Thank Steve!

It's always good to learn!

Thanks!

Thanks!

My pleasure!

Glad it was helpful!

Have HuntStand for mapping and will travel! There is a cost for our services.

Randal - Congratulations on having land in a neat area! It's very tough to convert 10+ year old post clearcut stands into productive. There will most likely be 10's of ,1000's of stems of various tree species at your property. One option it to consider having the area site prepped and replaced with pines. This would allow you to created food plots exactly where they need to be, have a future crop of timber, etc. There's no one herbicide that terminates all the different tree species, A mix of 50% Garlon3A, 40% water, and 10% Arsenal AC will terminate the oaks, sweetgums, and hickories. It will literally take 10's of 1,000's of hacks to complete such a project and very little quality timber will result. However, if you like that type of work and wish to paint the canvas of your property, after the leaves are full shape and before their start turning color is the most effectively time to use the hack and squirt technique. grant

Thanks for watching!

That can be an issue. However, frequent prescribed fire works to control many invasive, exotic species.

Sprouts from a few tree species like winged elm and some maples are palatable to deer and include a higher than average mineral content. However, they are still a woody crop - with a large part being non-digestible and become less so as they mature. Many, many wild forbs that such sprouts shade our are MUCH higher quality nutrition for deer. The biggest deer always are harvested in areas where a lot of sun reaches the soil in some portion of their home range.

@@GrowingDeerTV what is effective way to kill stumps with sprouts with exception of grubbing them out, large black walnut, and oak in particular, can the herbicide mixture be used directly on top since the entire circulatory system of tree is exposed?

Thanks!

Keaton - We assist several landowners with creating habitat and hunting improvement plans. There's a fee for our service, based on property size, travel expenses, etc. We'll be serving some landowners in Illinois later this spring and could be swing your place and it wouldn't cost as much if we are already in the area. If you wish to learn more, email us with your location, etc., to info@GrowingDeer,com

Joe - Glad you are doing some habitat improvement work! Prescribe fire is a very important tool and it's a shame it's not legal in New York. I have several clients there that can't manage their habitat to its fullest potential due to not being able to use prescribed fire. You may need to use herbicide to spot treat invasive species after the canopy is opened.

Keith - I never prescribed hinge cutting. The limbs on a hinge cut tree will quickly (two years or so) grow out of the reach of a deer to compete for the sun's energy. This creates a shaded out mess below the hinge cut tree. There's no native habitat that is like the results of hinge cut areas. The best deer hunting areas - the prairie states of Iowa, etc., have forage, not limbs. Native grasses and forbs make much better cover and food than hinge cut trees.

If there's a market the trees can and should be harvested. However, stumps need to be treated within minutes or the sap will keep herbicide from entering the tree.

Eric - That depends on how it's managed and what species are present. By varying the timing of prescribed fires, there will be a wide variety of species, some of which stand well during the winter. The quality of food produced during the summer and the improved health of the herd trump wooden structure during the winter.

@@GrowingDeerTV hardwood regeneration is what deer eat in winter. Thats why you shouldnt kill everything.

Yes - but by attacking more deer and the deer making trails, it's easier to pattern them.

Waters - I've offered firewood to many and we terminate more trees that folks wish to cut for wood. If we didn't treat the stumps, they'd create a jungle way taller than deer can reach and shade out better quality habitat.

Nate - there are some Prescribed fire coops in some states where local landowners help others burn. Most GOV agencies won't burn on private land due to the liability. However, many agencies do offer training to landowners for a minimal cost. I'd start by asking your state agency about training for prescribed fire.

If only treating oaks, Garlon 3A should work. Mowing won't terminate most hardwoods.

@@GrowingDeerTV awesome! I will see if I can’t get them sprayed with some of that! I haven’t tried it yet!

You could also get a animal like sheep or goat and they will fix it.

Brian - When you are thinking about harvesting oaks - those would be old oaks - then stop the fire a few years before to allow oak saplings to survive!

George - You've likely seen dead trees standing for many years where you hunt. As a result of the Hack and Squirt technique, small limbs (1/2" in diameter or so) will fall the first year, then limbs up to 2" or less. They will be air dried and very light. By the time the trunk falls it will also be air dried. The danger is very limited. Thanks for the reminder.

