My Land Tour...The Big Woods

[H20fwler]

Some of the shrubs, they were all 8"-12" when planted, now most are 2'-3'.

A winter kill pushing new growth

That should give a rough idea of what we are trying to do with the shrub strips and what we are working with. Now that the road screen is completed up front the pasture should be boxed in if everything grows according to plan. The pasture is planted to native grasses warm and cool season with some clovers and wildflowers, the plan is to ad a half acre pollinator strip next spring for bees and butterflies.
Next Spring we also plan on putting in more Hazelnut, Winterberry, Cranberry, Chokeberry and Elderberry into the strips. Two big things I have learned with the shrub strips...Cranberry likes wet feet almost a must have...and Hazelnut is the easiest thing to grow I've ever seen.

 

[scott44]

That's a good amount of planting! You have some good growth for a year's worth, you should have some screens in a few years.

 

[H20fwler]

Thanks, I sure hope so.

 

[Bill]

That is a lot of planting and it looks good. I took a drive around the farm this past week and shake my head at the stuff I've planted and lost. 500 NS 3 years ago and I can't find one. Had quite a few still kicking last spring but I guess the drought last year got them.

Hate to admit it but my gung-ho tree planting days are winding down. I'm going to start working on planting a few things and taking the time to care for them.

 

[H20fwler]

Thanks Bill.
It has been really busy for us the last three years trying to get things lined out, luckily I have the boys to help with the big projects. I hope we get decent rains here this summer then it should be just maintenance on projects and trees/shrubs should all be old enough to survive some dryer weather. I was surprised at how many of the young shrubs froze out this year, I wasn't expecting that at all.
Every time I think I have about everything I want in the ground I see something else I'd like to try...this habitat thing is like a drug!

 

[H20fwler]

Spent a lot of time out at the farm the last few days with the outstanding weather we have had.
Took quite a few pics, cleaned up some of the weeds inside and outside of the fruit cages, sprayed some small volunteer locust and walnut that needs to be gone and sprayed a few cattails that were trying to move in along ponds.

A couple Keiffer pear that are setting fruit pretty well so far.

Moonglow

Gate

The apples are doing great but nothing big enough to let fruit this year, I want them putting it all into getting big and strong.

Took a walk around the ponds and there are hundreds of little cricket frogs all along the banks.

I don't know what kind of water plant this is but I like it...there are a few growing along the edges.

Darcy wouldn't stay out of the ponds

Just the right amount of plant growth on ponds, west side front pond.

east side

Lots of fresh deer tracks all around the ponds

Caught a pic of a yearling race along pond on the wood duck box camera

We had geese hatch for the first time a couple weeks ago.

And the wood duck boxes have been doing great

The pasture, it is 14ish acres minus the ponds and shrub strips. We planted it last year about this time to warm and cool season grasses with some clovers and wildflowers mixed in.
We started with oats as a cover then planted orchard grass/timothy/bluestem/indiangrass/switch with crimson/ladino/alsike/alfafa partridgepea mixed in along with blackeyed susan/grayheaded coneflower/Illinois bundleflower/purple coneflower/upright coneflower.
It was mowed once late summer last year to help it crown and nock down weeds, plan is to mow again late July and again in early September this year then half of the pasture every three years on a rotation every other year on a three year cycle to keep the volunteer trees/shrubs down. It should be a great bedding area for deer and brooding for turkeys/quail and bunnies along with lots of flowers for bees/butterflies and my wife...at least that is the plan.

I'm happy with pine tree growth so far on the road screen, we have lost a few that just flat out turned brown but overall most seem to be adjusting to the farm.

 

[H20fwler]

I found a few mulberry trees growing along the edge of the woods that I hadn't ever noticed before

The bigger Dunstans are doing good

The wildflowers are really blooming

First ever Indain Blanket I have seen on the farm

And Saturday afternoon my bee mentor gave me one hell of a bee class 101!

He gave them a couple puffs from the smoker and they stayed very calm, I asked a bunch of questions and took a bunch of pics, he was extremely pleased with how well the hives are doing being so new. It was very interesting I've never done anything like that before, I learned a lot.

