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Confession of a Hunter – A Twenty Dollar Cottonmouth
By Andy Anderson
As a teenager, in my high school years, I hunted and fished all the time. I had a good friend and hunting buddy that we did everything together: fishing, hunting, rodeos and working odd jobs for a little pocket money. Jake and I were always up to something, especially when it came to hunting and fishing.
In our junior year of high school, Jake and I had shop class together. Shop class was the best. We got to build all kinds of things for our hunting adventures. We also got out of school early under the work program. We both had about an hour or so before we had to be at our jobs, so we would usually grab some lunch from the one stop and head down to River Bridge, a small one lane road that crossed the Trinity River. It was an old bridge, long since replaced, but during the time Jake I would frequent the river, it was an old bridge that groaned as cars passed over and was painted with various types of graffiti. We always had our fishing poles in the back of our pick-ups, and we would soon find ourselves sitting on the river bank near the old bridge, with a line in the water while enjoying a burger and coke.
This particular spot had a large oak tree that had fallen from the river bank some years back. It was partially submerged and had a large limb that extended out of the water to reaching out to about the middle of the river as it curved back down to the water, like a big finger pointing to a particular spot. The old tree was black from years of exposure to the elements, yet the wood was hard and very dense, providing a good platform to fish from.
One particular spring day, Jake and I arrive to our favorite spot only to find an extremely large cotton-mouth lying up on that old tree sun bathing. He had to be four and half to five feet in length and as big around as a Louisville slugger baseball bat. Had a head on him like a pit bull, just mean looking and not worried about anything. You could tell he was used to having his way on the river.
To read more pick up a copy of the June 2018 NTFR issue. To subscribe call 940-872-5922.
One of my professors out at Texas Tech University always told us that we aren’t just raising cattle, we’re raising grass, because without grass there is no cattle business. The same applies to most livestock species and crops we seek to raise- without good land management, no good yield can grow.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Barry Whitworth, DVM, MPH
With the prolonged drought, most pastures in Oklahoma end up in poor condition. With the lack of available forage, animals may go in search of alternative foods.
If oak trees are in the pastures, acorns may be a favorite meal for some livestock in the fall. This may result in oak poisoning.
Oak leaves, twigs, buds, and acorns may be toxic to some animals when consumed.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By: Tony Dean
There are a handful of grasses on North Texas grazing lands ranchers need to know, not because they are highly desirable, but rather because they are not of much value. I call them “decom” plants, which is am acronym for “Don’t Ever Count On Me.” Silver bluestem is a “decom” grass.
Silver bluestem is a perennial which grows in all areas of Texas. It can survive in almost all soil types, and in full sun conditions or in semi shade. It grows up to three feet tall and is easily recognized with the presence of the white fuzzy seed head. Also, one of the identifying characteristics of Silver bluestem is a bend in the stems at each node, causing the plants to take on a rounded shape as they mature.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
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