TOPIC: Site selection question

I too have found lots of big seng in over grown areas . A little observation of the area usually reveals a fallen tree or a top that has broken out, but the seng in that overgrown area had favorable conditions in its young life to allow it to reach a size that it could fend for itself when its environment changed. If that is an easy accessible area for you and it would be really handy to have it there then I would suggest this, plant elsewhere for the next few years while allowing that areas canopy to grow and possibly spray the undergrowth to keep it down. When you notice the growth of weeds begin to slow down then start to make plans for planting and at that point you won't have all that mess to clean out.

Hillhopper

Cdowell,

One more bit of advice. In your pics I can see thick weedy places with lots of small saplings, then clusters of larger trees that would offer decent shade.

In a place like that what you need to focus on is areas that get morning sun, but are shaded well mid-day-thru-evening.

Places that are getting a lot of sun like that - it will not do you much good to go in there and clear out all of the weeds and saplings - they will grow back faster than you can keep the cleared.

What you need to do is get back just behind them, in those areas where morning sun is good, but you have evening shade.

Just behind the tall weeds and saplings, where the larger trees are, find small clearings in there and plant it, but do so at a reduced seeding rate. Up where it is just starting to open up a bit there will be some small places where you can poke a hole and plant a seed, and space those out 6-8\" apart. Then on back where it starts to open up a bit more, make some 4x4 beds, just clear small areas and plant what you can. Then on back in the best of the shade, more clear areas make your larger beds there.

Let those weeds and saplings continue to grow and your shade will get better over the years.

Stay clear of those spots that are grown up and weedy that are getting evening sun.

Believe me friend - I have been hunting wild ginseng since the 70's and have found some of the best wild seng I have ever found in the edge of clear cuts in conditions just like yours where lots of morning sun was getting thru, but it was shaded well in the evenings, and in some places that it was so thick that you literally had to beat the weeds, briars, stinging weeds, etc back to see the forest floor and when you did that found absolutely gigantic 4 prongs and younger seng, and they were all thriving and doing well.

Best of Luck !

TNhunter

Let me ask you all this? What are your thoughts on planting at another site now, bulldozing that whole area and revisiting planting it full in say a year or 2? Would bulldozing cause problems with soil compaction? This property would have been so perfect 10 years ago before it was logged, I'm just not sure if it's worth all the effort now.

cdowell,

I would not recommend bulldozing it.

Any time you clear trees from the forest, like clear cutting or rather heavily select cutting when that sunlight starts reaching the forest floor - weeds and saplings just spring to life everywhere.

The real cause of all the weeds and saplings is sunlight.

Bulldozing is not going to help that - might make it worse and that would rather seriously disturb the forest floor.

Once the remaing trees and those saplings get big enough the shade under them will put a end to all the weeds and undrgrowth.

It really just takes time - if you could fast forward about 10 years things would look a lot different there.

Probably about the best you will be able to do to help it would be to selectivly clear some of the saplings, leaving the best (for example young maple trees) and getting rid of un-desirable stuff. Then back in the areas under the larger trees you could clear saplings there, where the larger trees will eventually provide all of the shade needed anyway.

But in areas that are rather open, only clear some of the saplings, leaving what you want to eventually fill in those areas.

Something like a DR Field/Brush mower might help to reduce the work.

Where you do have good clumps of trees now - if you want to try planting some seng, I would look for clusters of trees and focus on areas due east of them (toward the morning sun).

That is where you will get good morning sun, but have decent shade in mid day & evening.

You might have some spots like that where you could do some clearing and get some seng plantings established now.

Good Luck !

TNhunter

I would have to agree with TNHunter about the bulldozing. You are attempting to mimic a well-developed forest with 75 -80% shade on the forest floor.... and I don't see how getting heavy machinry in there would do that.

That having been said, I also agree with getting some much lighter machinry in there [lawn tractor/weedeater/chainsaw]... and use of herbicides when needed in badly overgrown areas.

I am not going to use herbicites a'tall on my approach. Like you, I have to fight heavy understory growth, however am limiting my \"controll measures' to lighter equipment named above.

You will want to gather searial soil samples, and get that facet handled as well. You can have the best looking area and if the soil isn't right...

I found the Person's book very healpful, I highly recommend getting one for yourself.

How may acres are you going to plant?