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Post by smallchunk on May 9, 2017 20:51:58 GMT -6
This is like my third time doing this, so I'm not going to take a whole lot of time on it because I have become lazy on these forums as of late. I do enjoy doing it though because it forces me to take pictures and I get to see what works and what doesn't each year. I am just going to cut and paste some of the info from the other site to get started. I hunt three different spots in my area. One is a 112 acre piece that gets pounded during the rifle season, but they let me and my brother out there to bowhunt. I was able to get three plots put in there last year, but I wont be showing anything from that spot. Another is 100 acres, great hunting, but I don't have the ability to do improvements. This thread will deal solely with my "SmallChunk". It is my grandparents old farm with my grandmother still living there. Details of the "SmallChunk": 22 acres 2 small apple orchards with 7 trees remaining from the 60's and the rest I have planted Sandy ground by the buildings and slowly turning to peat as the terrain drops to the river Neighbors hunt hard to the east, fairly hard to the west I have very little equipment to work on things(4 wheeler, harrow, seeder, backpack sprayer) North end butts up to thousands of acres of public land I only Bowhunt it, cousin bowhunts it occasionally and uncle muzzloads it occasionally (none last year)
Last years play plots west blue-corn middle blue-mix of ptt, radish, clover, rye, oats purple and orange-beans over seeded into radish, ptt, rye green and red-Fruit trees easy picture upload
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Post by smallchunk on May 9, 2017 21:00:34 GMT -6
Picture of the middle orchard. I've ended up turning this into just a row of trees for now. Just seeded it into WI clover, chicory and oats. Over seeded rye from last fall growing nicely on both sides.
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Post by smallchunk on May 9, 2017 22:42:02 GMT -6
The apples in that line from nearest to furthest away... Franklin, 1st leaf from Cummins on B118 (I know I'm a sucker) Frostbite, 4th leaf from Cummins on B118 freeimagehostNext comes an old tree my grandpa planted. It must be dwarf rootstock and I think it's a Macintosh, maybe a Paula Red. There is also another on of these located just to the right in this pic out of line about ten feet. Both usually only produce 10-20 apples a year. Then a Spitzenberg on 5th leaf from burnt ridge that keeps dying back. It didn't this winter, but if it does again, it will get pulled. Pristine, 5th leaf from Burnt Ridge on B118. This one died back the first year and has grown back nicely. upload your photos onlineAnd the last one is a sweet 16 that was grafted last year on B118 and planted this spring.
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Post by Bwoods11 on May 10, 2017 8:39:03 GMT -6
Awesome, nice looking place. I'd like to see more of the land tours.
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Post by nhmountains on May 11, 2017 18:07:19 GMT -6
Nice job SC. I'd try to get that Sweet 16 pulled more upright. Be gentle enough not to snap it off though
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Post by smallchunk on Aug 31, 2017 11:19:24 GMT -6
Since nobody else is doing this on here, I better keep up on it! Here is a photo blast of some recent stuff from my small playground. Here is an unknown Apple that I believe might be Haralson. Correct me if I'm way off base! Macintosh -- well my family thinks it's Macintosh, but my grandma says it's a Paula Red, which is a kind of Macintosh. Tasted one, the other day...almost ready and it has dropped over a dozen. Apple cam set up facing these 4 Mac trees. Arkansas Black still going strong. Supposedly very deep red when ripe, a ways to go still. My small little nursery. 15 different grafts in there.
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Post by smallchunk on Aug 31, 2017 11:26:10 GMT -6
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Post by smallchunk on Aug 31, 2017 11:31:17 GMT -6
Part of the orchard near the house. Fresh clover from this spring, looking good! The line of trees sandwiched between beans and corn is growing okay. Constant battle with gophers here. Clover from this spring with some chicory mixed in. I rushed this one and many weeds are present. The beans next to the trees look good. A bit of browse on the tips, but not bad.
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Post by smallchunk on Aug 31, 2017 11:41:41 GMT -6
The next set of photos are all from the blue plot on the west side of the property shown in the first post. The field was planted as beans at the beginning of June. Weeds and deer pressure made it look like crap, so I tilled the east half of the field and replanted/overseeded with brassicas. Last week or so I went back and did the whole thing with rye. Attempted a screen of EW along the fence line. Where there wasn't weeds, it grew great like in the photo. Where there were weeds, it's only knew to waist high. I feel like I got a pretty good rate for my brassicas. Rye is really starting to take off. The Winfred brassica put on some damn big leaves. This is the west side of the plot where I left the beans. They didn't canopy and you can tell the brassica didn't germ well in my sandy soils. The rye is doing really well in there, so there should be a good carpet growing through the winter into spring.
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Post by kl9 on Aug 31, 2017 11:53:56 GMT -6
Apples look great! Whereabouts are you located?
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Post by sd51555 on Aug 31, 2017 19:46:35 GMT -6
Holy pant load man! Hold back some content for the slow days. Cool update. Those plots look damn nice. I'll take an underseeded rate of brassicas any day vs too thick. Ready to declare the pumpkins a success?
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Post by smallchunk on Sept 1, 2017 13:57:35 GMT -6
Thanks guys, I'm in east central MN.
I don't know if I'd call them a success yet. But looking at the 15 day forecast, I don't see why they shouldn't fill out.
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Post by nhmountains on Sept 2, 2017 14:44:07 GMT -6
Nice job SC!! Keep posting those habitat photos.
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Post by smallchunk on Sept 2, 2017 21:57:41 GMT -6
I ran down to the farm to do some work tonight. I sprayed the oldest part of the orchard with roundup and plan to spread clover/rye and mow once it dies. I have the rest of the orchards in clover and I'm diggin it, so I want that to be too but didn't want to have to work up the dirt up around them because of their established roots. I sprayed the middle orchard of clover/chicory with cleth. I sprayed a little clover plot with cleth. I took a big mound of dirt out of the old orchard so that it's easier to mow. I caught these little devils out of the middle orchard in between my Frostbite and Franklin tree. I have never caught two before out of one set, so I was pretty pumped. I hate these tree killing bastards. Franklin Cider Apple in the background Frostbite in the background that has looked poor all year, I think because of these assholes.
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Post by wklman on Sept 2, 2017 23:50:30 GMT -6
I hate gophers but love trapping them. I caught 3 this spring when I was up and caught 1 in July when I came up for a short trip.
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