Biodiverse Polyculture (USDA 8a Zone Pasture) - sounds better than "My Acres of Weeds"

[U_Stormcrow]

I just looked that stuff up. You pull that barehanded?!?!

The thorns look like what grows on horse nettle. Those have stabbed me through leather gloves. The immature fruit look like cucamelons. Wow, though, do they make a lot of seeds!

What do you do with the pulled weeds? I have weeds that I toss on the compost pile, and some that go on the PITA weed pile. (Looking at you, brome grass!)

Yes, bare hands. Not so bad if you know where to grab them. In gloves, I don't have the same "feel", and am likely to break the plant above ground, as opposed to pulling some of the root with.

and I burn it, VERY intense fire, lots of oxygen and a good coal bed. Same fire style I use to powder bone. Maybe a more common fire would do the trick, but since I scatter the ash on my grounds...

You don't dare risk composting. and trash pick up would rewquire a trip to the dump. We don't have trash pick up, effectively. I could black garbage bag and hope it doesn't break before I have the half day to make the drive.

 

[Sally PB]

Not so bad if you know where to grab them.

Where is the right place to grab? Horse nettle will sometimes have fewer/smaller thorns near the base of the stem, but it's not a sure thing.

I've found that you don't get the entire root with that stuff, either. The main root goes down about 4-5", and the branches off at right angles.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Same, same. If you get right at the base and come in at a slight angle, you usually bend what few spike may be there away from your finger tips. and if the soil is **just right** I can usually pull a decent amount of surface root and an inch or two of the tap root. But the soil need to be either very dry and powdery, or just wet enough. SO patches of the pasture come up very well, other parts? I'll be doing this again in about three weeks. But the second pulling tends to get more tap root - its like it shrinks when it takes some of its stored energy and tries to put up new green tall enough to fight the established greenery.

Or so I pretend.

The soil still needs to be **just right**, and wet doesn't work for second pulling.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

and yes, Horsenettle is basically the same stuff. Same color, same thorns, same leaves, same fruits - the primary difference being that the soda apple tends to be largier and "bushier", given the chance. Same family, same genus, different varietals.

I likely have both in the yard.

and of course, wild birds spread the seeds of both, as well.

 

[ChaosMom]

Pulled 3x Gorilla carts worth of topical soda apple today. MAN, AM I TIRED! Also sunburnt, maybe a bit. Probably "sun touched", not burnt. Skin isn't warm to the touch, just tight.

That's most of a cubic yard of weeds, but the pasture is looking much better for it. Most of it was either starting to flower or flowering, only a cuple were starting to fruit. The stuff will stil come back from roots - but at least it won't also be coming back from seeds next year.

Corn hasn't started to sprout yet - more water, I think. We've nbeen pretty brutal dry this week. I'll water consistently this week, see what comes of it. Otherwise, I have several grasses in seed, and the goats aren't eating all of it (just most of it), the maypops are starting to bloom, and most of the white closer seeds are getting ready to fall.

The pasture has had worse years. MUCH worse.

Oh, and a surprising amoung ot the radish seeds toot this year, and its gone to leaf. Oddly, the goats don't much seem to care for it, a surprise to me. Hopefully breaks up the soil some, and the goats go for it later in the year. June and July tend to be among my wettest months of the year, so... We've almost made it thru the rough patch. (May is my lowest rainfall month - the week before last notwithstanding).

You mentioned radish seeds and breaking up soil - do you plant daikon radish? That stuff is amazing! It even slightly penetrated the non-broken-up heavy clay beneath my raised beds.

Quite a biodrill!
https://sowtrueseed.com/products/nitro-radish?_pos=1&_sid=f6e687ae3&_ss=r

Culinary cultivar:
https://sowtrueseed.com/products/radish-daikon-japanese-minowase?_pos=3&_sid=f6e687ae3&_ss=r

 

[U_Stormcrow]

You mentioned radish seeds and breaking up soil - do you plant daikon radish? That stuff is amazing! It even slightly penetrated the non-broken-up heavy clay beneath my raised beds.

Quite a biodrill!
https://sowtrueseed.com/products/nitro-radish?_pos=1&_sid=f6e687ae3&_ss=r

Culinary cultivar:
https://sowtrueseed.com/products/radish-daikon-japanese-minowase?_pos=3&_sid=f6e687ae3&_ss=r

I wish. My seed mix says "radish". I've tried both "driller" and daikon in the past (and sometims make sushi at home so daikon is goot top have on hand), but neither took. Breaking the clays plus ag lime seems to have made a huge difference in the pasture.

I have pulled a bit, fed it to the bunnies, just to ensure I had correctly identified it. At present, it has a small whitish, vaguely stubby carrot shaped cone of a tap root, rather than the common red round or heart shaped radishes you see on salads. and it has not yet begure to expose the root above the soil level, of course.

I can tell from the leaves that it is NOT daikon.

 

[Sally PB]

You mentioned radish seeds and breaking up soil - do you plant daikon radish? That stuff is amazing! It even slightly penetrated the non-broken-up heavy clay beneath my raised beds.

I need to get some daikon radish seeds. I read that planting some spread out in a winter squash bed helps deter squash bugs. I used to do that, then stopped for some reason. I forgot to plant some the last time I had butternut squash, and oh, wow! did I get squash bugs.

I'm starting some butternut plants this year for my neighbor, but she won't need all of them, so I'll see how they do for me. Butternut used to be my "never fail" crop... until the last few times I grew it. I'm going to try it again, and get some daikon radish growing in it.

FYI... the entire radish plant is edible. Some people will pickle the seed pods. I ate one raw, and it tasted like radish.

 

[ChaosMom]

I wish. My seed mix says "radish". I've tried both "driller" and daikon in the past (and sometims make sushi at home so daikon is goot top have on hand), but neither took. Breaking the clays plus ag lime seems to have made a huge difference in the pasture.

I have pulled a bit, fed it to the bunnies, just to ensure I had correctly identified it. At present, it has a small whitish, vaguely stubby carrot shaped cone of a tap root, rather than the common red round or heart shaped radishes you see on salads. and it has not yet begure to expose the root above the soil level, of course.

I can tell from the leaves that it is NOT daikon.

Well, the color and shape is daikon-ish, anyway!

It sounds like you have a good combo of pasture plants that are working for you.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

I need to get some daikon radish seeds. I read that planting some spread out in a winter squash bed helps deter squash bugs. I used to do that, then stopped for some reason. I forgot to plant some the last time I had butternut squash, and oh, wow! did I get squash bugs.

I'm starting some butternut plants this year for my neighbor, but she won't need all of them, so I'll see how they do for me. Butternut used to be my "never fail" crop... until the last few times I grew it. I'm going to try it again, and get some daikon radish growing in it.

FYI... the entire radish plant is edible. Some people will pickle the seed pods. I ate one raw, and it tasted like radish.

I dd not know that. Will try later in the year when I start my squish again. Have to move a raised bed first. NOT a priority project.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Well, the color and shape is daikon-ish, anyway!

It sounds like you have a good combo of pasture plants that are working for you.

I sure hope so.

Was going to over seed with this stuff, but I've abused the budget this year already.

Maybe if I keep my hen count down and reduce my goat numbers??? What I'd save in feed would easily buy 50#, which is all I really need for the sunny spots. Still struggling to find things that will establish in part shade.