Badgerfowl's habitat projects

[badgerfowl]

Got my apples from Cummins planted on saturday along w/ a Northwest Greening from CrazyEd. All 6 trees were nice and straight and thick w/ good roots. Caged and matted them all as well. Took about 4 hours for the 6 trees by myself. Also hauled water from the woods to give each a drink as we haven't had rain for awhile so we've dried things out pretty good.

2 chestnut crab (b118), 1 golden hornet (mm106), 1 kerr (p18), and 1 dolgo (p18) from cummins.

Here's a few caged and matted. Will add the window screen before winter.





Chestnut crab b118

 

[badgerfowl]

Trail cam photos from a week before the 1st season. I think I counted 25 or 26 turkeys, at least 8 toms.

 

[badgerfowl]

Future spike!



Critter fun



Deers





Nice doe



Did I get it?

 

[bueller]

That field is just clover, no rye, correct? And don't discount that buck as a spike just yet. He just may turn into a scrubby 5 pointer ;).

 

[badgerfowl]

Yes just clover now. Planted winter wheat with it during establishment. Alice, kopu II, jumbo ladino and a red clover. Marathon I think. I tossed 5 lbs of DER in it this spring to see what happens. Only place I've got rye is in the far corner where I planted brassicas last August.

That's a spike! Ok maybe a 3 point if I'm lucky. I did get a pic of one buck that appears to be bigger. If I find it again I'll put it up. Otherwise the doe population is healthy. Just need to find a dumb tom this weekend.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

What a miserable example of habitat work ........ no wild game enjoying the fruits of your labors. :rolleyes: :D

Great pix Badger !! Looks like you have the neighborhood deer and turkey populations happy. Nice work !! Have your shotgun ready ??

 

[badgerfowl]

I haven't even bought my license yet. :) I haven't even clicked the safety off during spring turkey season since 2012. I'll give our place a try on friday and then I've got another place to go if I hear/see nothing at ours, just a few miles down the road. My dad hunted over there this past week and had good action just about every day. The landowner shot a decent one the first afternoon. There's a bearded hen over there. I'll shoot for that one.

 

[badgerfowl]

Caged and matted the crabs I planted two weeks ago this afternoon. Fertilized the 2nd leaf and older trees. Should be good to go minus some spraying for weeds and pests. Window screen at the end of the growing season.







My order of 10 pines and 10 wild plum from MDC came this week so also planted those today.

Made one giant plum planting in the hole I had dug for an apple that was too wet. Didn't mat but caged it. Still determined to get a damn plum to fruit. No luck so far. Deer eat anything that isn't well protected.

 

[badgerfowl]

1st leaf Golden Hornet full of flowers.



1st leaf Northwest Greening.



1st leaf Dolgo flowering already.



3rd leaf prairie spy. This one has been slow to do anything. Hoping this is the year it starts moving.



These cortlands were the first apples we planted in 2008.





5th leaf Hudson's Golden Gem. Probably can't see them but it does have some blooms this year.

 

[badgerfowl]

2nd leaf centennial w/ blooms again. Need to pick these off so this tree grows up. Seems like its going to be a great producer one day.



2nd leaf Black Oxford really taking its time.



3rd leaf Enterprise w/ some flowers on the lower branches.

 

[scott44]

Great looking orchard you have there, is it just off a plot?

 

[badgerfowl]

Apples are on the north side of our 5 acre clover field.

 

[scott44]

Apples are on the north side of our 5 acre clover field.

looks like a good set-up

 

[badgerfowl]

Yea its about the only spot that stays dry all year round. Anywhere else has the potential to flood. I'm pushing it w/ this year's planting in a few spots. Running out of dry ground. I'm pretty much done adding to it except maybe a couple. 31 is enough to care for by myself.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

We have Centennial crabs too, Badger, and it took 2 years for it to start to jump into good growth. ( Your pic on post #460 ). I picked the blossoms or fruitlets off to aid growth of the trees too. Last year I let 2 fruits on one and they are delicious !! You won't be sorry. This year they are loaded with blossoms, and I'll probably let them keep 4 or 5 apples on them, but take off the rest of the blossoms. Gotta get 'em bigger.

Nice job on the planting !!

 

[badgerfowl]

It was loaded last year and I didn't pick them off til I had coon problems. Probably kept the tree from growing too much but I won't make that mistake this year!

 

[badgerfowl]

Here's how I keep track of what I planted where. Just in case a tag gets ripped off the cage. Ones in black are already in the ground. Red is possible future ones. If I planted the ones in red that woud just about do it for me in this location. North is to the left for reference. Those trees are too close to the field edge I've found out.

 

[woodduck]

Good idea, I need to make up some tags and print out a diagram like yours before the plastic tags wear out and I forget whats what !

 

[bueller]

Here's how I keep track of what I planted where. Just in case a tag gets ripped off the cage. Ones in black are already in the ground. Red is possible future ones. If I planted the ones in red that woud just about do it for me in this location. North is to the left for reference. Those trees are too close to the field edge I've found out.

Mine are drawn on a makeshift map on the back of a paper plate. Might be time to upgrade a bit.

 

[badgerfowl]

Mine is just a word document. Pretty simple. Column format.

I imagine it'd be tougher if the trees are just planted randomly. Mine are perfectly straight in my eye-sighted rows. :rolleyes: