Where to start with Habitat improvement projects

DRG3

5 year old buck +
Hello,

I'm in a bit of overload from reading and thinking so I'm looking for some improvement. I've done several habitat projects on other properties, mostly related to grasslands, and some small hinge cuts in poor timber, but the situation I am in now, is the property where I live is 52 acres. 19.5 of that is In ag production and so it is what it is. There is about 1.5 acres for my yard/ shed etc and the rest is woods. I have a 1 year old estimated timber value on it and there is some very nice mature oak and hickory timber- BUT I DO NOT WANT TO DO a full out timber harvest. I'm looking for some less extream options, to try and ease into getting comfortable with some of the more major approaches.

What kind of projects could I implement- almost as starting small, to improve the forest habitat? does everything I could do involve cutting? The ridges and points on the property are all good standing timber and the creek draws and slopes are thicker. I'm not opposed to larger scale logging, but what I'd really rather do is start small, improve my comfort level and work bigger. My main goal is not timber harvest or production, I want to improve for deer and turkey, but at the same time, I don't want to be hinge cutting my valuable oaks if I can monetize some of the timber.

I know this post is all over the place. As I said, I'm kind of in a paralysis mode, just trying to figure out how to start small and get more comfortable. I talked to a consultant, but they want 2k to come out, and my local NRCS wont return my recent emails. IN the past they told me that wildlife was not their focus on a property like mine......
 
You will get all kinds of free advice here. With that, it sounds like you could use a plan of some type. Having a plan in place will guide your decisions. I were in your shoes I'd have my state wildlife biologist, forester, or private consultant come out & look at the property. State employees services should be free. Private consultants will probably charge a fee. Without actually being on the property I hesitate to give too much advice even though I did this for a living. With that said, I'd start burning!
 
I should have read the post a little closer. $2K seems high to me just to look at 50 acres. Try contacting the Fish & Game Dept in your state. Organizations like Quail unlimited, Pheasant's Forever, & Nat'l Wild Turkey Federation have biologists on staff and their services should be free. The US Fish & Wildlife Service also has biologists on staff that may be able to assist.
 
I am picturing 52 acres, 19 of which is AG fields and the rest is all timber plus a house with a lawn. It doesn't sound like you have much wiggle room without harvesting some timber to get the sunlight on the ground to try and grow anything else. Can you encroach on the AG fields where they meet the forest and plant stuff there? It sounds like you have the 3 basic needs of water, food and cover.

I don't blame you for not wanting to lose any hard mast trees but if they are abundant in the surrounding areas it wouldn't take much away from your property if you opened up an area to plant something that your neighbors don't have like Pears or Persimmon trees, or even add another hard mast tree like Chestnuts (I don't know your location or zone).
 
Do you have any equipment to use? I would clear out 3 to 5 acres to experiment with as far as food plots go. Probably try to do this in a centralized location on your property or carve out a spot on the edge of the timber(gotta have sunlight getting through or nothing will grow). Try to plan your entry and exit paths before you start clearing so you can get to it without spooking animals away. Go from there.
 
Thanks for the Replies and advise.
I'd like to work my way up to having the nerve to cut some timber and probably will. I plan to hire a consulting forester to do that, and am just not ready to spend that money just yet. I'd like to do some DIY smaller items first.

Can you encroach on the AG fields where they meet the forest and plant stuff there? It sounds like you have the 3 basic needs of water, food and cover.

This I had not thought of and brings up an idea, what if I started cutting back a swatch from the filed/Tiber edge. These are low value trees and I can see where the wood line has crept over the years. I'll have to be careful with planting as the farmer sprays but this seems possible.
1) Could this add some wildlife value
2) What strategies and practices would work here? Full removal of these mostly smaller trees? How? I have a chainsaw and a tractor with a loader, or hinging? My first thought is remove them and get sunlight in and let the edge grow up?

Seems like the might be somthing i could do, but want to make sure its valuable

Also- I am located in far western KY. I should have mentioned that.
 
If you're not sure exactly what the long term big picture plan is I would concentrate on doing little things with timber that impact how the property hunts.

Fell or hinge small numbers of specific trees in a manner that would further enhance bedding, direct travel to stand locations, and screen or keep deer off your access routes.
 
