The Sandbox
- Thread starter sandbur
- Start date
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
Looks like the winter's been good to you so far, Bur. Little enough snow to let you get out & do some work on the land. Do you have water standing in the swamp or is it just wet, mucky ground? Can't tell from the pix.
sandbur
5 year old buck +
That swamp has water (now ice) in it .
There are hummocks from where it was pastured 30 years ago and the cattle stepped through the reed canary. It's easy to walk on the ice for now.
I am going to put some willow cuttings into those hummocks and try top establish a travel lane.
There are hummocks from where it was pastured 30 years ago and the cattle stepped through the reed canary. It's easy to walk on the ice for now.
I am going to put some willow cuttings into those hummocks and try top establish a travel lane.
sandbur
5 year old buck +
I got a new stand up alongside of the above deer barrier. The barrier is to the right of this picture and somewhat surrounds the stand.
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
Looks like you're on the edge of some pretty thick stuff Bur. Your tree looks like an oak from the branching pattern? Does the stand look out on an opening or swampy area?
sandbur
5 year old buck +
It is on a finger that looks over a creek bottom. Half of the bottom is mine and half is the neighbors.
This had been one of our best stands, but the deer started moving behind the stand. So I moved uphill a bit and higher in the trees.
Stu helped me out with some suggestions.
This had been one of our best stands, but the deer started moving behind the stand. So I moved uphill a bit and higher in the trees.
Stu helped me out with some suggestions.
Native Hunter
5 year old buck +
Nice swamp! Looks like a good place for a buck to hold up when the guns start blazing....
sandbur
5 year old buck +
Here is the creek bottom/swamp to the north. A couple of sidewalks come together in that direction.
And a couple of sidewalks come together to the west.
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
Looks real good, Bur. Nice views out of the stand. My sons and I do the same trail cutting so we have intersections near our tree stands. From all the pix you've posted - I really like the looks of your ground. I hope you get some does dropping some " spotties " this spring to move in there.
sandbur
5 year old buck +
That is the point and I dropped the popple perpendicular to the edge of the marsh. I did not want a barrier, and did cut up one popple that fell parallel to the edge. The main crossing point is NOT obstructed and is just about 50 feet back from the tip of the point.
That's some great looking habitat. Was your land more open 50 years ago? The lower branches on your giant oak with the ladder stand are horizontal, so I'm assuming they spread out that way when there was no competition in the immediate area. It's hard to beat a stand in a big old oak with giant branches. You can do jumping jacks in those trees without being spotted.
On a different note, where are Stu and MoBuck these days? I haven't seen any postings from them in a while and I was wondering if you knew why that is? Sometimes I'm gone for a couple days and I come back and think I must have missed something.
On a different note, where are Stu and MoBuck these days? I haven't seen any postings from them in a while and I was wondering if you knew why that is? Sometimes I'm gone for a couple days and I come back and think I must have missed something.
sandbur
5 year old buck +
My woods has a designated point that is part of a long term forest monitoring study. If my memory is correct, most of the red cedar in my woods are 70 years old or less. I suspect lots of sand blew into the woods during the '30's and then the cedars began to grow. My better crop soils are protected by the woods from the sand that probably blew into here.
I am on a granite ridge on the edge of the Anoka Sand plain. Better soils are to the east of this granite ridge and blow sand to the west. I suspect hardwood forest existed to the east if the Indians did not burn it and short grass prairie to the west with fingers of forest extending out into the prairie along the streams. Is riverine habitat the proper name?
The area wildlife manager is working at restoring the neighboring widllife area to oak savanna. I like the cedars for winter cover for deer, but do need to drop more of them. I'm not impressed by oak savanna for deer habitat with the short grasses that grow in this area.
I am on a granite ridge on the edge of the Anoka Sand plain. Better soils are to the east of this granite ridge and blow sand to the west. I suspect hardwood forest existed to the east if the Indians did not burn it and short grass prairie to the west with fingers of forest extending out into the prairie along the streams. Is riverine habitat the proper name?
The area wildlife manager is working at restoring the neighboring widllife area to oak savanna. I like the cedars for winter cover for deer, but do need to drop more of them. I'm not impressed by oak savanna for deer habitat with the short grasses that grow in this area.
kabic
5 year old buck +
Your going to have to read the "language alert" topic ...although MoBuck did post once after that.
http://www.habitat-talk.com/index.php?threads/language-alert.2381/
sandbur
5 year old buck +
Here is what I am currently thinking from what I have grown and what I have seen on other places.
All time favorite for Sept. hunt would be Chestnut crab. Chestnut has a long drop time. So does my rootstock carb which Stu and I think is Columbia and it drops some crabs from late Oct. right up until now. I also have some seedlings that are still holding one inch crabs that are probably ranetka from descriptions I have read. Some of those same seedlings have 1/4 inch crabs. Depends on the tree. some of Morse bunches are still holding 1/2 inch crabs.
Dolgo is great, but tends to drop all of it's apples over a short period.
Plant a whitney, dolgo, chesnut crab, then rootstock crab. Look at the wild crabs that hold apples late and try to graft a few. Trailman, kerr, centennial,wickson,and a few of SLN crabs are the ground and not producing, yet.
One farm client has a whitney that started dropping crabs in late July-during a year with an early spring. (It has some scion on it that I have permission to grab!) I also would like to try KinderCrisp.
Someone needs to plant 5of each rootsotck and about 10 of each seedling rootstock and see what develops in 10 -12 years time. I'll bet there are some dandy deer crabs that could be purchased at rootstock prices. There is a report on the Net of someone having 5 ranetka that held apples well into winter and size varied up to 1 inch. I believe they were on the Canadian border.
George-what are they using for crabs in cider out there? One forum member from just east of me says chestnut crabs make good cider and it may vary a bit with ripeness of the crabs.
All time favorite for Sept. hunt would be Chestnut crab. Chestnut has a long drop time. So does my rootstock carb which Stu and I think is Columbia and it drops some crabs from late Oct. right up until now. I also have some seedlings that are still holding one inch crabs that are probably ranetka from descriptions I have read. Some of those same seedlings have 1/4 inch crabs. Depends on the tree. some of Morse bunches are still holding 1/2 inch crabs.
Dolgo is great, but tends to drop all of it's apples over a short period.
Plant a whitney, dolgo, chesnut crab, then rootstock crab. Look at the wild crabs that hold apples late and try to graft a few. Trailman, kerr, centennial,wickson,and a few of SLN crabs are the ground and not producing, yet.
One farm client has a whitney that started dropping crabs in late July-during a year with an early spring. (It has some scion on it that I have permission to grab!) I also would like to try KinderCrisp.
Someone needs to plant 5of each rootsotck and about 10 of each seedling rootstock and see what develops in 10 -12 years time. I'll bet there are some dandy deer crabs that could be purchased at rootstock prices. There is a report on the Net of someone having 5 ranetka that held apples well into winter and size varied up to 1 inch. I believe they were on the Canadian border.
George-what are they using for crabs in cider out there? One forum member from just east of me says chestnut crabs make good cider and it may vary a bit with ripeness of the crabs.
Turkey Creek
5 year old buck +
The wheels have been turning in my head for awhile now. I am taking my apple addiction to a whole new level!:) I have been researching through GRIN and some other sources to begin the mad scientist approach to finding and creating a line of highly disease resistant, cold hardy, crabapple varieties that will drop from August through at least November. Seems like the early portion of the season is covered well, but readily available choices drop off significantly as the fall progresses.
