Little Blue 40

[Brushpile]

Its a tough one Brush. Ive had some success with garlon 4, but like Tordon, its a flip of the coin if it's going to resprout. My forester gave her sympathies to my boxelder problem .



Its a serious game for sure. I committed the sin of complacency. Lesson learned here. Wouldnt have been too bad if the lawn mower hadnt caught fire. . At that point i was worried about my own structure and realized it could get away from me. Hate to hear it has cost lives.

Fighting until desired trees cast shade upon the undesired seems to be the best solution here... maybe?

 

[George]

I would have thrown the towel on that scene, G.

No Fish, we would just be driving the polarious around drinking beer and looking at stuff.

G

 

[Triple C]

Enjoying the ride along Fish! We burned 2 massive stump piles about a month ago. Both were still smoldering 2 weeks after burning.

 

[Fish]

Fighting until desired trees cast shade upon the undesired seems to be the best solution here... maybe?

Boxelder are not long lived trees around here. But man they eat up some real estate until something overtops them.

No Fish, we would just be driving the polarious around drinking beer and looking at stuff.


G

Ok.....that made me laugh.

Enjoying the ride along Fish! We burned 2 massive stump piles about a month ago. Both were still smoldering 2 weeks after burning.

Holy crap... how do you sleep?

 

[Fish]

Well, it's Easter Sunday which means it's a beautiful day, despite the weather here at home. But rainy spring afternoons allow me to catch up on some things here on the forum. It's been a while.
Spring came early this year, then stalled out for a couple weeks, then took off again about one week ago. The early apples are finishing up their bloom, while later varieties are just past full bloom right now.

An early spring look at Golden Delicious and Liberty. These are semi-dwarf trees. This pic is about 12 days old now. And wow have things changed.




A look down the vertical axis row...... winesap and grimes golden on this end.




Love seeing these guys on the blooms. Check out those pollen sacs!




Of course, bees aren't the only pollinators out there....




A pair of StarkCrimson Gala's on the vertical axis row. Gala makes me nervous because fireblight loves it so much. So far these trees are clean.




A couple flower shots. The bloom is too brief!






Tag your trees! My problem is that deer love to chew the metal tags. And eventually the tree eats them too.

 

[Fish]

Work never stops at the Little Blue 40. I've come to realize that any pine I want will need to be fenced, with the exception of low travel areas out by the road. The chicken wire seems to be the cheapest solution. the metal rods are necessary to pound down through some of these rocky areas. I've put up about 30 fences this spring.





This guy is out by the road and does fine with a shot of roundup in early spring.




My first year with tree tubes, so I had to get the proverbial down the tube shot. Chestnut tree from one of Wayne's seeds. Grew in a fabric pot last summer and planted this spring.




Easy to see where I put in the LC mix last fall and where I did not.....




I've gotten some apple grafting done. This one in the front yard.




And then this one performed on a runaway callery pear. Geo sent me wood last spring. I grafted and grew it out and had more to graft this spring. This was the pear tree in his yard.





Might have had some help if the weather hadn't been so nice. Jr. decided he wanted to fish the river rather than haul fencing and tree stakes. Smart kid.





I'm building a fence around a portion of the orchard at the Home 10. So when I saw this telephone pole washed up in last year's flood at Little Blue, I made quick work of it. Free post loaded up and headed home.





That's about all for now. I'll update a few more things in different threads I've got around here, like Miscanthus grass and those top 5 crabapples. Happy spring everyone...

Fish

 

[dogghr]

Awsome pics on the blooms and especially the bee. Really smart kid you have there, as I have hardly been trout fishing this year. Need to hang with him. I hear you on the conifers. No such thing as one a deer doesn't like. Funny they hardly browse the natural ones, but let me plant any, including the same type and its like candy to them. I do get by with just stapling metal window screen to the leader anymore. Has solved the problem. Thanks for showing.

 

[Chainsaw]

Loved the apple bloom pictures; we are a couple of weeks away from blooms yet, at least normally. We do have a string of mostly above freezing temps coming so it could happen earlier this year.

Nice catch with the pole. Most of those older poles last a very long time--not like store bought fence posts produced now a days.
It is good to have a kid around to help you notice that fishing is still a good thing to be doing. I believe in working hard at everything and taking lots of fishing and hunting breaks is a good thing also.

 

[Native Hunter]

Loved all those pics fish. You apple orchard looks great and very near.

 

[Fish]

Awsome pics on the blooms and especially the bee. Really smart kid you have there, as I have hardly been trout fishing this year. Need to hang with him. I hear you on the conifers. No such thing as one a deer doesn't like. Funny they hardly browse the natural ones, but let me plant any, including the same type and its like candy to them. I do get by with just stapling metal window screen to the leader anymore. Has solved the problem. Thanks for showing.

Thanks, Dogghr. I need to slow down and enjoy a fishing day with the boy. And we do. But not enough. He is at that age where he does enjoy spreading his wings and then telling dad about it later. But thanks for the reminder. He will be gone soon.
I capped some pines where i can access them in September without tromping all over the property. Maybe i should suck it up for a few years and go capping each September wherever i have planted the pines.

Loved the apple bloom pictures; we are a couple of weeks away from blooms yet, at least normally. We do have a string of mostly above freezing temps coming so it could happen earlier this year.

