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planting a pear orchard?who has done it?
Habitat Improvement
Messages posted to thread:
flyingbrass 15-Nov-16
CAS_HNTR 15-Nov-16
t-roy 15-Nov-16
bonehead 15-Nov-16
Bob H in NH 16-Nov-16
CAS_HNTR 16-Nov-16
r-man 16-Nov-16
r-man 16-Nov-16
flyingbrass 16-Nov-16
flyingbrass 16-Nov-16
CAS_HNTR 16-Nov-16
BOHUNTER09 17-Nov-16
flyingbrass 27-Nov-16
flyingbrass 30-Nov-16
Screwball 30-Nov-16
CAS_HNTR 30-Nov-16
Medicinemann 30-Nov-16
CAS_HNTR 30-Nov-16
BullBuster 30-Nov-16
r-man 30-Nov-16
t-roy 30-Nov-16
CAS_HNTR 01-Dec-16
krieger 03-Dec-16
willliamtell 03-Dec-16
JimG 04-Dec-16
flyingbrass 04-Dec-16
CAS_HNTR 04-Dec-16
Shiloh 05-Dec-16
Shiloh 05-Dec-16
flyingbrass 05-Dec-16
CAS_HNTR 05-Dec-16
flyingbrass 05-Dec-16
CAS_HNTR 05-Dec-16
flyingbrass 05-Dec-16
elkstabber 06-Dec-16
CAS_HNTR 06-Dec-16
elkstabber 06-Dec-16
elkstabber 06-Dec-16
Habitat1 06-Dec-16
flyingbrass 07-Dec-16
elkstabber 07-Dec-16
Habitat1 07-Dec-16
elkstabber 08-Dec-16
elkstabber 08-Dec-16
35-Acre 08-Dec-16
elkstabber 09-Dec-16
CAS_HNTR 09-Dec-16
Fuzzy 12-Dec-16
35-Acre 12-Dec-16
35-Acre 12-Dec-16
elkstabber 12-Dec-16
elkstabber 12-Dec-16
elkstabber 12-Dec-16
CAS_HNTR 12-Dec-16
r-man 12-Dec-16
35-Acre 12-Dec-16
t-roy 12-Dec-16
elkstabber 13-Dec-16
35-Acre 13-Dec-16
Fuzzy 13-Dec-16
CAS_HNTR 13-Dec-16
t-roy 13-Dec-16
35-Acre 14-Dec-16
CAS_HNTR 15-Dec-16
flyingbrass 17-Dec-16
Ksgobbler 19-Dec-16
flyingbrass 20-Dec-16
Ksgobbler 26-Dec-16
joshuaf 27-Dec-16
Catscratch 28-Dec-16
Habitat1 28-Dec-16
35-Acre 06-Apr-17
t-roy 06-Apr-17
elkstabber 06-Apr-17
35-Acre 24-Apr-17
35-Acre 24-Apr-17
flyingbrass 24-Apr-17
CAS_HNTR 24-Apr-17
35-Acre 25-Apr-17
CAS_HNTR 25-Apr-17
happygolucky 26-Apr-17
Mountaineer 28-Apr-17
35-Acre 29-Apr-17


Date:15-Nov-16

I'm going to plant some pear trees, a bunch of them. I'd like some advice from those have planted an orchard. Spacing? the do's and don'ts. I been on youtube looking but I thought I'd post here for advice. I might plant some other soft mast stuff too but I plan on the pears being close to my hunting stands. I got a dozer and a bunch of land so I'm getting started as soon as season winds down.

Date:15-Nov-16

Plant on high spots in full sun.....stay away from low lying frost pockets.

Buy near full size trees....stay away from dwarfs.

Space at about 20 feet.

Plant varieties that drop throughout the season and are disease tolerant. Kieffer, moonglo, orient, plus many others.....start reading!

Protect, protect, protect......buy a 150 ft roll of remesh and cut to 10 ft lengths for a large cage. Place window screen high enough to account for mice, voles, and rabbits while they stand on snow.

If you get good varieties you shouldn't have to worry much about spraying but if they need it....do it.

Pear trees are less picky compared to apples regarding training and pruning.......but proper pruning helps.

Keep competition down.....use weed mats and/or spray as needed.

That's a good start.

By: t-roy
Date:15-Nov-16

CAS is your man!

