So I wanna plant some trees...

[Steve NW WI]

I've got the bug to give back to the land that's kept me warm all these years. I've been checking around the internet, starting at ArborDay.org and a bunch of other sites as well, and researching some ideas for planting a woodlot on a steep ex-pasture hillside that's really not being used for much of anything.

Here's my main "wants", more or less in order of importance:

1. Future timber/firewood value.
2. Attract and hold wildlife. My personal favorites are deer, pheasant and squirrels, but turkeys, fox, rabbits, and the occasional black bear are around too.
3. Overall land value (long term)
4. Possible retirement cabin building site (long term)

Some concerns:

1. Disease. Oak wilt is not present in my woods so far, but it is confirmed within a couple miles of here. EAB is within 40 miles or so, and Dutch Elm disease makes periodic sweeps through here as well.

2. Drought tolerance. I have sandy soil, not the best for holding moisture, and lately we've had a lot of dry summers. I'd hate to see my work burn up, but it's far enough from the buildings to make regular watering a pain (although I do have a 300 gallon sprayer that could be converted to a watering rig if need be.)

3. Seedling size. How big is enough to get a good start pretty much in the wild, with only some mulch to keep weeds down in the immediate area?

Suggestions on varietys of trees, good sources of seedlings, planting tips, etc are greatly appreciated.

BTW, right now I'm leaning toward some burr oaks, hickories (don't have any here now, thought they would be cool), thornless honeylocust, and a few white pines for wildlife cover, along with some cherry trees transplanted from a fence line.

 

[Circle B MN]

Check out Itasca nursery here in MN. I have ordered hundreds of seedlings from them in the past. Fair price, quality product. Check out the seedling plugs. Makes planting a breeze. My last order was for about 300 Black Hills Spruce. They are growing nicely with little failures to take.

 

[burroak]

Might try White oak...It's fairly resistant to oak wilt. I'm partial to burr oak. It's very drought resistant they say. Sugar maple, black cherry, or poplar may be good too. Maybe try some different trees like Kentucky coffeebean, if it will grow up there...I bet a hardwood tree nursery can tell you much more than you want to know.

 

[Jon E]

Need to check with a good forester in your area, particularly one that knows the area well. Your soils are very important, as a tree that grows well in clay soils will likely not do well in sand. Also, some species are much harder to start from seedlings. From your description, I would try hickory or white pine.

 

[Steve NW WI]

Check out Itasca nursery here in MN. I have ordered hundreds of seedlings from them in the past. Fair price, quality product. Check out the seedling plugs. Makes planting a breeze. My last order was for about 300 Black Hills Spruce. They are growing nicely with little failures to take.

I checked their web site. Most of the hardwoods they have are sold out for spring delivery anyway. They do still show some I'm interested in, but I'll have to call them, their availabilty page is a month out of date, might be gone already. I will keep them in mind though.

Might try White oak...It's fairly resistant to oak wilt. I'm partial to burr oak. It's very drought resistant they say. Sugar maple, black cherry, or poplar may be good too. Maybe try some different trees like Kentucky coffeebean, if it will grow up there...I bet a hardwood tree nursery can tell you much more than you want to know.

That's why I was leaning toward the burr oak, it's part of the white oak family. I may also try (next year) gathering some white oak acorns out of the woods and seeding from scratch. Sugar maples are another possiblilty I had not considered.

Need to check with a good forester in your area, particularly one that knows the area well. Your soils are very important, as a tree that grows well in clay soils will likely not do well in sand. Also, some species are much harder to start from seedlings. From your description, I would try hickory or white pine.

I'll be up at the county ag office later this week, if the county forester is in, I'll be sure to chat with him. The county sometimes has deals on seedlings as well so I need to check that too. Hickory sure has my interest so far.

Addendum, I'm thinking of planting in the neighborhood of +-300 trees total per year, of 3-4 different species in the same plot, probably going to cover 1/2 acre or so a year. I was looking at some of the recommended spacings, and 4x5 to 6x6 feet spacings depending on species was suggested. I'm thinking of an average of 5x12 (for machinery access), in a meandering pattern instead of the straight rows you see so much of. Sound feasable, or do I want to plant to the thicker recommendation and thin later?

 

[stoking]

Steve, If you live in St Croix Cty they have some trees left from their spring sale I can get you the contact info if you need it. I think you need to be a St Croix County resident

 

[Gatsby174]

Beech would be a great option too!

 

[woodbooga]

Beech would be a great option too!

Yep - the mast is great for wildlife. Would do well especially if the slope has any significant grade. They do great on the hillsides here in NH. Wisc. and NH have similar arborcultural climates. After NH was pretty much logged off, a lot of the capital was invested in logging in Wisc. and Mich.

