Help Me Trees

[gcr0003]

Scientific correlation ha! Fertilize one oak tree next to one that you do not fertilize and see which one the deer prefer when the acorns start falling, I do not need a research study to prove what I have witnessed first hand with 2 of the exact same species of oak tree next to each other in the same field. The tree that we fertilized was bare dirt it looked like a dirt track below it while the other tree did have some activity, but not near the same amount. Im not saying that fertilizing the tree will necessarily increase acorn production, I have seen first hand that the deer prefer the acorns dropped from the tree that has been fertilized.

I’m not taking either side but I am curious how many time you’ve tried this? How many different locations? If you can repeat it with continual success then you might be on to something.

 

[Recurveaholic]

Here in VA we have wild persimmon trees so I try and hit those early season along with any other fruit bearing trees I can find. Then it's white oaks, especially when the browse has gone brown there food sources are drying up and as others have said they're lower in tannins and not as acidic. I'll also look for other tree nut trees line pecans and walnuts. I've found a couple in my properties and the deer seem to beat those up before red oaks. Finally in the late season I'm looking for my red oaks and whatever greenery is left which is usually found along water sources and sunny spots.

i was glad to see you mention the persimmons because here in NC if you can find one it is a gold mine!!!!

 

[IkemanTX]

Scientific correlation ha! Fertilize one oak tree next to one that you do not fertilize and see which one the deer prefer when the acorns start falling, I do not need a research study to prove what I have witnessed first hand with 2 of the exact same species of oak tree next to each other in the same field. The tree that we fertilized was bare dirt it looked like a dirt track below it while the other tree did have some activity, but not near the same amount. Im not saying that fertilizing the tree will necessarily increase acorn production, I have seen first hand that the deer prefer the acorns dropped from the tree that has been fertilized.

Switch it up and look for a repeatable correlation.

There are ALWAYS preferred trees that are sweeter for some reason. I personally doubt it was the fertilizer, but if it makes you more confident in your hunting... I say go for it.


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[Ontariofarmer]

Fertilize any crop and you get more seed. I expect there are more acorns under the fertilized tree. Not necessarily sweeter. Just a farmer perspective.
More acorns equals more deer.

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[Allegheny Tom]

One thing you can do to increase acorn production (if you own the land) is to cut and thin crowding and competition among trees.
Any immature mast bearing tree will produce mast sooner than ones that are crowded and in competition for soil moisture, nutrients and sunlight.

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[elk yinzer]

Black gums are a good one to know in the big woods/mountains...they create (or indicate?) edge.

Know your oaks for sure. I've never got too caught up pinpointing specific individual trees. I think that works in areas where oaks are more sparse but most of PA oaks are the most prevalent tree. Certain years some elevations produce acorns better than others, and that can definitely be relevant when you're scouting in the fall to pick up on.

White oaks do get hit hard in Sept and early October, but by November the pendulum starts to swing more toward reds. The reason is the tannins (bitter tasting preservative) start to leach out on the ground.

Quercus alba, "the" white oak is a low tannin acorn with a weaker shell. It's preferred when it drops, but goes south (rots) pretty quickly on the ground. Quecus montana (chestnut oak) is a white oak family acorn that deer often prefer over alba in my area. It's sweet, huge, and has a shell that protects it a little better. No need to know the distinction between red/scarlet/black oak their acorns are all about the same. Deer prefer those from Novemberish through springtime.

 

[Ontariofarmer]

One thing you can do to increase acorn production (if you own the land) is to cut and thin crowding and competition among trees.
Any immature mast bearing tree will produce mast sooner than ones that are crowded and in competition for soil moisture, nutrients and sunlight.

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The biggest cobs of corn in a field are in places where there is less competition or fewer plants. Where a field planter misses a row - that never happens - you will have bigger cobs in the rows beside the missed row.
Yup cut the weed trees down and get more acorns and fertilizer any growing thing and you get more fruit.


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[BackSpasm]

10 year longitudinal study on fertilizing oaks:

Maximizing Acorn Production with Dr. Craig Harper

On this week's podcast. Dr. Craig Harper of the University of Tennessee Extension discussed his recent research devoted to understanding acorn production.

sportsmensnation.com

Any other findings of “I did it and deer liked it” are anecdotal and don’t account for many many variables.


Comparing tree fertilization to a crop fertilization is also not helpful. Trees allocate resources differently and last for many years so they can afford to store resources rather than needing to bear them all out as fruit. Totally different.

I agree though that thinning around the tree to let the crown expand can work and that has been scientifically proven.


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[Allegheny Tom]

One more thing to consider with oaks is the Acorn Weevil.
Sometimes almost 100% of a tree's crop will have a little weevil larvae inside each acorn.
My experience is that deer won't eat acorns with the larvae in it. I assume some probably do get eaten but if there are 2 acorns and one doesn't have the larvae, then it will be the preferred acorn.
I guess deer detect the larvae infested one by smell.
Eventually, the feeding larvae will pretty much destroy the meat of the acorn and render it totally useless.

