Why This Grass is a Game-Changer for My Desert Ranch
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- Опубліковано 14 жов 2024
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In this episode, I explore a new potential solution for my desert forest project: planting elephant grass on my property.
The challenges of establishing a sustainable ecosystem in such an isolated location have led me to seek innovative methods. This time, I discovered the potential of using elephant grass, which can produce a substantial amount of mulch with minimal effort.
Despite the ongoing struggles with unpredictable rain and high costs, we’re making progress by identifying local resources and experimenting with new plants. Our focus now is on incorporating elephant grass to create more effective microclimates for our seedlings, shielding them from the harsh desert conditions.
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I Focus on What I Can Control (Desert Forest Challenge)
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#desertforest #desertplanting #greeningthedesert
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Brilliant Idea its a millet and very hardy.
What's the plant identification app you use?
Great, manure.
I would have take a clump in my hand. Brake it and then smell it.
Can't see any straw, that horses normally have.
To bad your not showing a close up of a chuck that just has been broken.
Also, buy a cheap microscope that uses a simple webcam.
And some Ph sticks for testing.
You can also do soil samples and send them to a lab and look for anti-biotics in the manure.
Maybe You know this but I was watching a small farm and if you put mulch over your crops the ground temp was like 25 to 35 degrees less
That elephant grass was a really good idea. If you can get it to grow tall it will shade the soil under and around it. This will stop evaporation from the soil. As well as shade the plants growing in the understory. So that when trees start to grow and other plant life. You will get the condensation from the air due to the lower temperature inside the grassy area. It will also be habitat for bugs and other little creatures. Good call brother! Keep it coming!!
talk to Mossey earth they would help you with planning ,planting and sourcing things, they are into rewilding all over the world, one project is trying to bring back beavers into a desert creek and grow the aspen trees for them.
Yeah a mossey earth Collab would be huge
Yes, Mossy Earth is awesome!
They usually works with established biologists with plans and grant money(but maybe not enough). Dustups doesn't really fit the bill with, Theres a little biochar there, more in the middle and we went all out on biochar hear. Thats not the kind of data driven project they do.
And, this guy is kind of a douch.
damn. savages
Tip for using bio char. Add some water to it in the bucket before applying, You won't be losing so much fine particles to the wind but more importantly you won't breath them into your lungs. The whole point of the stuff is to absorb moisture, no point in applying it dry in the wind imo.
yes, definitely presoak the biochar in water and the fertilizer or compost before placing.
I don't agree. It makes sense to mix it into the dirt with a rake or tiller before adding mulch and irrigation. Premixing with water just makes it messy and sticky and harder to combine with the soil. The important thing with biochar is to preload with nutrients otherwise it will take nutrients away from plants
@@JaHe-u3wsame reason to preload it with water, so it acts as a reservoir instead of a thief. Also, it will get those nutrients into all the little cavities in the char.
Really, just mix it all up with the compost and apply it with the compost
It has to be charged, but I know he was charging it. Did it just dry out after being charged? A simple cheap fertilizer is 2 tblsp active yeast and 2 tbslp sugar in a quart of warm water, let it ferment, then next day add to 5 gallons of water. You can add the char to it and ground up eggshells
Bees love a leaky hose. They’re constantly gathering water in this heat to cool the hive.
Suggestion for collecting mulch from the area around DUSTUPS: provide your neighbors with a flexible intermediate bulk container (FIBC) or several that they can fill up with manure, wood cuttings, etc. You save the self the time of loading up the trailer from loose piles and your neighbors get free disposal of organic waste. You might even leave a bag or several in Sierra Blanca that residents can use for landscape waste.
Thanks for putting a name to it. That's what my biochar came in, but I had no idea what it's called. I don't have a front loader either
@@dustupstexas just make sure they dont use too many chemicals
Honestly it probably would only help, since i imagine this soil is essentially depleted of basically all your basic nutrients like phosphorous nitrogen,carbon, etc@tristanchristiansen9054
Good way to bring in invasives.
@@saddletramp1860 anything at this stage could be hand picked out, or burnt. And if it's coming from fields it is likely not invasive.
Aim for mycelium. Add all the organic matter you can. Fungi have a way of breaking down useless matter into useful matter. And desalinifying. Among other benefits.
yes!
I grow oyster mushrooms from elephant grass. Its a perfect substrate. Weeds to premium food. Not enough humidity at Dustups. Yet...
