Tree Selection Help

[CoopH]

I am looking for trees to plant on my hunting property in Vermont, USDA zone 5a. They are going to be planted in sections of my food plot to create borders and one section will be turned into a tree plot. I want smaller trees so that the visibility from the blind isn't hindered too much and so that the deer will feel more secure in the plot but this isn't necessary larger trees can work. Any suggestions that would work for my area? Any advice is welcomed.

 

[Turkey Creek]

Maya is from your area of the country and would probably give you the best information regarding root stock choice.

 

[Neahawg]

The wildlife group claims there pear trees are cold hardy through zone 5. If your looking for easy maintenance I would go with pears. They have enough different trees to span aug-dec drop times.

 

[dogdoc]

If you are wanting apple trees but don't want tall trees you could always prune them to an open center style.

 

[Chummer]

I would assume you are at risk for late frost. If so I would weigh bloom time as one of the most important factors.

 

[Maya]

I don't have any for sale this year, but I think Bill Mayo does up in Franklin. Bill will have several different apple varieties that are well suited for our area. Not sure if he has any left, but he owns the Franklin General Store, call him there. His pick up date is around April 15. Before you do anything else, call him first! It will be worth the call. He owns a commercial orchard and will give you loads of help getting them started.

 

[Oakseeds]

Why not just plant dwarf apple trees of a variety appropriate for your area. They shouldn't get very tall.

 

[1yellowdog]

If you are wanting apple trees but don't want tall trees you could always prune them to an open center style.

There is a benefit of not having tall apple trees??

 

[buckvelvet]

Cummins has more franklin cider trees available.... http://shop.cumminsnursery.com/shop/apple-trees/franklin

 

[Brushpile]

Dwarf trees will be browsed to death if you have a good deer herd. You might consider bushes and shrubs like Hazelnut, dogwood, Ninebark, etc.

 

[Native Hunter]

Visibility can have more to do with how high you prune the lower limbs (and the tree placement) than it does with how tall the tree gets. I would get a mixture of semi dwarfs and full sized trees and prune them so that the first scaffolding limbs start pretty high on the tree.

You mentioned visibility from a blind. If that is a ground blind, what I just said makes a lot of sense. And, even with an elevated blind it could still make sense depending on how you align the trees. The trees I'm planting in open spaces are strategically set in rows in a wheel spoke pattern so that I can see all around them from my elevated blind - and I prune the lower limbs so that if I'm anywhere on the ground I can see under them.

Good luck.............

 

[THE LLC]

Dwarf trees will be browsed to death if you have a good deer herd. You might consider bushes and shrubs like Hazelnut, dogwood, Ninebark, etc.

Deer destroy my hazelnuts.

 

[CoopH]

Dwarf trees will be browsed to death if you have a good deer herd. You might consider bushes and shrubs like Hazelnut, dogwood, Ninebark, etc.

We certainly do not have a large deer herd here in Vermont, our property does have a good deer density though comparatively. I will definitely keep this in mind.

 

[CoopH]

Visibility can have more to do with how high you prune the lower limbs (and the tree placement) than it does with how tall the tree gets. I would get a mixture of semi dwarfs and full sized trees and prune them so that the first scaffolding limbs start pretty high on the tree.

You mentioned visibility from a blind. If that is a ground blind, what I just said makes a lot of sense. And, even with an elevated blind it could still make sense depending on how you align the trees. The trees I'm planting in open spaces are strategically set in rows in a wheel spoke pattern so that I can see all around them from my elevated blind - and I prune the lower limbs so that if I'm anywhere on the ground I can see under them.

Good luck.............

It is an elevated blind on a 6 foot tower(so it effectively has a 10 foot eye level when i'm sitting in it), would larger fruit trees effect the visibility in areas past the trees and food plot much more then smaller trees and shrubs?

 

[Native Hunter]

It is an elevated blind on a 6 foot tower(so it effectively has a 10 foot eye level when i'm sitting in it), would larger fruit trees effect the visibility in areas past the trees and food plot much more then smaller trees and shrubs?

That depends on how close the blind is to the trees. It also depends on how tall the shrubs are. You should be able to visualize it in your mind based on your specific details.

One thing for certain is that the wheel spoke approach I mentioned should be good regardless of the situation. Have enough space between the spokes (lines of trees going straight away) so that you can see deer move from spoke to spoke.