My one bit of advice would be not to buy trees from Summerstone Nursery. I bought a bunch of fruit trees from them last year. Only 4 apple trees out of 25 various varieties of apple and pear trees grew. I got trees from Stark Bros. and also got a bunch of chestnut trees from CAS as well. Every one of those trees grew just fine, so I don't think it was operater error. They were nearly 2 months late shipping them, poorly marked and packaged. Their excuse was they had a lot of orders to fill! Kind of reminded me of the Seinfeld episode where Jerry reserved a rental car and it wasn't available when he got there.

"You're really good at taking the reservations...just not good at keeping them!"

Date:15-Nov-16

pears are easy to grow and maintenance is minimal,but basic pruning will increase yield.If you want to hunt over them,be sure to select some late bearing varieties as many drop before hunting season

Date:16-Nov-16

Are they worth hunting over? Years ago we planted a pear, apple and cherry tree. Deer devoured the apple and cherry blossom and at every branch they could reach on the apple tree. When apples fell they devoured those. Pear tree? They never touched it or the pears.

Date:16-Nov-16

I will add one thing.....if you speaking on planting pears just because they are low maintenance, I would seriously consider planting some crabapples to help with your variety and to get some trees in that should be able to drop later than the pears. Crabapples are also very low maintenance if the "good" ones are chosen.....look into Dolgo, Chestnut, kerr, golden hornet, plus lots of others.

By: r-man
Date:16-Nov-16

pears grow tall not wide so spacing is no concern , Just depends on what you want ,. Just don't get dwarf damb trees . look at Chill requirement for each type , find out what types do well in your area.

By: r-man
Date:16-Nov-16

Oh and Raintree Nursery out of Washington State has nice trees

Date:16-Nov-16

I'm going to get some pears and crabapples from mossy oak www.nativnurseries.com but I'll pland some other pears as well.

Date:16-Nov-16

I planted som in March that are doing well. I'd like some more input on the do's and dont's of planting orchards.

Date:16-Nov-16

Use fertilizer too.....it will help.

Date:17-Nov-16

Mine produced for the first timebthis year 6 years old.

Date:27-Nov-16

I'd like to know the best species and spacing also

Date:30-Nov-16

has anyone tried the pears from www.wildlifegroup.com ? they got several varieties!

Date:30-Nov-16

Morning guys, I have two planted 5 years now 1 pear. Any ideas on how to get production going? Planted on hill, 2' spacing, 24 apples around them. Fenced, wrapped, fertilized. ANy advice welcome.

Date:30-Nov-16

flyingbrass.......I have purchased trees from The Wildlife Group, but not their fruit trees. They are a great company to work with and I wouldn't hesitate to order/plant their trees. Regarding species....I am north of you and have been trying to keep my variety rather small on purpose as I plan to graft my own for propagation. I currently have Kieffer, Moonglo, TS Hardy, and will be adding Korean Giant and maybe another oriental pear variety. Wildlife Group has a bunch of trees with great descriptions.....Im sure they are what they say they are......if you have any questions, give them a shout and they will answer all the questions you have....ask for Allen Deese.

Regarding spacing.....I use about 20 ft on center and stagger my rows. I wouldn't go under that, but you could go more if you wanted to keep better access for mowing or clover plating, etc.

Screwball......what kind of pears are they? Most wont really get going to year 6. A lot of variables to consider, but pears are generally a little slower to start than apples. Plus considering the species, they may need other varieties to property pollinate.

Date:30-Nov-16

CAS - Do you currently get trees that have been grafted for pollination purposes? I read that you want to do your own grafting, but didn't know if your pre-existing trees had been grafted. I would think that may explain no yield or poor yields for people that stated that they have gotten no fruit to date. Would really like to learn your grafting procedures.....I hope to do the same in the future.

Interested to hear why Bartlett pears are not a consideration....also interested to learn why no dwarf trees.....

Date:30-Nov-16

All the trees I have are grafted......I have grown from seed as well, but those trees are planted more or less for deer to browse the tree and not worry about their fruiting ability. This year I will be grafting about 24 fruit trees from various sources.....some from friends/neighbors, some from trees I already have, some from trees I found growing along the road......variety is the spice of life! Hah!

Grafted trees on known rootstocks are the only way to guarantee you are actually getting the tree you want.....otherwise you are getting some "mutt" tree that likely wont be like its parent tree and may not ever make fruit. I will use purchased rootstock and scionwood from the sources I mentioned.