@@stuartclough915I’m in Central NM. Since I added Oyster mushrooms and Wine Cap mushrooms to my garden, in their own beds, I’ve seen much better growth of all the plants in their area. I credit mycelium spreading underground. Now, if I could train them to identify weeds and turn them into compost.
My wife and I struggled for years to get our yard up and running in New Mexico for YEARS. However, there were some plant species that really proved to be both beautiful and surprising resilient to the horrible conditions we faced. Rubber Rabbitbrush (Ericameria nasueosa), is a hardy native shrub that can act as a nursery for sapling trees. Poplars (particularly cottonwood and weeping willow) grow fast and strong, but you’ll have to watch out for pests. Desert willow (Chilopsis linearis), is both beautiful and incredibly hardy, but seems to have a shorter lifespan and will probably spread all over the place. Some of the more surprising trees we had great success with (even with little watering) were Italian stone pines (Pinus Pinea) and live oaks (Quercua virginiana). The Italian stone pines needed some TLC to get started but after that seemed unfazed by poor Stoney soil, scorching heat, drying winds, and drought. The oak has a nice waxy coating on the leaves and powerful roots that penetrated deep into the soil. Another tree that seems to be the bane of most gardener’s existence out there was Chinese elm (Ulmus parvifolia) which seemed to take root anywhere there was any puddling of water.
Hope this helps!
Have you had any success with any legume species?
@@bobbif100I advise Desert Bird of Paradise. I’m in NM too
I think a timer on the irrigation system to trigger at night might be a good idea as you won't lose as much water to evaporation
Great advice, ideally you want to set the timer at least a couple hours away from sunrise.
I think the irrigation line should be covered in mulch. It will help in preventing sun damage to the tubing, keep the water from heating up, & keep the moisture from evaporation & keep the soil moist.
That area with the seeds starting to have plants need to have a layer of mulch.
There needs to be a lot more mulch. 4 to 6 ins. should to the minimum goal. If there is a problem with the wind bowing it away cover with a light layer of twigs/ branches to hold it down. It works, I did that to hold down leaf mulch on a step bank.
I asumed he did that... you're telling me he runs drip irrigaiton in the day?
@@lorettarussell3235 I think the problem is the mulch they are using had sharp thorns which may poke a hole in the hose.
@@DaDunge that would make sense, but it looks like they are useing some type of grass or long leaves for some of the mulch, of so they could use some of that for the mulch to cover the irrigation hose.
Arundo donax is considered a very invasive grass in Texas, make sure it doesn't spread outside where you want it!!!
100% agree with your parenting philosophy. Amazing what kids learn when they want to. One son learns trades, the other learns cooking. Both know how to garden, camp, and help their mom and me clean the house. Well done, sir.
When someone wants to learn, they will! I raised my four children with that philosophy in mind, not perfectly, but they’ve been doing well, learn what they need to as they face challenges, and are quite independent hard working people who love being in nature. They’ve gone further and better, especially with what I started and that is so wonderful to me!
I took all my kids with me into the yards and gardens, let em make mud pies, play in the water, gave them their own garden pots to tend. Every one of them is a house cat with an apparent sunshine allergy. To them, outside is what you walk through to get inside again.
in Australia in areas worse than yours we throw shade cloth over till the roots bite in and established and just throw rock on so the wind doesn't blow it away. helps also break in sun hardening, you could test a small area see if its suitable till there ready.
@@streamtabulous I live in Australia and have lived in many places and that would work anywhere.... And the shade of the temporary buildings needs to be taken advantage of, it's a sin to waste that shade or even to out up some type of shade cloth over a pergola alongside those structures to make the most of the area... Which could act as a temporary nursery for growing seedling trees and plants...
Im a landscaper of 45 years and irrigation plumber of 20+. Drip irrigation is great. The main negative is water moves vertically in the soil with very little lateral movement. So you must have the emitters very close to the plants and seeds. Netafim has emitters every 12" and you can add more using microtubeing to reach out and use spray emitters if more lateral movement is needed. Ive done systems using netafim in a 12"×12" buried grid system for lawns to great effect. Your doing good. And drip is the best way in dry conditions as it puts the water were ya need it. At the roots.
Desert varmints love micro tubing
@@saddletramp1860 yes they do and the polly. I battle that in north texas burying it helps but doesn't stop it.
Have to be careful planting invasive species. I’m learning about it here in Hawai’i, aka the “extinction capital of the world” and now I know the importance of planting native and endemic species. I’m happy that you have done your research and have a plan for keeping controlled. Nice work 🤙🏽
This was my concern.
