I've let my pastures go WAY beyond where I usually do this year. It's just been a crazy year with a million things going on and not enough time for everything. I've finally got a free weekend and hooked the bush hog up, but now I'm second guessing myself.

On the one hand I don't want the woody veg to get a foot hold again, and there's quite a bit of clover and alfalfa that still hold on out there and does quite well when I keep the fields short.

On the other hand the song birds are loving these over grown pastures. I bet I saw 20 different species out there this morning including about 100 goldfinches all over the thistles. I've also seen more rabbits this summer than I have in years. I'm sure the tall grass helps their chances greatly.

Right now the fields are knee to chest high with a great variety of grasses, weeds and wild flowers. It's too late in the season to expect much regrowth before the freeze. I'm thinking just let it go and cut in the spring. Any thoughts?

Mow half.

Mow a strip, skip a strip.

Not knowing where you are, what your goals are, and probably a dozen other details (like how well the fish might be biting if you decide to fish and not mow), there isn't a lot one can really say.

if you have horses grazing the pasture then cut it.

Yep, I"d leave some and mow some. Best of both worlds.

The worst, IMHO, is to be total cover or total food.

I'd let it be

My first thought was mowing strips, unless you can graze it.

No grazers here. This is strictly for personal enjoyment and the benefit to wildlife. There's no lack of food this year here for the deer. Corn and winter wheat surround me, plus i just put in 2+ acres of oats just for the deer. Apples and pears are the best crop in years not to mention crab apples. I haven't been out to survey the acorns but if they are like everything else it should be a bumper year.

I'm thinking I'll just mow a couple passes around the outside edges to keep the woods from encroaching and leave the rest. We had a hen turkey hanging out in the pasture this spring and we're pretty sure she was nesting there. I let it go hoping she could get a nest off without being disturbed. The farmers here cut hay so early that most field nests don't stand a chance.

I cant recall where i read it, but in regards to turkey, they nest in the tall grass NEXT TO The woods.

So DONT cut the grass right up against the woods. It allows an escape path from the high grass if you leave the grass right next to the hard woods for them when pressured by yotes, hawks, or us.

Start cutting out a bit further. Like 4 or 5 foot.

I like the idea of cutting some and leaving some. Song birds are great enjoyment.

even though animals browse on browse and not so much grass, that browse can get old and tough. Bush hogging makes it develop new tender growht. Just FWIW

cut the whole field the birds will love the seeds and the bugs the Bush Hog will make more available to them . Deer will like the field better with new clover growth

One caveat: You can easily bush hog a fawn in the tall grass. Lots of people have done it. Since you've waited this long I'd probably wait a little longer but that's just me. It would torture me to know that I'd run over a baby deer with a bush hog.

Since you don't want woody stuff to get back in, I'd mow strips and then alternate either later this year or next year. Keep some tall grass at all times. If you have treelines, only mow half of the grass along those rather than the entire line.

Reminds me I have to get the birdfeeders filled up and start feeding the goldfinches before they lose their summer colors. Love those birds.

This late in the year, I don't think you are very likely to mow a fawn. They are pretty mobile now.

I've got some I keep in strips.

When the growing up section gets saplings, I cut them and let the other parts go.

It's good animal habitat, and the deer, quail and rabbits love it, and it keeps me in blackberries.

I don't know what plant hardiness zone you are in. If in the northern zones, clover and alfalfa will be storing energy reserves in the roots now or soon.

Do not cut now. I would develop your plan for the pastures this winter and act accordingly in the spring.

It sucks. My dad hit one with the hay mower once. Kinda sad but it happens. Course I'll be 30 next month and thats the only time I can recall so not too bad I guess.

I have hit a hen setting on eggs before with the lawn mower. Kinda bad deal too. Poof.

If you're worried about songbirds, rabbits, and fawns, you don't have pastures. You have nature plots.

Mow it in strips. Fawns and turkey poults should be a non issue at this point. The only small critters you'd need to worry about would be rabbits and they'll usually go under the mower without being harmed.

I would mow it all.

If feasible I would leave it until spring. I would then burn it off. Will get rid of a lot of undesirable plants and release a lot of nutrients into the soil.

We don't know how big the field is... If it's huge burn a third every three years. Keep alternating. Get professional advice on when to burn in your area and listen to them.

I couple years ago similar thing happened to me, 15 acre pasture bordered on the north by the river on the south and west by wooded ridges. I saw more bucks that season in the high grass than any other season. Killed two nice 8 points off the high grass.
I bushhogged in February, the grass was dry, thin, and easy to cut. The first cut of hay in late May was a bumper crop.

I am in the same position again this year and plan on cutting shooting lanes through the high grass and leave the rest till February again.

This. Just cut it.

Killed this (bedded in the high stuff) in a like field that weren't cut.

You might set the mower to cut way high to cut off the blooms of thistle and wild carrots (Queen Ann's Lace) to keep them from seeding, but it may already be too late for that. Mowing them off reduces the amount of food they can store in the roots for for next year's growth. If you have Canadian Thistle, fall is a good time to spray herbicide to kill it, and wait a couple of weeks at least before you mow it. It is stubborn stuff, but the right herbicide will pretty well get rid of it after a couple of years of spraying.

Mowing real high will reduce the chances of munching up rabbits and other critters.

I found that after you mow them off, the damn weeds get smart and bloom and go to seed at a shorter height every time you cut them, unless you cut it very short.

Myron

leave it, PM incoming

It's really only about 5 acres total of pasture. I own 78 acres. 5-6 in "pasture", about 3 in tilled food plots of about an acre each, about 20acres under ankle to knee deep water thanks to the beavers, (but full of ducks and geese) and the rest in successional forest ranging from overgrown dogwood thickets to mature hardwoods. It's really just an old farm that was slowly converting back to nature till I came along. I cut a little firewood and try to leave the mast trees for the critters. There are volunteer apple and pear trees all over the property thanks to the squirrels and deer. This place is more hobby though than anything. My goal is just to benefit the most diverse number of species as I can on my little piece of paradise.


thanks for all the advice!

My lawn grass was 8 inches high when I mowed it yesterday in a driving rain. These 600 mile lawn care commutes are killing me....

The earth worms I smuggled in 15 years ago across two international borders ago are doing fine, tho -they are everywhere on the surface. Getting kinda drowny underground I guess. The robins are happy...

Diversity breeds diversity.

Dang. Thought this was gonna be like the bouncing boob thread.

Dave