Wildlife and Habitat

tree tubes can fill up with grass, helped out in this area today @assiniboinefoodforest to clear the grass, trim a bit and keep the tubed trees healthy for another growing season. tubing and caging in this field lets the trees grow up past the size that deer will browse.

tree tubes are cool, they create a micro climate while protecting from deer rabbits mice. these are all siberian crabapple, to be grafted above the browse line, in an area with frequent deer and rabbits. If I didn’t tube or cage them, the trees would be heavily browsed, apple twigs and bark are like candy for wildlife

prairie re-wilding, 10th year since we moved our horses and anything has grazed this field. It’s about ten acres of grass with an acre of marsh. wild licorice, goldenrod, milkweed, and many other flowers and plants have been appearing that I’ll eventually identify. collected some seeds, checked on the apple trees I planted this spring. around this field I find green ash, narrow leaf cat tail, wild licorice, silver buffaloberry and boxelder, enough seeds to grow in our nursery and stock our seed shop.

pagoda dogwood I think, Cornus alternifolia native to manitoba. Related to the more common redosier dogwood, and also bunchberry dogwood (both in the cornus genus even though bunchberry is 6” tall). this one is weird because the leaves look like bunchberry, the fruit grows like virginia creeper, and it’s 10-15 ft tall shrub #pagodadogwood

sandbar willow are a small species that spreads and grow in clumps. this patch is at least 30 years old and the largest trees are 12-15 ft, it’s also spreading out. It’s great because everything I coppice will regrow. several truckloads of cuttings are going to a planting site to stabilize soil. #willow

sandbar willow hardwood cuttings for a local riparian project with a landscaper, 48” poles. we have a large patch of these and it’s cool to coppice part of it, a completely renewable resource.

time to run an extension cord out to the pond heater. 3rd winter for the goldfish. #wildlifepond

found this in the woods nearby, any wildlife experts know? someone said bear but i’ve never seen one around here. we do have racoons and porcupines

tree tubing and caging as an ongoing project protect volunteer seedlings from deer and help the trees reestablish along the assiniboine river @assiniboinefoodforest thanks to everyone who volunteered this weekend

the assiniboine river is super low this fall

wildlife pond going into fall. you can see how I feed the goldfish, some assorted treats in these containers just stay outside pondside year round #wildlifepond

milkweed seed pods, leaves are the food source for monarch caterpillars.

someone was sleeping in this cozy spot #deer #whitetail

half inch of ice on the pond this morning, we hit -14c last night.. Time to plug in the heater. there’s about 18 goldfish in there going into their second winter. #pond #wildlifepond

Our miniature donkey’s name is Donkey. Had him nearly twenty years, and every time I walk by he comes over. More friendly than most horses. #donkey

first snow today. the wildlife pond I made this spring is home to about 16 gold fish, going to try and keep it heated through the winter. about a week ago we hit -15c and there was an inch of ice on the pond, might be interesting to see how it does by Jan. volume is around 200-250 gallons, 30-36” max in the deep end, depending on the water level, fluctuates a couple inches/wk from evaporation.. hah or birds and squirrels drinking it #wildlifepond #pond