Thanksgiving is great time at Dogwood. Besides having the long weekend, the weather is usually cool enough to enjoy the warmth of a campfire but not too cold to enjoy activates away from the fire. Some trees have shed all of their leaves, while others are in various states of changing color. The dogwood and rusty blackhaw trees display brilliant red foliage, almost as dramatic as the fall color of the poison ivy hanging high in the trees. The pasture was shred last week so the remnants of the snow-on-the-prairie, broomweed and stalks of the KR bluestem were mowed over and no longer hip high. Zipping through the pasture in the Ranger or on the ATV is much more fun than when the grass and weeds are cut down.
After a nice family Thanksgiving feast in Houston (actually Pearland this year) we headed out to Dogwood Friday morning. We mostly worked on the cedar bridge construction project on Friday, finishing the first truss late in the afternoon. We were so busy; we didn’t even get our usual afternoon nap in our lounge chairs under the trees. For lunch we roasted hotdogs over the campfire in our work area on the edge of the woods. Oak smoked campfire roasted hotdogs with yellow mustard and pickle relish may not strike most as a gourmet meal to savor, but after working hard in the woods and thinking about an afternoon of hard work ahead, those dogs were delicious!
On Saturday morning, after watching the sun come up and start shining through the trees while we had our morning coffee and breakfast around the campfire, we decided we needed a break from bridge construction. Instead of starting the second truss as we should, we decided on an impromptu project; clearing the last cedar trees growing along the fence line between Old Dogwood and New Dogwood. We started work about 9:00 a.m. using the chain saw to cut the trees so that they fell on the New Dogwood side of the fence. Using the umpf of the Ranger and a strong rope, we dragged the trees into the pasture far enough from the woods to safety burn the cedar next year, and piled them up into a giant brush pile. We can’t burn them now as there is a burn ban in the county due the dry weather, plus, the trees don’t burn so well when they are green. Some of the trees were too heavy for the Ranger to pull so we cut those cedar in half to drag.
The main objective of this project was to remove the visual barrier created by the cedar so we can look up the hill at the magnificent oak trees we cleared a few weeks ago. It is a dramatic difference and gave us instant gratification in seeing results of hard work right away.
As we worked, we commented that on such a glorious, cloudless, cool fall day it was a shame no one else in the family was enjoying it with us. About 11:00 a.m. while clearing the fence, we got a call from Houston. Pat, Pete, Gail and Kevin decided to come out for a day at the ranch. We hurried the next two hours to complete the fence clearing and cedar dragging so that we would be ready to relax when the guests arrived. We cleared and dragged to the brush pile 13 cedar trees from the fence line by 1:00 p.m. when we declared the job a success.
Once everyone arrived and ate their picnic lunch, we gave tours of the property in the Ranger as none had seen New Dogwood. We tooled around in the pasture, around the mature oak trees that are cleared and those that are not, to the pond on the top of the hill and over by the barn. Kevin enjoyed tending the fire and throwing in sticks, just like the nephews and most little boys (including those like Kevin that are grown professional men!). Gail took photos and rest of us relaxed around the fire, with Pete and Ronnie taking breaks to check on the Arkansas v LSU football game.
It is fascinating to see how people gradually relax when they are outdoors on such a gorgeous day, in the trees and hanging around a campfire – being outdoors and away from the noise and hustle of the city, even for just a few hours, is just good for the spirit.
