover year around. (just forget planting any cedars in it...red or white!)

Here's a link to biomass testing comparing yields and using Atrazine and other herbicides just to give you an idea (not to many government studies on the best switchgrass to sneak to your deer stand...

Switchgrass study

 

[Muddy Fork]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">You might be ok if you kept the switch in a narrow band like 20' wide. </div></div>
It's a 6'-10' narrow band.

 

[dbltree]

You might be ok if you kept the switch in a narrow band like 20' wide.


It's a 6'-10' narrow band

.





Doesn't sound like that would be wide enough to encourage any bedding deer and a narrow strip like that is a bad deal for nesting birds since predators will just hunt that strip end to end.

Otherwise it might work for a screen.

In other threads people have been wondering "where are the bucks"? Why don't I see them?

Here's a little clue... A friend planted perhaps 40 acres into switchgrass nearly 4-5 years ago on a relatives farm.

Every year since it has gained height we have walked into that field to check progress...and every time there is nothing but antlers blasting out of that field!

It's unbeliveable! Those bucks live in that field, perhaps year around but for sure all summer. Not a woods in site, hidden from spotlights, easy to escape in any direction.

From the size of some of them...they have been surviving quite well in thier little "forest" of switchgrass!

 

[dbltree]

The CRP field day at the ISU research farm was an excellent place to observe a wide selection of switchgrass varieties that were planting in the 80's.
It's easy to see which ones will survive the test of time as you can see by the following pictures.

I would also like to mention that the DNR had lists of plants and the number of wildlife species that use that plant.

Switchgrass had 67 species that use it, while Big Bluestem had only 11!!

I got there before anyone else and spent some time visting with ISU's Greg Brenneman and IDNR's Tim Thompson about switchgrass and NWSG plantings.

These men pheasant hunt together and have put in many test plots and helped out with countless prairie grass plantings plantings. Both agreed that a pure stand of tall rank switchgrass was an extemely important part of anyone's wildlife habitat program. The benefits of a pure stand are tremendous.

Several other points they made to the crowd...is what do you want from your habitat?? Ask yourself that question before deciding what to plant...are you managing for quail or pheasants? Deer or butterflies? Everyone has a different need, in my case it's deer first and then upland birds.

Another point was that you can plant switch and clover in seperate plots in mid contract management plans ( NEVER mix them)and you can get the full 50 points needed for your EBI index on new CRP bids with a CP4D rather then a CP25.

CP4D need 5 species and switchgrass can be planted over most of it, clover for burn stops (or deer attractant ) adding some tree and shrub plantings for windbreaks, etc.,so don't be misled into thinking you have to plant the whole place in CP25

After all these years Cave-In-Rock switchgrass clearly stood out as the winner! It was tall, thick and great cover after 20-30 years!

compared to others which like this one no longer exsited:

Blackwell is one that I have planted myself and been very dissapointed with. What you see inthis pic is mostly Indiangrass and Little Bluestem that has self seeded from other plots as well as Goldenrod which is next to worthless

Again what you see in this pic is very little switchgrass but little blue and other plants:

Again mostly little bluestem:

Alamo was the only other one that had a decent stand and I'm not so sure that the Cave-in-Rock hadn't self seeded into the plot.

Frost seeded Cave-in-Rock switchgrass
March 3rd 2002:

If you have questions about these plots or signup concerns, give these guys a call:

Greg Brenneman ISU Ext. (319) 337-2145

Tim Thomson IDNR (319) 354-8343

 

[TimberPig]

That was a great post Paul. Pretty good example pics there. Of course, I wish you had posted this a year ago when I was signing up for CP25, LOL! I was able to make a last minute change in my mix this spring to include a percentage of Cave-In-Rock switch. Those flowers in the CP25 are pretty and all but I hope the CIR starts to take over quickly! John Osenbaugh told me that in 10 years I could expect the planting to be largely CIR because it will outcompete the others. That is something for folks to consider if they are not allowed to go with pure switch.

Right now I only have a little 2.5 acre patch of pure CIR, split down the middle by a small creek. It is bordered to the west by a gravel road, to the south by my driveway, and north and east are crops and new CP25. My house sits on a hill overlooking the CIR about 125 yds away. Even though the deer could easily bed in the cornfield across the road, or in the timber behind my house, they very frequently choose to bed right next to the road in that CIR. Its pretty cool to watch a buck mill around in there and then just disappear when he lays down. They dont leave when I mow right next to it, blade the drive, whatever, they must feel very safe in there. That stuff is really THICK .

 

[dbltree]

Your on the right track with both pure CIR switchgrass and mixed NWSG stands TP! Your well on your way to a wildlife haven

Just a reminder to those considering switchgrass....

You should be preparing for late winter frost seeding NOW! Mow if you haven't already, let it start to regrow and as they said at the CRP Field Day....KILL KILL KILL

Spray it with a full dose of Roundup and surfactant (Roundup Max already has surfactant in the mix but generics do not)
Normally I spray in mid to late September after mowing in August.

If you have CRP, remember you can sign up for haying and have a farmer cut and bale it. They take 25% of your payment but you should be able to sell it to the farmer for that and end up even up..and you don't have to do the mowing

All residue is removed and that's a key to frost seeding prairie grasses.Soybean stubble is perfect as well.

A little planning will go along way to a successful seeding

 

[dbltree]

It never fails that someone is always trying to tell me switchgrass is to thick for wildlife to use it

Here are some pics of switchgrass and Indiangrass...both pretty darn thick.

I guess sometimes someone should go tell the deer, turkeys (yes my turkeys love switchgrass ) and pheasants....that doggone it...you shouldn't be here...it's too THICK!

Switchgrass up close

Indiangrass up close:

This a first year stand of Big Bluestem with a little IG in the pic also.

Sometimes it's amazing what you can learn just by years of observing...you can't get that out of a book

 

[locust]

I've had a stand of CP25 put in this year. It looks OK, I see flowers and big bluestem for sure, but the others are too short for me to tell what else will come in. I just can't tell if it is IG or switchgrass. I was told to not burn next year, but the following year and then I'll start seeing good results. Do you think I could frost seed into the current/live CP25 stand to have more CIR in my stand? I may wait and see next year how it looks, but I'm looking to beef up the CIR in the mix. I have a few acres left to play with and maybe I'll go straight CIR there.