how to prepare dove field

arrow4u

Senior Member
Just wondering on my field, we have about a ten acre millitt field and the millitt is still just as green as it was when it started growing. should i cut it and let it lay, if so when. or should i cut it and then dry it then burn it????? i already went down and cut permiter around some of the terraces and the birds are stating to show up.
 

gtaff

Banned
is this a pay shoot??????
 

CAL

Senior Member
arrow,

If it were me I would strip the field with a bushog and let it lay.Cut it real close to the ground as doves like to see the dirt.I would do it tomorrow if at all possible.It is later than we think!
Good luck with your field.
 

Dustin Pate

Administrator
Staff member
I like for it to dry before cutting. It helps the seeds sling off the stalk. Ours is just on time drying. We will cut a few strips this weekend if it isn't to wet. Next weekend it all gets cut.
 

arrow4u

Senior Member
gtaff no its not, but next year it might be. thanks for the help. should i cut and take the rake and fluff it??????
 

General Lee

Senior Member
From my experience,the rake helps so if you have access to one by all means use it.Raking does several things,cleans the ground because as Cal said,the cleaner the better with doves.It also knocks of seed that didn't come off with the bush hog. I've heard several folks around here talking about how their millet "won't turn colors this year"It may have a lot to do with all this rain we've had.Good Luck! :clap:
 

volguy

Senior Member
your field

have the same problem each year but it is all the johnson grass. the millet is as dry as it can get underneath. however, you should spray it because the green is all the weeds. if your millet is green, it isn't ripe and you don't need to cut it because the birds are not going to feed on the green seed.

spraying is what is recommended at least. mix about 3 gallons of roundup per 140 gallons. that will brown up everything and then you come in and bush hog it, fluff it if you have a fluffer and burn it. if you do all those things, it will look like a dirt road after you burn it because all the stems will be dry enough to burn underneath.
 
if your btm has not made seed yet you might want to wait for and shoot it the 2nd or 3rd. weekend of the season. If your seed has made and the plant has not browned out yet you can use a glyphophate (round up) at a quart per ac.

you can find some chemicals that will work faster but this is the safer one to use. you will need to let the morning dew dry off before sparying and it may take a week to ten days for the chem. to kill all of the vegitation. I have also found that if you will wait untill the dew burns off before you mow you will have better results with the fire. good luck.
 

arrow4u

Senior Member
hey guys i took some of youre advice. i went over to the field on sunday and hooked up the side-cutter we cut the whole field, and to my surprise the field was dry and the seed was falling off the stem on monday. now i am in the delema to burn all or part of the field.
 

arrow4u

Senior Member
went to the field around 5:30 and there were about 300 to350 birds on the ground. i hope this bad weather we are going to get on monday dont mess it up for us.
 

arrow4u

Senior Member
went back over today and burned part as an experiment. we had a few birds on the ground when we got there, so after they flew-off we raked a 20ft patch and withinan hour there were 75 to a 100 in that area while we burning
 
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