Working at the Farm - Took a few I-Phone Pics

[j-bird]

This is going to sound strange, but I started that blueberry bush with a cage and it has been growing a couple of years. I ran out of caging material the other day when setting some crabapples. I knew the little crab would be eaten, so, I stole the cage from the blueberry.

Since I removed that cage, I haven't seen a deer touch that blueberry bush. I may walk out there someday and it be demolished, but so far not touched.

I have some wild lowbush blueberries that don't seem to be browsed. I can't really tell if deer are eating the berries, because the ground is so hard and covered with leaves at that spot I can't really see tracks.

Heck, if they don't eat the bushes, I will plant some more for myself. I will be watching.

But I also stole a cage from a European Hazelnut, and it got hammered.

Thanks Native - maybe I'll plant just one and see how that goes. With my lower deer numbers it may not be a big issue, but I hate planting things the deer won't eat, but I like diversity.....if that makes any sense.

 

[Mennoniteman]

Native - you see much deer use on your blueberries? I have been considering getting a few just for giggles, but wasn't sure how the deer reacted to them. I figured I may need to put them in some sort or wire shelter to limit browsing, but I like the idea of the variety.....I just haven't take that step yet.

I don't think deer like blue berries but the birds will clean you out if you don't do netting.

 

[Mennoniteman]

Quote"All kind of free goodies out there if you just find it and give it an advantage over the competition. That's a big part of my habitat methodology - nature is all about what has the advantage. With many things, that only requires a little effort"unquote.
So true Native, you have nailed it. That's what habitat management is all about. I reposted just so woods newbies and new property owners that might be skimming this get it, how easy it is with a few well placed saw cuts, to make a big difference.

 

[Native Hunter]

Thanks Native - maybe I'll plant just one and see how that goes. With my lower deer numbers it may not be a big issue, but I hate planting things the deer won't eat, but I like diversity.....if that makes any sense.

J - My research and limited personal experience with blueberries tend to make me believe that as a browse plant they might be browsed hard in areas with high deer numbers but not so much with low to moderate deer numbers. But, I do think the ripe berries would be readily eaten about anywhere. I'm going to leave it uncaged as an experiment and see what happens. I would need a camera on it to really tell anything, and I don't have that now. But maybe next year.

 

[Chainsaw]

Here in NY blueberry bushes as browse are ignored sometimes for a year or even two and then sometime in late winter or early, early spring the deer eat the bushes down to just bare sticks if not caged. The local pick your own blueberry farm with a couple of hundred plants has them all inside eight foot fencing as deer damage would otherwise be inevitable here. The birds beat everything to the berries on my property which are now e-fenced anyhow so I don't know if the deer eat the berries here.

Thanks for re-posting Native's quote Mennoniteman; It says it all and it had escaped me.

 

[split toe]

What are you spraying the stumps with after cutting them?

 

[Native Hunter]

What are you spraying the stumps with after cutting them?

Pure Gly without being cut with water.

 

[Native Hunter]

6-17-17 update

I spent the day building a 100 yard road to separate my pine screen from the rest of the jungle on the back side of the pines . This will be a good thing, because it will give the pines a little breathing room on the back side. I used a chainsaw and DR mower. Pretty hot job but I got started real early. I removed some big poplars and was able to save all nearby oaks by carefully choosing my route. Had to wind around a little to do that.











Dad came by later to check out my road building, and I took his picture by my favorite topwork tree.





One new deer this week.





I'm a tired puppy, but sure glad to get this done. I will do the remaining part sometime. Enjoy.

 

[weekender21]

Great looking pictures. Did you graft that tree or top it?

 

[Native Hunter]

Great looking pictures. Did you graft that tree or top it?

Thanks!

That was a tree I topworked on April 8th of this year. Below is a pic of the day I did it.

 

[Mennoniteman]

6-17-17 update

I spent the day building a 100 yard road to separate my pine screen from the rest of the jungle on the back side of the pines . This will be a good thing, because it will give the pines a little breathing room on the back side. I used a chainsaw and DR mower. Pretty hot job but I got started real early. I removed some big poplars and was able to save all nearby oaks by carefully choosing my route. Had to wind around a little to do that.











Dad came by later to check out my road building, and I took his picture by my favorite topwork tree.





One new deer this week.





I'm a tired puppy, but sure glad to get this done. I will do the remaining part sometime. Enjoy.

It looks like you are having fun! Maybe you can identify with this; It's getting to the point where I enjoy whitetail habitat work as much as hunting. Is there something wrong with me?

