# What you all think?



## blueshooter (Oct 10, 2009)

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=1785965 ... s-of-death


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## 90redryder (Oct 10, 2011)

I say let the grass grow. Why try to kill this naturally growing grass? It makes for a great spot for birds to hide and if they try to get rid of it our bird hunting (especially pheasants) will be affected. Even if wild fires are a problem its all part of natures cycle and there is going to be a problem if you try to mess with mother nature.


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## JuddCT (Sep 7, 2007)

Does cheat grass really help pheasants? I thought it was mainly for chukars.


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## svmoose (Feb 28, 2008)

Cheat grass is great for chukars, sure, but it is a big problem in that it out-competes native grasses. 

It would be good to cut it back - but who knows what other effects this fungus will have as far as attacking other plants, etc.


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## guner (Sep 25, 2007)

I thought the same thing when I started the question first :shock: :lol:


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## blueshooter (Oct 10, 2009)

um actually i beat you by two minutes check the posted times


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## guner (Sep 25, 2007)

**** I was robbed !! :lol:


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## blackdog (Sep 11, 2007)

90redrider said:


> I say let the grass grow. Why try to kill this naturally growing grass? It makes for a great spot for birds to hide and if they try to get rid of it our bird hunting (especially pheasants) will be affected. Even if wild fires are a problem its all part of natures cycle and there is going to be a problem if you try to mess with mother nature.


Pheasants and Cheat Grass? You don't hunt pheasants very much do you? A pheasant is taller then what cheat grass grows, so how do they hide in it? Get rid of that crap and all bird hunting will get better.


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## 90redryder (Oct 10, 2011)

blackdog said:


> 90redrider said:
> 
> 
> > I say let the grass grow. Why try to kill this naturally growing grass? It makes for a great spot for birds to hide and if they try to get rid of it our bird hunting (especially pheasants) will be affected. Even if wild fires are a problem its all part of natures cycle and there is going to be a problem if you try to mess with mother nature.
> ...


Cheat grass taller than a pheasant? I must not know what cheat grass is then, the crap im talking about grows waist high. And just for the record I hunt pheasant plenty... i've got access to private property where I hunt a corn field.


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## Flyfishn247 (Oct 2, 2007)

90redrider said:


> blackdog said:
> 
> 
> > 90redrider said:
> ...


Heck, I've seen and hunted pheasants in cut alfalfa that is no higher than my ankles. Those birds are the champs at hiding/running and giving hunters the slip.


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## Chaser (Sep 28, 2007)

Why do they call it cheat grass anyway? Something I have always wondered.


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## Fishrmn (Sep 14, 2007)

'Cause it cheats all of the other plants out of the available water. It cheats the system by maturing faster that all of the other native grasses. It cheats the rangeland by causing hotter fires because it dries out faster than the other grasses.


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## dumafotch1 (Nov 8, 2010)

This us actually a native fungus, so it shouldn't harm any of the native grasses. The hope is to reduce the intensity of wildfires on rangelands, and increase the population of native grasses in their ecological niches.


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## 90redryder (Oct 10, 2011)

I agree flyfishn247...From the other posts i've seen from "blackdog" he is under the impression that he is one bad *** dude and everyone else is a bunch of retards that cant hunt worth a darn. Cant stand those folks that get on these forums just looking for a chance to tell people they dont know what they are doing. Everyone has their own techniques and usually there isnt just one correct way of doing things.


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## xxxxxxBirdDogger (Mar 7, 2008)

> Cheat grass taller than a pheasant? I must not know what cheat grass is then, the crap im talking about grows waist high.


Cheat grass does get about knee high sometimes and makes for _excellent _pheasant cover in the low hills. I shot a pheasant and a Hun on a hill full of cheat grass just yesterday. Those of us who have to hunt the low hills birds because we don't own farm land love cheat grass. Farmers hate the stuff because, as mentioned, it steals water from crops like wheat, etc. Cheat grass is even better cover for sharptail grouse, Hungarian partridges, and chukars. I love the stuff and hope it stays! Long live cheat grass!!!!

That waist high stuff might be winter wheat or some other kind of wild grass?


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## blackdog (Sep 11, 2007)

BirdDogger said:


> That waist high stuff might be winter wheat or some other kind of wild grass?


You do know that Winter Wheat is planted in the Fall, don't you? So it can be harvested by early summer. It lies dormant under the snow all winter, hence the name Winter Wheat. So there is no way it's waist high this time of year if ever.

Utah is full of Cheat Grass, that must be why the upland bird hunting is so awesome there. Oh, and big game really love it too.

Imagine how good the bird hunting would be for you non-farm owning hunters if the low hills were covered in native grasses that actually provide good winter cover, nesting cover and food. Cheat Grass is crap, but you guys go ahead and think what you want.


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## 90redryder (Oct 10, 2011)

blackdog said:


> BirdDogger said:
> 
> 
> > That waist high stuff might be winter wheat or some other kind of wild grass?
> ...


Once again you prove my point. You are a genius.


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## xxxxxxBirdDogger (Mar 7, 2008)

> You do know that Winter Wheat is planted in the Fall, don't you? So it can be harvested by early summer. It lies dormant under the snow all winter, hence the name Winter Wheat. So there is no way it's waist high this time of year if ever.


You do know that wheat and other similar grasses grow wild all over Utah and are not harvested in many areas where they grow, right? :roll:

Grasses like wheat spread from the farmlands up into the low hills. The areas surrounding wheat fields make for particularly good hunting grounds this time of year because the wheat is waist high and is falling to the ground for birds to nibble on.


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

Cheat grass doesn't get waist high or knee high unless your built like a troll.
O that explains it.


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## xxxxxxBirdDogger (Mar 7, 2008)

Typical Utah cheat grass cover, knee high in many places:



















Do pheasants fly up into this stuff? Absolutely. I kill pheasants, sharpies, and Huns in the same cheat grass covered areas year after year. Of course other grasses, brushes, and weeds are interspersed in those areas.


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## 90redryder (Oct 10, 2011)

Glad you had a picture for these guys birddogger. They dont seem to know much about the terrain here in utah.


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## MWScott72 (May 23, 2011)

Cheat grass may benefit some animals (chukars come to mind), but overall, it is a non-native species that out-competes native grasses (and the animals that depend on native grasses). It is less desirable for big game, livestock, and most other animals. It came from Asia via feed that was used for livestock on the journey over the Pacific. Livestock that were transported via rail is how it spread - first along the rail lines (from livestock poop), and then out from there. When it comes to wildlife and domestic animal production - there are some benefits, but overall, it's a BIG negative for all involved. Would love to see it GONE (except in my chukar spots)!


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## xxxxxxBirdDogger (Mar 7, 2008)

I agree that cheat grass is not the best for big game or grazing livestock. It's awesome for birds, though, like Mr. Scott mentioned. Blackdog made a good point in that birds would do well with other grasses also. Birds need grass to nest in and to eat the seeds of. The thing is that ranchers lease up and post no trespassing signs on all the places with good grass cover. Hunters lose access. Cheat grass isn't as good for grazing so areas where it's taken over are where we get to hunt.


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