Thanks for the Replies and advise.
I'd like to work my way up to having the nerve to cut some timber and probably will. I plan to hire a consulting forester to do that, and am just not ready to spend that money just yet. I'd like to do some DIY smaller items first.



This I had not thought of and brings up an idea, what if I started cutting back a swatch from the filed/Tiber edge. These are low value trees and I can see where the wood line has crept over the years. I'll have to be careful with planting as the farmer sprays but this seems possible.
1) Could this add some wildlife value
2) What strategies and practices would work here? Full removal of these mostly smaller trees? How? I have a chainsaw and a tractor with a loader, or hinging? My first thought is remove them and get sunlight in and let the edge grow up?

Seems like the might be something i could do, but want to make sure its valuable

Also- I am located in far western KY. I should have mentioned that.

I'd for sure look into edge feathering or cutting the non-valuable growth on field edges if it helps do any of the following:
1. makes deer feel more secure in what sounds like mature timber because its hard to see into from the field
2. makes deer feel more secure in possible future food plots because you cant see into them from the open timber - also makes deer come closer to food plots to check for other deer (bucks searching for does)
3. Directs deer travel into the field where you want it

In regards to hiring a forester, I'd look for one who has a focus on habitat but is familiar with the local timber market. A lot of the foresters are pretty focused on timber value. I found the financial upside of a timber harvest on my property is near meaningless compared to having the trees i want. That said, a timber harvest is still a possibility but is on the table 95% for property habitat improvements.
 
You should benefit money-wise from the tree harvest, worst case scenario is you break even but I wouldn't imagine you would pay out of pocket in the end.

It is hard to advise without being there to see what you have and don't have, and equally important is what your surrounding properties have or are lacking. Deer are browsers so if you don't have woody browse (that doubles as cover) like Dogwood or Ninebark that would help. I try and key on unique food sources to my area like Chestnuts and Pears since we have lots of native apples already. If Covid taught us anything it is to be less reliant on the supply chain, Nothing wrong with having a small grocery store in your back yard with Plumbs, Peaches and Cherries as well as a good variety of nuts conducive to your area like Pecans and Hazelnuts which are a good attractant for your target species and doubles as delicious food for you and the family. Win Win, but it sounds like you need to start in an area that is dominant with young or less desirable trees and open it up first bud. Or at least start at the AG field and trim back the trees if it is on the sunny side of the field.
 
I would first off do a crop tree release focusing on keeping the oaks and possibly some hickories depending on which species of hickory they are. Many times you can release crop trees by killing ash, hackberry, and other poor wildlife value trees I would have an emphasis on keeping the mast trees particularly the oaks. I wouldn’t be afraid to cut some oaks if they are to thick in some areas but for those areas I’d wait a couple three years and try and figure out what trees in those areas are the best producers of acorns before thinning and marking them to keep. I’d probably add some pears or persimmons along the north or west edge of the ag field and or your yard. Can’t hardly chase the deer out of my yard with a stick when the fruit trees are dropping.
 
Whats in the general 1/2 to 1 mile away from you? Overall, the best deer hunting is spots where they feel comfortable. Not so much where there is food right by their feet. I have 8 open acres with plenty of them to eat. Never, never see a buck in daylight just about ever.... Open woods is better thn open field, but not by much.

IF acorns are everywhere, have the best acorns...... thats what i did at my old home. Dont be afraid to cut 1/2 or more of the mast trees. Not clear cutting. but selective and leave a mature oak tree every 100ft. Cut the big guys for money, then the ones left will do great with the extra light. I would spread lime for my trees and lightly fertilize. Some years my trees were the only ones with acorns around. Watering a few selected ones by your favorite treestand isnt a bad idea during a dry spell. Even 10-15 gallons around a mature tree is a big help.

But, as said above get rid of the low value trees. In my case, it was hemlock and maple. Dont be afraid to clear cut a spot or two. However, what do you have to work with? Stumps can be a real pain. I'd just spring harrow around mine. At the time I used a weedwhacker once a month on my clover plot, so it wasnt a hassle to clean up around the stumps.

Foresters in some areas are worth their money. They know how to keep a oak grove going into the future. They also know what deer hunters like in general. Where they shine is getting a fair price between logging companies.