Since you're concerned about drought conditions, this might not work, but hemlock is great for wildlife too. Particularly deer.

Also, a great way to promote habitat without planting a single tree is to leave all your brush and slash piled in the woods. Attracts little critters that in turn attract wildlife that eats little critters.

 

[makomakoman]

Funny, I was thinking of the same. I am going to call my local forester from the State of Maine.

I am leaning towards.

Yellow Birch - My favorite wood of all time!

Sugar maple - around the perimeter for color

Eastern Hophornbeam - Nice wood

Black Locust - I guess they grow well in Southern Maine and is a rapid grower.

Ash - White ash - No EAB in this area, but it will be coming...

I want to cut down my crappy Poplar and replant those area's 1st.

 

[jags]

I planted 60 pines from Arborday for a wind break. 2 survived. Used a different source and I end up with almost a 100 percent success (in the same area). Just noting my experience with arborday.

 

[ultimate buzz]

Nursery stock

Steve, a couple of notes:
-the few times I have ordered stock from the Arbor day foundation the quality was exceptionally poor
-I do not believe hickory will grow too well as far north as you are. What about butternut or black walnut? They are a lot hardier .
-Give the DNR nursery a call.They should still have stock available.The number for Griffiths State nursery here in Wisconsin Rapids is 1 715 424 3700
-if you can't get stock this spring, your county forester will have order blanks available for 2011 by this October -ken

 

[burroak]

Yes, Beech is a beautiful tree, but the downside is it doesn't have much timber value, if any. Having said that, I would still plant a couple of 'em!

 

[StihlyinEly]

Steve, in NW Wisconsin, for the combination of firewood and lumber value, I'd pick white and red oak and northern red maple. Oak also is a biggie for deer and squirrels (the acorns), and maple seeds are widely eaten as well. Also, at some point you or the next generation could get into gathering maple sap for syrup, which is one more way to tie yourself to the land.

White and red oak and maple are excellent lumber candidates too.

You are a bit far north for walnut and hickory, which may do OK until you get some tough winters. Bur oak doesn't have the lumber value of white oak, but bur oak is great firewood and is tough, tough, tough. Once any oak is established with its deep tap root, it's not as prone to drought/light soils as some other trees. It takes oak saplings a few more years to get really established than many other hardwoods, and they are vulnerable to drought during that time.

I like the idea of putting in some white pine. So much of that country was native pine/hardwood mix 200 years ago. Kinda nice to start putting it back. Wish I had that kind of land to give back to. I envy you the next several years of planting and caring for the new trees.

Got any river or creek bottoms on the land? That would change the equation a bit. And I second Woodbooga's comments on leaving the brushpiles lay.

 

[jrjuday]

trees

Steve, check out the Wis. DNR site, it has some info on tree programs. Your local extension office and your SWCD may have tree sales programs as well.

 

[Steve NW WI]

Thanks for all the replies guys. I won't quote everyone here, but I'll try to hit all the points.

Stoking - I'm just across the Polk county line. I'll be checking in with our NRCS office hopefully Thursday.

Gatsby, I might try some beech, maybe a dozen or so, but probably won't be a primary species.

Woodbooga, I'm bad for not leaving enough brush behind. I like to cut in winter, but don't like tramping through the snow, so I drag a lot of it out to the field and brush and limb there, and wind up burning a big brush pile in the middle of a field every spring. I'm working on it though.

mako - eastern hophornbeam (Ironwood around here) is my favorite deep winter wood. I have quite a few good patches in my existing woods, and they regenerate quite well from what I can see, so I don't see the need to plant any more. (Stihly, plant some of them up there and get the good heat, and you'll stop craving that oak! - I was checking some tree range maps, and the native range goes well into Ontario.)

Black Locust is on the invasive species list here in WI, so I'll not be planting that, but Honey Locust seems to be fair game.

jags/buzz - you've got me leery of ordering from arbor day, but I'll probably still join, seems a worthy enough cause to send a ten spot to.

jags - bitternut hickory is shown as being native to my area, but I'm having a hard time finding seedlings. Shagbark is not far out of the native range here, so I may try some, just not too many to start with.

buzz- I'll be giving the DNR a call after I talk to the county guy if needed.

Stihly, I was leaning toward the burr oak for what seems like a somewhat faster growth rate than white oak. Also, I have some good stands of white oak out in the woods that I could likely harvest some acorns from and grow some from seed (a good old fashioned feel-good project). Firewood is more likely than timber as a use, but in 50-100 years, who knows?