Hopefully the grass can't survive in that area without irrigation. So that when Sean doesn't need the grass anymore he can just turn the water off and let it die off.
I was wondering when he was going to screw things up by planting invasives. Might as well throw invasive Buffel grass seed everywhere while he's at it.
I'm going to go out on a limb and assume you've never driven across west Texas.
I’m baffled by his choice to grow elephant grass over mesquite trees or palo verde???? Both those trees shed and would provide its own mulch. And in general, you should never plant anything that you don’t want to spread; especially invasive species.
The mesquite and palo verde would help the ecosystem and provide much needed shade for the local desert plants.
The brilliant thing about your watering plan right now is that it is time bound. A year is a lot of time for nature when we’re helping it along the way you are. I think you’ll pleasantly surprised with how things progress, then get disheartened by how things seem to stall when the shock of water loss happens and then how things kickstart once everything adapts.
I would add, one thing to the repertoire only because I noticed it when you showcased some of the plants growing on the outside of the terrace. Rock mulch was used by indigenous Americans for all the benefits of mulch minus breaking down over time. Some of the little sprouts you showed seemed to be taking of some accidental rock protection. If the goal is to use what you have, if nothing else you have plenty of rocks.
Keep up the great work.
By rock mulch, do you mean providing shade with stones around the plants? Or gravel to shade and hold the soil? Or both? Or …?
Arundo Donax is used for reeds in music instruments, cane furniture and fishing rods. It is however a pernicious weed and an invasive species. It is also a fire hazard by spreading bush fires rapidly when it dries out. Check your local regulations before planting it. It is on the banned list where I live
It won’t be banned out there in the desert because the only way to get it to grow is to constantly dump massive amounts of water on it. You can kill it all in a few days by turning the water off.
Vindication!
@dustupstexas Again, this was 100% on you, Shaun. Here you have people urging you to check your local regulations because it is on a banned list where they live and known to be a pernicious weed/invasive species. Too bad your viewers didn't do the google search for you, just like when you told them to google search for the type of trees suitable to your site (while refusing to do your own research when it came to banned invasives!) The freaking irony....
ATTN:
Hey you need to fence off that planting area from potential cows, deer, goats, etc. that may roam onto the ranch. That could get wiped out over night if one of those animals finds that new tasty tender growth…Awesome to use the grass as a biomass. Definitely don’t let it proliferate
Yep!
I would be surprised if it can survive in the desert anyway.
Good point for the fences
I know a guy who lives in the desert and he’s had to put up fencing to help to reduce the amount of plants that get eaten by wandering cows, rabbits and rodents. He’s growing CACTUS and AGAVES! All these soft, fleshy plants will get devoured eventually if they don’t shrivel up and die first.
@@user-vo3st8kx7s thanks!
@@RobG7aChattTN right, exactly. Hope that doesn’t happen and he realizes fences are key to getting things established
I used to want to watch your videos but struggle to finish them. I really like that they are now shorter and weekly. Great to be able to see you making progress and keeping up with it
Try putting out an ad on social media and set up a location for people to drop off grass clippings, cardboard etc. Layered cardboard goes a long way into turning into biomass and keeping moisture in the soil.
I use cardboard frequently in my garden. Good call.
People always get analysis paralysis. Hardest part is getting started keep going and doing you. And shouts out to the boys for the animations they always make me smile 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Given his most recent video, maybe spending a few seconds of analysis of a Google search for "Texas banned plant list" would have saved him some wasted time and effort
I think the best lessons are you are willing to “do something “ , if mistakes are made, start again. Courage and resiliency is key to success.
Bring cardboard and cover it with the sandy soil. When it rains, the cardboard soaks up and retain water for seeds to grow
Hey brother before you get carried away with the horse manure. PLEASE give it a good rinse of water first before adding it to the growing area or other compost. It works great but can initially be a little high in different types of salts so flushing some of the salts out is a good idea. We will also use a free form calcium sometimes because it will bind up those salts and flocculate the soil. Just a thought.
Yes horse manure is extremely hot, lots of phosphates if I remember right
Hearing your praise for Scratch has given me such a huge smile I’m delighted, learning can also be fun
If it was my plan, I would put in some drought resistant trees that get huge, like 10 around the camp. I would make 5 foot diameter circles for each baby tree. Mix in compost and biochar, till those areas to really work in that organic material, at least a foot deep. Make sure the irrigation in those 10 tree area's is really sufficient. That would provide shade, deep roots, and a lot of material when they get large. The best time to plant a tree is 10 years ago, the second best time is right now.