Why not bartletts.......I actually have one at my house because I like to eat them. The reason why I (likely) wont plant them on the farm is they are prone to firelight and I don't want to increase that potential in my orchard. There are equally as good or better trees that are way better for blight than bartletts.

Why no dwarfs......mainly a size issue as deer LOVE to each fruit trees, and I mean the TREE not the fruit. A dwarf only gets 10 ft or so tall and a deer can reach up to 6-7 ft on their hind legs......they will strip the leaves and young fruit before it has a change to mature. Maybe wont kill the tree, but the fruiting will likely be poor. Go with near full size rootstocks to eliminate this issue.

Date:30-Nov-16

my deer gobble pears up if they get there before the moose

By: r-man
Date:30-Nov-16

Blight

By: t-roy
Date:30-Nov-16

Keep me in mind for next spring CAS!

Date:01-Dec-16

Will do Troy!

Date:03-Dec-16

I planted 30 Pear, Apple and Plum Trees 2 years ago. Hope to be rewarded in the future.

Date:03-Dec-16

x 1 on Bartletts and fireblight. Tried several times to get them going and broke my heart every time.

By: JimG
Date:04-Dec-16

I planted 20 pear trees last Fall. Five of them I purchased from Southern States. Two Keiffers, three Orientals and eighteen deer pears from Mossy Native Nurseries. The five from Southern States were large potted trees which all had fruit on them this Fall. The deer pears from Mossy Oak were grafted and bear root and basically seedlings. All of them have been doing well. The deer broke some of the limbs on the large Keiffer and Orientals pulling off the pears. I also have apple and crabbapple planted and the deer prefer pears. They are spaced at 25 feet protected with tubes.

Date:04-Dec-16

I ordered 120 or so trees from wildlife group.com about 100 pears but 9 different varieties. I also got some Arkansas black apples, crabapples, and some cheap persimmons. Now I got to get my tree tubes, cages, and rebar for stakes. Should be a lot of work!

Date:04-Dec-16

A lot of work .....you're not kidding.

Just be sure to do it right the first time so you don't have to redo again later!

By: Shiloh
Date:05-Dec-16

I got 20 deer pear and 20 crabapple from mossy oak and planted last spring. It looks like nearly 100% survival. I bought 5 grafted arkansas black apples from a lical nursery and I think 1 or 2 are still living. I put tubes on all trees.

By: Shiloh
Date:05-Dec-16

I got 20 deer pear and 20 crabapple from mossy oak and planted last spring. It looks like nearly 100% survival. I bought 5 grafted arkansas black apples from a lical nursery and I think 1 or 2 are still living. I put tubes on all trees.

Date:05-Dec-16

I've heard the arkansas black apples are easy to die!

Date:05-Dec-16

My Arkansas black trees are only 1 year old but look great so far.....where have you heard they die?

Date:05-Dec-16

here in Arkansas I've heard they are hard to keep alive

Date:05-Dec-16

Kinda like calling a fat dude tiny I guess.......cant grow an Arkansas black in arkansas!

Date:05-Dec-16

one of my best friends here in arkansas is Tiny, he ain't so small as you guessed.

Date:06-Dec-16

Thanks for sharing here folks. CAS_HNTR you especially made me rethink my plan. I have ordered 250 seedlings (Bartlett) from my state's DOF but since you and other have had blight problems I think I'd better change the order. Unfortunately, with 250 seedlings the cost will go up tremendously. It would be a big waste of time to plant trees and have the fireblight kill them. Considering how many trees I'm planting this winter I need low/no maintenance trees.

Can anyone suggest a good source for Kieffer, Moonglo, and TS Hardy seedlings that isn't too expensive? I'm looking for bareroot seedlings.

Date:06-Dec-16

Are you purposely buying seedlings, or are you using that term to describe young trees? Seedlings are seed grown trees and are thus cheaper than grafted, but the resulting tree is somewhat of a gamble in regards to fruiting ability.

I will do some digging, but a lot of sources will be sold out of their grafted trees already. I'll see what I can find.

Date:06-Dec-16

Ummm, I'm not sure what I mean CAS_HNTR. I thought a bareroot seedling was a small tree sold without a rootball. I've planted a lot of pines, cedars, myrtles, and oaks, but I've never planted a fruit tree seedling. I just assumed they were similar. I didn't realize that a seedling was a seed grown tree.

