NEWS FLASH: Drought ends at Ponderosa

Occasionally I reminisce about wildlife at the Ponderosa over the years. The high year for pheasants was around 1960 and the numbers have never approached close to those highs since. I believe the reasons for the high was the Soil Bank program, smaller fields, more fence rows, more weeds due to less effective weed control, more waste grain due to less efficient harvesting and more insects due to more weeds and less insecticide use.

There was an abundance of pheasants in the 1960 time frame and even bag limits was raised to five with one of those allowed to be a hen. There were a few quail, but not many. No deer at all. No turkey at all.

Around 1985 was an extremely low point for the critters here. Unlimited hunting allowed by a farm tenant over many years and farm practices had taken a toll. A Christmas hunt over a three day period with four inches of level snow on the ground found only one rooster pheasant and three quail and no signs of tracks in the snow. Pretty much every acre of the farm was covered over those three days. Of course no birds were shot.

After 1985 a change in the farm operation and CRP has been responsible for the rebound of the birds. There have been some really rough spots like the recent prolonged drought. I currently manage the farm with wildlife being the top priority. It certainly is not the way to make money on the farm, but as long as I can operate this way I will. Wildlife conservation is expensive and it takes dedication to the cause. There are few that are willing to do it. I know there are members of this forum that go that extra mile for wildlife and I applaud you.
 
M. R. Byrd said:
After 1985 a change in the farm operation and CRP has been responsible for the rebound of the birds. There have been some really rough spots like the recent prolonged drought. I currently manage the farm with wildlife being the top priority. It certainly is not the way to make money on the farm, but as long as I can operate this way I will. Wildlife conservation is expensive and it takes dedication to the cause. There are few that are willing to do it. I know there are members of this forum that go that extra mile for wildlife and I applaud you.
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I give that a :10sign: too!
 
MR you've lived out that way longer than I've been around and seen a few things.

I'm of the opinion we have the ingredients now to marry economical farming and wildlife conservation if utilized right. But I may be looking through rose colored glasses and have not worn a farmers hat - only looked on the outside and on occasion worked alongside some.


Cut wheat with a stripper header (I know the header is pricey - but the amount of cover it leaves is a god send and all the bio material surely help retain/catch water and hold the snow


Dont think we necessarily need the gigantic blocks of CRP but would love to see the STRIPS program (or whatever it's called where the grass buffers are put in along property borders) utilized a heckuva lot more - as you know from living out there, deer, turkeys, quail, chickens, jacks, coyotes, etc will all use the small band of cover along a fence/property line - those buffers dont take a lot of land out of production -- Wish they were utilized more...is the gov't just not paying enough to make it worth while?

No Till farming - speaks for itself and something I think a lot of western KS guys use

Cut back on spraying - something that guys dont seem inclined to do, but it seems there's a lot of money pXssed away on chemical - would think maybe theres a happy balance here


These are a few things that come to mind that IMO are wildlife friendly and I'd think would be friendly to the farmers pocketbook and perhaps the workload (ie spray less, not have to spend as much time running a machine/upkeeping machines if utilizing no till etc)

I may have went off on a tangent but the thoughts in my mind on a Friday night.

I've been talking with my brother and I think our muley hunt will be back on this year out west. I've got enough preference points I should get a rifle tag - if not we can buy the black powder. Hoping the wife agrees to me getting away for 9 days. :)
 
BB it is sure nice that Maynard does what he does and if he is like me, he gets that warm fuzzy feeling when you see the wildlife prosper in what you have planted for them!! I really enjoy the prairie and all it has to offer and seeing Maynards pictures gives me hope that the wildlife is in great hands!!:10sign:
 
I had hoped to have some good video for you tonight, but no. I was going up a two track lane at the Ponderosa and there is a small cloud of dust coming over the rise about 80 yards ahead of me. I stop and then I can tell it is two quail coming balls to wall right toward me. I get my IPhone out of my pocket and switch the video on. About 40 yards from me they stop and square off and being sparring. I quietly exit my vehicle, but they see me and fly over in the tall white clover. I wait hoping they will reappear and after a few minutes one comes out of cover, turns and heads back up the lane as fast as he had come down it. I'm just not quick enough.