@@JoeBlack14 totally he needs to just use his excavator to dig some holes easy work one and a half or two digs of the excavator provide the right soil mixed with compost plant those big trees, use frangipanis for shade around the trees as they grow which can be pulled out and moved once they've done their job and as those trees grow they will tap into widening fertilisation and soil improvement and aeration....focus on the trees, 3days a week and the little stuff broadly speaking for 2days a week it trees should really be the focus, the small stuff will grow readily under the shade and multiply quicker under those conditions....
Plant them in rows east to west, so they shade during the heat of the day and let the morning and afternoon sun in. Trees will take moisture out of the air and run it into the ground if there is any about, trees are massive water catchers.
@@keyboardoracle1044 yep and if he starts a few on the hills they will grab more moisture that will trickle downhill which I'm sure will germinate seeds waiting in the current soil for the right conditions to germinate.
There was a dried water ways in your plot when you purchased the ranch. Try building check dams with the available rocks and gravels in the ranch. Before next rainy season comes. It will be usefull
That's a good idea and they already did it
He already did a lot of that. However, some of those structures were washed away and the water retention was limited. I think, he would have to start with the water harvesting structures higher up in the watershed, to get the most out of it.
@@martinhuhn7813 it's more that he is inexperienced and they weren't built very well and located poorly. He'll get there eventually. I'd fail on that one too the first few tries. Needs an elevation map of his property to make it easier to figure out where and how high to build 'em; then put in a long line of them all through the wash. If he's got a lot of drop off from end to end, then he'll need to build them MUCH stronger since the water speed will be significantly higher...and by the looks of it, that's probably the case.
@@davkpartly yes they partly did. And given partly rain there is partly success. Every little bit helps. Never give up. Never surrender.
God you mr indian man are one year late haha
Appreciate your curiosity and willingness to try something, even if it might fail. Also that you are willing to spend sweat and money on something positive instead negative complaints.
I just love how you feel so optimistic about greening up your desert by planting the elephant grass. I wish you would plant some of this grass into grids, about 7’ x 7’. Then, later you could plant trees or bushes within the grids where they would be protected from wind and sand blowing on them.
I understand your SUV was fully loaded, but I kept thinking, "tie up all that elephant grass you just cut and take it with you!" I don't know, is there a way could you secure stuff like that or straw bales to the roof when you're in the SUV? I still think it would be a good idea to bring in straw bales if you're ever driving your pickup out there from Ft. Worth. Lots of mulch without having to gather it or go pick it up.
I noticed that as well. He talks about biomass but leaves all that grass on the ground. He could load the truck with the grass and put the bin on top to hold it down or tarp over the pickup.
i think you're a hero and your sons will remember your courage and persisence. Excelsior! Don't listen to the weenies. You are there, thhey are not. Mistakes are part of learning.
While I applaud the effort, watching these videos is like watching paint dry.
I'm so addicted to this series. The second I notice a new video is released I can't help but watch it immediately. Amazing series
Same here! I can't wait to see when the land is finally thriving again! Wish I had the means to help!
Every video things get more encouraging. If you ever get some monsoon moisture your whole terrace should green up.
Im liking where things are heading for you. Hope you can consider a set of underground cisterns to store rainwater further up the hill that can be used to water plants down the hill. You could use mostly the materials you have around you. Not sure how much stone you have, but that could be the bulk of your building material and its free.
I have limestone that I'm planning to use. So many projects, so little time
So inspiring! You don't have any real experience growing plants or building soil at all for that matter, but you are still trying!
Hi Shaun, the boys animations are such a great touch for the channel!
I’m glad that you are aware that the elephant grass is an invasive nightmare. Your plan for using it is brilliant.
I’m excited to see this video, 9 hrs to go! 😃
There is something very zen about watching someone spend so much time and effort doing something that is absolutely futile.
You clicked 'Like' for your own post --- 😆😅🤣😂
This channel confuses me sometimes.
There is a lot of bad information in the comments section that Shaun seems to take seriously. Why does he keep using extremely inappropriate plants? Why hasn't he made a well (or three)?
The thing that makes gardens in deserts work in the first place is a natural well, not much else will be able to keep up with establishing flora and trying to do anything other than a natural well doesn't bode well for allowing continual growth.
