DEER DAMAGE.

[stag1933]

Every Rowan Tree on this area has been frayed by Roe.

Easy on the face, no prickly bits etc.

 

[atom]

hi this is something new to me was told silver birch is planted as a decoy tree to attract roe damage and keep other trees save on a small piece i use all silver birch are left unprotected oaks and other more valuable tree have guards fitted is this the norm ? thanks atom

[stag1933]

HI atom.

In my experience Rowan [Mountain Ash] is the preferred tree species to be frayed.

Willow is sometimes used also but Rowan is most preferred and provides a valuable source of berries for birds in Winter.

Silver Birch is common and easily sourced but cannot match the Rowan.

[Zaitsev]

Hi Stag, you're right about rowan in your area, they seem to get hammered! Other places differ a little as I've seen them thrashing rosebay stems, gorse, oak, willow and all sort of other rubbish in suffolk. Of course on moorland they will have to thrash tall heather or whatever they can find which tends to account for the very dark colour of those heads. Usually thrashing of 'non-crop' trees such as rowan is not what get Roe a bad name in commercial plantations as these are often planted sacrificially, However in a hungry winter Roe will browse sitka and other conifers pretty hard and you can end up with 'topiary' which resemble the close clipped bushes kept in gardens. Obviously in the southern parts its a different stroy with different species such as corsican pine etc which are very sensitive to losing their leading bud. They then lose what is called 'apical domianance' and the side shoots proliferate often resulting in a signifcant kink in the tree or it being very coarsely branched. As the most valuable part of the tree is the first few metres and significant devaition in the stem leads to difficulties harvesting, deer per se become very unpopular. Fallow for axample can and do wreak havoc to the base of trees and some red damage makes your eyes water....

That said I am of the opinion that roe damage is often overplayed by foresters and like farmers if the roe are particularly visible then theres 'hundreds of em, all eating the trees!'. Granted, roe can and do do significant commercial damage but careful planting and forest design can minimise it. The most pressing reason to manage roe in my opinion is for the populations health and quality. If numbers are kept to reasonable levels then damage even if it is only perceived will be reduced and the roe will not get a bad name. This is important as peoples perception of the species has a large impact on how they are treated, witness the lamentable situation with muntjac in many parts of the country where they are beginning to be treated as little better than vermin.

 

Regards all

 

z

[stag1933]

Hi Zait.

I shot my first Roebuck with the late Bill Grant on Jacobs Moss at Greystoke Forest in 1962.

I remember Bill telling me that this was a frost-hole which affected the growing trees in a manner which made them very desireable browse for deer.

All trees there had the topiary effect and looked as if they had been intentionally trimmed.

[stag1933]

A nice young Oak buggered up by Roe.

No tube and stake for protection.