What do you have growing in your pines/spruce

[shawnv]

I was thinking about planting some goldenrod were I am scatter planting spruce. Has anyone purposely planted this from seed? If so how well did it do? I have some on the farm already but not much where I'm planting so I was maybe going to give it a boost.

 

[Native Hunter]

Canada Goldenrod grows naturally here, and it is a fierce competitor with other broadleaf weeds and grasses. The only thing that can outcompete it is blackberry briers, and I have lots of both in my tree plantings. I like the goldenrod better than those dang briers. Goldenrod makes good winter cover.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

At camp, there's a variety of things growing in among the spruce. We have birch saplings - white, black and yellow birch - , weeds and a few blackberry briars, a few ferns, and some maple saplings. Deer seem to love it. These spruces were planted randomly in a heavy select cut about 19 years ago.

 

[Native Hunter]

My tree planting is getting to the point that there are some places I can't mow anymore because of the big lower limbs on white pines and pin oaks. It's going to be hard now for me to get in and whack trees like sweet gum and sycamore that come up. One reason is the briers. I ordered brier proof pants and a shirt two days ago for the upcoming future fun.

 

[rocksnstumps]

If you already have goldenrod somewhere on your farm, you might not have to purposely plant it in your spruce to get it to come in. Here's an example where the rows where the trees were planted had the sod killed and for a few years the resulting broadleaf and thistle weeds were sprayed when the trees were young. Given an opening, the goldenrod has really thickened up on its own in this planting. Initially it was just pasture grasses but if you patient if might just surprise you what shows up in about 5 years.

 

[Native Hunter]

Here is what mine looks like. I have pines and some other trees too

 

[shawnv]

If you already have goldenrod somewhere on your farm, you might not have to purposely plant it in your spruce to get it to come in. Here's an example where the rows where the trees were planted had the sod killed and for a few years the resulting broadleaf and thistle weeds were sprayed when the trees were young. Given an opening, the goldenrod has really thickened up on its own in this planting. Initially it was just pasture grasses but if you patient if might just surprise you what shows up in about 5 years.

View attachment 8425

There is a little golden rod here and a lot on other parts of the farm but the area I'm planting this year is dominated by foxtail so I was thinking maybe I should till shallow and spread some goldenrod seed to give it a boost while planting the spruce.

That's a nice looking stand you have!

 

[Bowsnbucks]

I'd rather have goldenrod than thistle and some other weedy stuff !! I've seen deer bed in goldenrod - not thistle. I like the pics of Native's and Rocksnstumps' patches of cover. I can picture bucks prowling around in that stuff in the fall ......... sniffing for ladies !!:) ;)

Sounds like briar-proof gear is the way to go Native !!

 

[mthompson]

I wear a pair of these chaps all the time. http://www.stonecreekhounds.com/product/hunters-choice-chaps/

Briarproof and Waterproof.....I've had mine for 5 years, and have had them on for probably 300 days....not a scratch on them suckers! I wore out 2 pairs of jeans one year, and that was enough..bought these and never looked back.

They are purpose built by serious coon hunters, with a material that has stood the test for 40 years.

 

[mthompson]

As for goldenrod...and any other native like that. When I am out hunting in the fall, I religiously fill my left pockets with seeds as I walk around. Then, I spread them where I would like them to be and let nature do the work and sometimes I'll lightly clear an area and sow them and tamp them in the soil a bit. If I want something "for sure" then I try to get some started at home and transplant.

I do this for goldenrod, milkweed, blazing star, purple and yellow coneflowers, and also for a lot of native grasses (big and little blue, indian, dropseed, grama, etc.)

Is it guaranteed? No. Is it simple? Yes

 

[wiscwhip]

I do something similar with apples/apple seeds wherever I am hunting, be it public or private ground. Find a tree and pick a few, or bring a few to eat, and drop them along my path. Never sure if they will survive, but if only 1% make it, there will be an apple tree where none stood before.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Mthompson - You mentioned milkweed. We have a small cluster of them at camp in one clearing - an old field. They are the only ones at our place. I mowed around them this past summer ( we have apple trees planted nearby ) in the hope that some will spread seed and multiply in other areas there. Monarch butterflies need them to anchor eggs to, and other insects use them as well. Monarchs are on the decline, so maybe we can give them a boost at camp, if only for a few. - - nature's plants HAVE a function !!

 

[mthompson]

Mthompson - You mentioned milkweed. We have a small cluster of them at camp in one clearing - an old field. They are the only ones at our place. I mowed around them this past summer ( we have apple trees planted nearby ) in the hope that some will spread seed and multiply in other areas there. Monarch butterflies need them to anchor eggs to, and other insects use them as well. Monarchs are on the decline, so maybe we can give them a boost at camp, if only for a few. - - nature's plants HAVE a function !!

Yep, that's why I "transplant" seeds all fall, every year. Every last thing in nature is connected. And every last thing depends on the diversity of every other life...microbes, bugs, worms, plants, large and small animals, birds....everything. It's just my small part to help keep native diversity, ecological resilience and integrity in areas that would otherwise not have it. I spread most of my seeds along fence rows, field corners, and ditches. Places where nobody will bother them and the critters that use them.

One example is an old rock line/fence row between two fields out behind my house. 5 years ago, it was just a bunch of reed canary grass and the deer would just sprint across there on the edge of the field, hurrying along to get out of plain view. Now, after several years of seed spreading, there is some Switch, Big Blue and Indiangrass, along with goldenrod and milkweeds...not much, but enough that I now routinely see deer WALKING right down the middle of the fence row, and there is a trail in the middle. I also see more songbirds flitting around and the hawks and owls are around more often (more mice because of the seed drop now). Mind you, this is a full 0.25 mi from my back door, and there is nothing else there except another field and across the rod another field...but the deer are trying to get to a 10 acre woodlot to my east (Open MFL to boot).

 

[chummer]

I have a lot of milk weed around. I was shocked to see deer browsing it this year. It wasn't just one plant or one time either. It persisted for a few weeks. I keep this area mowed once a month so the plants stay young.