@@harmoniousj5500 You can tell by the surrounding plant life that there is no groundwater there. You could dig several deep wells and never hit anything but rocks. If there was groundwater then trees would grow in the canyons. It's an exercise in futility.
Shaun, I believe you had some local biologists out to the DustUps project in the earlier episodes. I would highly encourage you to contact your local USDA office to see what plants would work best for your project. Giant Reed is highly invasive and will out compete the native plants if they have drip irrigation. They will not positively contribute to the soil quality you are looking for. While I am not a Biologist or Conservationist, my wife is a soil conservationist here in Missouri. I thoroughly enjoy the Project and want to see it succeed! Best of luck!
Vindication!
Shaun, My parents have a similiar problem up in the high desert of eastern washington, only we get cold. Anyway, we have used cardboard to effectively help our trees. Easy to move, insulates well and easy to come by. But I offer you a slightly different thought. Take a box, bury it under one of your emitters. It will trap the water inside the box and when full, will still drip it out to the ground around it. And over time, the roots of the plants will use it as a fertilizer. Might make your water go a bit farther. Add a cardboard top over your mulch and even the evaporation will be reduced.
I love how relaxed you are when your son is behind the camera, it feels like your talking and teaching him more then the camera ☺️
Very much so. It's so fun just hanging out
OH NO!!! I volunteered at a water conservation foundation to remove Arundo donax from the watershed. When I asked the biologist with us why we were targeting a. donax she said that it consumes large amount of water per plant and it is an invasive plant that outcompetes native plants from resources. "A. donax can use as much as 2,000 L of water per metre of plant (Perdue 1958)" At best, you could dry out cut arundo donax stalks and then distributed them as mulch, but I don't think it can survive in a desert with little access to water.
It'll be fine. Bc if the grass grows, boom he has grass. If it doesn't then it doesn't. His goal is to green the desert. 🤷🏽♂️
@@imactuallysotoxic8709No its not fine. If it spreads its going to impacted his intire operation in creating an sustainable desert ecosystem with good Biodiversity. Thats his gole not to just green the desert. Invasive Plants do most times the opposit of that like Prunus serotina in Europe. Look it up and see what happend over here.
@@Drun-o3q He plans to cut if before it goes to seed. It's just to chop & drop onto the ground as biomass. It will quickly die when he shuts off his irrigation. It won't be able to propagate in the desert without water. It may not even grow much with only drip irrigation.
@@imactuallysotoxic8709the amount of devil may care ignorance in the comments are amazing. Y'all think invasives are no big deal. It's playing with fire and he's going to get burned, but y'all just keep whistling past the graveyard
@@Nphenshows how little he and you know. Elephant grass seed is generally sterile. It grows from even the smallest bit of its root spreading in the soil. You can cut it and try to dig it out, but even if a tiny bit of a root remains, it will keep spreading and persist in the soil. Grasses like that can die back and seem dead, only to roar back with a vengeance at the first big rain.
it was very surprising to me to see you going ham with the biochar. Maybe im wrong but i vaguely remember one of your teachers tell you that its not always better to use to freely. Everything looks awesome. Im so excited to watch this project grow.
10% is the max volume.
You are correct in this line of thought about chipers. Go big or don't go.
Go big or go home!
Based on what I remember about planting napier grass, I have a couple of tips for you. 1} cut the stalks into sections of two or three joints and plant them horizontally an inch or two down. They should root from the joints. 2} You may be able to divide the larger rhizomes into smaller pieces. 3} Planting stalks upright wastes a lot of potential material and may give the roots too much top growth to provide moisture to. 4) It may be worthwhile to plant a couple inches to each side of the emitters, but only if you if have enough planting material.
I really admire your project.
Some people seem to have concerns that the grass will drink ALL the water and leave none for the other plants he wants to grow. Any thoughts?
Also they say it is quite an issue in taking over native species…. with his plan p and drop before it seeds, would that be safe still?
Absolutely love your enthusiasm and attitude for allowing failure which allows learning 😊
So great to see you providing real parenting for your kids xxxxx
Really enjoying your channel, Shaun. Not sure what your internet is like on the ranch, but live broadcasts always seem to attract a lot of Super Chats. Just a thought. 😊
I tried a few months ago. We will try again now that I have a new laptop
Freue mich immer, wenn ich neue Vids sehe, dass es wieder einen Fortschritt gibt.