I ordered 250 pears (Bartlett) from my DOF for $150. I thought that Keiffer, Moonglow, etc could be found for a similar price. What I've found are common pear (Bartlett) seedlings for a dollar or two each (like most trees) OR they are Keiffer, Moonglow, etc and cost $20-$30 each in a container. That's a huge price jump. My question is whether I can buy Keiffer, Moonglow, etc small grafted trees without rootballs for a couple of bucks each? I think I learned here that all fruit trees are grafted...

Date:06-Dec-16
elkstabber's Supporting Link

Here is an explanation of grafted vs seed grown.

Date:06-Dec-16

250 pear trees is alot.i am assuming you are just going to plant and not protect.I buy my pear trees from turkey creek nursery in NE and the wildlife group.All I plant now is pears and crabs,alot easier.If you can't find turkey creek he is on deerhunterforum.com also

Date:07-Dec-16

if you don't protect trees you are wasting your time

Date:07-Dec-16

flyingbrass I know you've got a point but this is for an EQIP project that is intended to benefit a variety of wildlife so protection isn't really preferred by the NRCS. I'm not required to protect them but I will protect most of the apples, crabapples, and pears. The silky dogwoods, wax myrtles, hawthorns, cherries, cedars, hazelnuts, persimmons, elderberries, plums, and indigobushes won't be protected. The total stem count is just under 5,000. Most of these seedlings are under a dollar each and since a tube is about $5 it makes sense to just plant double or triple density and accept that some will be eaten. If areas are wiped out I can replant with tubes next year.

If I were doing this just for deer and if I were only planting a couple dozen trees I would definitely buy more expensive seedlings and protect every one of them.

Date:07-Dec-16

8 years ago I did a test for NRCS in Kansas when they were deciding whether to do tubes as cost share or not.After 2 years they came back and counted the live trees and i had 74% survival.Actually it was too high for their planting plan and they wanted me to remove some.I am guessing you are in northern part of country with the selection of trees.If I was using pears for something like that I would do groups but far enough apart you don't have to cut them down after they get bigger.Planting trees is all about time.That is how much you got left to watch them grow.I planted mostly oaks in my first planting which was around 1500 trees and 3000 shrubs.Go with grafted and you know what you got and saved yourself 3-5 years.Fire blight really bites on pears as it didn't affect my trophy pears from Morse nursery for 3 -4 years and then I ended up cutting them down and replanting resistant trees.I would bet if you don't do something in a couple years you would have wished you did.You can get tubes for alot less than 5.00 if you buy any type of quanity

Date:08-Dec-16

Habitat1 I sent you a PM. I'd like to ask your advice before planting.

Date:08-Dec-16

This is why I LOVE bowsite! Habitat1 called me and answered a ton of my questions. It made me realize that this big post is really talking about two totally different things:

One person may be planting 6-12 trees in an area to draw deer. Those trees should be protected with tree tubes and they can be carefully pruned, fertilized, and watered when needed. Cost isn't too much of an issue because there aren't that many trees. This person can go to mossyoak or wildlifegroup and can pay more for specialty trees (like $20-$30 each).

Another person may be doing a much larger wildlife project and might be planting several hundred or several thousand trees, with pear trees just being one of 10-20 species. Due to the cost and maintenance involved they may not be protected with tubes, pruned, fertilized, or cared for at all after planting. Cost and time become the limiting factors and the easiest way to mitigate for tree losses is to just plant more of them and expect that they won't all make it. This makes cheaper seedlings a good alternative (like under $1 each).

flyingbrass: can you tell us how many acres/trees you're planting?

Most of the specialty pears recommend a spacing of 25-30'. The NRCS recommends a spacing of 10-12'. The difference is that the pears will maximize their production with more space, but the NRCS is recommending tighter spacing to allow for more cover for birds as well as account to tree mortality from disease/deer damage.

Date:08-Dec-16

35-Acre's embedded Photo

That is exactly what I got out of this thread. So thank you all!!

