Native forbs/invasives

Haha, Yeah Cheap!!! It's pretty pricey around here too. $3000 and up for completely undeveloped land. Quite a bit more for anything that's tillable. My brother-in-law just bought 20 acres, 17 timber and 3 in CRP for $3250 an acre. There was another 80 that was adjoining that sold just about as fast as it was listed.

 

You guys think that is salty....good buildable or tillable ground here goes for $6K/acre minimum unless something is wrong with it. When I nabbed mine for sub $2300/acre for the 22 and change of a larger 27 acre piece no one wanted I danced all the way to the bank...literally! Despite having a high water table, tons of old junk along a tree line, a known covered trash pit and only about 4 acres of "buildable" ground my soil is dark and I know I could sell it for more than I paid.

As for fighting invasives and non-desirables to the OP, have a plan...if you attempt to tackle say all of the honeysuckle in the entire property you won't...however, I've slowly begun to make a plan for chunks of my property. I like some have discussed had a property which largely was just fallow fields in size of roughly 4-6 acres on the West side and maybe pushing 9 on the other. The West side had been fallow so long there are cedars taller than a person and one over the 14 foot mark...lots of wild pear, cottonwood and poplar through out as well....and in one section the honeysuckle bush (if biologist buddy) was right on ID...needless to say longterm I'd love that invasive bush gone...however currently we are talking about one of my best bedding areas. Now granted it has been fallow and growing so long that this past spring I went in and spent days cutting arteries throughout it and making it a functional breathing bedding again. However, my hope is in a dozen years this spot will have transitioned over into native brush varieties I'll encourage and plant between then and now. Nibbling away at the edges as I go.

Not too mention I killed off an area to the south of the above described bedding area and completely brush hogged it and spray killed it. About an acre in size, going to frost seed switch, big blue stem and some other native grasses...hoping by 2019 to have a stand forming....once it proves viable and lush...I'll do this same thing to another acre or so.

Another thing is start buying and planting trees NOW...you will only regret it if you don't. Apple, Pear, oaks, chestnuts, spruce...whatever you feel your property needs or would be better with DO IT! Even if all you can do or afford is to get the seeds or nuts and start them that way go for it! Forestry programs in each state exist without many realizing it and have awesome native species for sale usually once a year.

I have an area about 5 acres in size just riddled with far too mature pines and then just maples and cottonwoods...timber value is low, but going to have them log it HARD and then I'll be shoving desirables in the ground asap...oaks, chestnuts and such....sure it might be 5, 15 or even 25 years before they really drop a lot...but the landscape of the overall property is that much better for wildlife and on the market.

Just some ramblings...

 

Bush honeysuckle, russian olive, autumn olive.....I've heard it called all 3. My name for it is not appropriate to type out on tbis forum.

We have 100+ acres of woods covered in this crap and it has put a major dent in our property. We're too far behind the ball to catch up now but prevent it from spreading if at all possible!

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If I truly had a large chunk of it....personally I know folks that have had success simply bulldozing sections. Strong chemical treatment that first whole season or spot control throughout year one.

Buddy of mine has about 100 acres of family ground. They estimate about 20 acres solid was 80% or more solid autumn olive (which is not bush honeysuckle to best of my knowledge, but could be wrong). They finally had a enough and had a bulldozer come in, clear a 5 acre section completely. They then for Spring Green up allowed nothing to grow. Then frost seeded in the following spring native grasses (switch, blue stem and such). They are in year 3 of the stand maturing and they have each year walked through hack and squirting any of the bushes popping back up.

 

Sounds like a losing battle.

 

Losing....eh...long term, without a doubt. They plan on doing 5 to 10 acres a year like this till native grasses or they've also thought about shoving native bushes in the ground as well.

Me personally I think I'd just shift to not allow any more of it to spread and maybe start shaving in on the borders of it or chipping away little by little over time. Shoot even just clean cutting it and allowing itself to regen would be awesome deer habitat and you could continually have a chunk at different levels of growth.

 

The entire thing needs nuked.

 

Which is also another option. LOL

I will attempt to find it on another forum but I remember one guy actually had a crop duster company come in and spray treat an entire like 40 or 60 acres of the stuff once. Completely nuked it dead....bulldozed it over and started from scratch. Cannot fathom how much money it cost.

 

Just a guess but ~$400-$600/acre for land improvement that's valued at $6000+/acre without the gross invasive over run...seems to make sense

 

He was also not a sole "deer farmer" as I call it. He wanted and knew a large portion of it could be farmed/leased out to neighboring farmer. Essentially if memory serves right he thought the cost was worth the long term lease income it would generate over the years to a farmer...I think if you have the front end capital it is the perfect way to handle it.

 

I believe this is the Asian bush honeysuckle. It grows about 4 feet tall and covers the forest floor. I don’t own this property, I just have permission to hunt/“manage” it. It backs up to my yard so it’s convienient to work on and I enjoy the habitat work, but I can’t justify dumping a ton of money in to it. I don’t mind buying some herbicide or seed and sweat equity though. I only plan on living here for about 5 more years so it ought to be really good for the next guy.