Protecting shrub plantings and shrub screen questions

[Fetz]

Just ordered the shrubs for my spring habitat project - planting a 107yd long screen along one of my back fields. I'll be using:

Gray Dogwood
American Hazelnut
Chickasaw Plum
Blackhaw Viburnum

My big question is how to protect these until they get established. I have used tree tubes with great success but not appropriate here since I want to encourage thicket development. Has anyone here ever use t-posts and a couple strands of wire with success? I would prefer not to have to cage each plant individually, both for financial and logistical reasons.

Any other advice on the planting, these species of shrubs in particular, etc is also welcome. I frost seeded a tallgrass prairie mix from Hoksey Native Seeds this winter and this will make the eastern border. I am also planning to put down PFQF's "wildlife firebreak" seed in around and next to the planting to serve as a walking path, a buffer between the prairie and the shrubs, and eventually as an actual firebreak once the prairie is well established.

 

[Turkey Creek]

Can't speak to all your varieties, but here in eastern KS, deer don't typically browse Gray Dogwood, they will browse the hell out of plums on my place (American or Chickasaw), I don't feel like they would browse Blackhaw that heavily, but no personal experience with it. I am doing almost the identical thing as you this year. 103 yard visual barrier for deer and habitat for quail. I am going to run the white electrical fence tape (I like the tape as it is more visually obvious to the deer) down them and over them for a couple years as an experiment. I am planting mostly dogwoods this year, wanted to put in a row of Nannyberry as well by some jackwipe bought out every single stem from IL shortly after they opened their tree sales today. I wish they would crack down on those people who just buy to resell. Most shrubs are prolific resprouters after a fire, so nothing wrong with the way your doing it, but they will most likely be thicker if you run fire through them every few years or mow them off.

 

[Fetz]

Can't speak to all your varieties, but here in eastern KS, deer don't typically browse Gray Dogwood, they will browse the hell out of plums on my place (American or Chickasaw), I don't feel like they would browse Blackhaw that heavily, but no personal experience with it. I am doing almost the identical thing as you this year. 103 yard visual barrier for deer and habitat for quail. I am going to run the white electrical fence tape (I like the tape as it is more visually obvious to the deer) down them and over them for a couple years as an experiment. I am planting mostly dogwoods this year, wanted to put in a row of Nannyberry as well by some jackwipe bought out every single stem from IL shortly after they opened their tree sales today. I wish they would crack down on those people who just buy to resell. Most shrubs are prolific resprouters after a fire, so nothing wrong with the way your doing it, but they will most likely be thicker if you run fire through them every few years or mow them off.

That's where i have ordered all my stuff from. I can't believe how quick some of those species go. I checked last night and i think they had 20k persimmon, sold out by 3pm today.