Tree selection for run

[Pocahontas7799]

Surprisingly enough it's never wet near the lines unless it rains heavy for 6 hours straight or more which doesn't happen very often. I'm just overly cautious of those lines. I might try some ornimental grasses and dwarf arborvitae? I'll do some research on dwarf apples for my zone.

 

[Michael OShay]

I plan on soaking in as much knowledge as I can to keep my feathered friends happy and healthy! And meet some other friendly chicken lovers.

It's so hard to just choose a few breeds out of all the beautiful breeds out there. I'm debating on starting a flock with barred rocks, black australorps, RIR, buff orpingtons, and ameraucanas. I recently discovered minorcas and fell in love!

Barred Rocks, Black Australorps, RIRs, Buff Orpingtons, and Ameraucanas (or Easter Eggers, which are what people usually get from hatcheries that label them Ameraucanas, often misspelled Americana or Americauna) are are cold hardy breeds, but the Minorcas are a Mediterranean breed which are not as cold hardy and will be particularly susceptible to comb frostbite in your winters. Just something to consider when choosing your breeds. Whatever breeds you end up getting, good luck with your flock.

 

[Wyandottes7]

Welcome to BYC!

We're glad to have you.

 

[Pocahontas7799]

That's a shame. Such a unique breed. But I will be happy with what I plan on getting.

 

[drumstick diva]

Willows have extremely invasive roots seeking water .

 

[Michael OShay]

Willows have extremely invasive roots seeking water .

X2 on Willows having extremely invasive roots. The trees with the least invasive roots are Crabapples (Malus sp., which are ranked # 1 as least the least invasive tree more than any other tree), Flowering Dogwoods (Cornus florida, the 2nd best ranked, least invasive tree), and Ginko (Ginko biloba). I hope this helps.

 

[Pocahontas7799]

I do like ginko trees. But I already have a crabapple and a dogwood that are both dying. They are getting really old and have already dropped their leaves even with me trying to save them. I know willow trees are probably a bad idea. Where did you get the information on the ranks of least invasive root systems? I would love to take a look. Would a saucer magnolia have invasive roots? My mother has two about 9 feet tall that she wants to cut down and I'm wondering if I could dig them out and transplant them. Everything I read online has conflicting information and I can't find a trustworthy site to give me the truth!

 

[Michael OShay]

Where did you get the information on the ranks of least invasive root systems? I would love to take a look. Would a saucer magnolia have invasive roots? My mother has two about 9 feet tall that she wants to cut down and I'm wondering if I could dig them out and transplant them. Everything I read online has conflicting information and I can't find a trustworthy site to give me the truth!

As far as I know, there is no single site ranking them. What I did was make a compilation ranking based on a large number of sites and how many times the different trees were listed on the sites as having non-invasive root systems. Crabapple trees were listed on almost every site, and Dogwoods were listed on only one less site than the Crabapple trees. The third most listed non-invasive tree was the Ginko. My rationale is that if all (or nearly all) of these sites were listing a tree, it must be a pretty accurate assessment where that tree is concerned.

 

[Pocahontas7799]

I get what your saying. When I look it up, especially on nursery's websites, they only list small ornamental trees or dwarfs that do not have invasive rooting habits. So then I just assumed any tree that's not a dwarf or ornimental would have large invasive roots which makes sense. A big canopy=big roots. I also did research on the magnolias my mom has. They are not saucer magnolias. But bush or tree they all get big so I'll have to go with something else. I'm glad everyone could give me their personal recommendations. It's really helped. I really want to do ornimental grasses but how I see it, they will only give shade if the sun is low in the sky. And it gets direct overhead sun for 3-4 hours where the coop will be so that's why I really like the vine/tree idea.

 

[Michael OShay]

I get what your saying. When I look it up, especially on nursery's websites, they only list small ornamental trees or dwarfs that do not have invasive rooting habits. So then I just assumed any tree that's not a dwarf or ornimental would have large invasive roots which makes sense. A big canopy=big roots.

Japanese Maples might well be worth trying. They are listed on almost as many sites as non-invasive as Ginko trees.