Trees

[WildernesFamily]

After fruit and nut trees, what would be the top five or more trees you would plant on your property, and why?

[forfreedom]

I only have one candidate: wax murtle, it's a shrub for the most part. But you can make candles out of it's wax, hence the name.

[fishhead]

If you have room some rot resistant fence post trees would be nice to have for future fencing needs. Plant them close together so they grow tall and straight.

[wy_white_wolf]

Wind break trees, whatever evergreen grows well in your area.

[o&itw]

Some of that would depend on ones location. Missouri is full of Juniper (red-cedar) that makes great fenceposts. Osage-orange would make even better. Cedar, however, is the alternate host for cedar-apple rust....

If one was going to a warm/moist area.... my favorite tree is the tulip tree, normally called "yellow poplar" in these parts......Pin Oaks also fit into this category.

It is usualy easier, in this area, to select an area with trees and remove those one doesn't want. Trees that grow well in an area, are usually already growing there.

Trees I would definitely stay away from: Chineese elm, Silver maple, Tree of Heaven, Autumn or Russian olive. Sycamore have a dust on the bottom of the leaves that can cause allergy problems in the late summer an fall.

[NCLee]

Depends on how much land you have and the reason for planting more trees.

In this area, people plant pines for pulpwood and timber. Planted close together, several harvests can come from one planting. As the trees mature, thinning produces pulpwood. After thinning, the remaining trees are left to grow to produce dimension lumber.

Christmas tree harvest is another money making option, although it takes more work due to the shaping needed to produce "pretty" trees.

If your land area is small, other than summer shade and windbreak evergreens, I'd plant the rest in food bearing trees. Most, if not all nut trees produce high demand lumber. Pecan, hickory, black walnut are the ones that come to mind.

I don't know what grows in your area, but, if you plant food producing trees try to plant to have the longest fresh fruit harvest season that you can. Around here we have some apple trees with ripe fruit in early summer and others in the fall.

Just some random thoughts that may be useful.
Lee

[Old Vet]

Originally Posted by WildernesFamily

After fruit and nut trees, what would be the top five or more trees you would plant on your property, and why?

Why not take advantage of the government. Check with your local Forestry people and they will have suggestion and it is free. I used to work for the Arkansas Forestry Commission and that way you get ones that are suited to your location. They also have trees for sale and it is cheep to buy from them.

[PhilJohnson]

I already got a whole bunch of mature walnut trees on my place. I planted some apple trees right away but the deer ate the one up so bad that I don't think it is going to make it. I plan on putting in some pear trees and plum trees too. I also planted a whole mess of different types of pine trees. The yard was just too open for me.

[Rocky Fields]

Hey.

Your soil will determine the best 5. Also, if you need quick growth, that would rule out many of the mighty oaks.

I would plant a magnolia tree in MO if possible...

RF

[Maura]

After fruit and nut, if I had a choice. Locust, honey and black. Fine leaves that don't need to be raked, edible pods for livestock, super hard wood.

[Cheribelle]

I am planning a locust grove, for future firewood

[Wolf mom]

Anything deciduous that's beautiful, unusual and colorful.

[Darren]

Between farming and deer the forest ecology has changed around here. I've been planting hemlocks in a nearby ravine for wildlife shelter. I have a few swamp oak down by the creek to restore the riparian area. All of the trees are surrounded with chicken wire fences for protection from deer. There aren't many white oak left. The big one in the ravine was old when a picture was taken in 1914. I'm setting up a small nursery to start the acorns and get them to a size big enough to transplant on the forested acreage again with the chicken wire to keep the deer off.

The hybrid chestnut is appealing. The chestnut was one of the mainstays of early America. I'd like to start planting those. Cost is an issue. Those are relatively expensive. Trees like sycamore and silver maple I'm also planting along the creek. As time goes on I'm adding shrubs like button bush to return the area to something like original.

[diane5000]

Originally Posted by WildernesFamily

After fruit and nut trees, what would be the top five or more trees you would plant on your property, and why?

Sugar maple for maple syrup,firewood and furniture, Ironwood for firewood,Cedars for wind breaking and fence posts.

Diane
http://frombeyondthegrid.com

[WildernesFamily]

Thanks so much everyone.

