WHAT WOULD YOU PLANT

[mm]

A good friend of mine lives in Northern California and has about 1000 acres of land. He use to farm some hay and had some cows but got rid of all that. Most of the land is hilly with trees even some redwoods. He does have a large part of it that is now unused farmland. He tore out the grapes and stopped growing hay. He wants to plant bird habitat. He has a creek for water but it stops in the summer and then there is little to no water available for july and august and also part of june and sept. There is a spring that runs about one gallon a minute year round and the food could be suplmented for the birds. The question is what to plant that will provide food and shelter for the birds and what birds. He wants to put quail I was thinking chucker. This guy is retired and has a little money and is doing this for himself he does not want any groups or anyone on his land. However I am welcome there and I am looking to help him out. This is kind of a clean slate what would you do.
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[MB]

CRP? Might even get paid for it. My brother-in-law is a rancher and told me that the CRP that they plant in his area consists of 7 different plants so that there will be cover in any given year regardless of weather.

[RayGubernat]

I should think a call to the state wildlife management division is in order here. One or more of the state wildlife biologists should be able to give some solid advice on what will work best in your exact area in terms of which species of wildlife to concentrate on. What the state wildlife folks can't answer, especially as regards cover , food sources and such, the local NRCS(National Resource Conservation Service) or your Ag extension agent should have a good handle on. The NRCS guys will of course try to sign up acreage into this program or that, because that gives them an excuse to tell you how to live your life on your own land, but they do have a wealth of information at their disposal that is specific to your exact geographic area.

There might also be cost shares for various wildlife enhancement projects like seed, guzzlers, shallow ponds and such that don't require that you sign your life away.

RayG

[GUNSMOKE]

Ray get a hold of his dept of wildlife also the turkey federation in that area as they will also have acess to seed and knowledge I do the same for a friend here. There are programs out there for the taking you just have to know who to ask for them.

[mm]

I have passed along these sugestions, thanks. I dont know if he will take them though he is a bit of a goverment hater and does not like strangers on his property. He has worked hard and has a nice place and the locals out in California have been trying to take parts of his land for years for public use. It has made him very distrustfull.
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[DGFavor]

I have found that there is not much better for attracting game to farm land than farming it...if it's intermixed with good escape cover and terrain. On my property I typically every year strip in winter or spring wheat via one pass with my 36ft. grain drills around the perimeter of each field. I just plant it and leave it till fall or spring when I one pass disc or cultivate it under then one pass replant it - pretty cheap, just seed and fuel. Inside the perimeter I've planted 100 acres into alfalfa which we harvest but still provides a whopper food source, I've got 150 acres planted in crested wheat interspersed with alfalfa (I just used my grain drills instead of buying a grass seeder pulling the seed tubes and letting the grass seed mixed with rice hulls drift to the surface of the ground instead of funnelled down behind the hoes like you do with grain seed). I've got another 100 acres that is old ag that has some awesome stands of volunteer alfalfa interspersed with sage and the sharpies seem to love it for nesting. The whole mess is nearly surrounded by my additional 450+ acres of native rangeland then Nat'l Forest/BLM that makes for good escape/nesting/lounging cover for the critters.

I've also installed/buried these water guzzlers (http://wildlifewaterguzzler.com/) that you'd never know were there unless you knew where to look for 'em to collect rainwater. I have been amazed at how the animals quickly utilized these - I've got trailcams posted at 'em to spy on the going's on. I also horseback some "antler growing" saltblocks into the hills every year and the deer/elk have pretty well excavated the areas where I put 'em to where it looks like a natural mineral lick.

You don't have to blanket the place with feed to attract game I've found - just here and there give 'em what they want/need and they will come! Your buddy could do alot with just a moderate horsepower tractor, a grain drill, and some seed.

Sounds more like valley quail country to me than chukars.

[FortBend]

I don't think your guy would qualify for CRP since his land has been used for hay and specialty crops. Instead of FSA, I'd try going to NRCS and at least getting some technical assistance.