 

[Native Hunter]

It looks like you are having fun! Maybe you can identify with this; It's getting to the point where I enjoy whitetail habitat work as much as hunting. Is there something wrong with me?

Absolutely. I arrived at that point quite some time ago.

 

[weekender21]

Thanks!

That was a tree I topworked on April 8th of this year. Below is a pic of the day I did it.

That's a great looking tree. I read earlier in the thread that you have multiple apples growing on it. What species is the root? Does it matter what species you use?

 

[Native Hunter]

That's a great looking tree. I read earlier in the thread that you have multiple apples growing on it. What species is the root? Does it matter what species you use?

Thanks weekender21.

The original tree was a crabapple that grew tiny little pea sized apples that weren't good for anything. I really don't know the exact cultivar of crabapple that it was, but it was one strictly for ornamental value. I bought some bargain trees once from a guy, knowing that I was taking a chance on getting some that were not good, and this tree was one of those. Out of that group I got some great trees, but also got a few like this one.

Technically, any apple can be grafted to any other apple or crabapple. However, we know that some incompatibility issues do exist between a few cultivars. It's uncommon, but it is possible. For an example of this look at my Forbidden Knowledge" thread in the apple tree forum about the guy who lost 3,000 apple trees because of an incompatibility issue between rootstock and scion.

My worst fear with this tree was that I had waited too long to topwork it. I should have done this a few years ago when it was smaller. Any time you cut limbs off that are this big, it takes longer for the healing to complete, and there is always a chance of other issues. I also did some smaller trees this spring and the graft unions are almost completely closed and healed on those already.

I really enjoy the grafting.

 

[weekender21]

Great info, thank you.

With all the different species scions you used will this one tree drop at different times?

 

[Native Hunter]

Great info, thank you.

With all the different species scions you used will this one tree drop at different times?

Yes, the different apples will drop close to their normal times. I say "close" because research has shown that interaction between rootstock and scions can cause minor difference in flowering and drop times compared to trees grown on their own roots. However, my guess is that you would never see drop times change but a few days.

The earliest one on that tree is a mid summer ripening crabapple I named "Joe's Crab Shack." It's the one with the red tinted leaves. The original tree was a seedling that my FIL (Joe) dug up growing wild in a field and planted in his yard. That original tree got dozed out this spring where a new highway is being constructed. It had some really nice crabs that were over an inch in size.

The rest of the scions are from trees that go from mid summer into early November in drop times.

As I stated earlier in the thread - this is new territory for me. I'm a novice grafter at this point in time. On all of the other trees I topworked, I didn't mix the trees. This one was kind of unusual, so if I was going to create a conversation piece, I might as well make it real interesting.

Time will tell how all of this works out. I do feel a lot better now that I have added the bracing to help protect the scions from breaking of in strong wind while they are still hardening.

 

[Native Hunter]

Someone asked the question a while back about grafting on to Callery Pear. This is one I changed over to a Kieffer this year. Looks like it is doing good so far.

 

[Native Hunter]

6-24-17 Update:
I did more sawing and a little spraying today. This is a spot I'm going to put in brassicas this fall, and I did a little spraying as I was driving by.



I thought these were beautiful today.



Pears looking good, but a smaller crop this year. Last year was a bumper crop.



Apple looking good. A little CAR showing on this tree but not too bad.



These little crabs are nice. I lost the tag so don't know the variety. Came from WG.



Forget the mineral stump thingie for Yellow Poplar - they won't touch them. I cut this one down a while back.



The smaller trees I topworked have completely filled in the space already. I've got to feel good about these.





Some were growing so tall I had to rework my bracing today. First is persimmon, second is crab.





Someone mentioned red leaves on a persimmon recently. I saw this one today and thought it was pretty.



My new deer is on camera every day. I have him addicted to chicory now, so he won't leave. Finally figured out who he is from last year. Lived at neighbors, came here for rut, must have liked it well enough to stay.








That's all for today. Hope you enjoy.

 

[Merle Hawggard]

That buck shows a lot of promise.
What is the plant with blue berries? It's covered in them, should make plenty of well fed birds!

Sent from my SM-S903VL using Tapatalk

 

[Native Hunter]

That buck shows a lot of promise.
What is the plant with blue berries? It's covered in them, should make plenty of well fed birds!

Sent from my SM-S903VL using Tapatalk

Thanks Merle. That shrub is Arrowwood Viburnum. So named for the long straight shoots that the Native Americans made arrows from. I think the birds are spreading them because I'm seeing a few pop up here and there in fence rows now. Deer will browse those, and they are easy to grow. The need a little protection until they get their heads in the air.