Hybrid Poplar and Hybrid Willow screen (progress pictures)

Clinton Grandahl

Yearling... With promise
We bought a new place in the country last fall and there is few acre property that borders us, otherwise its pretty much farm field or gravel roads. The property came with very few trees, some decent spruce and a few hardwoods planted 20 years ago, but the rest was hay field. We went to town dropping in 300 various spruce, 30 red and burr oaks and a few hundred various shrubs/bushes small trees.
There are a few drainage ditches that run across the fields and come into the backside of our property and we get a lot of deer activity while the sun is on the horizon. In an effort to increase day time usage we decided to screen asap. Blocking the road, the neighbor’s property and closing off out house/pole shed from the rest of the land.
I ordered up two 500 ft screen kits from John at Big Rock. 1 each of HP and HW. He was nice enough to send the ground cover and staples a head of time so I was able to get it down before the cutting showed up.
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Scalped mowed the best I could. Would have like to sprayed, but timing wasn't great..
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Rolled out the ground cover.. this went pretty well, even with a slight breeze..
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Planted. Im sure my wife would be super happy to know that I am posting pictures of her bent over!
 
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Week 1: 5-27-2017 -- Nothing yet..
 
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Week 2: 6-1-2017 -- Everything is starting.. Nearly every cutting has some growth.. Both varieties (HP and HW) seem to be performing at about the same rate
 
Looks real good!
John may have told you this, it's on his site somewhere but keep a close eye on the lumite where it touches the cutting.

As those cuttings increase in size lumite tends to griddle the tree. Nice and tight is good early to keep the grass from growing. As time goes on you want to put some small slices in there to give the tree room to grow.

Depending on growth this year you can make the slices a bit bigger next year or if they really take off cut a big X in the spring.
 
Wow, I wish more customers did such a good job documenting the process!

Bill is right, the fabric will get tight over time.

Next year about this time, make a 2" slice from the cutting out on 2 sides of the tree (180 degrees from each other). That will give the trees room to grow and keep the weeds at bay.

They poplars and willows will grow at the same rate early, but soon the poplars will get taller and the willows more bushy. They will both be taller than you by fall if they get enough water (unless you are REALLY tall) :emoji_sunglasses:

Thanks for sharing, I look forward to future updates.

-John
 
Nice, with such good prep... I bet they grow like crazy.


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Welcome to the forum and thanks for sharing the pics. Hopefully we see more in the future.
 
looking good! =)
 
Very neat. I look forward to your updates.
 
Week 5 progress pics. There has been some regression and a bit of predation. The predation is not much of a concern as it looks minimal, the regression has me concerned. We have had good moisture, longest dry spell was 7 days, but the ground was still soft/moist under the ground cover.

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Willow

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Not the best pic, the cuttings blend into the background, but we are getting close to 18" of growth. Nice leaves on both the HP and the HW

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HP not doing so well..

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Some are dying back, not sure why.

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HW just under 20"

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Something made a snack out of this HW
 
Thanks for the follow up pictures.

I had a customer start some hybrid poplars in containers this season. He had roughly 10% start to grow and then die just like yours.

For the life of me I can't understand why this happens. If they start to grow, they are viable. What in the world kills them a few weeks after they start growing? I honestly have no idea. I've never had it happen to me in my nursery. Sure 1 or 2 % might not make it, but never any measurable quantity. I am totally stumped.

I'm just guessing, but it almost has to be some kind of damage being caused to the roots? A bug of some sort?

I am totally stumped.

-John
 
Some are dying back, not sure why.

You picked a topic that I happen to be an expert at. There is no one on earth who has killed as many seedlings and cuttings as me.

Pick 4, zoom in. I see where the bark has been scratched off by the lumite. Probably wind causing it to lift and rub the cuttings bark. Get some ground cover staples next to each cutting.

Also be on the look out for girdling. Plastic can be tight to the cutting but lumite can't be. I lost a bunch over that.
 
Been awhile any update on the screen?
 
Has anyone else went this screening route with success? Racking my brain and I need to screen 1100’. I doubt I will do it all at once. Maybe I’ll just try it with a few hundred feet first.
 
Rit, we have planted HP and are very happy. We had deer browsing for the first 2 years. We were worried at first, but we think it actually helped to make the trees more "bushy". We have some spruce planted on the right side of the HP.2015 June 28 HP (4).JPG2016-7-1 Road Trees (1).JPG2017-7-5  Road Hybbid Poplar (1).JPG2018-7-7 Rd Sticks (2).JPG
 
How far apart are the rows and the individual trees in each row?
 
Looks like a pretty good screen strawhead. Thanks for posting. I might have to play around with it. I am screening about 3 acres of plots from the road. I have been planting cedars and spruce on the borders of the plots but these willows closer to the road could give me a short term solution.
 
How far apart are the rows and the individual trees in each row?

I will get you some dimensions in a couple days. We planted closer than John's recommended placing. We placed 3 rows in the fabric. His spacing calls for 2 rows in the fabric for a screen.
 
You picked a topic that I happen to be an expert at. There is no one on earth who has killed as many seedlings and cuttings as me.

Pick 4, zoom in. I see where the bark has been scratched off by the lumite. Probably wind causing it to lift and rub the cuttings bark. Get some ground cover staples next to each cutting.

Also be on the look out for girdling. Plastic can be tight to the cutting but lumite can't be. I lost a bunch over that.


I bet I could fight you for that honor. I can kill cuttings and about 2000 norway spruce.
 
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