A frame full of honey ready for bees to cap off, you can see the honey glistening in the sun

The queen in center of pic with the ghetto booty

And my first taste ever of honey from our own farm! It was unreal sweet and as fresh as I could ever possibly get...ten times better than honey from the store.

We added another level and closed them up, he said we need to ad another set within a week or two the way they are producing.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

^^^^ Nice to NOT have bears to ruin the bee hives. Bees are cool to have, beyond their absolute necessity for pollination. Organized societies.

Well, H20 - that's quite the disaster area you have going there !! We should all be so "disastrous". That's a nice mix of flora and fauna in those pix. No boredom on THAT property - too much to look at and enjoy !! Great job. Pix are super.

 

[H20fwler]

^^^^ Nice to NOT have bears to ruin the bee hives. Bees are cool to have, beyond their absolute necessity for pollination. Organized societies.

Well, H20 - that's quite the disaster area you have going there !! We should all be so "disastrous". That's a nice mix of flora and fauna in those pix. No boredom on THAT property - too much to look at and enjoy !! Great job. Pix are super.

I’m glad we don’t have bears around here too!
Thank you for the kind words, I have to say some of the credit on my projects goes to all the good advice I’ve gotten from this site and things I’ve read here.
I grew up on a farm but what I’m doing with the land now is about the opposite of what we did farming, for me now it’s all about the habitat.
And thank you for the suggestion to use some triple 15 on the conifers this spring, did it at both places and I’m noticing better growth.
John-W-WI also gave a great tip on using the Plantskydd deer repellent spray on the pines to keep the deer from browsing them down, it’s working!
I also took your advice on the Goldrush apple and have two ordered for this fall to try out.




6/6/18
Going to link these two threads in on the farm tour also since they are about it.

http://habitat-talk.com/index.php?threads/just-because.5660/

http://habitat-talk.com/index.php?threads/fire-ring.5762/

 

[H20fwler]

Had my daughters boxer this week at the house so I took both the dogs for a walk at the farm and had a look around to see how things are going.

As I pulled into the drive about a dozen goldfinches flew out of the thistle patch...I know what the heck am I doing letting thistles grow!
This is the spot we plan on putting a cabin one day, I haven't planted anything here and have let it go wild. It's on the north end part of the orchard.

My approach to having an orchard is a little more counter culture than the majority on here practice...almost sacrilegious to some.
I plant a fruit tree, screen cage and mulch.... I mulch first two years only in spring to help retain moisture and secondary to suppress weeds, mice and voles have been a non issue. I water them the first year and prune every spring.
I don't spray for anything, if I have a little bug issue I may sprinkle with some Seven. I don't spray for weeds...not at all and I don't mow. I pull or cut weeds in the cages and for a foot or so around cages...clover/chicory/grass I don't worry about. I will cut or spray volunteer locust and walnut trees that try to grow in the orchard.
My fruit trees are 99% for wildlife, all wildlife.
I've got brushpiles in the orchard and in between the fruit trees it gets pretty wild and I like it! A manicured orchard is not what I'm after at all. I'm not raising fruit to sell or worried about weeds stunting my trees they are growing fine maybe not as fast as if they were babied but that's not what I'm trying to accomplish. I want full on habitat, deer bed all over in the orchard I have lots of tree frogs and all kinds of birds and LOTS of bunnies!
My favorite type of hunting in the world is rabbit hunting... every single time out it reminds me of my childhood hunting with my Dad and Grandfather. Rabbits are fun to hunt easy to clean and can be cooked any way you prepare chicken.
I know that on this spot the boys and I can roll out Thanksgiving morning and bump a minimum of six bunnies in ten minutes or less, the perfect rabbit hunt.
Rabbits need cover to thrive, summer and winter so I give it to them and it also helps all kinds of ground nesting birds, twice I've had turkeys nest in the orchard in the past three years and I'm trying to re-establish quail.
I haven't pulled into the drive at the orchard and not seen goldfinches in two years and everyone in the family like seeing them... and to have goldfinches thick there has to be thistles...I know it makes most people cringe but I don't mind them Canadian and Bull.
Besides all the trees/shrubs/plants that I plant for wildlife most weeds have their place in the food&cover chain too.
I do the same at the Little Woods... so it's not that I'm lazy or the maintenance has gotten away from me...I'm doing it on purpose.

