COLUMN: Driftwood Outdoors: Sinking brush to build fish habitat

Winter is prime time for building fish habitat. Cedar trees are one of the best options, and you can find them popping up in forests and pastures all over the place. Most landowners want them gone, so to collect a few, all you're probably going to need to do is ask for permission to help remove them from the landscape. They're easy to come by, so gather a few, sink them in waters you own or have permission to do so in, and you'll build habitat to hold fish all year long.

Anglers have been sinking brush piles for generations to create fish-holding covers. Cedar trees are perfect for the job because they're abundant, easy to handle, and their wild branching structure creates ideal cover.

Sunken brush provides shelter not only for fish, but also for all sorts of underwater forage those fish depend on. Minnows rely on vegetation and woody cover to escape predators, and predator fish know it. Crappie, bass, and other game fish often stage along limbs and branches, waiting for an easy meal to swim by. When you add structure, fish respond quickly. When placed in ponds and small lakes, these become go-to fishing spots.

I grew up on a lake in a large subdivision. My grandpa and uncle were two of the most consistent fishermen on those waters. Their success didn't come from fancy gear or cutting-edge technology. It came from winter weekends spent building brush piles. Most of them were made from old Christmas trees, but cedars work just as well.

It's a little late to find a lot of discarded Christmas trees at the end of driveways, but if you know where a few have been dumped off, that could be a gold mine for brush to sink. We used to cruise the neighborhood with a flatbed trailer behind my uncle's van, picking up trees from the ends of driveways until the trailer was stacked so high we couldn't take any more. Back at the garage, we'd get to work preparing them for sinking.

We prepped trees two ways. Most often, we'd lash a few together into a bigger pile, wrap a chain around the bundle, and thread it through a couple of cinder blocks. For a single-tree structure, we'd drop the trunk into a small bucket, usually an old ice cream tub from Schwan's, and fill it with concrete. Both methods are easy and cost-effective.

Our favorite spots were deep water in front of docks and along sharp drop-offs. We used a Jon boat to place the trees, and since this was long before GPS mapping apps, we kept a paper map marked with every brush pile. Today, you can just mark them on your sonar or onX. Big piles went in open water. Individual trees lined docks and edges where fish naturally traveled.

As the trees break down, they attract invertebrates, which draw in small fish. Small fish bring bigger fish, strengthening the entire food chain. When spawning season arrives, young fish use those trees as nursery cover, increasing survival rates and improving the fishery for years to come.

Manmade ponds and reservoirs often lack the natural structure found in rivers and lakes. If you want good fishing, someone must create that structure. Wintertime brush building is good for the fish and is one of the most effective tools available for improving your fishing opportunities while benefiting the entire lifecycle of the body of water.

Sinking brush isn't a secret. Plenty of anglers do it around their own docks. Fewer people take the time to think bigger to improve habitat across an entire pond or lake. Those who do gain an advantage that lasts through every season.

Some of my best outdoor memories haven't come from the moment of the catch or the shot, but from the preparation that made it possible. I'll always remember the excitement of loading up Christmas trees with my family, and the satisfaction that followed months later as we gathered for another fish fry. In the outdoors, effort has a way of paying you back.

See you down the trail...

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