🌿 Louisiana Farm • GeauxConnect

Louisiana Farm, Outdoors & Wildlife Seasonal Planning

One page for planting, animals, hunting, fishing, market prices, hazards, and timing — your complete Louisiana field guide and seasonal dashboard.

Region

SW Louisiana

Zone

Zone 9b

Month

April

Temp

78°

Watch

Drainage

Focus

Mixed Farm

Region

Month

Focus

📅 Month-at-a-Glance

⛈ Projected Storm Watch

🌕 Moon Phase

📆 Best Days Style Guide

🌌 Sky & Season Notes

📅 7-Day Planning Outlook

✅ Seasonal Chores

⚠️ Regional Risks

🌅 Sunrise, Sunset & Daylight Notes

🌱 Louisiana Monthly Planting Calendar

🌡 Zone Notes

💧 Irrigation & Watering

🌳 Louisiana Native & Adapted Shade Trees

Native Louisiana trees for shade, windbreaks, and wildlife habitat. All photographs from Wikipedia.

🍊 Fruit & Nut Trees for Louisiana

Best-performing fruit and nut trees for Louisiana's humid subtropical climate.

💧 Watering Guide — Pots, Gardens & Louisiana Heat

🥦 Vegetable Planting Guide

🌿 Herbs for Louisiana

🌸 Louisiana Ornamental Plants

Native and adapted ornamentals for Louisiana — shrubs, perennials, vines, tropicals, and groundcovers with Wikipedia photography.

📋 27 horse breeds shown below — with real Wikipedia photography

🐎 Horse Breeds — Visual Encyclopedia

20 breeds with real Wikipedia photography. Includes breed origin, use, temperament, and Louisiana suitability.

🦴 Horse Skeletal & Digestive Anatomy — Equus caballus

A horse skeleton has about 205 bones. Key regions: the cervical vertebrae (neck), scapula and humerus (forelimb attachment — horses have no clavicle), thoracic and lumbar vertebrae (saddle-bearing region), sacral and coccygeal vertebrae (rump and tail), and the long cannon bones with pasterns and coffin bones inside the hoof. The digestive system is unusual: horses are non-ruminant hindgut fermenters with a small stomach (~9 L) and an enormous cecum and large colon where fiber breakdown happens. Sudden diet changes or impactions in this hindgut cause colic — the leading killer of horses.

Skeletal system — labeled major bones

Digestive tract — stomach, small intestine, cecum, large colon

📋 35 coat colors shown below — with real Wikipedia photography

🎨 Horse Coat Colors — Complete Visual Guide

All major horse coat colors with real photos and genetics notes — duns, greys, basic, bright, champagne, roans, and pattern breeds.

🧬 Color Genetics Basics

🐄 Cattle Breeds — Visual Encyclopedia

18 breeds. Brahman-influenced breeds dominate Louisiana for heat tolerance.

🦴 Cattle Skeletal, Body Parts & Digestive Anatomy — Bos taurus

Cattle have ~207 bones and a four-chambered stomach. The skeleton shows the major regions used in grading and butchering: cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral, and coccygeal vertebrae, with 13 pairs of ribs, the broad pelvis (key for calving), femur and tibia in the hind limb, and the cloven hoof with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd phalanges. External landmarks like poll, dewlap, brisket, hook (hip), pinbone, hock, and pastern are the language of cattle judging and conformation. Internally, the rumen is the massive fermentation vat (~150 L in mature cows) where microbes digest fiber; food then passes to the reticulum, omasum, and finally abomasum (the "true stomach") before reaching the small and large intestines.

Skeletal system — vertebrae regions, ribs, pelvis, phalanges

External body parts — judging and conformation landmarks

Four-chamber stomach — rumen, reticulum, omasum, abomasum

📋 21 chicken breeds shown below — with real Wikipedia photography

🐔 Chicken Breeds — Visual Encyclopedia

16 breeds for eggs, meat, and dual-purpose. Louisiana's heat demands heat-tolerant breeds.

