Who's working in the woods this weekend?

[Weezy]

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[Someday isle]

Nice work Weezy!

 

[Weezy]

Thanks Si, it took me about 8 hrs to compete this 150 yard stretch due to the slope. Still needs some grading but good enough for now.

 

[bueller]

Thanks Si, it took me about 8 hrs to compete this 150 yard stretch due to the slope. Still needs some grading but good enough for now.

Don't forget to put a camera on it. I bet the deer are going to use "your" trail quite a bit.

 

[Weezy]

No doubt they will, there was already a run and a couple intersections naturally occurring here. It's a good spot, 25-30 yards down from and parallel to a ridge top. This trail will take a 90 degree turn down to the road . In this corner is where I plan to pinch them down with blockades. I already have a stand here and saw deer every sit.

 

[Weezy]

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I'll tackle the trail down to the road next.
By the way, this access trail is on my property line.

 

[rocksnstumps]

No doubt they will, there was already a run and a couple intersections naturally occurring here. It's a good spot, 25-30 yards down from and parallel to a ridge top. This trail will take a 90 degree turn down to the road . In this corner is where I plan to pinch them down with blockades. I already have a stand here and saw deer every sit.

The classic military crest. They do the same thing on my low ridge. Trees fall down and stuff changes after logging small areas but that trail is still within 20 ft of old routes over the years. Stands within sight of that have the majority of successful hunts for my property

 

[Bowsnbucks]

We had logging done on a slope at camp about 20 years ago and the switchbacks the dozer made have all become easy-walking deer " highways ". Stands placed for archery season usually see deer using these switchbacks coming up to our plots. They also make easy chasing / cruising routes for bucks leading up to and during the rut !! Suggestion - seed some shady grass seed mixture on that trail to hold soil and make quiet walking. If you have no food plots, throw in some clover seed too.

 

[Tap]

Tip of the day...
I just came in from hinge cutting some elm and I discovered an additional use for hinging hooks. I have a Nick Nations hook and I realized that it's great for dealing with those dozens of tiny grape vines that grow from tree-top to tree-top. Instead of trying to pull them down with the hook, I found that if I reach up and hook a cluster of those annoying tiny vines, and twist the hook, all those little SOBs easily break.
Until now, I was doing a couple things...Trying to pull the vine down with the hook which was more laborious and sometimes would break small branches of the tree I was trying to "de-vine", or I would reach up with the pole lopper and snip vine by vine. That was time consuming.
I couldn't believe how fast and efficient I could clear vines from small trees like crabs etc by just twisting the hook.
The next time you try to remove vines from small tree tops, try using the hook. Reach up and hook 'em and twist the "T" handle. Man...it's so easy

Nick's hooks are slick. Mine extends to about 14 feet so I can reach up to 20-25 feet or so with it. And the inside radius of the hook has those gnarly teeth that destroy those tiny vines that smother trees.
I've always liked that hook and after I realized how it destroys vines...now I love that hook!

 

[Someday isle]

Nice Tap!

I spent the last two days spreading lime. Yesterday I put 600 lbs of lime on some of my food plot trails and today I put another 800 lbs down.

I started a new thread on dozer work too. I had a guy come out and give me an estimate on opening up two 1/4 acre plots And maybe clearing another area where there is just a bunch of debris and some trash trees where a timber harvest was done several years ago. It's in a rocky soil area but so cluttered the deer don't use it for anything. It'll make a nice little plot project.

My brother and I also cut down five trees that were in the middle of my trails. My wife gave me a STIHL Wood Boss for Christmas and this was its maiden voyage.

This weather is still just crazy. 68 today.

My next project is putting my trail cameras back out for a couple weeks and loosening the straps on my ladder stands until the end of summer.

 

[Tree Spud]

Spent the day hand spreading 30 lbs of CIR switch grass seed. Tried for about 5 lbs per acre. My fitbit says I walked 8.52 miles or about 6 acres.

My legs and back seem to dispute that assessment ... their need for alcohol & advil claim the fitbit is under recording my effort!

 

[Knehrke]

It's 1.4 degrees outside according to the porch thermometer. We had seventy last week and we'll hit sixty by Tuesday. Crazy.