We have 5 acres in Carroll County. There are some old beautiful trees on the property but a lot of termite(??) damage to quite a few of them.

Old Vet, I was on the Forest Dept. website and looking at the seedlings on there, but there are so many to choose from, I didn't know what to choose. They do have a few nut/fruit trees, we'd look at that first... and share/swap with neighbors and friends in the area.

You have all given us some good ideas, thanks!

[ET1 SS]

We planted 16 apple trees last year. Two groups: one group is summer-fall varieties, the second group are fall-winter varieties. Both groups include three varieties, one high sugar variety and two sour varieties. I expect to produce about 200 gallons of hard cider each year when they finally come into their production.

This year, we just finished planting a walnut, a basket willow, a pecan, a ginkgo, a mulberry, 2 cherry trees, 2 chestnuts, 2 pears, 2 hazelnuts, 2 apricots, 2 elderberries, 2 witch-hazels, and 4 plum trees.

Obviously our selections were limited due to the local climate.

Overall trees are a much more efficient crop then annual veggies and fruits. Plant once and they produce for decades. They reach deep into the ground to mine their own minerals, and they do not require as much soil nutrients to be added as do annual crops.

[Chuck R.]

Like the others said, it depends on your use.

We’re working on deer habitat now so we’re planting a mix of fruit (crabtrees, pears, Arkansas Black Apple) and Sawtooth oaks (Fast acorn production and rapid growth). We’ve been planting about ten to fifteen 5-6’ trees a year on our 80 acres of which about 19 acres are wooded.

We usually hit the fall sales, but mail order some of the varieties that are hard to find locally. I managed to buy ten 5-6’ Sawtooths in November on sale for $8.00 a piece, whereas last year I planted 3 at $25 each mailorder.

Chuck

[Old Vet]

Originally Posted by WildernesFamily

Thanks so much everyone.

We have 5 acres in Carroll County. There are some old beautiful trees on the property but a lot of termite(??) damage to quite a few of them.

Old Vet, I was on the Forest Dept. website and looking at the seedlings on there, but there are so many to choose from, I didn't know what to choose. They do have a few nut/fruit trees, we'd look at that first... and share/swap with neighbors and friends in the area.

You have all given us some good ideas, thanks!

For MO you need to have something like Northern Red Oak or Short leaf pine on the hills and in the valleys use some low ground Pine or Pecan or Walnut. I live in Searcy County AR and have both. On the valley near the creek I have walnut, Eastern Cedar, and White Oak on the hill I have Northern Red Oak and Post Oak and they do good their. Your ground will be nearly the same altitude as mine and the ground will be the same. The MO Forestry will come out and give you some suggestions and it will be useful to have a Forester to look and say what to grow.

[rowan57]

Chestnuts, Hazelnuts (Both Hazelnut & Chestnut can be coppiced & provide double duty as it were, but you need to decide which trees you are going to coppice and which to leave for fruit, 5 of each (of each species) is good.), Apples (Heritage Varieties grafted ideally), Walnut (not for timber, for fruit), Crabapple (to help pollinate apples, as well as for fruit), Sorbus species (for birds, & Jellys), Elderflower (for wine).


Use good quality rabbit / deer guards depending on what you have in your area. It seriously is worth spending the money now to protect your investment, its not just the cost of the tree you lose but the potential income / food also if a deer browses your tree.

Cheers
Rowan

[Michael Kawalek]

Originally Posted by Darren

The hybrid chestnut is appealing. The chestnut was one of the mainstays of early America. I'd like to start planting those. Cost is an issue. Those are relatively expensive. Trees like sycamore and silver maple I'm also planting along the creek. As time goes on I'm adding shrubs like button bush to return the area to something like original.

I've actually taken store-bought chestnuts and planted them in the ground to get seedling chestnut trees. I'm in the process now of interplanting them in my orchard along with the named varieties of chestnut I've paid money for. Most likely the nuts they eventually produce will be more variable then the named ones, but maybe I'll get lucky.

Before chesnuts will sprout they'll need winter chill in the ground. Then, almost every single one will sprout with the warm weather of spring.

I've also planted legumes like honey locust and mesquite on my land for the edible pods they produce. Mesquite though might not survive a Colorado winter though.