Just curious, why not just drop them instead of leaving standing dead wood? Sitting in a stand watching large standing dead trees moving in strong winds, this would make me nervous. Is it just less physical work and time? Thanks you videos are super helpful

​@@scott5931who wants thousands of trees laying on the ground all at the same time. All that debris is a mess and it'll be there for years. I addition, even regular fires won't eliminate it. I wouldn't want to walk through that. Animals don't want to either.

Michael - You are correct and it's best to terminate the honeysuckle as it's very invasive! There may be EQIP funding through the NRCS to control that exotic and invasive species.

Thanks!

Use prescribed fire to set those species back and encourage forbs - great deer food!

Ryan - Thinning hardwoods creates great habitat. However, it needs to be performed correctly so there's not hardwood sprouts everywhere.

Great question! Wood browse from a fresh cut stump can contain lots of mineral for a while - as most weeds do. Stump sprouts, like hinge-cut quickly - within a year or two - grow out of reach of deer and the landowner is left with a mess that's very expensive to improve. The sprouts will also shade out the ground and then the landowner is left with a biological desert for several feet where there's no cover for food or deer. Big deer feed are produced by forbs - broad-leafed plants. Soybeans are. common planted forb in ag areas. Ragweed, and many other native plants are forbs that deer consume and benefit from. By terminating low quality trees and using prescribed fire, forbs almost always sprout from the seed bank.

Clay - Checkout the free apps Seek and iNature. They are good tools!

Brian - Much depends on the specific situation.

Bo - Are you hunting deer using the persimmons now?

We do have deer gravitate towards the persimmons that are producing. We have several on edges that produce well and those are frequented by wildlife daily. The persimmons that are amongst the cedars are much smaller though and our thought was that after we cleared the cedars, we would allow them to reach their full potential. Afterwards we would hopefully be able to hunt those as well. We are planning to make the cedar thicket an oak savannah with the few persimmons left here or there.

I also have thought about using a forestry mulcher around the trees I’d like saved. However, I am a little worried that the cedar mulch from that may not allow many things to grow for a few years.

Daniel - I've never attempted to hack and squirt a cedar so I'm not much help. Currently the price for quality cedar is very high where I live. If you have several cedar trees, you may wish to see if there's a market where you are.

Did you end up trying the hack and squirt on your cedar? Interested to hear your results.

@@JM-mz7wx I have not. I had the state forester out and he recommended simply girdling the cedars, no herbicide needed. I plan to try that first.

There are many variables including age of trees, species of trees, etc. A good goal is 60 basal feet per acre. Search on Basal Feet Forestry and there are many educational videos that explain this better than I can in text.

You are correct that deer see blue well! Anything that's not moving such as signs, tractors, posts, etc., don't alarm deer. They become conditioned to such items rapidly and don't associate them with danger.

John - growing season fire or herbicide.

I recommend not using this technique for a day before a large rain event is forecast!

Certainly fire can damage hardwoods if the wrong techniques are used - such as a head fire, etc. However, many folks have been using prescribed fire in hardwoods or decades successfully.

Bull - Sure! I work there frequently and will be assisting a landowner there August 11th!

@@GrowingDeerTV how do we correspond to discuss details and timing ? - Chris

Denver - "Briars and thorns" represent many different species. If those species are invasive exotics such as bush honeysuckle, etc., they should be terminated and allow native species to populate the area. In quality native habitat, rarely are briars and thorns so prevalent that they are an issue. Determine the species and then control as needed.

Send me a message at info@GrowingDeer.com and I'll get you in touch with them.

Jerid - To establish and maintain quality wildlife habitat you'll want to terminate the young pines (a weed eater or brush cutter pending on the size) and herbicide or the sweetgums. Cutting the gums will simply encourage them to make more sprouts.

Timber stand improvement prescriptions need to be site-specific. I don't know near enough about your property to make a recommendation. Sorry! Be cautious about accepting advice from anyone that gives you blanket recommendations.

Really just wondering what mixture would work best for pine, the property is on the eastern shore of Maryland

Play the weather right using Low intensity fires that will consume your 1hr fuels but won’t consume much of your 10-1000hr fuels. Mainly it just burns the leaf litter and very few small sticks, but your standing residuals from the TSI don’t get enough heat intensity to ignite, and are just charred at the base.

If the snags are close to your fire line (within 3 times their own height) put them on the ground before burning. Unless you are burning in strong or gusty winds you should be safe to let them burn themselves out.

Ron - I agree with Mills - don't use the hack and squirt technique close to a fire line.

