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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] orchard ground-cover options

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  • From: boyd manges <bmanges@yahoo.com>
  • To: nafex@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] orchard ground-cover options
  • Date: Wed, 21 Aug 2002 05:15:33 -0700 (PDT)

a blow torch weed-eater is a quick fix for weeds and
easy on the back!


--- Joe and Ellen Hecksel <jhecksel@voyager.net>
wrote:
>
> > I also learned somewhere that orchards used to be
> burned annually to
> > clean up the autumn leaves and thereby the apple
> scab.
>
>
>
> > I know of a couple healthy looking apple trees in
> > local preserves which are burned frequently.
> These trees look no worse
> > for wear, but lowest branches are higher than
> usual. I believe
> > vegetation would need to be reduced near the
> trunks, to be sure of zero
> > fire damage there.
> >
> > Any ideas ? Amateur apples aren't in big demand
> here, but prairie &
> > savanna seed is.
>
>
> According to May Theilgaard Watts, most woody plants
> are vulnerable to
> fire when they are juveniles but become must more
> resistant as they age
> and the bark on the trunk thickens. Bur Oak is an
> exception due to its
> thick, corky bark and that is why it is the major
> component of prairie
> groves. Trees can regrow twigs but trunks are a
> much bigger investment.
>
> Adding two and two, you would have to protect the
> trees until their bark
> starts to crack and then you would be home free.
> Multiple wraps of
> aluminum window screen would provide protection from
> rodents and radiant
> heat.
>
> I think you would want frequent, "cool" burns rather
> than a hot burn
> every 7 years.
>
> Another strategy would be to have a vegetation free
> zone 4' around the
> tree's trunk. That requires a herbicide mix like
> Round-up and Simazine
> or a black plastic mulch. Not an option if you are
> of the organic school.
>
> It might be worth studying apple cultivars to see if
> there are
> significant differences in bark thickness. I don't
> think anybody has
> studied it. I would make a point of including
> Prairie crab (M. ioensis)
>
>
http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/acchtml.pl?1006706
> and tetraploids in the cross section.
>
>
>
> >
>
>
> --
> -Joe Hecksel
> My personal web site:
> http://my.voyager.net/~jhecksel
> Bumper crop of raccoons, rabbits and woodchucks this
> year. Send rain.
>
>
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