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Switchgrass

IowaBowHunter1983 said:
Good plan of action. One thought that you may consider....

Burn. Spring kill brome (you could even do this twice). understanding some brome will come back. Drill switchgrass. Fall spray when switch is dormant. You can gain a year on process doing it that way. The brome will be "dead enough" to plant switch. Whatever comes back you smoke for good in fall.
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I like that - we got "burnt" trying to spring kill brome before but we had no follow up applications. I bet we give this a shot this spring. Probably will burn it early in March to get some green up on it and get some early growth to begin the kill process. Thank you, really appreciate the input!
 
I've always thought the "spray after a couple of hard frosts" approach was a good way to cleanly set back CSG, and not affect the native stand.

Selective through timing.
 
IowaBowHunter1983 said:
Switchgrass pockets mixed into the open areas of tree cover create a mosaic of whitetail bedding that is nearly impossible to beat. The holding power is simply incredible.

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I have been on this farms hundreds of times and walked through this particular area many times. I can tell you that what Rob built here is special. I was on this farm the first month or so that he purchased it and there was very little "deer" habitat. This combo of switch and hedge is truly a one of a kind cover. The amount of deer that live here and use this area is amazing. He killed a 6.5 yr old giant this fall that called this place and NEVER left.

I think one thing that you all are thinking about this is how to maintain it. Well I know for a fact that when he built this area he was using a backpack sprayer and a UTV to get things done. Its all about what you want and how much work you want to put into something. Rob is a relentless worker when it comes to habitat. Also when he built this area he thought about maintenance. He knew that he would be able to utilize fire every few years and not damage his "overhead" cover because of the type of cover it is.

I think this post is very important. It shows that we don't just plant switch into open areas and make "fields" of it. It also shows how important diversity is. The deer on this farm are able to walk through thick nasty cover and into more "open" cover and into strategically placed food plots. It also keeps the bucks moving during the rut because they cannot see very far so they constantly have to move around to find the does.

I did not mean to hijack this post but trust me when I tell you that the pics do not do this cover justice. I mean it when I say this is a special place.
 
cchadww said:
Just checked the RC we planted in early July. Up to my chest. Couldn’t believe it.


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This possibly changes my plans for next summer. I have a few acres of old CRP I want to move into SG. Was planning on Spring but Summer would be easier for me to get some time in.
 
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IowaBowHunter1983 said:
No I don't think it is an awful idea. It can be done. These are 30% larger seeds than CIR & even larger than some other varieties. Larger seeds will not incorporate into the soil as well as a very small seed. So I would frost seed it a little earlier. Say February as opposed to March. Or right before a snowfall.
If area is prepped you could even dormant seed it now. Broadcast and cultipack before ground freezes.

As for other considerations, it's going to germinate quicker that we all were use to. So be careful with spring burn down. If prepped I'd just spray your pre (simizone or atrazine) right before green up. From there normal switchgrass establishment practices .
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I had kinda forgot about your warning of being careful with spring burn down. I wanted to hit this spot today with atrazine and intended to spray gly also. Is there a chance the RC Big Rock has sprouted? I'm I-80 corridor. The fields been too wet to spray and probably still is, but about to get a lot wetter again.
 
northcedar said:
I had kinda forgot about your warning of being careful with spring burn down. I wanted to hit this spot today with atrazine and intended to spray gly also. Is there a chance the RC Big Rock has sprouted? I'm I-80 corridor. The fields been too wet to spray and probably still is, but about to get a lot wetter again.
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I'd be careful.. This year seems very much ahead of normal. Switch coming back here in mid MO is 2"+ high already.
 
Bassattackr said:
I'd be careful.. This year seems very much ahead of normal. Switch coming back here in mid MO is 2"+ high already.
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Wow! Thanks for the tip. Yeah I fell behind and then had the memory that Bigrock germs at colder soil temps although I can't find info yet. I'm going to look at it 1st. We've been mowing grass for a couple weeks.
 
Here's the spot now. I see no grass growing yet. And it's still quite clean. Would anyone just let it go at this point? Or still get atrazine down?

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