I guess the only thing I do spray is cattails around ponds to keep them under control and any locust or walnut that tries to grow in the orchards.

The back side of the apple part of orchard, trees were planted 2-3 years ago as whips;

South side of pear part of orchard...same thing trees were planted 2-3 years ago as whips;

The bigger pears I am letting fruit this year.

Couple of Keiffers;

Moonglow;

Bartlett;

Gate;

NWC Crossbow just planted this spring

NWC Tenpoint planted this spring

We have some pumpkins growing where the wife threw out last years fall porch decoration pumpkins next to the drive.

New chicory/clover plot has come in thick

Still getting some interesting wildflowers, I think these are....
Primrose;

Wild Petunia;

Ragwart;

Chicory;

 

[H20fwler]

The shrub strips are really growing

A little pinoak that was the size of a pencil a year ago

Hazelnut planted a month ago

A lot of the shrubs I thought were dead from winter kill are pushing up new growth
a pinoak

ROD

Seeing a few of these guys popping up!

The county Soil and Water Conservation Dept just called me this morning and asked if I would let them along with a few college students working on their biology and natural science degrees come out next week and plant some milkweed in my WRP, I gladly accepted!

It looks like we will be getting some Dunstan nuts again this fall!

Dozens of these in the run off area north of front pond

There are 21 species of crawdads in Ohio

This past week we have had some cool evenings and the wife and I have gone out to the farm to watch the sunsets and listen to all the frogs chirping and croaking on the ponds and just enjoy the great outdoors.

Last but not least............

we got our first honey harvested!

 

[Bill]

It's all good but I like the fire pit!

Looks like food company too..

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Hmmmmmm ……… Just you & the wife sitting at the fire pit with a nice romantic fire burning ………… listening to all the frogs croaking …….. watching the sun set ……… raw animal nature ……….. ……...……. Good cover story - Dunstans, milkweed and, oh yeah, - the honey harvest.

 

[Bill]

“Good” company Not food company. Darn auto fill on the phone needs to learn I don’t need help looking like an idiot

 

[Native Hunter]

Man your place is just alive with color. Really pretty, and those pears look good. Mine got froze out this year. Sure will miss them.

 

[H20fwler]

Man your place is just alive with color. Really pretty, and those pears look good. Mine got froze out this year. Sure will miss them.

Sorry to hear about your pears.
Brother my goal is in twenty years to have a place half as good as yours!

 

[H20fwler]

Hmmmmmm ……… Just you & the wife sitting at the fire pit with a nice romantic fire burning ………… listening to all the frogs croaking …….. watching the sun set ……… raw animal nature ……….. ……...……. Good cover story

Well..............then there is that......!

 

[Bowsnbucks]

H20 - You thought you were kiddin' us ...…….. didn't you ????? WWWeeeeeeeee know what your game plan was !!!! ( ) <<< if you say so !!!!

 

[H20fwler]

Stopped by the farm on way home from work last night. I'm not happy with the jap beetles they have probably killed a couple of the young hazelnuts planted this spring, I need to go out tonight with some Seven and do some dusting. They haven't touched any of the apple trees just stuff in the shrub strips.

The pears are really coming on, I tried not to leave more than a dozen per tree so they wouldn't over do it this year being first I've allowed them to fruit.

A little DropTine crab planted this year trying to make apples already, I pinched them off.

Chestnuts starting to make burrs

Lots of flowers blooming in pasture

Saw three monarch butterflies and the bees are working overtime.

This girl was hard at work

 

[Bowsnbucks]

It's an eye-opener to see how fast pear trees grow. 3 and 4 ft. of growth happened on our 3 pears in a year.

All those flowers are drawing in the pollinators !! Nice mix of plants you have there. Good call on the students planting milkweed at your place, too. Good for all critters, big & small.
How does the home-made honey taste ??