🦴 Chicken Skeletal Anatomy — Gallus gallus domesticus

A chicken skeleton is built for flight (or its remnants): bones are pneumatic (hollow and air-filled), and the body contains a unique air sac system that connects directly to the lungs. Air flows one-way through nine air sacs — cervical, clavicular, cranial thoracic, caudal thoracic, and abdominal — giving birds far more efficient oxygen exchange than mammals. Key skeletal features: the keel (large breastbone ridge anchoring flight muscles), furcula (wishbone), fused synsacrum (rigid lower spine), and the tarsometatarsus (the long lower leg bone). Hens lay eggs through the cloaca; calcium for the shell comes largely from the medullary bone, a special reserve in the long bones.

Chicken skeleton with respiratory air sac system

Skeleton with respiratory air sac system labeled

🐐 Goat Breeds — Visual Encyclopedia

12 breeds. Goats thrive in Louisiana with proper parasite management.

🦴 Goat Skeletal Anatomy — Capra hircus

Goats have around 187 bones. Like cattle they are cloven-hoofed ruminants, with cervical, thoracic, lumbar, and caudal vertebrae, 12–13 pairs of ribs, and a flexible pelvis that allows easy kidding. Goats have a notably mobile scapula and powerful hindquarters for jumping. The skull often bears horn cores (in horned breeds) projecting above the frontal bones. Important landmarks: scapular cartilage, sternum, xiphoid cartilage, and the tuber calcanei (point of hock).

Skeletal system — labeled bones and cartilage

🐑 Sheep Breeds — Visual Encyclopedia

10 breeds. Hair sheep (Katahdin, Dorper) outperform wool breeds in Louisiana heat.

🦴 Sheep Skeletal Anatomy — Ovis aries

Sheep skeletons are similar to goats — both are small ruminants — but with a slightly heavier build and a downward-curving head carriage. Key landmarks visible here: cranium, maxilla, mandible (skull bones — often hornless in ewes of many breeds), atlas joint (where the skull meets the spine), cervical → thoracic → lumbar → sacral → coccygeal vertebrae, scapula and shoulder joint, humerus, radius, ulna, and carpal/metacarpal/phalanges in the forelimb; os coxae (pelvis), femur, patella, tibia, and tarsals/metatarsals in the hindlimb. Sheep have 13 pairs of ribs and a deep thoracic cavity for the rumen. The lamb chop comes from the thoracic and lumbar vertebrae; the leg of lamb from the femur and pelvis region.

Skeletal system — labeled major bones and joints

💰 Louisiana & Gulf South Cattle Market Values

Estimated market prices from auction barns in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. Prices updated by AI simulation — verify with LDAF and local auction reports.

🧮 Cow / Heifer Value Estimator

Estimate the value of a cow or heifer based on her calf production potential — similar to the Cattle Range value calculator.

💰 Louisiana Goat & Sheep Market Values

Estimated prices from Louisiana and regional livestock auctions. Goat and sheep markets are highly seasonal — peak demand at Eid al-Adha and Easter.

🧮 Meat Goat Value Calculator

💰 Sheep Market Values — Louisiana & Southeast

🧮 Market Lamb Value Calculator

📋 13 pig breeds shown below — with real Wikipedia photography

🐷 Pig Breeds — Visual Encyclopedia

10 breeds from commercial hogs to heritage breeds. Heritage pigs do well on pasture in Louisiana.

🦴 Pig Skeletal & Muscular Anatomy — Sus scrofa domesticus

Pigs have approximately 217 bones. Distinct features include a strong rostrum (snout) supported by the nasal and maxillary bones, 14–15 pairs of ribs (more than cattle), a long flexible spine, and short sturdy limb bones ending in cloven hooves with two main toes plus two smaller dewclaws. The scapula is large and provides the cut known as Boston butt; the femur and pelvis form the ham. Internally, you can see the major neck muscles (longissimus, longus capitis, complexus) and the layout of the stomach, spleen, kidneys, heart, liver, and intestines in their thoracic and abdominal positions.

