General Hunting Discussion
Habitat Projects
I’ve been working on my 120 acre property since rifle season ended. Cleared 2 new food plot areas totaling about 2 acres. These areas were 8-10 year old aspen thickets. Lucked out as there was just enough rise in elevation around lowland to scratch out the 2 acres. So my food plots will be surrounded by aspen thickets with tons of red osier dogwood and tagalder thickets in the lower edges. Seems like it is all coming together nicely. This weekend I will start improving my Far East 40 and will be hinge cutting some swamp maples on the subtle rises in elevation and will enhance these knolls with conifer plantings and maybe some large logs. I’m also wanting to try to transplant some ROD on my east 40 around the knolls as the only ROD currently is on my west 80. I believe it’s because the east 40 is older aspen stands that are shading out the ground. I absolutely love this type of work and it keeps me in shape. Gets tough with 2 feet of snow on the ground but I’ve kept trails open with the skidsteer to allow access all winter.
TTT.
Anyone doing any offseason work? Ordered a bunch of trees/shrubs for spring planting. Trying to propagate some white cedar, ROD, and some other hardwood cuttings. Have apple and pear stratifying in the fridge. Waiting for this damn cold weather to lift so I can continue hinge cutting and clearing. Cabin Fever!!
Madforlabs,
For the screening, it will be closely planted spruce trees. Hoping to have them form a barrier and then I will leave some trails coming in and out as well as open travel to the south into the main block of our woods. However for the main cover part the conifers will be spaced out to provide ground cover. Also plan on having some pockets of hazelnut and American plum in the cover areas as well. Have you are or anyone else planted that thorny raspberry brush? The stuff that is waist to chest height? Thought about mixing that with some oaks as a change of pace as well. Just don't know the official name and if it is commercially available.
Great outdoors
I planted approx 10 acres around 15 years ago with a mixture of red pine and hybrid aspen for bedding/security cover and also as a screen from being seen from a road across a 40 acre field. Turned out great. Only caution is you need to resist the temptation to plant pines too close together. I spaced them 10 feet apart. That way as they mature you don't loose understory due to crowding. Deer, grouse and turkeys all love it.
Has anyone ever planted a woods from scratch? I purchased a 30 acre parcel earlier this fall that has about 26 acres open and tillable. Normally I wouldn't consider this type of parcel, but there were 3 reasons why I bought it. 1, it was adjoining to lands I own or friends own, 2, it is primarily high ground, while most of my land is primarily low ground, and 3, it has excellent soil on it.
I'll be posting more of how this project progresses over the years and as I work on other habitat projects on the original lands. For 2018, I am screening off the East(neighbor), North (road), and West (buddy). The South border is land I share with a different buddy. Between the 2 lands will be a series of hidden fields and food plots stretching 500 yards in length. Long term for the 30 acres will be planting approx 20 acres of thermal and bedding cover, 5 acres of hardwood mast trees and 5 acres of plots. In addition to screening in 2018, I will get started planting some of the mast and thermal/bedding cover.
Morning Bluefin, its easy to kill trees, just girdle them. If you want go a step even further after girdling, spray an herbacide inside the cut, dead period. Btw, about me planting douglas firs, i like the way they look and in the future looking at select cut $$. Ive planted plenty of whites/red pines, balsms and native firs. Dougs just look nice. Chestnuts are not native, but i like them as well :).
River, what kind of plums did you plant? I'm planting American plum which is a native plum tree and rated as winter hardy for zones 3-8. I'm on the edge of zones 4 and 5, so I would think I would be OK.
I've been planting white pines and white cedars. Just looking for some variety. Also, I believe black willow are very heavy water users, so the though was that putting up with some of them would make the area better for a wider variety of trees. The area in question is likely a 10 year project to get it where I want it.
GO, Ive planted plum trees on my yard and they did good until the harsh winter a few years ago. The harsh cold killed them, easily.
Yes black willow does well in wet soil but they grow like weeds and crowds out other trees plus they have limited economic value. Makes lousy firewood, lousy lumber and rots too easily. White pine, grows well in all soils. What about white cedar? a traditional swamp tree that has been overharvested and has trouble regenerating.
