Sinking brush

[DenOz]

If you do use Cedars, you should "spiral cut" them as they are to thick for fish to get into. They are real messy in a boat. Nothing, NOTHING, beats Hedge (Osage Orange). As it ages, sweetin it with a little willow.

[crappiedoc]

If you do use Cedars, you should "spiral cut" them as they are to thick for fish to get into. They are real messy in a boat. Nothing, NOTHING, beats Hedge (
Osage Orange). As it ages, sweetin it with a little willow.

Cottonwoods work just as well, just not as "twiggy". Nothing beats hedge for longivity, they claim as it dries it gets denser.(sinks easier)

[crappiecaster]

Cedars out of the water take 2 yrs to drop their needles/foliage. I read ,some years ago, In-fisherman I think, that green cedars give off some kind of acid that keep the fish away. A friend of mine put some cedars in Perry last spring (2010) & we fished over them thru the ice. Never caught anything tho. I put my camera down the hole(12ft to 15ft of water) & the cedars were a dense mass of mossy goo. Kinda looked like a bloated hedge ball, It will be interesting to see what it looks like this winter. Cedar trees with the neddles/foliage gone make some pretty good structure. I have some located that are pasture burnt that I plan on sinking this fall.

[Craig Johnson]

I think if you're on an Army Corps of Engineers lake, you need permission from the corps to sink brush. But it's a free-for-all anywhere else, right?

Fish Taxi,

You are correct, you do need permission on COE reservoirs to build habitat. At some reservoirs, the KDWP fisheries biologist oversees the habitat permit application process. The process and requirements can vary from lake to lake so it is always best to check first.

Most City and County lakes also require permission for anglers to install habitat, all of my lakes do.

Private waters you can do as you wish.

So in short, check with the entity that owns/operates the water you want to drop habitat in. It may save you a lot of headaches in the long run. The 2011 Fishing Regulations Summary contains the phone numbers of all fisheries biologists in the state.

[Fish Taxi]

Thanks for the info about the premits Craig, and thanks guys for the tips about sinking brush. Much appreciated. I wish I had some hedge trees to spare, but it's the cedars I want to get rid of... If only the osage orange spread like the cedars do, it wouldn't be a problem. Unfortunately, I seem to only have a few hedge trees, but I have a few hundred cedars... Maybe I will just cut most of the greenery off since it is growing out at the ends of the branches anyway. Then I would avoid the big ball of goo that crappiecaster mentioned. It's worth a try.