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  1. Ed Brodt

    Another "To tube, or not to tube" thread

    We use free wooden pallets for cages. We have a heavy deer population and haven't lost a tree yet. These pics are when we first started using them seven years ago. All of these trees are much bigger now and producing fruit. We still have them caged to prevent rubbing. We use black weed...
  2. Ed Brodt

    15 year old cutover

    Some states have wildlife biologists that will come to your place free of charge and help you put together a timber stand improvement plan. I also recommend you call a couple of professional foresters before he you cut anything. Show them your plan or explain what you are wanting to do...
  3. Ed Brodt

    Protect Apple Trees from Wildlife ?

    Weed cloth should cover as much as possible. Water will go through it. Do not staple the screen to the tree. Really not much maintenance after the initial set up. Protect against deer and mice. First year keep watered. Keep weeds under control.
  4. Ed Brodt

    Protect Apple Trees from Wildlife ?

    We use 4 pallets with one screw in each corner. Weed cloth runs the full width and length on the ground and is held in place by the pallets. Water that first year is essential. Once a week we would pour 5 gallons of water around each tree. These pics are right after planting. Trees are now...
  5. Ed Brodt

    New ideas for fencing?

    Pallets. One screw in top of each corner. Easy to open up for weed control etc. plus they are free. The ones in this picture are now 4 years old.
  6. Ed Brodt

    tower blinds and scent control

    We run two 6X8 box blinds 10 feet off the ground overlooking a food plot in a saddle. Keep front windows open to minimize movement when it comes time to shoot. Only been busted once in 8 years. I had stepped in some water on the way to the blind and had a wet sock. Took my shoes off and hung...
  7. Ed Brodt

    How has logging changed your properties?

    I recommend using a certified forester. I had a couple of loggers come in and give me an estimate. They were a good bit different. We actually had three different foresters come in before we found one that understood what we were trying to accomplish. Two wanted to do a clear cut. We were...
  8. Ed Brodt

    What road did you (or those before you) take to become an outdoorsman?

    Grew up in the 50's and 60's. There were no deer. No one in my family hunted or fished. One summer my best friends grandfather retired and he took us fishing almost every day. Cane poles, catfishing. Then came BB guns and bird hunting. Then my best friend and I got into beagle hounds and...
  9. Ed Brodt

    The October Lull?

  10. Ed Brodt

    Cage failure

    We use pallets to build our cages. They are free. Easy to take apart to apply weed cloth etc. As the sun moves across the sky the slats create periodic shade which helps protect against scald.
  11. Ed Brodt

    How long do your Camera batteries/solar last?

    Depends on the sun you get. You can see from this report that one has been going for a few years. Some others just recently needed recharging. The ones showing a low number of days finally died out when the leaves started to fill in the canopy. They had been running all last fall into this...
  12. Ed Brodt

    How has logging changed your properties?

    We had three different foresters come in before we found one that understood what we wanted to accomplish. Finally did a select cut about 3 years ago. Prior to that we seldom got pictures of bucks during spring or summer time. They would start showing up around Sept/Oct The last couple of...
  13. Ed Brodt

    Shooting bench

    We built one identical to this. Put in a 500 yard range. Solid as a rock.
  14. Ed Brodt

    Cabin restoration (Updated 07-14-2022)

    You will never regret this decision. Nice work.
  15. Ed Brodt

    Caging Trees in a 2022 Economy

    Pallets screwed together at top corners. Easy to take apart and mulch down or weed cloth. These were pear trees planted in 2018. All survived and are bearing fruit this year. Pallets are free around here so all you have invested is some labor and screws.
  16. Ed Brodt

    protecting apple trees

    We take 4 pallets and screw them together at the corners. The ones in this pic have been in place for four years now. These are pear trees and are quit a bit larger than when this picture was taken. It is also easy to take them apart if you need to clear out any weeds or add weed cloth in a...
  17. Ed Brodt

    Discussion: What have been some habitat projects that you believe have had the greatest impact on herd quality and quantity?

    We have done it all. Food plots, water troughs, mineral licks. However, the one thing that has made the biggest difference was doing a select cut of our hardwood timber stand. Before that we would not see any decent bucks on our trail cameras until October, and not really good ones even then...
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