More Trees

A lot has happened in the last week. I harvested three Douglas firs from the Targhee National Forest. I had to search rather far away to find them since most of the forest around here is strictly Lodgepole pine. It was difficult to find any that were small enough to transplant, and that is why I only dug up three of them. Next time I will know where to search and how to spot them, and so I would expect to have more luck. I also got permission to dig up young trees on a friend's property here in Island Park. Most of the houses in Island Park are situated on heavily wooded lots which can benefit from a certain amount of thinning. Lodgepole pines grow extremely tall and slender when crowded and can be a danger during the high winds that are common to this area.

I dug up and transplanted quite a lot of trees during the course of the week. Most of them were Lodgepole pines, but I was surprised to find two more Douglas firs and a white pine amongst the group. I also moved two tiny spruces that were growing on my property. In total, I transplanted 30 trees last week! I am very excited to think of these trees growing and adding to my landscape. Since the smallest trees are supposed to have the best chance of surviving the transplanting and recovering their growth rate sooner, I picked the smallest ones I could find. Some of them were just sprouts in their first or second year of growth. Most of the trees are completely hidden in the tall grass which grew to between two and three feet this year. I placed the trees near the eastern fence line, which borders the highway, and then turning the corner to follow the southern fence line, which borders a dirt road. There are now 20 trees on the east side and another 10 trees on the south side. I have been hauling water buckets out to water them every day.