Great work with the biochar and grass! Studies show that going beyond 10% charcoal in the soil stops increasing the benefits, but those were done in other soils than yours. I bet you will see bumps in plant growth well into 20% due to the natural lack of nutrients and biology in the soil. And the satisfaction of knowing this improvement you're doing will last 1000+ years!
Big bonus that you can spend quality family time while pursuing a worthy cause!
I havent seen if you did basic analysis on the well water? You both remarked on odour.
Curious if you are amending it if so, eg adjusting ph, adding nutrients, nitrogen etc if lacking.?
Would be keen to see an auger trial and if the ground allows it 👍
Hey bud, Arundo donax very rarely reproduces from seed and mostly vegetatively.
Yep weird he mentioned it spreads via ribosomes, but then talks like cutting it before it seeds is what matters.
As someone who lives in the desert and fights with Bermuda grass, he doesn't seem to get that is there is enough water, that grass will spread and become an enormous pain. Even if you think stuff like that is dead, the roots can persist and are always expanding laterally
It could be a good idea to contact landscaping and grounds keeping companies in the nearby towns and ask if they would be willing to give you their organic waste. You'd get a great mix of biological material from all kinds of sources that would likely just get disposed of in land fill. Their incentive would be it doesn't cost them for disposal and you could do regular pickups. It would be a win win situation. Some companies might even have chippers to chip it for you before pickup. It could be the boost you need. As always, this is some great work you're doing, and I can't wait to see more!
Make sure you aren't running those drippers directly on living plants while they are uncovered. Those black plastic lines are heating that water to dangerous temperatures, without a doubt. It doesn't take long for a drop of water to cool to ambient temps, but still be aware of what its directly dripping on.
I mulch my drip lines to keep them cool.
Huge Kudos to you for this extended project for the Dustups project. Very interesting things you are doing & have done. My wife and I are in the "Alluvial Fan" of the Sacramento Mountains in Alamogordo, NM and we have difficult ground conditions having tons, literally, of rocks, boulders, super thorny mesquite and creosote bushes. We are adding mostly native plants for color, texture, etc. It is truly impressive to us the number of native plants that produce colors of all kinds in their flowers. Keep up your endeavor there. Best of luck to you.
I heard a story where a landowner gave a juice company permission to dump orange peels on the land. That ran for a year or two and then was stopped because people. However when the government went out to assess the damage, what they found was a healthy forest and not a pile of rotting fruit stuff.
Al ost as if that is how nature works
Running the irrigation longer every once in awhile will help with germination. Its great you have a source of manure. If you ever get a chipper they have chippers that shred leaves and such as well as larger thicker branches and limbs.
What about peas? Very cheap, soak them, germinate and then put into soil, they fixate nitrogen into soil, and then they can die and decompose.
Any legume will do that, so if peas won't grow there just look for a hardy legume that can.
EDIT: lol, after I type that they show the mesquite sprouts growing, so they already have legumes growing to fix nitrogen in the soil nodules.
I have grown Arundo donax from cuttings. Just need to cut foot long pieces and cover in soil. They do like water though, so it will be interesting to see how you go. Seed is sterile. Mostly grows from rhizomes or when it falls over and touches the ground. The last part is how it spreads so much as the can grow to 20 ft and fall over and extend their range.
This is just grand.
I'm working my ass off trying to establish a garden space without the local elephant grass analogue... It's the most annoying weed here in Finland unless you are trying to grow hay for animals. Great to listen to you spreading it on purpose xD
That’s what it’s all about with natural systems is just trying new things until something works and learning and observing the whole way through. That’s what I do with my garden areas I try to observe and then research what might do well with the observed conditions then try it out and sometimes things don’t work out but then I try something else or put something in a new area. Eventually you’ll get there and you’ll have learned so much in the process
My favorite terraforming project.
Thank you for sharing your journey! I love your kids’ animations and your parenting philosophy. Keep up the Good Work!!! God bless us everyone.
That little electric chipper is a far cry from a 4 or 5 hundred dollar unit.
I am really watching your progress intently. The grass is exciting.
Water it Always in the nicht. Cooler Temperature less loss
Find a juice bar and ask them to put a bin for organics. Throw that stuff down and give it time. It'll be a wild mix of everything packed with nutrients and moisture.
I love this project and I look forward to your video every week!
I can't wait to see how well this looks the rain season!!