Showing posts with label brush. Show all posts
Showing posts with label brush. Show all posts
December 3, 2010
September 30, 2010
Invasive Brush Plants - Part 8 - Mesquite
Mesquite or honey mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa var. glandulosa) is one of the toughest, most invasive species of brush in the world according to Texas A&M’s Brush Busters. http://www.cattlementocattlemen.org/uDocs/BrushBusters-Mesquite.pdf/
Biologically, mesquite is classified as a legume. Other legumes you may be more familiar with include clover, alfalfa, peas and beans. The legume family’s claim to fame is that these plants fix nitrogen in the soil. This ability to fix nitrogen is why clover or alfalfa are often used as cover crops to increase nitrogen in the soil for the food crop. I was surprised to learn that mesquite falls into the legume family but I should have known since trees produce long bean pods. Because mesquite is a legume, you may notice that grass growing under the mesquite is greener than the grass growing away from the tree. This is not because the tree shades the grass from the harsh sun but because the grass is benefiting from the nitrogen rich soil under the tree. Nonetheless, mesquite in invasive quantities is undesirable.
At Dogwood Ranch, we do not have a serious mesquite invasion such as many ranches in South Texas. We want to keep it that way through vigilance. Dogwood Ranch only has a few large mesquite trees. As we discovery small saplings in the pasture, we zap them with Remedy right away. Mesquite, like yaupon, cannot just be cut down or shred because it will come back and spread. The roots must be die to kill the tree.
The first large mesquite tree was tackled is chocked up to a live and learn experience. We cut the 9 inch diameter tree down with the chainsaw and then applied Remedy to the stump. So far, so good. From there, we chopped-up the branches and the trunk and drug them across the field to the usual burn area. That was the mistake. When we drug the thorny branches across the pasture, some of the thorns broke off and are now laying in wait on the ground to puncture tires or soles of boots. The next weekend after we chopped down the tree, the brand new UTV (utility terrain vehicle the “Ranger”) got three thorns in the tires requiring patches.
Even worse, we transported mesquite thorns to the burn area on the “old Dogwood” that never has had mesquite. As a result we ended up with thorns in our boots and and area we avoid on the ATV.
Because of this experience, a new plan on how to deal with the large mesquite trees has hatched. In July, we mixed a strong batch of Remedy and water. I sprayed the trunk of the two large mesquite tree all the way around from the ground to about 5 feet up the trunk. Major limbs at that level were sprayed also. At last check two weeks ago, the leaves were starting to turn yellow. According to our neighbor who more mesquite on his place, best practice is to spray the tree but do not cut it down for a year. The lore is that it takes about a year for the roots to completely die. He mixed his spray ½ Remedy, ½ diesel but I think that a little over kill. However, his trees certainly look deader and ours!
After we are sure the trees are dead, we will chop them down and burn them in place, rather than drag them across the property.
Here are a couple of links to sites about Mequite control. http://www.livestockweekly.com/papers/98/11/12/whlbrush.asp
http://coastalbend.tamu.edu/NLO/Resources/BB%20Mesquite%20L5416.pdf
Biologically, mesquite is classified as a legume. Other legumes you may be more familiar with include clover, alfalfa, peas and beans. The legume family’s claim to fame is that these plants fix nitrogen in the soil. This ability to fix nitrogen is why clover or alfalfa are often used as cover crops to increase nitrogen in the soil for the food crop. I was surprised to learn that mesquite falls into the legume family but I should have known since trees produce long bean pods. Because mesquite is a legume, you may notice that grass growing under the mesquite is greener than the grass growing away from the tree. This is not because the tree shades the grass from the harsh sun but because the grass is benefiting from the nitrogen rich soil under the tree. Nonetheless, mesquite in invasive quantities is undesirable.
At Dogwood Ranch, we do not have a serious mesquite invasion such as many ranches in South Texas. We want to keep it that way through vigilance. Dogwood Ranch only has a few large mesquite trees. As we discovery small saplings in the pasture, we zap them with Remedy right away. Mesquite, like yaupon, cannot just be cut down or shred because it will come back and spread. The roots must be die to kill the tree.
The first large mesquite tree was tackled is chocked up to a live and learn experience. We cut the 9 inch diameter tree down with the chainsaw and then applied Remedy to the stump. So far, so good. From there, we chopped-up the branches and the trunk and drug them across the field to the usual burn area. That was the mistake. When we drug the thorny branches across the pasture, some of the thorns broke off and are now laying in wait on the ground to puncture tires or soles of boots. The next weekend after we chopped down the tree, the brand new UTV (utility terrain vehicle the “Ranger”) got three thorns in the tires requiring patches.
