Question for the farmers out there

B

berettadouble

Member
In Iowa at least, the hillsides are largely terraced, with jack squat growing on them. It would seem if there was cover on them it could only help wildlife. I can't say I ever see farmers knock anything down or mow it, just nothing seems to grow there. Why is that? Is it the moisture, steepness, overspray, cultivation? And is there something that could be planted along them that would benefit birds AND help stop erosion. IF there were some cover on these it would be fantastic and the little bit of ground clearly isn't getting used anyhow.
And finally for all posters- please, please let this not degenerate into a hunter vs farmer debate. This is really just some simple questioning.
 
Most of the terraces around me are planted with something. Usually a cool season grass. There are some terrace that you farm over. For the most part you have to plant something on them or they will erode away. I can not think of a reason to leave them bare.
 
I can't say they're exactly bare, but ankle high grass thats not real thick. Not much cover for anything. I know a gnarly root system is the last thing desired- but is there something out there more beneficial?
 
No- just always looks stunted. There are exceptions, but alot of what I mean are (Brome?) grasses that just doens't get thick or tall. Wish I had pictures...
 
They probably use brome because it competes well with weeds. But yea not the greatest when it comes to cover.
 
I know around here some of the Bigger farmers just spray them not for sure why you would want too. Grass gets stunted looks bad what does grow back. Boom lengh don't match up and their to lazy to shut part of the boom off is only thing I can think of. We have brome grass planted in ours not the best grass for nesting but holds the soil good. There are programs if you put better grasses for wildlife on them. Same with the waterways.
 
I farm kinda sorta, Mostly a hay guy. My two cents and IM not from Iowa. Most farmers dont care about conservation. Mostly like what everyone says if they are planted to brome they dont erode. It works for the farmer. There is a special few out there that do care about wildlife.But for the most part at least in my area its about putting the most bushels in the bin or to town u can.
 
engpointerman said:
I farm kinda sorta, Mostly a hay guy. My two cents and IM not from Iowa. Most farmers dont care about conservation. Mostly like what everyone says if they are planted to brome they dont erode. It works for the farmer. There is a special few out there that do care about wildlife.But for the most part at least in my area its about putting the most bushels in the bin or to town u can.
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Sad but true Engpointerman:thumbsup: Superfarmers around here pay top dollar for crp land just to plow it up when it expires. then grid tile it when its sand or gravel real smart. One even bought a golf course ands going to farm it:thumbsup:
 
Cool wildlife stuff for terraces:D Maybe if they made a 4000HP tractor with a seeder for terraces/crp farmers would buy it and plant some good stuff:thumbsup: I think I've figured out how to make crp cool to farmer:)
 
One of the reasons you're seeing stunted looking plants on terraces is due to the soil. When terraces are built, the soil is disturbed. What you eventually get in many places is top soil buried and subsoil on top. Subsoil is largely mineral and doesn't have the organic matter or fertility of true top soil. Thus, anything that grows on it fails to achieve optimal growth. It doesn't matter what you plant in that situation, it isn't going to preform up to your expectations. Many of those acres should never have been broken. It's unfortunate, because had they not been, they would have been part of the solution instead of part of the problem.
 
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