Skeletal, muscular, and visceral anatomy combined

📋 14 duck breeds shown below — with real Wikipedia photography

🦆 Farm Duck Breeds — Visual Encyclopedia

10 domestic duck breeds for eggs, meat, and pest control. Ducks love Louisiana's wet climate.

🦴 Duck Skeletal Anatomy — Anas platyrhynchos domesticus

Ducks share avian bone structure with chickens — pneumatic bones, prominent keel, furcula, and fused synsacrum — but adapted for swimming and diving. The femur sits well forward and the tibiotarsus is long, placing the legs far back on the body for efficient paddling but giving ducks their characteristic waddle on land. Ducks have a flattened bill with sensitive nerve endings for filter feeding.

Skeletal system

📋 53 rabbit breeds shown below — with real Wikipedia photography

🐰 Rabbit Breeds — Visual Encyclopedia

All 53 rabbit breeds raised in the United States — including all ARBA-recognized breeds. For meat, fiber, show, and pets. Heat management is critical for Louisiana rabbitry.

🦴 Rabbit Skeletal Anatomy — Oryctolagus cuniculus

Rabbits have very lightweight, fragile skeletons — bone makes up only ~7-8% of body mass, compared to ~13% in a cat. This is why rabbits must always be supported under the hindquarters when handled: a kick can fracture the spine at the lumbar region. Notable features: powerful hindlimbs (long tibia and femur for hopping), a fused fibula and tibia, a fused radius and ulna, a flexible spine with 7 cervical, 12 thoracic, 7 lumbar, 4 sacral, and 16 caudal vertebrae, and continuously growing incisors (and premolars) — hence the need for hay to wear teeth down. The triangular scapula and suprahumate process are distinctive of lagomorphs.

Lateral view — bones of the leporid skeleton

Detailed labeled anatomy — skull, vertebral column, fore- and hindlimb bones

📋 6 bee strains shown below — with real Wikipedia photography

🐝 Honey Bee Varieties — Visual Encyclopedia

4 major honey bee strains kept in Louisiana. Italian bees are most popular; Russian strains show Varroa resistance.

🦙 Pack Animals & Guardians

Donkeys, llamas, alpacas, and livestock guardian dogs.

🐕 Livestock Guardian Dogs

LGDs protect flocks and herds from coyotes, dogs, and other predators.

📋 8 freshwater species shown below — with real Wikipedia photography

🐟 Louisiana Freshwater Fish — Visual Guide

Louisiana has over 200 freshwater fish species. These are the top sport fish with real Wikipedia photography.

📋 8 saltwater species shown below — with real Wikipedia photography

🌊 Louisiana Saltwater & Inshore Fish — Visual Guide

Louisiana's coastal marshes and Gulf produce world-class inshore and offshore fishing.

🪱 Live Bait Guide — Real Photography

Actual photographs of the most effective live baits for Louisiana fishing.

🎣 Lure Guide — Real Photography

Top artificial lures for Louisiana freshwater and saltwater fishing.

📌 Louisiana Fishing Tips & Techniques

📋 Louisiana Fishing Regulations Summary

🦌 White-tailed Deer — Louisiana Season Guide

📅 Season Dates by Zone

🦌 Louisiana Deer Zone Notes

Louisiana has multiple deer management zones with different season dates. North zone opens earlier for firearms. Antler point restrictions and antlerless bag limits vary by zone. Always check current LDWF regulations at wlf.louisiana.gov before hunting.

🌾 Duck Hunting — 2025-26 Louisiana Seasons

Official LDWF regulations. Two zones with split seasons. Verify at wlf.louisiana.gov before hunting.

