Firebreaks - The Underestimated Food Plot

UGUIDE

UGUIDE

Active member
I was just out mowing the 54 acres of 30' alfalfa firebreaks we have installed around all our CRP fields. I have never seen this many birds at this time of year before. Its like the hens nest in adjacent CRP and then march their broods out into these firebreaks to feed. They are loaded with weeds like foxtail and kochia right now and are loaded with bugs.

If I was a pheasant manager (which I am) and I was trying to fully optimize my field design for pheasants (which I am) I would certainly design these breaks into each field I had for the purpose of travel corridors, prescribed fire management and june,july,august brood food plots. I suspect these will have a profound impact on new pheasant recruitment.

I want to say that clipping one break around a 40 acre field I estimate to have seen 100-200 birds which is a tall order this time of year with all the cover.
 
Good to hear of all the birds.

I, too, use firebreaks/food plots within the grass field. I have one in each terrace channel. On one two hundred acre field I have over ten miles of terraces. Like U Guide said, it provides travel, insects and cover. Some years I get it planted and some years I just let it grow up in sunflowers and other weeds.

Many places I have a pretty good complement of forbs adjacent to the firebreak as this picture from June shows.

IMG_4981.jpg
 
I do the same thing here guys. Mostly leave them to early successional weed growth these days due to grazing on most of these units for quail management. However, I used to plant mine to Korean Lespedeza and got great results with brood-rearing that way. I don't have haying equipment to maintain alfalfa, so the annual lespedeza worked better for me. I also used to plant some to a mixture of millets and forage sorghums. That provided good cover as well as winter food. Cowpeas or Mung beans would also work well as annual choices. The down side might be that they would be shorter when early nests were coming off. Later in the summer they would provide better overhead cover. Where so many folks are short of brood-rearing cover, any one of these would do a lot for bringing broods through those first few weeks where insect populations and access to the same are critical.
 
Mowed the other farm this morning. Did not see near the birds but then it was 100% humidity and foggy early in the morning. Think they were in a drier place. Bugs were there though. Named my mower the grasshopper coach. I also call it the B52 because the 20 foot bush hog looks like a bomber being towed behind the tractor.

Not so many nuts in the habitat forum. Shhhhhhh.:D
 
That's a great plan for a fire break. It serves more than one purpose. Fortunately most of our units are native prairie so farming any of that is frowned upon but we have some units that are former farm ground which would be neat to try. I had a supervisor years ago that did the same thing.
 
Uguide I hear you about the the nut issue on the forum. This year it has been great. Last year was awful
 
UGUIDE said:
Not so many nuts in the habitat forum. Shhhhhhh.:D
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I'd plow it all up raise corn on corn and use all the money I make properly farming my ground to hunt birds on someone else's ground.

Does this make me a nut?
 
moellermd said:
I'd plow it all up raise corn on corn and use all the money I make properly farming my ground to hunt birds on someone else's ground.

Does this make me a nut?
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In real estate there is a principle called "highest and best use". This maybe residential development, commercial buildings, corn on corn, pollinators.

In my case I am trying to prove that pheasants is the highest and best use of my farm and not corn on corn or any crops for that matter. Does that make me a nut?
 
UGUIDE said:
In real estate there is a principle called "highest and best use". This maybe residential development, commercial buildings, corn on corn, pollinators.

In my case I am trying to prove that pheasants is the highest and best use of my farm and not corn on corn or any crops for that matter. Does that make me a nut?
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Just trying to rattle your cage a little Chris. It would be interesting to compare balance sheets over a 5 year period to see how your system compare to traditional practices.
 
moellermd said:
Just trying to rattle your cage a little Chris.
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Never would have guessed that Mike. It's not like you to do such a thing:rolleyes::D


Chris, thanks for the update. Sounds like you have a lot of good news coming out of there:)


Nick
 
moellermd said:
I'd plow it all up raise corn on corn and use all the money I make properly farming my ground to hunt birds on someone else's ground.

Does this make me a nut?
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After further consideration I would say since this is a habitat forum that yes this statement would put you in the nut job category.

Now tell me how Iowa can have 1,400,000 acres of CRP, several hundred thousand more than South Dakota, and still have no birds?
 
UGUIDE said:
In real estate there is a principle called "highest and best use". This maybe residential development, commercial buildings, corn on corn, pollinators.

In my case I am trying to prove that pheasants is the highest and best use of my farm and not corn on corn or any crops for that matter. Does that make me a nut?
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I must be a nut too as I really don't care that I'm losing money having "HABITAT" on the farm instead of more crops--in fact I'm adding another 115 acres this coming year--one 84 acre plot and one 31 acre plot. :D
 
SDJIM said:
in fact I'm adding another 115 acres this coming year--one 84 acre plot and one 31 acre plot.
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Man O' Man:D. This is going to be a great fall! First I'm hitting up Ken's place so to give him a hand working that dog on crack while hunting wild MN roosters:thumbsup:, then it's off to Platte, SD to work your land a bit:thumbsup: (with a shotgun of course):D. After that (though Chris doesn't know yet) I'm stopping through his land to give a hand "thinning out the herd":thumbsup:. He seems to have a real infestation problem out there! Chris, I'll PM you regarding the details on how I plan on getting the job done for you okay?;)

Nick
 
UGUIDE said:
You're NUTS!!!!
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LOl....Perfect! I'm fitting right in, though I prefer "willing and helpful" over nuts:D

You know, thinking about it, I don't know what the problem is? I have a 100% guarantee if you give me 5 days I can remove 15 wild roosters for you:D
 
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I say "nuts" to you all!

At the end of my days, I hope somebody will say, "Well we will miss him, he was a conversationalist", best accolade anybody can have. I wonder if the Hardy Bros. and drain tile devotees, will have anyone who cares, except the John Deere, Monsanto salesmen, and relations scrounging for their inheritance. Maybe say, "Well they made a lot of money...fouled the water supply, and flushed the soil to the gulf of Mexico!" I hope this qualifies me as a "nut".
 
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