I looked on my DEC Web Site, they sell all kinds of native plants very cheap - but they are small. I am getting over 300 plants for about $180. I've had my land logged within the past 2 years and I am now looking to establish a habitat improvement effort on my 35 acres. I've got a 2 acre field with a small creek running through it (the whole property is on a hillside. I'm trying to add several food sources, bedding cover, and winter protection hedges. My property is in the middle of a hardwood forest. I tried the food plot thing in my field but I just don't have equipment to maintain it properly. So I figured that I could re-plant selectively with native plants for my zone (5). What do you think?

I'm planting (4) Dunsten Chestnut trees in the field. Then throughout the property I am planting highbush cranberry, american hazlenut, wild apples, Toringo Crabapple, Red Stem Dogwood and Norway Spruce.

Thoughts? Feedback? Am I on the right track?

Date:09-Dec-16

35-Acre: I wish I could be more helpful but you're in a much cooler growing zone so I can't help with your plant selection. But I can make a few comments regarding the arrangement: definitely stagger at least a second row of Norway Spruce against the road so that you don't have a gap if/when some of them die, since you're not planting too many apples I'd look at getting grafted trees otherwise you could be very sorry in 5 years, and lastly, why don't you have any oaks? Are your woods so full of oaks that you don't need them?

The Doughertys' book "Grow Em Right" is a great book for property arrangement and their property is in central NY so a lot of what's in that book should work well for you. The only thing lacking (at least in my old copy) is information about planting oaks and soft mast trees.

Date:09-Dec-16

35 ac........can you post a "real" picture of the land?

By: Fuzzy
Date:12-Dec-16

I will "patch" a question on this thread. How long after planting, til Dunstan Chestnuts start to bear?

Date:12-Dec-16

Thanks for the suggested read Elk. Going to look that up. Cas - I don't have an ariel. The views are a few years old still. So the best I could do was post up my map/plan for next spring. Fuzzy - The Dunsten's say "as soon as" 3-5 years. So for me it's a long-term investment. What I do know about them is that the nuts are able to go to seed (so there is a chance I can plant some and get more growing on my land years later). I'll probably give that a try. At this point it's like $180 for 4 trees/tubes/weed mats. That's pretty steep in my opinion for something that could die if I do it wrong or don't get it enough water (I'm an hour and a half away from my property so it won't get daily watering...)

Date:12-Dec-16

35-Acre's embedded Photo

Cas - glad you asked about the real picture. I ended up changing things up a bit on my drawing. I would have planted in the right place but it certainly helped "unbend" things in my mind. I had a road in the wrong place on my diagram (it's a logging road). Which changes the treeline I was planting for "screening". I just don't want guys walking that road, seeing deer 200 yards away in my field and shooting (I might be near it in a blind or stand). So I fixed that drawing but the ariels, as you can see, don't show much (Bing or Google).

Date:12-Dec-16
elkstabber's Supporting Link

Here are Dunstan "seeds" that you can plant.

Date:12-Dec-16
elkstabber's Supporting Link

Here are the cheapest 5' tubes that I found.

Date:12-Dec-16
elkstabber's Supporting Link

Here are the stakes. Cut this 10' piece in half to make two stakes. They allow the tree to bend in the wind and this toughens up the trunk of the seedling.

Date:12-Dec-16

Don't buy those seeds.......crazy expensive.

If you are trying to grow them, you are a bit late in the game to get seed.

The trees are overpriced.......so I grow mine.....grew 60 or so last year and most years.

By: r-man
Date:12-Dec-16

spacing is dependent on type , dwarf , standard and such, even standard pear I would plant at 20' apples can spread if standard to 30' easy . crab I think is fine at 15-20, . Chestnuts are wide trees for these china types ,, so 30' is good . I would put wire cage around chestnuts and apple , nothing ate my pears . rabbit proof fence is best and 48" tall because deer love leaf from fruit trees . They hammered my chestnuts.

Date:12-Dec-16

Thanks. I don't have a lot of rabbits but i am afraid deer might eat the new growth and leaves. I have them covered now and caged. We just got 36" of snow. My road is seasonal so i won't get to see it. I'll have to wait until spring to see how things make out for the 5 trees i planted (3 apple and 2 pear). Then next year I'll be planting my arse off.

By: t-roy
Date:12-Dec-16

Fuzzy,

I planted some 5-6' dunstans that were in probably 2 gal pots in 2014. A couple of them produced seeds last year but were not fertile(shriveled). They also produced seeds again this year and one of the trees produced fully formed nuts. On other tree the nuts were shriveled again. They need another chestnut tree to cross pollinate and these 2 trees are a good distance apart. You definitely need to cage them and protect to trunk from rabbits and voles.