🌎 East Duck Zone

Youth & Veterans: Nov 15–16, 2025
Regular Season 1: Nov 22–Dec 8, 2025
Regular Season 2: Dec 20, 2025–Jan 31, 2026
Closed Dec 9–19

🌾 West Duck Zone

Youth & Veterans: Nov 8–9, 2025
Regular Season 1: Nov 15–Dec 7, 2025
Regular Season 2: Dec 20, 2025–Jan 25, 2026
Veterans Extra: Jan 31–Feb 1, 2026

🌱 Daily Bag Limits — 6 ducks/day total

🌻 Mallard: 4 (max 2 hens)

🌻 Wood Duck: 3

🌻 Canvasback: 2

🌻 Redhead: 2

🌻 Black Duck: 1

🌻 Pintail: 3 (max 1 hen)

🌻 Scaup: 1 first 15 days, then 2

🌻 Mottled Duck: 0 first 15 days, then 1

Coots: 15/day | Mergansers: 5/day (max 2 hooded)

Extended Falconry all zones: Nov 2–Jan 29. Possession limit = 3× daily bag limit.

🟜 Goose Hunting — 2025-26 Louisiana Seasons

Louisiana is one of the top goose states in the nation. Specklebellies in SW Louisiana rice country and massive light goose flocks along the coast.

Species	East Zone	West Zone	Daily Bag	Possession
🟜 Light Geese (Snow, Blue, Ross)	Nov 15–Dec 8, Dec 20–Feb 7	Nov 8–Dec 7, Dec 20–Feb 1	20/day	No limit
🟜 Specklebelly (White-fronted)	Nov 15–Dec 8, Dec 20–Feb 7	Nov 8–Dec 7, Dec 20–Feb 1	3/day	9
🟜 Canada Goose	Nov 15–Dec 8, Dec 20–Feb 7	Nov 8–Dec 7, Dec 20–Feb 1	1/day	3
❄ Conservation Order — Light Geese	Dec 9–19, Feb 8–Mar 15	Dec 8–19, Feb 2–Mar 15	No limit	No limit

🟜 Specklebelly — Louisiana’s Crown Jewel

White-fronted geese are the most prized waterfowl in Louisiana. Superb callers that respond aggressively. Prime habitat: flooded rice fields and cut corn in SW Louisiana, Lacassine and Atchafalaya Basin. Limit is only 3/day — every bird counts.

❄ Snow & Blue Geese — Conservation Order

Massive winter flocks across Louisiana coastal marshes and ag fields. Conservation Order extends season past regular close with NO bag limit and allows electronic calls and unplugged shotguns. White morph = Snow Goose. Dark morph = Blue Goose. Same species.

🟜 Canada Goose — 1 Per Day

Smaller numbers but highly prized. Most common in north Louisiana along river corridors and agricultural fields. Only 1 bird per day — treat every Canada like a trophy. Best calling technique: clucks and moans.

🦓 Wild Turkey — Louisiana Season Guide

🌸 Spring Gobbler Season

Opens: Mid-March statewide
Closes: Late April
Daily bag: 1 Tom or Jake
Season bag: 3 birds
Toms only in spring. No hens.

🍂 Fall Either-Sex Season

Opens: October
Closes: January
Daily bag: 1 bird either sex
Season bag: 3 birds total
Either sex legal in fall season.

🐙 Dove Hunting — 2025-26 Season

Dove is Louisiana’s most popular hunting opener. Two dove zones. Mourning dove and white-winged dove are the primary species.

Zone 1 — North Louisiana

Season 1: Sept 6–Oct 26, 2025
Season 2: Dec 20, 2025–Jan 15, 2026
Daily bag: 15 | Possession: 45

Zone 2 — South Louisiana

Season 1: Sept 6–Oct 26, 2025
Season 2: Dec 20, 2025–Jan 15, 2026
Daily bag: 15 | Possession: 45

🐙 Eurasian Collared Dove

Year-round, no bag limit. Valid hunting license required. Cannot be counted toward mourning dove bag limit. Most common in suburban and agricultural areas.

🦥 Early Teal Season — Sept 20–28, 2025

Nine-day statewide season. One of Louisiana’s most beloved hunting traditions — warm weather wingshooting before the main duck season.

