Reclaiming a swamp

[Rit]

So looking for some thoughts. I have a 10 acre swamp area that is thick with Elm, buckthorn, hawthorn, bush honeysuckle, prickly ash, grape vines, and a few other undesirables. The area is not under water year round and there are some high spots but It does go a little dry in the summer. The real issue is the buckthorn. I have been killing it for years.

It is used as a bedding and secure area but it just really lacks browse. It is the thickest part of my property. I’d like to reclaim it a little at a time. Even if it means cutting down the large elm trees and planting shrubs like red-osier dogwoods. My biggest challenge will be sunlight and competition. I tried some cuttings a few years back but didn’t open things up quite enough.

Am I wasting time and resources by thinking I can convert this invasive infested area into a bedding heaven with plenty of browse?

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

How is the hunting on your property currently? Despite the best intentions, it's always possible that habitat improvements make the hunting worse. I hate buckthorn, but I have a thick patch that I'm leaving alone since it is the thickest spot in the neighborhood and the deer head there when the pressure is on.

If you had a bedding area with tons of awesome browse, you might hurt your hunting a bit if the deer spent more of their daylight hours feeding in the bedding area. That could make the deer harder to kill in the long run than if they bedded in your swamp but have to walk 1/4 mile to get to some good food.

Just some thoughts, perhaps you could try modifying one small section first and see if that improves your hunting.

 

[bwoods11]

Agree, if it’s thick ....that’s really not all bad.
Buckthorn is constant yearly battle. Depends on if it’s sanctuary.

 

[wiscwhip]

IF whatever area "drains" into your swamp has buckthorn, you will NEVER get rid of it. Every time it fills up you are adding more buckthorn seeds to the mix. If you want to thicken it up, remove the big elms and other trash trees and plant some SWO's and Schuette's oaks on the highest spots, cage them all, then start to get some other water tolerant browse species in there. Button bush and mulberry are 2 that will usually thrive on their own and once a thicket has been established, the deer will be hard pressed to kill it unless you have an ungodly number of deer. Tons of other good choices as well, but you must remove the canopy to get some light to them or they will grow slowly and could succumb to overbrowsing.

 

[j-bird]

If it's thick....messing with it is going to push deer out and potentially off your property - if your in there screwing around. Wanting the invasives gone is one thing....if it is practical is another. Plant some water loving plants like have been mentioned....cottonwood, sycamore, boxelder, elderberry, most soft maples, hackberry, pawpaw, willow and the like all come to mind. You may never be able to get rid of the bad stuff.....at least without declaring all out war and nuking the entire area! More than likely this area holds deer now and sometimes our "improvements" can actually work against us. Nothing wrong with trying to get rid of the invasives....you just have to understand what it's going to take and if your willing to go that far.

 

[Rit]

When I bought the property in 2012 the hunting was really good. It has declined quite a bit despite my attempts at habitat improvement.

Now in 2012 the early season hunting was good right up until leaf drop and crop harvest. As soon as that happened the deer were gone. Now there used to be a 9 acre hayfield that was a big summer draw but through lack of fertilization it lost its appeal and has since been converted to better cover and smaller food plots. It declined every year after it was sewn.

Now there have been external factors that have gone along with this. Some of it involves property changing hands and more pressure. So this led me down the path of habitat improvements. I do think the deer numbers have declined dramatically. In 2012 the county also went from a 1 deer county to a 2 deer county and it has really affected deer numbers.

I kind of feel like I am in the boat of despite best intentions the hunting has continued to get worse. I have more cover than I have ever had through plantings and hinge cutting but not sure if that has caused the isssues or if it’s the rapid decline in deer numbers. Buckthorn makes good screens and cover if you hinge it but I have way to much and it’s taking over.

 

[Rit]

I am definitely guilty of going into my wooded areas more than I should but I don’t usually enter these areas during the hunting season. It’s more of a January- April thing.

I have way too much buckthorn to ever think I can get rid of it but I can at least slow it down before it becomes a monoculture. Big Buckthorn thickets actually mature and mushroom killing everything below it and it really opens up the understory.

I really started getting into habitat about 2016 and I have made some mistakes. Cut too many big trees in some areas and I think that did more harm than good. I cut a lot off trees in the swamp also and really made a mess. I probably need to clear some of that up in the off season.

 

[Boll Weevil]

Ask and ye shall receive.
http://habitat-talk.com/index.php?threads/transformation.9928/#post-180204