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Mosin9130 
Bronze Level
Joined: 23 Jul 2012
Location: North Texas
Points: 136
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 Topic: Clearing Property with a Dozer...but what next??
Posted: 02 May 2023 at 2:53pm |
Had a question (or two) on what is the collective wisdom of the AC community regarding what/how to revitalize the land after dozer and excavator work?
Backstory, I'm having approximately 50 acres of cedar, hardwoods, and "brush" cleaned up so as to bring the acreage back to pasture and/or hay like it was 20 years ago (bermuda and prairie grasses reintroduced). Knowing that the area will be bare after all the clearing, what's the best way to get the land/soil back to prime operating condition?
Disk - cultipack - seed - cultipack?? One and done with something like a Ferminator? Not sure but hoping there aren't a lot of tree roots and debris to deal with but assuming there will be. Property is in central Oklahoma.
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thendrix
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Joined: 04 Feb 2013
Location: Fairmount GA
Points: 5087
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Posted: 02 May 2023 at 2:58pm |
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Soil test will be the best investment to start with. After that, follow the recommendations from the soil test. So many people get their test results back and say "I'm not doing all that" then they complain because they don't have grass
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"Farming is a business that makes a Las Vegas craps table look like a regular paycheck" Ronald Reagan
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Mosin9130
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Joined: 23 Jul 2012
Location: North Texas
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Posted: 02 May 2023 at 3:06pm |
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Great feedback and yes, I plan on getting the soil tested at Oklahoma State University.
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'56 WD 45...'63 D15 II...'66 D17 IV
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DiyDave
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Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Gambrills, MD
Points: 54080
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Posted: 02 May 2023 at 5:03pm |
Cover crop it with Buckwheat if it will grow in your area. It's cheap, and suppresses some weeds... 
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DanWi
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Joined: 18 Sep 2009
Location: wttn
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Posted: 02 May 2023 at 6:26pm |
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Depends on soil type, when the work was done, was it muddy or dry. Do you want to make a smooth enough field to cut hay if needed. I would start with a chisel plow or something along those lines then work it with a field cultivator and drag to get it smooth. A long the line you will probably have to pick roots and debris. Then seed it down.
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Clay
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Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Udall, Kansas
Points: 9882
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Posted: 02 May 2023 at 8:57pm |
I know of a ranch at Jay, Oklahoma which has been cleared and is in pasture. Trees were cabled with some BIG Cat dozers. Track hoes with thumbs were used to remove roots. Chicken manure was applied and disked with a heavy disk. The ground was smoothed with a ship anchor chain. Not sure if the bermuda was sprigged or seeded. In the fall, rye is broadcast. This provides pasture while the bermuda is dorment. Some of pastures are cut and baled. I know they also fertilize when necessary.
Edited by Clay - 02 May 2023 at 8:58pm
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thendrix
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Location: Fairmount GA
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Posted: 03 May 2023 at 5:57am |
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Chicken litter is BIG in fertilizer here. We've got a spreader truck and I have a list of people wanting litter. I have to put people off 4 to 6 weeks at a time just so I can get enough stockpiled to get their pastures/hay fields done. Old chicken farmer neighbor we've got swears you can grow grass on a concrete block with chicken litter
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"Farming is a business that makes a Las Vegas craps table look like a regular paycheck" Ronald Reagan
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JoeM(GA)
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Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: Cumming,GA
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Posted: 03 May 2023 at 6:04am |
 thendrix wrote:
Chicken litter is BIG in fertilizer here. We've got a spreader truck and I have a list of people wanting litter. I have to put people off 4 to 6 weeks at a time just so I can get enough stockpiled to get their pastures/hay fields done. Old chicken farmer neighbor we've got swears you can grow grass on a concrete block with chicken litter |
TRUE! One of the largest chicken farms in the South was about 5 miles from our house, we laid It to our hay fields regularly, thick lush grass all summer long, if it was hot and rained regularly we were cutting every few weeks. City folks might not like the smell for a while!