I'm hoping to accomplish two things this afternoon, once it warms past 20F. First, I want to use the forest clearing saw to get at some stray multiflora and second, I feel like it's time to focus on apples. Later this week I've hired a guy on a friend's recommendation to help me take down some of the larger box elder that are canopying a bunch of real estate. I'm not good enough with my larger Dolmar saw to be comfortable cutting weird leaning really big just plain scary stuff down, and maybe watching him I'm learn something, too.

 

[Someday isle]

Spent the day hand spreading 30 lbs of CIR switch grass seed. Tried for about 5 lbs per acre. My fitbit says I walked 8.52 miles or about 6 acres.

My legs and back seem to dispute that assessment ... their need for alcohol & advil claim the fitbit is under recording my effort!

My brothers fitbit said we did 8000 steps and 3.8 miles yesterday. I too didn't trust that assessment.

 

[Someday isle]

It's 1.4 degrees outside according to the porch thermometer. We had seventy last week and we'll hit sixty by Tuesday. Crazy.

I'm hoping to accomplish two things this afternoon, once it warms past 20F. First, I want to use the forest clearing saw to get at some stray multiflora and second, I feel like it's time to focus on apples. Later this week I've hired a guy on a friend's recommendation to help me take down some of the larger box elder that are canopying a bunch of real estate. I'm not good enough with my larger Dolmar saw to be comfortable cutting weird leaning really big just plain scary stuff down, and maybe watching him I'm learn something, too.

I'm new to the cutting down trees thing. My brother works a 30 inch saw at work all the time and he's just a wizard with a chainsaw. He's teaching me but I've already set size limits for myself. Only the safest of trees are within my comfort zone. I probably over respect the saw but I've got a wife and five kids and it's just not worth taking any chances.

 

[H20fwler]

I took advantage last weekend knocking my to-do list out in the good weather. I've got tomorrow off so my plan is to split some wood with the new Fisker maul and cut some remesh tree cages to get ready for fruit tree planting in a couple weeks.

 

[Tap]

Transplanted a couple hundred Dunstan today.
We wintered them in mulch piles and today we put them in 3 gallon pots.
Most will be kept in pots this year, but a few dozen will be planted in the next couple weeks.

W. Pa.

 

[loshonhora]

I finally finished cutting all the grape vines on our place. Got a start on the ailanthus too, while I was out there. Lots of that devil tree around. Whoever named it "tree of heaven" should be shot. Try to kill it and it root sprouts or seeds like crazy. I also found a couple sheds.

 

[Tap]

I finally finished cutting all the grape vines on our place. Got a start on the ailanthus too, while I was out there. Lots of that devil tree around. Whoever named it "tree of heaven" should be shot. Try to kill it and it root sprouts or seeds like crazy. I also found a couple sheds.

Did you treat those grapes as you cut them? If you didn't, they'll sucker and one vine will become a dozen. Been there, done that...treat grapes as you cut em.

And I understand that Tree of
Heaven can be an issue, but diligent cutting of them in late summer produces lots of browse that deer relish. I've posted threads on the subject on other forums. Put a TOH on the ground in September and deer will walk through and ignore prime clover to get to those TOH leaves. Cut TOH in late summer for a few years and they will diminish...at least that's what is happening to me. I actually wish that some of mine weren't dying out right now. It's a fantastic late summer browse if you are willing to put it on the ground within deer's reach. They love the stuff.

W. Pa.

 

[loshonhora]

Did you treat those grapes as you cut them? If you didn't, they'll sucker and one vine will become a dozen. Been there, done that...treat grapes as you cut em.

And I understand that Tree of
Heaven can be an issue, but diligent cutting of them in late summer produces lots of browse that deer relish. I've posted threads on the subject on other forums. Put a TOH on the ground in September and deer will walk through and ignore prime clover to get to those TOH leaves. Cut TOH in late summer for a few years and they will diminish...at least that's what is happening to me. I actually wish that some of mine weren't dying out right now. It's a fantastic late summer browse if you are willing to put it on the ground within deer's reach. They love the stuff.

W. Pa.

I sprayed both cut ends of the grapes with a hot gly mix. I've never seen any browsing on young ailanthus. We've got a patch right on the edge of a field, and it's never looked like it's been hit.

 

[stevenk03]

Found a old pear tree last fall it was shaded out by other trees and vines pulling it to one side, tried trimming it up and getting more sun to it, not a big one and not sure if it will produce any more pears than last year but thought it was worth a little time and effort to see.