📅 Season Dates

Opens: Sept 20, 2025
Closes: Sept 28, 2025
Daily bag: 6/day
Possession: 18
Steel shot required

Legal Teal Species

🦥 Blue-winged Teal
🦥 Green-winged Teal
🦥 Cinnamon Teal

Other ducks NOT legal during early season — identify before you shoot.

Field Tips

Hunt flooded rice fields and coastal marshes. Teal-size decoys. Steel shot required. Warm weather — dress light, bring ice. Best action is first 30 minutes of shooting light. Blue-winged teal are the most abundant.

🐿 Small Game — 2025-26 Louisiana Seasons

Squirrel and rabbit hunting are deep Louisiana traditions. Some of the best squirrel hunting in the nation is in Louisiana’s hardwood river bottoms.

🐿 Squirrel Season

Opens: Early October 2025
Closes: February 28, 2026
Daily bag: 8 | Possession: 24
Gray and fox squirrel statewide

🐇 Rabbit Season

Opens: November 2025
Closes: February 28, 2026
Daily bag: 8 | Possession: 24
Swamp and cottontail statewide

Species	Season Opens	Season Closes	Daily Bag	Habitat & Notes
🐿 Gray Squirrel	Early October	Feb 28, 2026	8/day	Mature hardwood bottoms — pecans, oaks, hickories. Most popular small game in Louisiana.
🐿 Fox Squirrel	Early October	Feb 28, 2026	8 combined w/ gray	Pine-hardwood edges. Larger than gray. Pine cones and acorns. Less common but excellent table fare.
🐇 Eastern Cottontail	November 2025	Feb 28, 2026	8/day	Briar patches, field edges, brushy areas. Beagles are the traditional Louisiana method.
🐇 Swamp Rabbit	November 2025	Feb 28, 2026	8 combined w/ cottontail	Bottomland hardwood swamps. Larger than cottontail. Swims readily. Prime in Atchafalaya Basin.

🐊 Alligator, Feral Hog & Other Species

🐊 Alligator Season

Wild alligator harvest: Late August–October
Private land tag system — must have tags issued by LDWF.
Nuisance alligator permits available year-round.
4-foot minimum size. Tags required for legal harvest.

🐖 Feral Hog

Year-round on private land. No bag limit.
Night hunting allowed with landowner permission.
No license required on your own property.
Major agricultural pest — eradication encouraged.

📋 13 Louisiana snake species shown below — with real Wikipedia photography

🐍 Louisiana Snakes — Identification & Safety Guide

Louisiana has 48 snake species. Only 7 are venomous. Learn to identify dangerous from harmless species.

📋 6 spider species shown below — with real Wikipedia photography

🕷 Louisiana Spiders — Identification & Safety

Three medically significant species in Louisiana. Know which to watch for and which are harmless.

🦟 Pests, Insects & Nuisances

🦝 Wild Mammals of Louisiana

🌾 Land Use Notes for Your Region

⚒ Field Work Windows

💧 Drainage & Soil

☀️ Heat Index Safety

🌀 Hurricane Prep

📐 Stocking Rate & Acreage Guide

🌕 Full Moon Calendar

🌱 Moon Planting Guide

⭐ Best Days for Activities

🔭 Astronomy Events 2025–2026

🌊 Tide & Fishing Moon Notes

🌾 Annual Ryegrass — Louisiana Planting Guide

🌿 Bermudagrass Management

🌱 Pasture Weed Control

🧪 Pasture Fertilization Guide

🔄 Rotational Grazing Systems

🌾 Hay Production & Storage

🐄 Cattle Health & Parasite Management

🐎 Horse Health & Deworming

🐐 Goat & Sheep Health

🐔 Poultry Health

🔴 FAMACHA Scoring Guide

💉 Vaccine & Treatment Schedules

🌿 Louisiana Folk Remedies

📖 Weather Folklore

🌾 Planting by Signs — Moon Sign Lore

📏 Quick Conversions

☎️ Emergency Contacts

📊 Feed & Hay Weights

🗓 Louisiana Ag Extension Contacts