Here is the current buffet available for the birds.

IMG_8441_zpsywrkqay9.jpg


This is new germination of Illinois bundle flower along side the two track lane. I would have mowed along the lane late last year and I expect that operation distributed the seed in the low spot along the lane.

IMG_8444_zpsnfonf58h.jpg
 
Prairie Drifter said:
I give that a :10sign: too!
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Drifter is one of those good guys working hard for the critters in the public arena. It is really amazing what he has accomplished at Byron Walker Wildlife Area with really limited funds. He is also available here on the forum to answer many questions that come up. I thank him for his friendship and his dedication to wildlife. :thumbsup:
 
BleuBijou said:
BB it is sure nice that Maynard does what he does and if he is like me, he gets that warm fuzzy feeling when you see the wildlife prosper in what you have planted for them!! I really enjoy the prairie and all it has to offer and seeing Maynards pictures gives me hope that the wildlife is in great hands!!:10sign:
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Bleu,

I have always felt a common bond between us with the love for the wildlife. I know you are doing good things in Colorado for the wildlife and I applaud you for that.
 
KsHusker,

I have saved an answer to you for last, just because it is hard to really give a magic answer for the wildlife.

Stripper heads are good. They leave a lot more cover on the land.

As far as spraying, I think there will be no going back to conventional tillage methods. I certainly don't have an answer to what the long term effects of herbicide use might have on the birds. On a positive note, the new sprayers(and it seems that every farmer has one) do some good things. One they reduce the amount of herbicide applied through the precision farming technology. With the reduction in overspray the farmer realizes a reduction in cost. From an environmental side that means less needless herbicide applied. The farmer is driven to do it for the cost savings and that is fine.

My travels take me by a half section of land that is farmed by yesterday's practices. I always see pheasant and quail in the road as I go by. This land was grown up in weeds and last week the farmer came in and ran a disc through all of it. Of course no pheasant or quail nest survived that operation. A herbicide burn down would have given some a chance for survival.

The large patch CRP acres can be really good, but those days may be gone. In the early stages of CRP I saw a number of large tracts going in to CRP where the land was paid for or had been inherited and the owners were ready to retire. Changes in the current programs make it hard for large tracts to get in.

Pheasants Forever started a Farm Biologist Program. One part of the program was to show a farmer how some of those unproductive areas of a farm could be put into a CRP program and actually make money instead of maybe costing money to farm them. The program has had some good success.

Money talks with a farmer. He needs to stay in the black to keep afloat. There are land payments, machinery payments, operating expenses, income tax, real estate tax, employee benefits.The markets are volatile. Farmers can make a lot of money when times are really good, but can lose huge amounts when times are bad. Recently we have seen grain prices and cattle prices go lower. Now even lower with Brexit.

I myself know the problems with farming, although to a much smaller scale than most. I have not inherited any of my land and have paid at or above appraisal for everything I own. I have debt service to cover. My farm does not generally pay the bills and I have had to work off the farm to keep the farm afloat. I spend way more on wildlife than the average farmer(my choice).

Most farmers have little time to think about the wildlife, it is just get a crop, pay the bills and do it all over again.

Two years ago my CRP acreage was expiring. It started out at $50/acre in the mid 80's, then went to $43/acre on its next renewal, then was offered back in at $31/acre. Of course during this time period land values have increased and cash rents have increased. I turned down the offer two years ago at $31/acre for a 15 year contract. That $31 is not "take home" money, in that it is reduced by debt service, operating expenses, real estate taxes and income taxes. But even if the $31 was "take home" money what will it buy in 15 years, maybe a coffee at Starbucks? How much will a family of four spend on dinner at a restaurant? Well this year I did get it in at $47/acre for a 15 year contract. Of course I walked away from two $31 payments or $62 total, so it will take four years to make up that loss, but after year four I will be ahead. Still at the end of 15 years I think $47 will be a token amount.