Even worse, we transported mesquite thorns to the burn area on the “old Dogwood” that never has had mesquite. As a result we ended up with thorns in our boots and and area we avoid on the ATV.
Because of this experience, a new plan on how to deal with the large mesquite trees has hatched. In July, we mixed a strong batch of Remedy and water. I sprayed the trunk of the two large mesquite tree all the way around from the ground to about 5 feet up the trunk. Major limbs at that level were sprayed also. At last check two weeks ago, the leaves were starting to turn yellow. According to our neighbor who more mesquite on his place, best practice is to spray the tree but do not cut it down for a year. The lore is that it takes about a year for the roots to completely die. He mixed his spray ½ Remedy, ½ diesel but I think that a little over kill. However, his trees certainly look deader and ours!
After we are sure the trees are dead, we will chop them down and burn them in place, rather than drag them across the property.
Here are a couple of links to sites about Mequite control. http://www.livestockweekly.com/papers/98/11/12/whlbrush.asp
http://coastalbend.tamu.edu/NLO/Resources/BB%20Mesquite%20L5416.pdf
September 29, 2010
Invasive Brush Plants - Part 7 - Juniper or Cedar
Now that we have discussed why we want to clear the juniper, let’s chat about how we do it. Basically, there is one method we use to clear juniper – cut it down. Unlike yaupon, it will not come up from the roots. The small saplings we whack down with the machete. For the trees, the chainsaw is the only way. The problem with the juniper is what to do with the tree after it is chopped down. If it is in the woods, sometimes we will just let it lay where it fell and become cover for birds and small mammals and eventually rot. If we don’t want to leave it, we use the chain saw to cut the limbs and drag them to the burn area.
You have to be careful working with it because the leaves or nettles are pokey and itchy, especially when they fall down your shirt or get in your breaches. Wearing gloves is a good idea. Because the trees have sticky sap, don’t sit on a freshly cut stump or you will have a sticky backside! The cedar does smell nice when cut.
Burning juniper is pretty much a mess. There is so much moisture in the leaves when green that they create a lot of white smoke and if piled on too high, will snuff out the fire. It’s best to let it dry out a few weeks before burning. Even then it is a mess. When the sap heats in the fire it pops, sometimes shooting small burning pieces out of the fire ring. The foliage initially goes up in huge flares and the burned needles can float on the smoke carrying a spark. We don’t burn juniper if the area is dry or if there is burn ban in the county as it is too dangerous.
We are experimenting this year with a twist on the “just cut it down” method by ringing the tree and letting it die in place. We used the chain saw to make a cut about an inch deep through the bark all the way around the tree. On some, we then used a paint brush to put Remedy in the cut and some we did not use Remedy. In a few weeks the leaves starting turning brown on all of the ringed trees. We are hoping the advantage of this method will prove to be that the tree dies, the thick leaves fall off and let light in to the grass. Once the leaves are gone, we can chop down the tree with much less mess and less burning. We ringed four or five large trees last spring and are monitoring their “progress”. I will report back on how this process works.
Even though we strive to eliminate most of the juniper, it does have some useful purposes. We use the limbs for replacement fence posts. The fences around Dogwood Ranch are about 60 years old and many of the old cedar fence posts have rotted and are falling down. In some areas, only brush is holding up the barbed wire. We are also in the process of building a bridge over the creek with boards we cut from the large cedar trunks. It has taken about 2 years to cut enough boards and beams but we plan to finally start building the bridge this fall. It needs to be strong enough to span 25 feet and hold a John Deer mower and one adult. I will report on bridge building progress later this fall.