Date:13-Dec-16

CAS and 35-acre:

I posted the sources for seeds, tubes, and stakes because that would be a MUCH cheaper option than spending $180 for 4 trees as 35-acre suggested. For about $65 you could direct seed inside of tubes with stakes and have 10 small trees one year later.

Better yet would to do as CAS suggested and grow 10 seeds into seedlings during this winter. By the time you would be planting in the spring they would be 3-4' tall. This would require 10 pots, potting soil, and some amount of effort. CAS is the expert.

Date:13-Dec-16

CAS - can you give more information on what you're doing to plant these yourself?

By: Fuzzy
Date:13-Dec-16

thanks for the info guys, I'm looking at a long term project so this isn't a "do now" thing

Date:13-Dec-16

35 Ac........do you mean growing or planting?

Growing: It's a bit of a process, but basically I get some seed and toss them in my "nut fridge" for 3 months or so as they need to be cold stratified to germinate. Then, come about Mid-Feb or so I will pull them out to see if I can get them to push a radical. If they are ready to grow, I plant them into small air pruning pots (rootmaker express 18s). They grow in my basement under just plain old fluorescent tube lights in a "grow bed" I made myself after consulting 6-10 Busch Lights ;-) They will grow indoors until we are out of frost threat (Mid-May in Central Ohio) and then they are moved outside to acclimate. Once acclimated to the sun (WAY stronger than lights) and wind....they are transplanted into 1 gallon rootpouch bags for the rest of the year.

Planting: I try and plant in fall, but have overwintered them as well in my veggie garden with good success. I have been planting in 4 ft tubes, but have had to go back and add another 1 ft of fence to keep deer off them. Get 5 ft tubes, or fence if you like....either will work fine. Plant in FULL sun and get at least 3 in each spot you are planting them to help with pollination.

By: t-roy
Date:13-Dec-16

CAS, you forgot to add "don't let anyone try to pawn off some buckeye seeds as chestnuts on you" ;-)

Also, go easy on the Busch Lights this year. The trees I got from you last year were tilted for half the summer!!

Date:14-Dec-16

Caz - where are you getting your seeds from? It seems like something I could pull off. I've done that for my veggies before. Maybe I am a month behind but if the cost isn't terrible it would be worth a shot (?).

Date:15-Dec-16

Troy.......haha, yeah you are right. But here in Ohio we like Buckeyes about as much as chestnuts ;-)

35ac......I get them from chestnut ridge of pike county.......they usually sell out pretty quick, but they may have some left. I typically order 3 lbs or so....which is about 100-120 chestnuts. If you cant track any down, I likely can spare a few. Or, better yet......I could mail you a few trees that are ready to plant! Ha!

Date:17-Dec-16

thanks for the replies so far!

Date:19-Dec-16
Ksgobbler's Supporting Link

Forestry suppliers has cheaper 5' tubes. They are $2.40 a piece right now. I use some green plastic coated steel stakes I got on ebay for about $.84 a piece. So I can tube a tree for about $3.50 each. All the tubes I have planted are tubed. I have some deer pear from Nativ Nursuries. Kansas Forest Service offers bare root seedlings. In the last 2 years I have planted 25 Bur Oaks, 25 Pin oaks, 25 Persimmons, 15 Paw Paws, and 10 mulberries. Including the tree I am less than $5 tubed. If you don't count the Burs getting flooded 2 weeks after I planted them (and staying under multiple feet of water for a couple weeks), and Paw Paws (didn't know if they would grow here anyway) I am at 95% survival. I've lost 2/3 of the paw paws and only have 7 Bur oaks left. Planting more Burs in the spring.

I planted some Native Nursury deer pear, sawtooth oak, white oak, and swamp chesnut oak in late fall. We will see how they do but I think I lost all the swamp chesnut oak.

Date:20-Dec-16

KSGOBBLER'S LINK if you replant your paw paw you should give them some shade while they are small, I think that if the biggest mistake people make with them. full sun is ok when they are bigger but most likely the full sun got them when they were small.

Date:26-Dec-16

All my paw paws are in the shade since they are sensitive to light for the first 3 years.

