Hinge cutting for bedding areas

[Someday isle]

I tried my hand at the first hinge cuts on my property today. 70 degrees in February. I just had to go out and work a little bit. I started small and only used my Silky Zubat. Next time out I'll get a little more aggressive. I'll post some pics and am open to any comments - good or bad.

If you look at the last picture you'll see I put a log up against a small tree in front of a bunch of old tops in an attempt to imitate a bed like some people talk about. I'm not so sure I can make something bed there but it was fun to try nonetheless. Next time I go out I'll cut a little more and stick a camera in there just to see what happens.

 

[Someday isle]

I had a neighbor put a stand right on a fence line during firearms season too. I did a little mini tornado zone right on that fence line today. It'll be interesting to see how much that thickens things up this year along that location. I'd like to get more aggressive there. After looking at the pictures I can see where I can definitely do more in this area.

 

[Someday isle]

It's funny - I always say I don't have many cedar trees but every time I take a picture I see all kinds of them.

 

[Bill]

It's funny - I always say I don't have many cedar trees but every time a take a picture I see all kinds of them.

Looks very similar to my woods. Before I hacked it up anyway. Lots of white oaks in there. I'll try and remember to get a picture of a white oak area I went a bit overboard on with a chainsaw. The small WO regeneration is crazy.

 

[Someday isle]

My land lays really well but I'm still considered in the Missouri Ozarks region. Sometimes I feel a little guilty when I read everyone's threads about planting in hopes of getting enough oaks to someday see some acorn production. I could cut half my woods and still have more acorns than the deer can eat. Most of my woods are white oak, what we call red oak (some people call them black oaks around here too) and lots of hickory - and as I mentioned above, more cedar than I realized I had. I've got 36 acres so my basic plan is to over the next couple of years develop several 1/4 to 1/2 acre hinged areas spread strategically throughout the property. Today was a good start I think.

 

[Weezy]

Looks very similar to my woods. Before I hacked it up anyway. Lots of white oaks in there. I'll try and remember to get a picture of a white oak area I went a bit overboard on with a chainsaw. The small WO regeneration is crazy.

That's good to hear. My land is loaded with white oak as well and they get hinged if in a proposed bedding area. Just curious, how long did it take for this crazy regen?

 

[Someday isle]

I cleared and mowed a path to an old outhouse in July last year and had all kinds of 6-12 inch shoots by fall. I'm hoping a winter hinge cut will grow like crazy the first spring and summer. I think it'll be fun to monitor the next couple of years for sure. Then in four or five years hopefully I can just hinge the same area again.

 

[buckdeer1]

Has anyone ever fertilized the areas they cut in the smaller hinged areas?I was thinking about trying triple 13 maybe.

 

[Bill]

That's good to hear. My land is loaded with white oak as well and they get hinged if in a proposed bedding area. Just curious, how long did it take for this crazy regen?

The first year or two I got lots of stump sprouts and little seedlings. By year 5 or 6 I had to move a ladder stand because you just can't see through them. Deer numbers will affect this. To many deer and you may never see regen.

Buck,
I've never fertilized but I guess it couldn't hurt.

 

[Bill]

I went through some old pictures today and thought of this thread. These are from when my hinge cutting was, go big or go home.

The regeneration pics were from later the same year. I'll go in this spring and get some better pics of the White oak regeneration.
Obviously I wasn't afraid to make a mess......

 

[Bill]

regen
My deer holding capacity went way up after the second year.

 

[Someday isle]

That's awesome Bill. Thanks!

 

[Brandon]

Wondering if anyone has had any luck with putting logs down for deer beds you have made? Wanted to know if the log is a waste of time. Some of my beds have the hinge cut tree standing vertically didn't know if this was enough or not. I know making the deer beds are probably a waste of time but thought I would add it to the hinge cutting operation

 

[Bill]

Wondering if anyone has had any luck with putting logs down for deer beds you have made? Wanted to know if the log is a waste of time. Some of my beds have the hinge cut tree standing vertically didn't know if this was enough or not. I know making the deer beds are probably a waste of time but thought I would add it to the hinge cutting operation

I tried years ago. Put a big white oak down then hinge cut around the trunk and cleared areas next to it. I never saw any evidence of use by it. Having said that I've walked up on does bedded next to a downed tree trunks so???

Maybe it depends if it's in a place they want to be.

Personally only tried that one time and don't see myself doing it again.

 

[4wanderingeyes]

In my un professional opinion, deer like to have something at their backs, to sort of hide, or block themselves. In most cases where they are bedding, it can be a standing tree, or a stump, or a hump in the ground. If none of these things are in your proposed bedding area, then it wouldnt hurt to place something there, just to try it. In my experience deer are going to bed where they want to bed. You can thicken the area up to make them feel safer, and it should help, but if they dont want to bed there, they wont. What I have noticed in my area is, in the winter, they will bed under cedars, pines, spruce trees. In the spring they tend to bed on south facing slopes, usually between 1/2-3/4 to the top. In the summer I have kicked a lot of deer out from the edge of my food plots, usually within 20 feet in from the edge of the plot. In the fall, I avoid wandering my land, but I know after they get shot at, they are in the thickest swamps around, in my case that would be tamarack bogs.

These are just my personal observations, and will more then likely vary on my neighbors land, not to mention different climates, and different regions. My suggestion, try a couple, then you will know. I like to tweak everything, rather then go all in on anything. Such as logging. I have went back and forth now for several years about logging my land, but instead, I pick one area a year and hinge it, or locate oaks and open them up, or open my food plots up a little. Just because little mistakes are easily over looked, large ones, like a clear cut logging, if it doesnt work out, then I am out of luck for many years.

 

[Someday isle]

I tried it in my recent hinge cutting experiment. It looks cool! I'm actually going to put a camera in that area next time I go out and leave it there a few weeks. Then I'll pull the camera back out and see if it's getting any use. If I get any pictures in that area I'll post them. I'd like to get deer bedding there so I'm going to try and stay out after I get a little more hinging done.

 

[Someday isle]

In post #41 you can see the log in the background. I even manicured a spot to lay down. If deer don't use it I'm pretty sure my brother in law will sleep there when he's "hunting" next fall.