You have to be careful working with it because the leaves or nettles are pokey and itchy, especially when they fall down your shirt or get in your breaches. Wearing gloves is a good idea. Because the trees have sticky sap, don’t sit on a freshly cut stump or you will have a sticky backside! The cedar does smell nice when cut.
Burning juniper is pretty much a mess. There is so much moisture in the leaves when green that they create a lot of white smoke and if piled on too high, will snuff out the fire. It’s best to let it dry out a few weeks before burning. Even then it is a mess. When the sap heats in the fire it pops, sometimes shooting small burning pieces out of the fire ring. The foliage initially goes up in huge flares and the burned needles can float on the smoke carrying a spark. We don’t burn juniper if the area is dry or if there is burn ban in the county as it is too dangerous.
We are experimenting this year with a twist on the “just cut it down” method by ringing the tree and letting it die in place. We used the chain saw to make a cut about an inch deep through the bark all the way around the tree. On some, we then used a paint brush to put Remedy in the cut and some we did not use Remedy. In a few weeks the leaves starting turning brown on all of the ringed trees. We are hoping the advantage of this method will prove to be that the tree dies, the thick leaves fall off and let light in to the grass. Once the leaves are gone, we can chop down the tree with much less mess and less burning. We ringed four or five large trees last spring and are monitoring their “progress”. I will report back on how this process works.
Even though we strive to eliminate most of the juniper, it does have some useful purposes. We use the limbs for replacement fence posts. The fences around Dogwood Ranch are about 60 years old and many of the old cedar fence posts have rotted and are falling down. In some areas, only brush is holding up the barbed wire. We are also in the process of building a bridge over the creek with boards we cut from the large cedar trunks. It has taken about 2 years to cut enough boards and beams but we plan to finally start building the bridge this fall. It needs to be strong enough to span 25 feet and hold a John Deer mower and one adult. I will report on bridge building progress later this fall.
September 20, 2010
Invasive Brush Plants – Part 5 – Yaupon Holly Continued
Basal Trunk Paint – This method is used when the invaded area and the trunks are too large to lopper or use the clearing saw. We apply the Remedy-oil mixture from the ground up the all the way around the yaupon truck to about a foot to 18 inches up the trunk. The mixture needs to be applied around the entire trunk to make sure all of the roots die. We have two different application methods. When we first started this method several years ago, we used a large paint brush. As you can image, crawling around on the ground or squatting while painting is hard on the legs and knees so, we started using a “wand” applicator. It is a simple device (we bought the first one and made the second one) made of one inch PVC with a rolling paint applicator on the end. We fill the PVC tube with the Remedy mixture, and it runs into a threaded elbow connector into a cylinder that the rolling applicator is connected to. Through holes in the cylinder, the Remedy mixture soaks the rolling paint applicator.
Then, standing up right (as humans evolved to do) we roll the Remedy soaked rolling brush on the tree trunk. By using the wands, we can reach the basal trunks without getting down on the ground. It’s much better on our hands, knees and backs and the process goes much faster. We try to make our wand applications in February or March, before the grass and weeds starting growing again and turn the underbrush into “Chiggerville” again. Then, we wait all summer and watch the tree trucks start to crack and peel and the leaves turn yellow, then brown to black and fall off as the trees die in place. The next fall when the chiggers are dormant, we walk through the area and push down the dead yaupon, drag them to the burn area and burn them.
To conclude this yaupon discussion, there are other methods, such a prescribed burns that we have also tried. This will be the subject of a later post. The reason we chose these manual labor intensive methods is that they are the only ways we can be selective, and only destroy the yaupon while leaving the oak, dogwood and other desirable plants.
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| Paint roller end of the "Wand" |
Then, standing up right (as humans evolved to do) we roll the Remedy soaked rolling brush on the tree trunk. By using the wands, we can reach the basal trunks without getting down on the ground. It’s much better on our hands, knees and backs and the process goes much faster. We try to make our wand applications in February or March, before the grass and weeds starting growing again and turn the underbrush into “Chiggerville” again. Then, we wait all summer and watch the tree trucks start to crack and peel and the leaves turn yellow, then brown to black and fall off as the trees die in place. The next fall when the chiggers are dormant, we walk through the area and push down the dead yaupon, drag them to the burn area and burn them.