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jaybmiller
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Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: Greensville,Ont
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Posted: 03 May 2023 at 6:27am |
I know it'll be a lot of going 'round and round', but disks,rolling baskets, packer.... whatever it takes to get the 50 acres smooth NOW will pay off LATER. probably take an extra week and fuel,but in the near future you'll appreciate the flatter 'lay of the land' and so will your equipment. Agree buckwheat WILL choke out weeds real good..and the bees love it too ! To get any 'grass' to grow you need lots of nitrogen.... sigh ,that's it from me...
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Thad in AR.
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Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: Arkansas
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Posted: 03 May 2023 at 6:37am |
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If it had lots of Cedar your soil will be acidic. I believe lots of lime helps with that.
Here they all seem to spread a mix of lime and chicken litter. Every spring
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ac fleet
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Joined: 12 Jan 2014
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Posted: 04 May 2023 at 8:44am |
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Before you do any seeding,---better spend quality time rippin out missed roots rocks, etc. THEN start working the ground, then pick more chit up and after a couple years you might have it somewhat level enough to make a hay field.
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AC7060IL
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Joined: 19 Aug 2012
Location: central IL
Points: 3531
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Posted: 04 May 2023 at 9:44am |
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Maybe try to use your soil test & synthetic fertilizer dollars & Buy fencing & 20 head of cows? Or 50 head of goats??
After soil is cleaned up from roots etc & leveled (favored tillage?), try planting whole thing to cover crop mix. I second earlier “rye” post, but add other species into a balanced mix(turnips, rye, oat, wheat, vetch, chickpea, etc..)
If you bought cattle/goats, allow them to crowd graze it in late summer (YouTube it. they consume 1/3 and trample 2/3). Two thirds trampled crop go back into soil as compost/fertilizer. Thing to remember is Soil bios & earthworms will digest cover crop plant materials(roots/top growth) back into nutrient rich soil. Immediately after grazing, reseed (notill) it with rye, tillage turnips mix for winter. Winter freezing will kill turnips, Rye will prosper thru winter & greenup/regrow in spring. But, over winter cows on turnips. Right breed of cows will dig into snow & forage on turnips. Repeat Crowd grazing & notill reseeding as desired to build up nutrient rich soil. Save on tillage equipment & expensive fuel, and temporary costly synthetic fertilizers. Enjoy the beef or sell goats. After 2-3 years time then do soil tests to decide if a pasture mix is what you still desire?
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fixer1958
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Joined: 13 Feb 2010
Location: kansas
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Posted: 05 May 2023 at 6:12am |
When we were raising Cornish meat birds in 10x20 pens, I would move the pens everyday. They could make some chit in a days time. Didn't think the grass would ever grow there again because it was flat slick with chit. Boy was I wrong. Come mowing time, it would be 4" tall everywhere else and 14" tall where they had been. Duck chit on the other hand makes nothing but weeds.
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jvin248
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Joined: 17 Jan 2022
Location: Detroit
Points: 448
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Posted: 05 May 2023 at 7:40pm |
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Disk to level.
Harrow, seed, cultipacker.
Spring oats and winter rye stiffle weeds, effective herbicide.
Buckwheat brings beneficial insects, effectively your insecticide. Increases phosphorus.
Flax increases michrorhyzal fungus. Very beneficial.
Alfalfa, black lentils, and Dutch white clover add nitrogen - all of them are the top N producers, like 200lbs/acre. Chicken litter adds nitrogen but it fades fast, only good the season you put it down.
Sunflowers can help.
Using a seed mix of four different plants types or more increase synergy.
If it's a homestead where you are there all the time, build several 'chicken tractors' (salatin is a good resource for the background, some design improvements out there). Then move them across the field during the season.
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Ray54
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Joined: 22 Nov 2009
Location: Paso Robles, Ca
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Posted: 06 May 2023 at 10:45am |
Depending how sure you are about haying clean it up when bare. If your at may hay it some day, years in the future maybe not so important.
Heavy pipes, railroad rail, heavy logs, could all be used to level. A chisel plow run shallow makes a root rake.
For cost and getting it covered I would suggest a cereal grain as well as the more long term plants you want.
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