Help! Can you Identify This Shrub?

UGUIDE

UGUIDE

Active member
I found these shrubs along I-90 in Southern MN just east of Worthington and am trying to figure out what they are as I think they would work good in a windbreak for wildlife. They have a little more density and knockdown power (snow) than plum.

Any help would be appreciated.

My plan is to call local NRCS and see if they know.

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I think I saw those on I-35 heading N through Iowa. I know that's not much help, but I've seen more of them in IA than I have in MN. Let us know when you find out please.
 
honeyscile don't think I spelled it right. But thats what it looks like makes good habitat. Had lots of it on public ground around here but they cut it down said it wasn't natural to Iowa.
 
I did a couple rows of lilac, about 2,500 feet of it. It does grow slower, but years down the road it will be nice. I know HunnyS and Private grow faster. But don't end up as wide and dense. All are good choices. But after seeing what the 3 look like afters years of growth, I went with Lilac. I will take a pic of a nice row accross the road and post it later, beautifull stuff. Chriss did you know you can buy the schrubs from the local SWCD each spring cheap. Allot of work diging those holes every 2 feet.:D
 
FC, looking forward to seeing more pics. Really helps alot when deciding what to put in.

Currently I have 12 acres of plum and chokecherry (about 5000 trees) about 5-6 years old and I got and had planted from local SWCD. They do good work.

I'd like to put in more but the crop history has me snafu'd on programs.
 
I think as long as we are planting shrubs and bushes for wild life habitat it's some better to plant fruit and seed bearing varieties. Even though the stuff is consumed long before the Winter is over.

Lilacs sure do make a good shelter for pheasants though.
 
FC, thanks for the pics. After seeing that cover I sure wish every farm had a big block of that woody cover as they would hold a lot of birds right now with this winter.

I had a small riparian buffer pu in last spring with a couple rows of ponderosa pine but they bombed and will be replaced by lilacs this spring.
 
These two strips are right accross the road from the house. One about a mile down I guess. The one is about a 150 yards long, the other close to a 1/4 mile. They are both dence and at least 20+ feet wide and 15 or so feet tall. They grow slower, but are sweet when they do take off. I planted about 1,600 feet of them around the place, just because I see that stuff accross the road. I have been tempted to go rent a tree spade and move it all in the middle of the night.:D And there is always birds in it. They love it all year. Mine has been in for 4 years and is now starting to spread a little, about waist high. It will be here when I'm gone for someone else to enjoy. I most likely will not see it look like that stuff accross the road but OH well. That looked like that over 20 years ago when I moved to town.
 
Have a good patch of Lilac like that, a patch of warm season grass left uncut and a five acre patch of milo or standing corn with a supplement feeder and FCS would have morre roosters then he could handle. Bad Winters or not.:10sign::cheers:
 
Hey Chris, why do you think the ponderosa's bombed, Did they die?
Just curious. I planted a but load of those and I think most all are growing well, and way faster then the blk hills and colorado's I planted. Was it dry and no rain?.

I do wish there was a way to speed up growth though, other then weeding or mowing. We planted Ponderosa's, Colorado's, Black hills,red twig dogwood, redoiser,june berry, crab, American plum, buffalo berry(which I hate and will remove) amor maple, And apple trees. The fastest growing is the Ponderosa's. I have been looking at these new Giant arborvitaes, they grow super fast and dense for a nice win break. I might break out the hole digger for those. With that stuff mostly in I have to start on the areas of grass as mnmthhunting said, my grass sucks, but knew it was last on my list. It was over ran with thistle, which I sprayed curtail on, and that got rid of allot of that and strengthened the grass, but it is good for nests, just thinner when hunting starts. Need the switch, but I like that little patch of milo idea. It will be nice to just be down to a small food plot to take care of with some minor maintenance. I have been doing all this stuff by hand mostly so it wore me out. And I don't have any big equip here. The farm is 4 hrs away. We just inherited 50 acres of grandmas land there though, now to try to convince my non hunting siblings into habitat would be nice, at least a small piece. But I'm sure they will want cash for corn.:D
 
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FCS, Can I ask? what is it you don't like about the Buffalo Berry?
 
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