Got a call this morning from a buddy NE of San Antonio after she sent me a picture of hogs in her pasture. She is on 5500 acres. She had much more of a hog problem last year and did some trapping and hunting and had not seen hog or hog sign in the last 9 months. She had sold off most of her cattle (all of the crossbred "wild" cattle) and is now bringing in a new breed and so has starting shredding overgrown pastures in anticipation of the new cattle and to allow her remaining cattle to have better access to the good forage below the weeds.

The pastures were overgrown with dove weed (aka wooly croton, loco weed). Dove weed is natural to Texas. Each pasture where she shredded now has hog sign. The photo she sent me of daylight hogs out this morning were in a shredded pasture. She tells me that nothing likes dove weed, which isn't quite right, but in reading online, I see that cattle and goats don't like it, a lot of birds like dove and turkey do like it. Apparently, it contains toxins not enjoyed by most mammals and Native American used stupifying fish to capture and eat.

What dove weed contains is a hepatotoxin (bad for the liver). It also has little hairs on the plant that are a skin irritant.

Until now, I had not heard of any plants that would actually keep hogs at bay, but this sounds like if you have enough of it, apparently it does. Of course, you don't want too much of it if you are a rancher.

FYI

Deep East Texas is covered in both Dove Weed and Bitterweed where there are neglected pastures. But I've seen nothing to indicate it repels feral hogs. I believe Feral Hogs simply choose pastures where travel, the ability to see and food sources are greatest (read managed land).

Just about any time we 'cut' pastures (regardless the content) hogs will come and investigate.

If you can get some pics ... in your spare time, LOL, ... of rooting and such in a dove weed pasture, that would be outstanding.

Hogs don't care about whether there's dove weed there or not.

With all the rain in the spring this past year, dove weed was crazy thick and tall. I shredded some pastures with 4-5 foot high dove weed that was thicker than I've ever seen it... But there was the usual hog damage in the pastures.

Hogs may not eat dove weed, but as far as I can tell, it's sure not a deterrent to them. I suspect if someone can't see hogs in a pasture with dove weed, it's because they can't see the hogs for the tall dove weed, so it would make sense that when the pasture is shredded, they see hogs again.

Hog damage in pasture with dove weed. They tear it up.





Late season dove weed after they browned, but hogs still damaged the terrain.



Oh Look! You can see the hogs again!



I have an Ag Service business in S. Texas, and shred multiple ranches annually on a circuit all over the area down here, and I can assure you, dove weed are not any sort of deterrent to hogs. Interesting theory though.

I go equipped and prepared for hogs in the dove weeds...

Hell, these ranchers I work for would fire me if I didn't shoot hogs when I see them in their dove weed.

Happy to do it, but it will late next spring or early next summer before it comes back up. Still....I will put that on my list. Easy thing to do.

I don't have pastures with any in it....because I maintain mine, but my FIL's place gets so thick and tall, you couldn't see a hog in it, let alone tell what they were doing. But they root in that ground plenty. They don't eat it. Neither do cattle, deer, goats. But hogs travel through it and root around it.

They much prefer a short, managed pasture.

I have dove weed on my place as well. It does not deter the pigs at all. I don't recall any rooting in the dove weed but really close to it, After a rain I usually put on a pair of gloves and pull ii up by the roots. Plan on moving to the ranch full time when home sells here. Don't have a tractor to mow but it's on the list. Hope to weed spray as well!

Well, for me I hate Woolly Croton, it takes up good pasture grazing for cattle. It matures so late; after 1st dove season is over.

Yep, I've killed many a hog traveling in and out of thick dove weed pastures.

The only thing I’ve found that deters them is a hot wire or hog panels. Not very practical for a large area.

Cool. Thanks y'all for the insight. That is exactly the sort of feedback I was hoping to get.

Some friends of mine put a two strand electric fence around a maize field because the hogs had tore it all to hail. About a week later they seen buzzards flying around, there was a couple dead hogs in the field that they must have fenced in and died from dehydration. Electric fence will work if its the right height and grounded real well.