Date:27-Dec-16

I have had great luck with Seckel ("Sugar") pears, and terrible luck with Kieffer, which is a variety frequently available from the "Big Box" stores. My Kieffer got fireblight at least every other year and I finally just had to cut the thing down it was so emaciated from FB. My Seckel pear tree, though, has never gotten FB. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be much good for hunting since it ripens in late August.

Date:28-Dec-16

joshuaf, thats good to know about the Seckel. I'm always on the lookout for disease resistant varieties.

I've been told that Keiffer is a good one to have due to it's resistance/tolerance of fb.?.

I will say that I've been to box stores and was very certain some of the trees were mislabeled. When spending hard earned $$$ I tend to buy from trusted nurseries.

Date:28-Dec-16

Forestry suppliers are not the cheapest place to buy tubes,try to find someone and buy larger quanity.this really makes a difference because of shipping.I bought my last ones from tree protection supply

Date:06-Apr-17

I got a note that my trees from the local extension office will be here on April 22nd! Getting excited. I do plant to kill off my field with some roundup. The grass is greening up here already at home, so I'm hoping that I can do that before I plant some of my trees. Going to spray the field a week before and then go back a week later and start to plant trees. I've got about 300 to plant, so I've got my work cut out for me.

By: t-roy
Date:06-Apr-17

Sounds like you're going to be busy!

I have about 20-25 more chestnut, pear and crabapples coming in a couple of weeks. That's going to be plenty for me this year!

Date:06-Apr-17

I planted 300 pear trees since this thread started. 250 are little seedlings. 50 are 5' whips and I put them in tubes. All have begun to leaf out starting 3 weeks ago. I'm located in southeast Virginia. Pear trees are the first to leaf out.

Date:24-Apr-17

I planted 175 trees this weekend (100 Wild apple, 25 red stem dogwood, 25 crabapple and 25 cranberry). They were small seedlings and they came bare root. Next weekend, I have to plant the remaining 125 trees (100 norway spruce and 25 hazlenut). Plus I have 3 Chestnut trees to plant in my field, which will be the focal point of my 2 acre field. I surrounded it with the wild apple and some dogwood.

This weekend, I also sprayed the field with gly to kill off the native weed and grasses (before I planted the trees of course). I used a 2 gallon hand sprayer and mixed the solution in the container. The weather is warm and dry for today and tomorrow. Then it's going to rain and reach near 80s. Sounds like a perfect combination for the work I've done thus far.

I am following an article (pasted the link here https://www.whitetailhabitatsolutions.com/blog/easy-no-till-food-plot-methods) on how to do this without farm equipment. I'll periodically post some updates here. In the end, the trees will take some time to draw in game, but overall my property will be more viable for game. Later this year, I will try to plant some brassica, rye and buckwheat (this summer).

Date:24-Apr-17

35-Acre's embedded Photo

Pic from this weekend...

Date:24-Apr-17

3 more pears in the ground today. tomorrow I'll put in my spring/summer food plots

Date:24-Apr-17

I planted 8 apples this weekend......grafted about 30 pears and apple tonight.......and have my usual couple hundred oaks, persimmon, chestnut, etc under lights at about 10-24" tall.

Also got 500 spruce, pine, and firs in a month ago or so......been a busy spring for me too!

Date:25-Apr-17

Wow! I thought I planted a lot. What kind of acreage are you planting all of that on?

Date:25-Apr-17

We have about 25 ac of old pasture that we are planting into thermal cover, pollinator/NWSG, and assorted tree plantings.....takes a lot of trees to fill in just one ac!

Date:26-Apr-17

Instead of tubers, I like aluminum window screen in 36" height. Cut it to 14" length and wrap it around the tree. Staple the enclosed ends (top, side, bottom) leaving around the width of your thumb for a top/bottom gap. As the tree grows, the staples will pull out or you can remove them. Push the screen down to the ground.

I used landscape fabric around the tree but with crushed rocks/pebbles and not mulch. The voles/mice won't burrow to girdle the trees.

I also use remesh but cut them in like 17' strips to get >5' diameter on the cage.

Date:28-Apr-17

CAS, I PM'd you a few weeks ago but no response. How can I get hold of you or locate your address to try to come out & buy some things? I'm in Pt. Pleasant WV area.

Date:29-Apr-17

35-Acre's embedded Photo


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