I put the white pine in there, because there are still a few mixed pine/hardwood woods around, and they're some of the best hunting around. I do hate the pine plantations with a passion, but at least a few of them that were planted in the 60's here are starting to show signs of hardwoods coming up through them. Besides, it will give my dream home site protection from the wind and neighbors in the winter better than hardwoods. I also plan to use them on the border with crop fields, just for less need for pruning, they don't seem to reach for daylight as bad as most hardwoods are prone to.

I have sugar maples on my list, how much difference between the reds and the sugars? I'd like to give sugar bushing a try someday when I have more time.

I know I'm writing a book here, but this is something that will be around long after I'm gone, so it's worth trying to get it right!

 

[MJR]

Check with your local Farm Service Agency or local USDA office there may be a CRP or SIP program your farm land qualifies for. I put 40 tillable into a CRP program back in the early 90’s. They paid for half of the planting and seedling costs. The best part they paid a rental fee for the next 15 years. This was enough to pay the taxes on the land. We have farm land all around us. I want to create bedding areas. So I planted Norway Spruce and European Larch. Over 26,000 seedlings later my plan has worked very well. Call your local Forester and ask him what programs are open. It is a good feeling getting some of your tax dollars back. Good luck to you.

 

[Blackjack1234]

Consider weed fabric, it helps control weeds and also conserves moisture. I won't plant trees without it anymore, once you have the tree planted and the fabric down, you're done messing with that tree, no watering (except maybe the first year), no weed control.

Check out this website - http://www.shawfabrics.com Not cheap but you'll get 95% tree survival with it. Also inquire about cost share with your local DNR and NCRS office. I put down $3000 worth of fabric on the 750 trees and shrubs that I planted last year and cost share covered 80% of it. Also, you don't have to put it down in rolls, you can just use the 4x4 squares around each tree, but thats more labor intensive.

For wildlife, spruces are better than pines, they make a better wind break. Also if you're in a heavy deer area, white pines may be tough to establish.

Consider a few apple trees for the wildlife value.

As others have said, consult you local experts and plant trees that are native and/or that will thrive on your soil type.

Good luck!!!

 

[JEA]

One thing to remember, if you plant hardwoods, you won't get to enjoy reaping the benefits (mast, lumber value, and wildlife cover) from them as they grow slow. So, if you plant hardwoods, you will be planting the property for your kids and grandkids benefit, assuming the property stays in the family. If you want some faster growing wildlife cover, then you should probably consider something besides hardwoods. This is why we plant a combination of shrubs, softwoods (fast growing) and hardwoods, so you and the wildlife get more of an immediate benefit and your family will get the timber value benefit in 50-100 years.

 

[StihlyinEly]

Stihly, plant some of them up there and get the good heat, and you'll stop craving that oak! - I was checking some tree range maps, and the native range goes well into Ontario.

Stihly, I was leaning toward the burr oak for what seems like a somewhat faster growth rate than white oak. Also, I have some good stands of white oak out in the woods that I could likely harvest some acorns from and grow some from seed (a good old fashioned feel-good project). Firewood is more likely than timber as a use, but in 50-100 years, who knows?

I put the white pine in there, because there are still a few mixed pine/hardwood woods around, and they're some of the best hunting around. I do hate the pine plantations with a passion, but at least a few of them that were planted in the 60's here are starting to show signs of hardwoods coming up through them. Besides, it will give my dream home site protection from the wind and neighbors in the winter better than hardwoods. I also plan to use them on the border with crop fields, just for less need for pruning, they don't seem to reach for daylight as bad as most hardwoods are prone to.

I have sugar maples on my list, how much difference between the reds and the sugars? I'd like to give sugar bushing a try someday when I have more time.

Oaks don't do well up here because the soil is thin on top of bedrock, and even an oak can't easily put a taproot through Canadian Shield bedrock. We are planting some oaks on our lake property near Bemidji this season, though. I like the acorn idea.

I really like hunting the mixed pine/hardwood stands for deer. As you mentioned, they are prime. Can't stand those pinetations either.

Most any hardwood sap can be made into syrup. I've had syrup from birch before, and it was very good. Not sure about oak (tannins?). Other hardwoods just aren't as high in sugar content as the maples. Anyway, I know quite a few folks in northern MN who refine their syrup from northern red maple sap. Sugar maple may be slightly higher in sugar content, but probably not by much. There are a lot of big mature silver maples here in Ely as boulevard trees, and they get tapped every spring for sap/syrup. Sugar maple packs more BTUs as firewood than red, though, so if it'll grow where you are -- bonus!