To conclude this yaupon discussion, there are other methods, such a prescribed burns that we have also tried. This will be the subject of a later post. The reason we chose these manual labor intensive methods is that they are the only ways we can be selective, and only destroy the yaupon while leaving the oak, dogwood and other desirable plants.
September 18, 2010
Invasive Brush Plants – Part 4 – Yaupon Holly Continued
Clear & Spray Method – This method works best in clearing a large area choked with small yaupon. We use either a pair of loppers to cut the small yaupon trunks or a mechanical clearing saw device. The clearing saw is like a weed-eater on steroids, instead of a little plastic string for cutting, it uses is metal circular saw blade.
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| Stihl Clearing Saw |
Once we cut out the small brush and drag it to the burn area, the job is done until spring or summer the next year. This is when the cut yaupon will make is big comeback by sprouting from the root. When the regrowth is about shin to knee high, we spray the foliage with Remedy mixed with water and a squirt of liquid dish soap. We use water instead of oil in the Remedy mixture because the mixture sprays better and stays on the leaves just fine. Depending on how strong the Remedy mixture, the leaves will get black spots overnight and a few weeks later turn completely black, fall off and the plant dies, including the roots. The trick here is to patiently wait for the regrowth and to spray the mixture in warm weather while the plant is growing so that it will take in the poison. This method has a very good success rate, but sometimes a second pass with the spray is needed to get plants that were not sprayed the first time because they were too small or not noticed because they were covered with leaves. I have heard, but not confirmed, that if you don’t put enough Remedy on the first time, a more vigorous and more difficult to kill plant will emerge. So, we make sure we use enough at the right strength, usually ¼ Remedy to ¾ water so that we do not create a super-yaupon resistant to Remedy.
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| Guests Burning Yaupon and Cedar |
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September 13, 2010
Invasive Brush Plants – Part 2 – Yaupon Holly
Ilex vomitoria is an apt name for yaupon. Guess what happens if you eat the red berries of the yaupon? That’s right, you vomit! It does not take a PhD in botony to figure out that a plant with the Latin name for vomit is probably not fit to eat. According the National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees, yaupon leaves contain high caffeine content and Native Americans used to brew them with the berries into a tea to induce vomiting. The “black drink” as it was called reportedly was also a laxative. According to Audubon, native tribes from the interior of hte US traveled to the coast each year to participate in a cleansing ritual with yaupon black drink. We are certainly not making black drink or brewing yaupon tea at Dogwood Ranch. If there was a real commercial market for yaupon tea, we would be rich! We will stick to getting our morning caffeine from coffee.
In small numbers, yaupon can be beneficial to wildlife as it provides food for deer and birds. We see lots of little birds nest in the yaupon and when vines grow into and over the yaupon, it creates a thicket that birds seem to like. The brush also provides cover for other small wildlife. However, solid choking invasive stands of yaupon are harmful to native’s grasses, forbs and other wildlife food sources. Under a thick stand of yaupon, there is little to no grass. Besides, the thickets that crowed around oaks and other large trees destroy the larger trees majestic beauty and take water and resources from them.
The problem with yaupon eradication, or even just attempting to control it and establish peaceful co-existence with it, is that simply cutting it down will not do the trick. Once cut, the yaupon will sprout back from the root and sometimes sprout directly from the cut surface. To kill it completely, the roots must either but removed from the ground or otherwise killed. We’ve see folks clear out yaupon by pulling a bush hog behind a tractor but in a few years, the area will be just as dense with yaupon so little was accomplished. Besides, it’s difficult to be selective in what is cut down with bush hog so along will yaupon, small beneficial plants that may not grow back are destroyed.
Yaupon eradication is such a problem that numerous papers have been written on the subject. One master’s thesis submission by Stephanie Renee Dupree of Texas Tech University compared various eradication methods. The link to her paper is http://etd.lib.ttu.edu/theses/available/etd-07012008-31295019526226/unrestricted/31295019526226.pdf
Also see Managing Yaupon with Fire and Herbicide in the Texas Post Oak Savannah published by the USDA Agricultural Research Service http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1211&context=usdaarsfacpub
and the Texas Parks and Wildlife publication
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_br_w7000_0010p_color.pdf
Digging up yaupon is not an option on Dogwood Ranch because is there is just too much of it. Instead, we have to kill the roots in place. We use three methods, unfortunately all very labor intensive, depending on the situation: 1. Cut and paint stump; 2. Clear and spray; 3. Basal trunk paint. I will describe each method in detail.
Here is a before and after shot of an early yaupon brush clearing around an oak tree.
In small numbers, yaupon can be beneficial to wildlife as it provides food for deer and birds. We see lots of little birds nest in the yaupon and when vines grow into and over the yaupon, it creates a thicket that birds seem to like. The brush also provides cover for other small wildlife. However, solid choking invasive stands of yaupon are harmful to native’s grasses, forbs and other wildlife food sources. Under a thick stand of yaupon, there is little to no grass. Besides, the thickets that crowed around oaks and other large trees destroy the larger trees majestic beauty and take water and resources from them.
The problem with yaupon eradication, or even just attempting to control it and establish peaceful co-existence with it, is that simply cutting it down will not do the trick. Once cut, the yaupon will sprout back from the root and sometimes sprout directly from the cut surface. To kill it completely, the roots must either but removed from the ground or otherwise killed. We’ve see folks clear out yaupon by pulling a bush hog behind a tractor but in a few years, the area will be just as dense with yaupon so little was accomplished. Besides, it’s difficult to be selective in what is cut down with bush hog so along will yaupon, small beneficial plants that may not grow back are destroyed.
Yaupon eradication is such a problem that numerous papers have been written on the subject. One master’s thesis submission by Stephanie Renee Dupree of Texas Tech University compared various eradication methods. The link to her paper is http://etd.lib.ttu.edu/theses/available/etd-07012008-31295019526226/unrestricted/31295019526226.pdf
Also see Managing Yaupon with Fire and Herbicide in the Texas Post Oak Savannah published by the USDA Agricultural Research Service http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1211&context=usdaarsfacpub
and the Texas Parks and Wildlife publication
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_br_w7000_0010p_color.pdf
Digging up yaupon is not an option on Dogwood Ranch because is there is just too much of it. Instead, we have to kill the roots in place. We use three methods, unfortunately all very labor intensive, depending on the situation: 1. Cut and paint stump; 2. Clear and spray; 3. Basal trunk paint. I will describe each method in detail.
Here is a before and after shot of an early yaupon brush clearing around an oak tree.
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| Before |
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| After |
September 9, 2010
Invasive Brush Plants – Part 1
Just as there are the Big Three Dangers at Dogwood Ranch, there are the Big Three Invasive Brush Plants: 1. yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria); 2. Juniper, also called Texas cedar (Juniperus virginiana) and 3. Mesquite (Prosopis gladulosa var. glardulosa).
As described in the post describing the Blackland Prairie, heavy cultivation of the land in Washington County gave an opening for invasive plant species to do what invasive species do best – invade.
All three of these plants are undesirable in Texas when they become invasive such that state biologists, agricultural agents and wildlife experts encourage Texans to rid their property of these plants. Generally, the problem with these plants is they are water-hogs, invasive and push-out the native grasses and plants. For instance, yaupon holly underbrush can be so dense in the woods we cannot even walk through it. Bcause it is evergreen and densely foliated, very little grass will grow under them. The foliage usually starts about a foot up the trunk and give whitetail deer little cover from predators, such as coyotes. The coyotes learn to lay flat on the ground to look out into the yaupon where deer, and particularly fawn, can be seen if bedded down in the trees.