To transform your property into a forest, superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) could be a game-changer. These water-retaining crystals, similar to those used in diapers, can absorb up to 400 times their weight in water. When mixed into soil, they create tiny water reservoirs, significantly improving moisture retention.
Products like Soil Moist, available at many garden centers in Texas, use this technology. They're particularly effective in sandy soils common in parts of the state. By reducing water runoff and evaporation, SAPs can help establish and maintain vegetation in challenging environments.
SAPs are most effective when combined with other soil improvement techniques like adding organic matter and using mulch. Over time, these practices can transform barren areas into thriving ecosystems, potentially even supporting the growth of small forests.
Even after college, I found the multimedia hobbies as a pre teen and teen brought me to my profession, more so than college! So keep up with the experience and teaching yourself!
this whole series is a tech bro learning farming
entertaining
or it's tech bro trying tech bro farming
Been following you all year, Shaun. But now I have to share my first criticism. I fear that the elephant grass will CROWD OUT the precious seedlings of those rows. They'll take over the entire area, like mistakenly-planted mint in a vegetable garden. It'll be severely demoralizing, I fear. Good luck. Your weekly Saturday episode is one of the highlights of my weekend UA-cam viewing. Wish I could be there. -Laramie
Obtaining voluntary participation is essential for healthy, quality relationships. I commend your parenting Shaun. WELL DONE.
My parents divorced when I was 8yrs old, two years later I moved 2hrs away with my mom. So I only saw my dad when I had time off from school, so I went to his house every time it was a holiday or summer vacation. He own his only logging company so I Had to go to work with him. Loved being in the mountains. So when I was 13 he put a chainsaw in my hand and put me on the landing “bumping knots” and cutting logs to length. By the time I graduated high school I was able to run the business, I fell trees, ran every piece of equipment we had and even cruised timber sales and bid on them for my dad. I learned how to work hard at a young age. I’m 58 now and have a small ranch and work full time as a Nurse administrator. I still out work men half my age. I have 3 boys that learned young as well and every one of them have their own business. So it is very important to teach kids at a young age.
A lot of market gardens have stopped bringing any manure in at all because contamination has been such a problem. The horse feed/bedding can often be contaminated with herbicides at source. Anti biotics used on the horses can cause problems also.
Shaun, I am soooo impressed with your parenting monologue about the importance of not forcing or pressuring your children to work or to do what you would like to see them do, but rather to let them be free to CHOOSE to be with you and whether or not to join you in the work. I agree very much! When a parent forces a child it is not helpful in building the child's character, but rather it is destructive to their development because it removes their sacred free will, which is so important to preserve and cultivate, so that they can best create the version of themselves which they most want to be! I think punishing a child when they do something which does not meet the approval of the parent is also violating and robbing the child of their sacred free will, and in the same way as forcing a child to work or to be with you is harmful to their development of real true character, punishment is also destructive to their natural development, sabotaging the crucially important development and exercise of their free will, and it is abusive.
Moringa should be in your program. This versatile plant is not only hardy but you can eat everything. They give morjnga powder to rehydrated and mull nourished children. Excellent.
@@garryroper3418 yep I agree it's also used as tree pasture, I think the climate for it would be perfect in that forest.... And what a great food source for all. Fairly easy to grow from seed and cuttings ...
You have a hundred thousand plus people who are proud of you
I find your project the most interesting thing going on.
Can't wait to see Shaun to play beaver, at scale. That's a project in and of itself.
In the long run, aren't you creating a problem by planting Arundo donax which is considered an invasive species in North America?
If he doesn't manage the grass, then possibly, but he plans to chop it as it grows, to prevent it from seeding and spreading.
@@marzupalami not letting it seed will help but seeds are usually not viable in areas where it is not native, the rhizomes will spread like crazy into new plants, some grasses just a small piece of blade lying on the ground can take root. Plus if he ever decides to get rid of it will require constant weekly hours upon hours of shovelling and heavy duty chemicals that you need certified pesticide applicators.
One thing to consider is going to the local pet stores in the Dallas/fort worth area and take all their used bird seed that they clean out of the cages every day. A lot of it has bird droppings mixed in ( free fertilizer). I've spread it out and with just a little moisture it took off and turned a burned out field green again
your channel is better, more educational, and wholesome than anything on netflix.
Won’t lie, I’m excited to see how the rain collects with the new swales and to just see how all your hard work actually works. Very excited
Elephant grass, if it works, will provide valuable shade too!!
If? That grass is nearly impossible to kill.
