Dipper's mini nursery

[dipper]

These are my white spruce I started. I took 4 sorted buckets of trees out already, and planted. Couldn't go any further since the ground was insulated. I've been doing this for about 5 years. This year was the first year I got hit hard by winter burn- lost about 80% of my trees.

This is the start of my hybrid poplars. I had around 300 total. I harvest my own cuttings and grow them for a year. I get about 4-5' of growth. I need this jump start otherwise the deer would never let the trees get any growth . I plant the cutting close to prevent think root growth. Sometimes these trees will have 6' of a roots 3/4" thick. I am still amazed by them.

This is about 20 square feet of acorn growth. I just layered my acorns thick and placed a layer of some straw from my calves over them. I had a screen over the top of them right after planting. Otherwise critters would have gotten to them. You can see all the acorns germinated. Gonna be a lot of oaks to plant next year.

 

[dipper]

I've been busy planting the last few days. I am going to have to plant my apple grafts here too. I'm gonna mound the trees like a potato hill, so they will be easier to dig out.

I also have some red dogwood too, just didn't snap any pics.

 

[dipper]

I apologize for the bad focus, but the deer have now found my 10 month old rye. Yes this rye was planted around 10 months ago, and the deer are still feeding on it. This is just a little patch in my garden.
From a food plot perspective this should interest many of you. Most of you know how much I insist on planting rye early, for maximum growth and soil building.
There are hundreds of acres of corn, soybeans and alfalfa near this rye and the deer still found it out and they are still eating it. Proof is in the pudding there is no such thing as rye being planted too early and the deer not liking it.

 

[SmallChunk]

Very cool idea!

 

[dipper]

No willows, I've contemplated some wheeping, just never got to it. I have black and I believe Sandbur growing around my pond. Just never got around to gathering any cuttings.

 

[dipper]

Today I threw the apple grafts in the ground. I made a mound to make it easier for removal.

Than I had to collect some straw to protect the soil and mulch the tree. I went to the pen where I kept my ducks all winter. Plenty of duck goodies mixed in with the straw.

It was layered pretty tight.

Than it covered the mound.

 

[dipper]

Than I snagged about a dozen balsam poplar seedlings that planted them self in a flower tub. I put them in with the hybrid poplars I planted as a screen.

 

[scott44]

Looks like you've been busy Dipper, looks great! Did you start the spruce from seed or were they seedlings?

 

[dipper]

Spruce was started from seed 3 years ago

 

[sandbur]

How early is early when planting rye?

 

[dipper]

How early is early when planting rye?

Don't know, I planted some already. I don't think that possible frost within the next ten days will hurt it much

 

[scott44]

Spruce was started from seed 3 years ago

Thanks, I was just curious thats one I haven't tried yet.

 

[foggy]

pretty impressive Dipper!

 

[West Branch]

Spruce was started from seed 3 years ago

Thanks for sharing, very cool nursery. What is your process for starting the spruce from seed? Do you know if it would be similar for pines or balsam fir? Not sure if I would ever get around to doing it but it would be a fun to try.

 

[dipper]

Collect the seed which is kinda a pain. And spread them out super thick. Top it off with a thin layer of mulch

 

[buckvelvet]

Very nice Dipper!

 

[dipper]

20 of my 25 grafts are living. I did a lot of pinching so I should get some growth spurts

The oaks and hp are growing like crazy

Volunteer dill has no probs filling the gaps

 

[dipper]

Tried a couple t buds. Besides being on your hands and knee t buds are a lot easier than grafting. We shall see how they survive though

It's interesting to see how much mulch is gone. You can start to see dirt. Only a few months back this was 2" thick.
The rest of the apples that took.

I had to t bud 6 of my 26 root stock. I got too aggressive removing buds and I lost 3 rootstock after the new grafts withered up. Maybe they will come back.

 

[dipper]

From this

To this in 16 months. There isn't a chance in hell I'd get 7' of growth without my nursery. No need to lay miles of black plastic either. Planted at 6' I'll darn hear have a screen a year from now and 20' trees. Gotta cage the hp otherwise the deer will destroy them.

 

[non-pro-archer]

From this

To this in 16 months. There isn't a chance in hell I'd get 7' of growth without my nursery. No need to lay miles of black plastic either. Planted at 6' I'll darn hear have a screen a year from now and 20' trees. Gotta cage the hp otherwise the deer will destroy them.

Your nursery has some good soil to get that much growth. HP is something I plan on getting from John this year