Juniper also create dense shade in which little grass grows. Plus, the juniper tend to grow up next to the trunk of other trees like oak and elm and suck the water way from these more desirable native trees. On Dogwood Ranch, we noticed lots of large juniper trees with the stump of a dead oak or eml right next to it. Our theroy is that the juniper contributed to the death of the other tree by sucking-up the water and nutrients
Dogwood Ranch doesn’t have a serious mesquite problem but there is just enough to be nuisance. Besides its invasive quality, if you have ever stepped on a mesquite thorn with bare feet or had one penetrate the sole of your shoe, you understand that any mesquite is too much mesquite-unless its being used to smoke your barbecue!
When the county agricultural agent and biologist came out to Dogwood in 2003, they both encouraged us to get rid of the yaupon and juniper. We did not have any mesquite on that portion of the property. Looking across the fence line to a neighbor’s property South of Dogwood, the new juniper growth was intense and the biologist shook his head in dismay saying “I hate to see this kind of thing” meaning property owners that allow juniper to further invade their property.
We took their advice to heart despite that about 2/3 of the initial Dogwood Ranch property was choked with dense yaupon holly brush. Further, the juniper grew undisturbed during Dogwood's hunting lease days for decades so the trees reached heights 50 or 60 feet. Through trial and error and advice from experts and other landowners, we have developed eradication programs using different technics for each type of invasive brush. In next few posts, I will describe our now finely tuned process for each type of plant and circumstance. By far the most difficult of the three to control is the yaupon so I will start with it.
As described in the post describing the Blackland Prairie, heavy cultivation of the land in Washington County gave an opening for invasive plant species to do what invasive species do best – invade.
All three of these plants are undesirable in Texas when they become invasive such that state biologists, agricultural agents and wildlife experts encourage Texans to rid their property of these plants. Generally, the problem with these plants is they are water-hogs, invasive and push-out the native grasses and plants. For instance, yaupon holly underbrush can be so dense in the woods we cannot even walk through it. Bcause it is evergreen and densely foliated, very little grass will grow under them. The foliage usually starts about a foot up the trunk and give whitetail deer little cover from predators, such as coyotes. The coyotes learn to lay flat on the ground to look out into the yaupon where deer, and particularly fawn, can be seen if bedded down in the trees.
Juniper also create dense shade in which little grass grows. Plus, the juniper tend to grow up next to the trunk of other trees like oak and elm and suck the water way from these more desirable native trees. On Dogwood Ranch, we noticed lots of large juniper trees with the stump of a dead oak or eml right next to it. Our theroy is that the juniper contributed to the death of the other tree by sucking-up the water and nutrients
Dogwood Ranch doesn’t have a serious mesquite problem but there is just enough to be nuisance. Besides its invasive quality, if you have ever stepped on a mesquite thorn with bare feet or had one penetrate the sole of your shoe, you understand that any mesquite is too much mesquite-unless its being used to smoke your barbecue!
When the county agricultural agent and biologist came out to Dogwood in 2003, they both encouraged us to get rid of the yaupon and juniper. We did not have any mesquite on that portion of the property. Looking across the fence line to a neighbor’s property South of Dogwood, the new juniper growth was intense and the biologist shook his head in dismay saying “I hate to see this kind of thing” meaning property owners that allow juniper to further invade their property.
We took their advice to heart despite that about 2/3 of the initial Dogwood Ranch property was choked with dense yaupon holly brush. Further, the juniper grew undisturbed during Dogwood's hunting lease days for decades so the trees reached heights 50 or 60 feet. Through trial and error and advice from experts and other landowners, we have developed eradication programs using different technics for each type of invasive brush. In next few posts, I will describe our now finely tuned process for each type of plant and circumstance. By far the most difficult of the three to control is the yaupon so I will start with it.
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