Having a set of forks o a truck can really help keep up with the loggers dropping tops.

MY late season legal poaching tip...... Cut a few trees down a few days before the end of the season. The deer will be at the tops nibbling. A few days later chop the high branches so the deer can reach them. Great in mid winter too. You'd find sheds in the branches from time to time......

You want some mature trees, you want good understory growth, you want brushy edges going into your woods.

pick a spot, maybe on a south facing hill. Leave a few acres a brushy mess for bedding. Dont go there for anything. LEt them have place where they feel safe to sleep. In NY where I am, the bucks like little islands in the swamps. Their feet cross water, its ike locking your front door to them.... They think their predators hunt them with their noses.....
 
Thanks for all the great information-
Whats in the general 1/2 to 1 mile away from you?

I have the only production ag I. About a half mile. Right up next to me is some really thick cover from logging and the deer tend to stay there and move to me. I rarely get any bedding. I am talking line fence close as in the logging stopped at the property line. It’s hunted heavily by neighbors. It’s baited also. Which is legal I. Ky. Basically I have mast and grain and my neighbors have bedding and bait.

I should have mentioned that turkey are as important to me as deer so I want to do things that help both.
 
It's hard to beat oaks when they're dropping acorns in the fall for attracting deer, and the timber value can pay for future projects when mature enough to log them. My camp has done several loggings over 25 years, and we KEEP the oaks, hickories, big maples, & black cherry trees. Mast for FREE food and seed too good to cut them down. That said - diseased or damaged trees get cut down & used for firewood.

I agree with the guys above who recommend edge-feathering / edge cutting / edge planting of forest edges for more cover. Deer love edges, and having thicker edge cover will give them a place to "safety-check" fields before coming out in the open. Turkeys like to nest in thicker cover as well, so you can't go wrong with thicker edges. Maybe re-claim some of that field area that's been invaded by crappy, worthless trees.

We've had really GOOD luck with Washington hawthorn trees (very tough & adaptable small trees) as edge cover / food supply. They don't grow huge (20 to 30 ft. max) and they produce loads of 3/8" red berries that turkeys, grouse, and birds love. Just plant them where they get plenty of sun to produce good berry crops. Deer love the thick cover they provide from the brushy limbs & thorns - deer bed in our hawthorns. Serviceberry trees (also known as shadblow, shadbush) are good for their berries that ALL birds love, including turkeys. They grow well along edges because they also love sun. Choke cherry also don't grow real tall, and they produce human-edible fruit that critters love. Gray dogwood makes shorter, brushy cover and also loads of berries that all birds eat. There are lots of good crabapple varieties that make good, shorter cover and also produce soft mast food.

Just a few suggestions that'll create good edge cover and food sources.
 
After hearing more about your property and neighbors I would still do what I stated in my first post but I would clearcut an area maybe a 50’ wide strip along one of your age fields maybe 50’ from the field edge to produce some very thick growth on your property for bedding. You could have a tree shear do it or mulcher hand cut or poison. If poison is used I suggest ringing the trees completely or close to completely if their 6” or larger in diameter. Even in this clear cut area if you have a mature oak left here and there shouldn’t hurt anything. With such a small plot of land you will never hold the deer on your property solely but you sure can make it a place they like to come to more often. My home place is 35 acres somewhat similar to yours ag and pasture all around me I own the majority of the heavy timber in this mile section my oak trees are perhaps my biggest asset but my neighbors have almost no oak trees at all. I am also the only one with any fruit trees but my clear cut areas are definitely used for bedding.
 
You have a small property so noise, movement, & activity from your house will spook deer.

First, if you want to improve hunting potential, I would screen your yard/house from the rest of the property with 3 rows of staggered of Norwegian spruce. Second i would then Screen the perimeter of your property, especially roadside areas and neighboring lot lines with spruce.

If your forested area is mature with heavy canopy restricting sunlight, you will need to thin to get shrubs and regeneration stated to create visual screening through the woods. As mentioned above, edge cover is important also. Managing a forest for timber value vs hunting have opposite plans that really don't benefit either.

Plant a 20-30 yard clover strip that runs along the edge of your wood line. Plant some fruit trees along this edge in full sun also. You can then hunt this strip.
 
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