Shallow pockets acres

[Mstains]

Wendsday evening got the grandson to help clean up some from last weekends cutting.

Spent about an hour with him dragging brush and me cutting then went and got some ice cream. The hill in the background is part of appox. 3000 acres of state game lands. It's approx. 500 to 600 yards from my ground with two other properties between.

 

[Mstains]

Went up for a couple hours myself today didn't take camera along to section I'm cutting out. Needed someone dragging brush me trying to both your self is a pita.
Did check trail cams today.
Guess turkeys don't mind me cutting brush
This cam is only 50 yards from where I was cutting


Noticed one of my hazel nuts had catkin on it this will be the third year for them. Almost all of them had catkins last year. I think their confused and too small and too young.

My apples are just starting to open. This is my Walmart red apple. My nwc trees are starting to open also didn't carry camera up to them.

 

[Mennoniteman]

Are you cutting for the food plot or just to make thick cover?

 

[Mstains]

Are you cutting for the food plot or just to make thick cover?

Cutting to plant chestnut trees. I may try some clover this fall as this area isn't as rocky as other area I tried clover before.

 

[Mennoniteman]

If you would pick some of the rocks in the less rocky area and get some clover started you would have all of the deer in the neighborhood there. However, it takes clover 2 seasons to get really nice.

 

[Double L]

I have had great luck using Humistart which is made by Timac. 400lbs an acre and you can get it in 50lb bags. I have rocky dirt with little to no soil in it. I believe using this stuff a person can grow things on a side walk.. you should be able to get clover started, I like planting oats when I do a new clover stand to help protect it the first year.

 

[Mstains]

Went last week cut a little. Decided I needed new blade for brush cutter store didn't have any. You would think they would keep more than one hand. Did plant two trees last week. Took chainsaw up last thursday evening cut down two trees and then decided to cut some mountain laurel with it. Then chain came off and bugger up bar teeth.

Got new blade and chain went back up yesterday and got some more brush cut. New chain doesn't want to fit on bar might be a little short even though it's suppose to fit saw. Got one tree and dead snag to get rid of and then I can get three or four more trees planted.

 

[Mennoniteman]

Dunstan chestnuts? Where'd you buy them?

 

[Mstains]

Dunstan chestnuts? Where'd you buy them?

No these are wild life group seedlings from buck III and buck IV orchard.

 

[Mstains]

Got four more trees planted last Thursday evening in the rain. Had to work Saturday. Sunday more rain. Got back up tonight put some newspapers around to help with weeds and cut a little more brush. If I can get a couple more evenings this week I should get the last four planted.

 

[Mennoniteman]

Looking great! I think you should be seeing the first rewards for your work in the next several years. Habitat improvements in the middle of big woods country has the potential to yield the bigger dividends for smaller properties because of the lack of agriculture in the area makes anything that you do a big draw for wildlife.

Too me, your thread is what habitat management is all about, working in the rain, doing it by the sweat of your brow, family time, and going for icecream. You can enjoy ten acres just as much as some of us with more land.

 

[Mstains]

Got three more planted last evening. Still have some brush to cut to get the last tree planted. Had to work the last few weekends so didn't get trees in ground as soon as I would have liked to have but still not too late on getting them planted. Have noticed the last couple of weeks I need to take time and clean out some tree cages and make some others higher. Yesterday I noticed I have one chestnut and two oak that have had most of their leaves removed in the last week. Going to get a bottle of seven and spray as I did pull a ugly cattipiler off of one of my apple trees last week.

I have had more deer checking out the new cut out area on camera than I have so far on any other cam.
Right now I only have three cams out and I don't have one in the area that is seeing the most use according to tracks but I hate to move cameras from were they are. Time to buy a few more I guess.

 

[Mstains]

Looking great! I think you should be seeing the first rewards for your work in the next several years. Habitat improvements in the middle of big woods country has the potential to yield the bigger dividends for smaller properties because of the lack of agriculture in the area makes anything that you do a big draw for wildlife.

Too me, your thread is what habitat management is all about, working in the rain, doing it by the sweat of your brow, family time, and going for icecream. You can enjoy ten acres just as much as some of us with more land.

The working in the rain wasn't dedication. It was we waited to long that evening and it started raining when we got to mountain. It was more we got trees loaded we're not taking them back home they're going in the ground. And shortly after we got back to truck that night it quite raining.

 

[Mstains]

Dunstan chestnuts? Where'd you buy them?

If your looking for dunstans Tyrone Milling did carry them if Huntingdon Walmart don't have any.

 

[Mstains]

When up this afternoon cut a little brush, realized I need someone dragging as I'm cutting so stopped and took a walk around and found a second one on same tree. Trees will get sprayed either tomorrow or Monday depending on weather chance of thunder storms tomorrow.

What should I do with this tree
cut above new growth now? red line
wait to see if I get new growth higher up?

tree is dunstan chestnut if it makes any difference
or should I leave alone till winter and trim back above highest new growth?

 

[Mstains]

Got trees spayed today. Sat down for a break noticed a turkey at top of hill. Couldn't get camera out fast enough for picture. Also noticed a one of my bigger chestnut oaks died
.
Getting some help from mother nature not clover and I can't remember correct name but good browse for my deer and rabbits.

 

[Mstains]

One thing I did notice while spraying was only 2 trees had been ate on by cattapilars and both were sheepnose from nwc. My 30 06, droptine, crossbow crabs along with my northern spy from nwc and my Walmart red apple weren't touched,

One other observation from sitting down taking a break, Most people would never believe the amount of butterflys that fly though the woods,

 

[Mennoniteman]

I do 4' high wire fence in a 3' diameter circle around the tree, it looks like your wire is smaller? An interesting observation, with the wire around the trees the deer leave the tree alone, even the branches sticking out from the wire. I took the wire off of one tree because I thought that it's big enough, within 2 weeks a deer had really nibbled on the lower branches. It's hard to grow trees in tough conditions with the added stress of something eating it.

I believe that chestnut oaks are the least hardy oak tree, they are always dying off for no apparent reason at all.

I usually don't trim any of my trees until winter, I also have several newly planted trees that are growing well, but have a dead main central leader, this is often due to not pruning the central leader right above a nice bud, or to the stress of transplanting.

 

[Mstains]

I do 4' high wire fence in a 3' diameter circle around the tree, it looks like your wire is smaller? An interesting observation, with the wire around the trees the deer leave the tree alone, even the branches sticking out from the wire. I took the wire off of one tree because I thought that it's big enough, within 2 weeks a deer had really nibbled on the lower branches. It's hard to grow trees in tough conditions with the added stress of something eating it.

I believe that chestnut oaks are the least hardy oak tree, they are always dying off for no apparent reason at all.

I usually don't trim any of my trees until winter, I also have several newly planted trees that are growing well, but have a dead main central leader, this is often due to not pruning the central leader right above a nice bud, or to the stress of transplanting.

I use either 3 foot or 4 foot wire depending on how tall plants are and whats on sale at the time I'm planting. I was able to get away with 3 ft chicken wire around my first three three gallon dunstans I planted. They were the first trees I planted and the deer left them alone for the first year and a half now anything they can reach they eat, And up until this year I got away with 3 foot chicken wire around bare root seedlings as long as they weren't growing out of top but this year they learned they can stick their head down in cage and eat leaves guess I'm going to have to go with 4 ft wire on most new plantings.

 

[Mstains]

Went up to check cameras tonight. Got first fawn on 5/31. Mountain laurel is in bloom.
Not the best picture took with laptop didn't take other camera along.