Trees for sandy soil

[Telemark]

I thought about aspen, but in 5 years when the branches get above the browse line are they any benefit? I put 1500 aspen on my place 22 years ago and I haven't seen any benefit to deer since about the 5 year mark other than some cover, but the lower branches die off quickly and don't make much of an understory

Try cutting a bunch of them down this winter. They are supposed to grow back very dense. I read a lot about them and got som advice here last year and ended up cutting about 10% of my aspens last year. Looking forward to see what they did over the summer.

 

[Nova]

Try cutting a bunch of them down this winter. They are supposed to grow back very dense. I read a lot about them and got som advice here last year and ended up cutting about 10% of my aspens last year. Looking forward to see what they did over the summer.

I tried this with mine several times with complete failure, I got nothing but dead tree stumps. Mine are hybrids which might be why, but most of the county programs selling trees only sell the hybrids now.

 

[homerj]

Cutting mature big tooth or quaking aspen in the winter should result in them sending up lots of root suckers the following spring. Cutting young aspen should lead to dead trees.
Coppicing hybrid poplars is a different technique entirely