I asked some questions last fall in preperation of planting my CP25 CRP this spring, so I thought I would post some pics of the finished product so far. There is 14.5 acres total, with around 2 acres of it being firebreaks, plus an acre in the middle I left out for foodplots.
I started this spring by chopping the existing corn stalks and cultipacking the field prior to planting as requested by my local County Conservation Board. I ordered my CP25 tall mix from Osenbaugh's and a couple acres worth of their firebreak mix last fall. I called them this spring and had them add in some CIR switchgrass to the mix.
My friendly farmer neighbor came over and planted my firebreaks a couple weeks prior to the CP25 planting. He thought I was a little short on seed for my acreage so we added some Linn perennial rye to the mix to stretch it a bit. The CCB brought their no-till planter over around the end of May (I have the exact dates, but they are locked up in my crashed hard-drive
). As they planted I sprayed some generic gylphosate via an ATV boom sprayer ahead of the planter on some areas that were getting weedy. I had my doubts that it would do any good at that point but I was able to see some benefit from spraying. I got a couple nice rains shortly after planting and then we hit a some what dry spell that had me worried. Starting in late July I began to get plenty of regular rains and the planting really started to come in. This seed mix was not herbicide ready and of course I had some weed issues. I mowed the planting 3 times in an effort to control weeds, which seemed to provide decent control of the broadleaves. My final mowing was near the end of August. I skipped the final mowing on one small area as a control and in that spot I have some Big Bluestem that is well over 6' tall.
All in all I am pretty happy with how the project has turned out. I chose CP25 simply because the ASCS office felt I would need the added points the mix offered in order to be accepted. As it turns out I did not, and I would have been just as happy with a CP2 mix, or better yet a straight CIR switch planting to maximize cover in this small planting. I have nothing against the forbs in the mix except that I dont think they will compete in the long term and they eliminate the option of spraying the plot with 2-4D for weed control. So far I can only I.D. Big Blue, Side Oats Gama, Partridge Pea, and Black Eyed Susan. The rest of the mix is too immature for my rookie eye to sort out. Next year I am hoping to give it a couple mowings by early summer and let it go after that. Although the mix wouldnt be my first choice for deer cover, I do think it will be a big improvement over crop stubble come hunting season.
Most of the taller grass is the Big Bluestem which is thin so far.
In the upper right corner of this pic you can see a strip of the firebreak mix along the edge of the timber.
A close-up
A shot of the firebreak between the CP25 and the neighbors field. Hopefully this will keep me from setting their corn field on fire in a couple years.
This is a close-up of the Osenbaugh firebreak mix. Obviously it has a heavy amount of clover in it which provides a nice bonus food plot. It is jammed full of deer tracks right now.
I started this spring by chopping the existing corn stalks and cultipacking the field prior to planting as requested by my local County Conservation Board. I ordered my CP25 tall mix from Osenbaugh's and a couple acres worth of their firebreak mix last fall. I called them this spring and had them add in some CIR switchgrass to the mix.
My friendly farmer neighbor came over and planted my firebreaks a couple weeks prior to the CP25 planting. He thought I was a little short on seed for my acreage so we added some Linn perennial rye to the mix to stretch it a bit. The CCB brought their no-till planter over around the end of May (I have the exact dates, but they are locked up in my crashed hard-drive
All in all I am pretty happy with how the project has turned out. I chose CP25 simply because the ASCS office felt I would need the added points the mix offered in order to be accepted. As it turns out I did not, and I would have been just as happy with a CP2 mix, or better yet a straight CIR switch planting to maximize cover in this small planting. I have nothing against the forbs in the mix except that I dont think they will compete in the long term and they eliminate the option of spraying the plot with 2-4D for weed control. So far I can only I.D. Big Blue, Side Oats Gama, Partridge Pea, and Black Eyed Susan. The rest of the mix is too immature for my rookie eye to sort out. Next year I am hoping to give it a couple mowings by early summer and let it go after that. Although the mix wouldnt be my first choice for deer cover, I do think it will be a big improvement over crop stubble come hunting season.
Most of the taller grass is the Big Bluestem which is thin so far.
In the upper right corner of this pic you can see a strip of the firebreak mix along the edge of the timber.
A close-up
A shot of the firebreak between the CP25 and the neighbors field. Hopefully this will keep me from setting their corn field on fire in a couple years.
This is a close-up of the Osenbaugh firebreak mix. Obviously it has a heavy amount of clover in it which provides a nice bonus food plot. It is jammed full of deer tracks right now.
