Mineral Stumps...

2boyz

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Good information on the mineral stumps. Thanks for posting this.

(haven't listened to the full podcast yet....but will)
 

sky hawk

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Interesting. I knew the tender new growth was attractive, but I would never have thought there was that much difference in mineral content.

So, a cutover is a huge plot full of mineral stumps.
 

Ldsoldier

Old Mossy Horns
Pretty much. I'm not an expert in tree physiology, but apparently it has to keep nutrients in the roots and shoots at balanced levels (not sure why). Since hardwood stumps have these massive root systems that leads to super concentrating the minerals in the leaves. Also because of those massive root systems they basically can't overbrowse them. You're only gonna get this with hardwoods though, since pines don't stumpsprout.
 

curdog

Ten Pointer
Contributor
The larger diameter hardwoods won't stump sprout as well as the smaller ones. Seems like once they get 14-16" they loose a lot of sprouting ability. Prescribed burning in hardwood stands would give the best of both worlds. Mast from the residual trees and sprouts from the top killed understory species.
Either way it's a very interesting study.... thanks for sharing.
 

Ldsoldier

Old Mossy Horns
The larger diameter hardwoods won't stump sprout as well as the smaller ones. Seems like once they get 14-16" they loose a lot of sprouting ability. Prescribed burning in hardwood stands would give the best of both worlds. Mast from the residual trees and sprouts from the top killed understory species.
Either way it's a very interesting study.... thanks for sharing.

So what you're saying is that if we want to intentionally create a "mineral stump" the best tree to use would be something about 12" in diameter?
 

curdog

Ten Pointer
Contributor
So what you're saying is that if we want to intentionally create a "mineral stump" the best tree to use would be something about 12" in diameter?

Give or take. It's tied more to the age of the tree, but generally speaking once you get over 16 inches your sprouting ability is going to drop. Younger trees (typically smaller in diameter) will sprout better than older trees that have peaked and are starting to decline.
If you're looking to get the best sprouting, cut in the dormant season, and the following year you'll get more sprouting. In the early growing season the tree used a lot of energy in leaf development and hasn't replenished enough energy to give the best sprouts, in the fall/ end of the growing season it's sending carbohydrates back to the roots to store until the following year., so you wouldn't want to disrupt the energy being sent to the roots.
Some species will stump sprout really well. I've seen chestnut oak stumps that have had" logs "cut from the same stump 3 different times. They looked rough, but they kept growing.
 

Ldsoldier

Old Mossy Horns
Good to know. That in mind the best size is likely to vary with species and site quality, but the principle is there. Thanks again!
 
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