It's a terribly invasive plant. Smothers natives
@@CrimePaysButBotanyDoesnt Well the natives all left there long ago, lol
@@sidecharacter7165 not really, no. They're all over and there are still plenty of seeds in the seed bank. Whenever this project is abandoned, the seeds of these invasive garbage plants will be there too, and if they get established they will spread and take over since they don't have any of the insects or fungi here that keep them in check in their native ecosystem back home, 5,000 miles away
Lack of water will take care if any invasive plant. He's turning the water off in a year so if the grass doesn't fully work out then it won't matter at that point it will just be less biomass than he wanted. If it does then there's a constant supply of grass for other parts of the ranch.
I bet Thiago would be so excited about that elephant grass idea, Shaun
You can easily imagine how once established those tall shrubby clusters could act as a screen for organic matter in the blowing wind and drop it below to the soil like he’d mentioned previously, even the particles, will add up eventually.
What would really help is old carpets, because they will help grow fungi. This is vital for plant growth. Good luck!
Ps I know it sounds discusting, but why else would it help?
are you on meth?
No, they're the worse thing ever to put on the ground. They're 100% plastic and if they don't degrade into microplastics, they lie under the surface as a mat you can't dig through and ultimately have to pull up again. Nothing good comes from putting carpets on the ground.
@@ncot_tech im pretty sure he means biodegradable old sheep wool
are you on drugs.
@dustuptexas
I'm a permaculturist and heavy equipment operator From Southern, Cali. Our watershesheds here are overrun by arrundo donax/ elephant grass. Not sure the effects it would have on texas. But id be extremely cautious with this species as it highly invasive all accross the west coast and chokes out our watersheds. Just heard you mention seeding in your video.
Try using vetiver as its heat loving and tropic to semi tropic but incribly hardy and used fro soil stabilization and erosion control. It has very deep roots.
It won't survive here without irrigation
@dustupstexas makes sense. Yeah I have lived right below oregon border for 5 years and even with the longer wet seasons it's still to dry in the summer and to cold for me to have it myself.
Vindication!
@@dustupstexas going through these comments now. Care to join me and count how many people told you that grass was a bad idea? Still wondering if we can find a comment where somebody tells you it is outright banned by Texas Dept of Ag....
Thanks!
Thank you
You need to build a small shaded cover and put a big shallow dish of water with rocks in it on a stand underneath it for the bees to land on the cool rocks and walk down them to drink. And put in some beehives
lavender grows super well in extremly poor soil and would provide mulch, they are planting it in iceland because the soil is volcanic, it grows well in deserts
@@fangdenhahn lavender
Just ... an observation.
In the beginning, you weren't planning on using an external water source.
Then you decided to use it only for kickstarting germination.
Now you start using external water to produce mulch ...
Water really makes things so easy, and that makes it tricky and addicting ...
About the grass, while you're at it. Look also into the new very high yield, and sterile (!) varieties of Miscanthus giganteus, and try them next to the Arundo to see which one performs better.
When you harvest the grass , or any other plants, soak it water right after. Your success rate will increase!
I'd prioritize finding a mulch-producing grass that won't need irrigation. If I were you, I'd experiment with Vetiver grass. Vetiver won't need irrigation once established. It's deep-rooted, very hardy and excellent for producing mulch and preventing erosion control. I know it's sold in Arizona.
The elephant grass idea is fire! I love seeing your progress. You were a little difficult to watch in the beginning. You are crushing it now! Love watching and learning new things each episode.
i kinda wish i had a dad like this, im like a 95 pound teenager so its not like i can shovel and do back breaking work but this seems nice to do. i dont know much about plants either but it seems like something very important and amazing to know
Thank you for sharing this
i have watched a few of your episodes, and i really like what you are doing. all of it. from your family centered perspective, to just digging in and learning. and the base idea is a very interesting one as well. i look forward to watching this project grow.
Great, but I have to warn you against Arundo. It doesn't provide much rhizomal resources to the soil flora and it is *very* thirsty, not to mention that the biomass it does produce is a nightmare to break down
I would recommend Crotalaria juncea. It grows a similar amount while also consuming less water, producing healthier biomass and a bonus is that it can sequester a lot of nitrogen too
It does everything Arundo donax does, but better
Whenever it become practical, please set up a watering fountain for desert wildlife. Would love to see what visits.
Unfortunately you can’t change the rainfall and that’s the problem most have trying to renew the desert. The only solution is grow drought tolerant plants.