So...
How many of you guys cut open a sampling of the acorn crop when you find hundreds of them on the ground?
I always cut open a few.
Sometimes every single acorn will contain the worm.

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[Exhumis]

i was glad to see you mention the persimmons because here in NC if you can find one it is a gold mine!!!!

Yeah I didn't know what they were, when I saw them on the ground they looked like withered up apricots. But I noticed a ton of sign so hung a cam. Came back a month later and it was like a doggone farmers market, more deer than I've ever seen congregate in one place. I showed my hunting partner and he informed me it was a persimmon tree, he has some on his property up in the mountains. Needless to say, that will be a honey hole.

 

[Recurveaholic]

Yeah I didn't know what they were, when I saw them on the ground they looked like withered up apricots. But I noticed a ton of sign so hung a cam. Came back a month later and it was like a doggone farmers market, more deer than I've ever seen congregate in one place. I showed my hunting partner and he informed me it was a persimmon tree, he has some on his property up in the mountains. Needless to say, that will be a honey hole.

Yes sir it is like deer crack!!! LOL

 

[IkemanTX]

Any form of soft mast, especially if it falls during deer season, is dynamite.
Summer soft mast is great for inventory trail cam locations. This could include (but not limited to) Chickasaw (sand or sand hill) plums, Mexican plums, American plums, blackberries, Paw Paws, mulberries, service berry,

In-season soft mast trees of focus would be apples, pears, persimmon, honey locust (short duration attraction), chokeberries, beauty berry, possibly late dropping plums...

 

[Kurt]

One more thing to consider with oaks is the Acorn Weevil.
Sometimes almost 100% of a tree's crop will have a little weevil larvae inside each acorn.
My experience is that deer won't eat acorns with the larvae in it. I assume some probably do get eaten but if there are 2 acorns and one doesn't have the larvae, then it will be the preferred acorn.
I guess deer detect the larvae infested one by smell.
Eventually, the feeding larvae will pretty much destroy the meat of the acorn and render it totally useless.

So...
How many of you guys cut open a sampling of the acorn crop when you find hundreds of them on the ground?
I always cut open a few.
Sometimes every single acorn will contain the worm.

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I do open up acorns but I take it one step further. In the area around my house I am in the habit of taste testing the acorns from different white oaks and have determined which trees have sweeter acorns, and yes you can tell which are higher in tannins by the bitter taste. I have a couple of trees that I know I can enjoyably eat the acorns off of. White oak acorn production for me as a hunting strategy is a non issue. We have a later opening day for our deer bow, and by the time deer season rolls around any white oak acorn that's on the ground is gone. For me it's the reds that play a more important role in food related hunting strategy.

 

[Allegheny Tom]

I do open up acorns but I take it one step further. In the area around my house I am in the habit of taste testing the acorns from different white oaks and have determined which trees have sweeter acorns, and yes you can tell which are higher in tannins by the bitter taste. I have a couple of trees that I know I can enjoyably eat the acorns off of. White oak acorn production for me as a hunting strategy is a non issue. We have a later opening day for our deer bow, and by the time deer season rolls around any white oak acorn that's on the ground is gone. For me it's the reds that play a more important role in food related hunting strategy.

Ive tasted them, too.
They all taste nasty IMO!
Some just taste worse than others

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[Weldabeast]

Any form of soft mast, especially if it falls during deer season, is dynamite.
Summer soft mast is great for inventory trail cam locations. This could include (but not limited to) Chickasaw (sand or sand hill) plums, Mexican plums, American plums, blackberries, Paw Paws, mulberries, service berry,

In-season soft mast trees of focus would be apples, pears, persimmon, honey locust (short duration attraction), chokeberries, beauty berry, possibly late dropping plums...

Gall berries

 

[LarkHarrison243]

I really need to get better at identifying trees...

 

[Recurveaholic]

Gall berries

What is a Gall berry?

 

[Weldabeast]

It's a shrub in the holly family that is everywhere down south. They produce small purple berries that the deer like

 

[Recurveaholic]

It's a shrub in the holly family that is everywhere down south. They produce small purple berries that the deer like

Is it also called poke berry?

 

[Weldabeast]

Here are 2 oaks I have in my yard that I can give example by real pics.

Laurel oak: this one drops every year. Some years are more than others.....squirrels and birds love the acorns

Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences - University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences - UF/IFAS

Florida 4-H is focused on non-formal, practical education for state youth aged five through 18. We promote science, citizenship, and healthy living.

www.sfrc.ufl.edu

Turkey oak: this one doesn't drop every year. These grow on high sand ridges and the deer seem to cruise through the turkey oak stand areas on the public land I hunt around here

Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences - University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences - UF/IFAS

Florida 4-H is focused on non-formal, practical education for state youth aged five through 18. We promote science, citizenship, and healthy living.

www.sfrc.ufl.edu