The CRP program started out as a program to reduce erosion on marginal farm ground, which is water erosion on upland soils and wind erosion on sandy soils. Immediate benefits were seen in the wildlife populations but as the grass matured and became thatched the benefits started falling off fast. Game agencies and conservation organizations like Pheasants Forever began petitioning for changes to include management practices such as burning and interseeding forbs and legumes. One other benefit was a reduction in crop acreages and thus increased grain prices.

There certainly are heated debates about the government being involved in farming and many consider farm payments to be welfare payments. I don't intend my comments to invoke a rash of hate mail from those opposed to farm payments and I will not engage in that discussion. Here is my take, I believe the federal government will be involved in farm programs well into the future. If that is the case, what would I like to see personally? I would like to see crop acreages reduced such that seldom if ever a farmer is paid because grain prices are too low to stay in business and our national food supply is threatened. I would like to see erosion reduced so that our air and water are cleaner and there is less sediment added to our streams and lakes. I would like to see programs that benefit the wildlife. Therefore, I would like to see my tax dollars that go to agriculture to be used for programs such as CRP. Another thing about CRP is keeping land available for emergencies. Here in my area we went through an extended drought. Should famine fall across our nation some of these CRP acreages could be pulled out to create more food until the drought subsides.

Just the thoughts of an old Kansas farmer(really a wildlife producer that happens to farm).

:cheers:

May our wildlife thrive and multiply.
 
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M. R. Byrd said:
Drifter is one of those good guys working hard for the critters in the public arena. It is really amazing what he has accomplished at Byron Walker Wildlife Area with really limited funds. He is also available here on the forum to answer many questions that come up. I thank him for his friendship and his dedication to wildlife. :thumbsup:
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Thanks Maynard! I try to make the habitat a priority!!! Unfortunately, we have years like this spring where we didn't get any burn days and I got 0 acres under fire. That's a big disappointment for me after getting over 1000 acres burned in 2015 trying to catch up for the low numbers during the drought! It will be an interesting fall though. Your habitat looks quite lush and diverse! Good work! It sure helps to keep things ready for a good weather year. Everything just seems to burst at the seams when the two come together!
 
I have an idea for a Kansas UPH get together. We all head out to the Ponderosa together and Maynard gives us a tour and some education on the work he does to support wildlife. Maybe Troy can give us a lecture on quail too.


I would sign up for that.
 
It really isn't too difficult. Solid stand of grasses are not the way to go. Weeds are great. Forbs are awesome. Usually less is more(leave the critters to do their thing, kind of like putting a "DO NOT DISTURB" sign on your motel door). And Drifter knows quail, habitat, bird dogs, patch burn/graze, along with trapping and other assorted subjects. I have been a student of Drifter's in person and here on UPH.:thumbsup:
 
Dry land corn popping tassels today. Most of the irrigated corn is in the boot with a few tassels showing up in a few fields.
 
A little cool down and some rain. 1.85" at the Ponderosa.

Dryland corn(most acres I have ever seen in area) is looking exceptional as is the dryland milo. Some dryland fields are milo on milo(continuous crop, no fallow period).

Pastures green and deep. CRP fields tall and green. Weeds are growing like crazy. Water in playas and standing in ditches and draws. No water in Arkansas River, but that is another story.

Critters are doing well at moment and learning avoidance techniques.
 
We were above normal for the month of May, but June was about 3.3 inches short of normal. Yesterday we received .13 inches of rain and last night another 1.17. We were due. I am starting to wish I had had the help go ahead and plant more Japanese millet in the marshes yesterday. If we get hammered later today, maybe not.
 
We didn't get any rain worth talking about for the last 4-5 weeks.

But we have some coming down today. Just what I need for my milo buffer strip and millet field.

So since its raining I am going to head to Topeka and pick up some new pigeons to replace the coon carnage.
 
0.75" at Ponderosa

Heavy rains reported in southern Ness County. One of over 5" and one overflowing a 6" gauge.
 
Flood warnings for several areas in SC Kansas.

Here in the west, flood warnings for Meade and Hodgeman.
 
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