Scotch pine

[BuckSutherland]

I planted these scotch pines in 2018. They were given no care, except to have some branches placed over them to try and protect them from browse. I think in 2019, I put a cage on them and nothing else. In 2020, I put a crappy fabric mat on them. without mulch. In 2022, I redid the fabric mats and added mulch. 2021-2023 were horribly dry years for trees. with 2 extreme drought years. In 2024, it has finally rained and now these guys are fully established with good weed mats and really taking off.

I have about 15 of these planted along a travel corridor. I hope someday I will be able to take the cage off, but it wont be anytime soon. These scotch pines have handled my sticky heavy clay quite well. They have really responded to the abundant rainfall this year. Red pine seems to have issues in my heavy soil. I have scotch pine and austrian pine to go along with a bunch of white pine and a few reds. For the most part white pine grows the best followed closely by scotch and austrains.

 

[Bill]

I wish just one of the conifers I've planted survived. Those look like they're going to take off!

 

[bigboreblr]

They look good. Mulch is worth it's weight.... Young confiers at my home are doing alot better with mulch. Been putting in mostly spruce.

Got a 15ft of so scotch pine in the middle of one of my food plots at camp. Just can't cut it down. Got to be more than one on the 600 acres, I haven't seen another one yet though. Might be a lone survivor on a remediation site. Spot is leved out and a drainage ditch dug. IT's an old log landing, they usually do little to nothing to log landings usually.

 

[Jerry-B-WI]

What's in the cage next to the Scotch pine in picture #3?

 

[BuckSutherland]

What's in the cage next to the Scotch pine in picture #3?

A little raspberry, and a bunch of ROD and some misc weeds and stuff in those cages around there. It was a native patch so I removed some stuff and left mostly dogwood and tried to install a weed mat. I think I have 4 cages stacked around a big clump there. I tried to mulch them a bit with some woods mulch and threw a little 19-19-19 on them.

This is what it looked like this spring when I tried to clean it up. I might redo the whole clump with one big cage. They were well browsed before I caged them.

 

[bwoods11]

I’ve had really good luck with Scotch Pine in Minnesota and I planted 10-12 in Iowa as a test . Survival had been very good. They grow fast .

I have to cage mine !

 

[Telemark]

Be aware that Scotch pine shed their lower branches as they mature.

 

[Oaknut]

I have been cutting my Scot’s pine down. My grandfather planted them almost 70 years ago, and they are spreading and filling in my openings. In Michigan they are considered invasive.

They have acted as a wonderful nursery for both red & white oak, though, I believe that Blue Jays hide acorns in their dropped needles. So now I am cutting the pine and releasing those oak.

 

[bwoods11]

I have been cutting my Scot’s pine down. My grandfather planted them almost 70 years ago, and they are spreading and filling in my openings. In Michigan they are considered invasive.

They have acted as a wonderful nursery for both red & white oak, though, I believe that Blue Jays hide acorns in their dropped needles. So now I am cutting the pine and releasing those oak.

Invasive ? Not in my area . I wish

 

[jsasker007]

I planted these scotch pines in 2018. They were given no care, except to have some branches placed over them to try and protect them from browse. I think in 2019, I put a cage on them and nothing else. In 2020, I put a crappy fabric mat on them. without mulch. In 2022, I redid the fabric mats and added mulch. 2021-2023 were horribly dry years for trees. with 2 extreme drought years. In 2024, it has finally rained and now these guys are fully established with good weed mats and really taking off.

I have about 15 of these planted along a travel corridor. I hope someday I will be able to take the cage off, but it wont be anytime soon. These scotch pines have handled my sticky heavy clay quite well. They have really responded to the abundant rainfall this year. Red pine seems to have issues in my heavy soil. I have scotch pine and austrian pine to go along with a bunch of white pine and a few reds. For the most part white pine grows the best followed closely by scotch and austrains.



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If you had to choose between the scotch and the Austrian which one can take more neglect?

 

[BuckSutherland]

If you had to choose between the scotch and the Austrian which one can take more neglect?

Neither. If I left them uncaged they would be eaten. All of my pine has cages, weed mats, mulch. It doesnt pay to even try if I dont include all 3.

 

[jsasker007]

Neither. If I left them uncaged they would be eaten. All of my pine has cages, weed mats, mulch. It doesnt pay to even try if I dont include all 3.

I had some different pines that I grew in my backyard until they were big enough to transplant and make it and they are doing well. The ones that I tried to plant directly where they would spend eternity didn't make it. Spruce is pretty much deer proof for me but I like the fast growing pines mixed in with them for even better cover. The transplanted trees that made it were probably 5' tall when relocated.

 

[jsasker007]

I think the reason the pines in my back yard made was because of my dogs barking at any deer in the yard. Would love to get some white pines going.

 

[Oaknut]

For conifers I really like Norway spruce. Fast growing once established, and they seem to hold their lower branches better than Red, Jack or Scot’s pine.

 

[bwoods11]

For conifers I really like Norway spruce. Fast growing once established, and they seem to hold their lower branches better than Red, Jack or Scot’s pine.

Black Hills Spruce is my favorite, but I like a mix of Spruce, Pine & Cedar. The deer seem to prefer the variety ?

 

[BuckSutherland]

I've only spent 3 days in my damn woods since late April. To my best recollection I have about:

approx. 200 pines- 125 of them are white pine the rest are Austrian, Scotch, Western White and Red. Some ponderosa going in next year. All have cages, weed mats, mulch. 150 of them 4+ feet tall. Pines grow nicely on my land. I've had some mortality with reds, but great luck with whites.
approx 90-95 white cedar. 100% caged, matted, mulched. 60% 4+ feet tall. 100% survival rate other than the 6 we planted last Dec 28th. All six died. I am impressed with their drought tolerance and growth rates. Been excellent for me.
40 meyer spruce- no cage, but weed matt and mulch- these will be phenomenal in 10-15 years. Might be my new favorite since the deer seem to leave them alone.
50 norway spruce- no cage, weed matt and mulch
50 BHS no cage, weed matt and mulch
50 (douglass fir, concolor fir, frasier fir, grand fir, cannan fir) cages, weed mats, mulch- firs grow like shit on my land. Cannan fir is nearly paralyzed in my soil. Grand and frasier fir not much better. Douglass and concolor are the best two firs in my clay. Balsam fir also slow and the deer eat it all when I try to do ditch transplants. Lots of dying Balsam in our area
50 tamaracks. 25 of them were just planted and walk away.
500-1,500 white spruce and balsam fir ditch transplants. Not sure how many of these are alive since the 2 mega droughts. Plant and walk away. Ive planted thousands.
100 white spruce with weed mats and mulch
30 hemlocks with cages, weed mats, mulch


I am planting a diversity so 10-30 years down the road when the new AIDs comes from China and kills one of these species at least I might have others that are resistant. Probably a mix of meyers spruce, white cedar and assorted pines going forward. Hope I'm around in 30 years to see it cause should be fantastic habitat even if the deer are all gone.