Nice catch with the pole. Most of those older poles last a very long time--not like store bought fence posts produced now a days.
It is good to have a kid around to help you notice that fishing is still a good thing to be doing. I believe in working hard at everything and taking lots of fishing and hunting breaks is a good thing also.

Thanks, Chainsaw. Like i told dogghr, you are exactly right on the boy and fishing. I need to let things go and grab the fishing rod more often. But i love the excitement in his voice when he tells me what happened out there.

Loved all those pics fish. You apple orchard looks great and very near.

Thanks, Native. Always happy to share. I am a sucker for fruit tree pics.

 

[lakngolf]

Beautiful pictures show some health on those trees. Good job

 

[OkieKubota]

Glad to see Geo's pear living on in another location...
I need to take the time to fish but all ponds are about dry everywhere around here and creeks aren't running...

 

[dogghr]

Fish, I wasn't commenting about you being with the boy fishing, but rather me since I've been slacking. But you are right, they grow fast especially those last 10 years before they move on.

 

[dogdoc]

enjoyed the update all the fruit tree pics. It is cool that Geo's pear is living out at your place and great find on the telephone pole. With make some nice corner posts.

 

[Fish]

Beautiful pictures show some health on those trees. Good job

Thanks, lakngulf.

Glad to see Geo's pear living on in another location...
I need to take the time to fish but all ponds are about dry everywhere around here and creeks aren't running...

That just sucks Okie.

Fish, I wasn't commenting about you being with the boy fishing, but rather me since I've been slacking. But you are right, they grow fast especially those last 10 years before they move on.

I think i was feeling guilty about it dogghr. I still thank you for the unintentional reminder.

enjoyed the update all the fruit tree pics. It is cool that Geo's pear is living out at your place and great find on the telephone pole. With make some nice corner posts.

Ya, Doc. Geo's original scion he sent is 6 ft tall right now. I should be grafting persimmon next week. That pole will join others in keeping deer out of the Home 10 orchard.

 

[Fish]

August 13, 2017


Finally getting back to updating this property thread. Wish I had more time to read everyone's threads on here. I learn a lot watching what you folks are doing. I thought I would just sort of do a summertime wrap-up post for the Little Blue 40. Many of you have mentioned how these threads work as something of a property diary and I couldn't agree more.


I thought we were going to escape flooding this year, but we got a bad one towards the end of April. Water was up for 2 days, slightly less, and I feared what I would find with my newly placed tree tubes. Would they still be there? I knew floods would come and go, but were my stakes adequate? Would the trees be covered in mud? Brush?





The chestnuts didn't like it at all........





Hard to see in the pic, but the leaves on the bottom half of the tree in the tube are brown. muddy. But thankfully most every tree I checked had fresh green growth and seemed unscathed by the flood.





I even tried short tubing some pines. Helps me find them for bud capping in September on the ones that grow taller than the tube. And if they can survive in the tubes, I may try taller tubes next year.





Muddy Liberty apple tree (and one goofy kid ). Planted just a month prior to the flood. Still alive and well though.




Of course, when you plant trees that love water, what's to worry about.




All in all, the brief flood had very little effect on the trees in and out of tubes. The tubes stood strong and only fell when downed trees landed on them. Many of these trees are NOT wetland species, yet the temporary flood doesn't kill them because they are planted in well drained soil. I have places with heavy clay and you won't grow a white oak in it. The floods soak the clay for too long in the spring and it will kill all but wetland tree species.

 

[Fish]

Cont.....


The Miscanthus Giganteus came back strong again this year. I filled in holes and planted into new areas as I have done for several years now. Still love the screening effect of this grass, especially under power lines where I can't grow cedars.







Like soldiers guarding the woods edge.




Did some more grafting this spring. About 90% of my persimmon grafts flooded just a week after grafting. Everyone of them failed. The only persimmon I successfully grafted this year was a "Deer Magnet" variety up on the hill.
I did graft Geo's Pear to several repurposed and wild Callery Pears.





When you forget ribbon for tying and securing the graft, use what mother nature provides. In this case, I used a few strands of strong grass to secure the new scion.




The shrub planting is starting to take shape after a few years........





Persimmon crop looks pretty good. Weird. My two Yates trees hardly produced a persimmon this year. John Rick is loaded.

 

[Fish]

Cont....


Last year was my first year seriously plotting. By that I mean actually working the ground and putting in an LC mix last September. So this spring when the rye matured, I was happy to see all the clover. I think the deer were happier.











The deer on my 40 had never seen so much clover..........




They were even sleeping in it




And of course many species benefit from the lush clover field....





This food turned my property around last fall, and things are looking good again heading into this season. All thanks to forums where my hunting friends (like Paul Knox) share what works for them and what does not. I will be planting again soon, but will leave much of the clover for a fall/winter forage.

 

[Fish]

Cont.....

Though these apples are on the Home 10, I do comment on that property enough in this thread that I wanted to share. The apples are looking very nice here in Mid-August.














Luke and I picked one gala dwarf yesterday evening. We ended with about 1.5 bushels of nice gala apples.





Our deer at the Home 10 watched as we fenced them out of the main portion of the orchard this July. Hey, I still throw the culls out to them.
We used lots and lots of locusts posts cut from the property last winter.



And of course I have no picture of the finished fence work. I'm not a rancher, and have no experience building fences. But between me and the kid we have accomplished the goal.

 

[Merle Hawggard]

Wonderful update fish. With that flooding and all, is that how you got your forum name lol?
The apples sure look good too!

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