Wade - I tend to scout my entire property after the season closes while shed hunting, doing habitat improvement projects, etc.

True, it can translocate. I have personally used back and spray on hundreds, maybe thousands of acres of hardwoods targeting tree of heaven and royal pawlonia (invasive exotics) with minimal flash back on desirable trees. We were using 20% arsenal AC solution and 1 hack per 2 inches, not the 1/3 Grant is recommending. I use this same mix and ratio on my own property with 100% confidence.

Mills is correct.

Draco - Fire is a great tool to improve native habitat - it would be tough to achieve the same without using fire.

@@GrowingDeerTV In regards to the hack and squirt method, have you noticed that surrounding trees have been damaged due to the grafting of root systems. For example, could I damage an oak tree if I hack and squirt the trees in the understory of that oak tree? I want to keep the quality timber trees safe while promoting new growth.

Patrick - I'm not worried about that. I've never heard of that happening. I'm sure you've seen dead trees stand for many, many years. Then small limbs will fall, and finally larger limbs. the trunks will stand until they are rotten and then crumble and become dirt.

Robert - that's a lot of extra expense and disturbance. In nature, there aren't large piles of chips in the timber. Those chips are like mulch and will keep the native vegetation from growing for a year or more. The whole trees break down at a very natural rate.

Buzz and Woody - Mulch is used to prevent growth - so that's a bad fit for trying to get native grasses and forbs to grow. In addition, mulchers rarely kill hardwoods and in a few years they sprout back which requires more work. It's usually better to terminate the trees and allow more sun to reach the soil. Mulchers can be used for other projects like making stalking paths!

Cha-ka. My bad! We are feeling Eastern Red Cedars here which deer don't consume unless they are starving. You are referring to white cedars in Maine which deer prefer and readily consume as winter browse!

@@GrowingDeerTV Thank you for the quick response and clarification. I was having a feeling that's what you meant. I've lived down south and my boss down there gave me some red cedar wood from a tree he cut. The were nice splits and he said they're great for the fire. I couldn't commit myself to burn those great smelling beauties. I sliced them into coasters and other small pieces of furniture. (Remote holder...) Your red cedar is great wood.

Fire wood unfortunately

Check out this video where we show a comparison and the benefits:kzfaq.info/get/bejne/pM9yrMdjqtWZaaM.html

Yes, but since cedars cut below the bottom limb don't produce sprouts it's usually better to simply cut them.

Tod - I don't understand your comment. The prairies are always more productive for deer, turkeys, quail, etc., that a closed canopy forest. Increase the tree stem count very rarely improves the quality of wildlife habitat!

There are way more rabbits and quail where sun hits the ground than in a closed canopy forest. Think about rabbits and quail in Kansas versus areas where there's a solid forest.

Deer can't crack the hull - they never eat them.

@@GrowingDeerTVthanks for responding

Yes - with the correct herbicide.

he never meant it. He just made up a theory of poor management to blame the democrats since he does not believe in climate change.

@@aumdave5353 is this made up theory why democrats in California approved half a billion dollars in April to do exactly what he said needed to be done? It’s fine to not like a man, but don’t discredit good ideas.

The west certainly needs better forest management - no matter the political party in control.

Trump occasionally adopted some good programs when he listened to his advisors. Since he is such a narcissistic self serving person of no moral character and no foundational values let’s not project some non existent wisdom to him.

Trump has never had an original idea. You're mixing up trump and the character he played on TV.

Sweetgums don't offer any value to deer. They are spreading as forestry practices encourage their growth.

@@GrowingDeerTV thank you,I'm going to do the chop and squirt method you said to use to try and get rid of them,got a 80 acre spot that was clear cut 11 years ago and left to nature. The sweet gums are taking over. At least the loggers left a lot of oaks and persimmons.

By the time the timber falls it will be extremely rotten and dry.

Stanley - I don't enjoy using herbicide either. It's like a root canal. I wouldn't want a root canal but I'd get one to save the rest of my teeth from rotting out. I"ll use a one-time application of herbicide to improve forest health and keep it from degrading due to past management.

Felling green trees allows them to fall on the trees to be left standing which results in open wounds and allows insects, disease, fungus, etc., to enter them. It's much better to allow low value trees to die standing and dry before they fall. Then, when the they fall they are very light and don't damage the remaining trees. Folks are killed annually by accidents when felling trees. I've never heard of a single person being injured a a dead tree randomly falling on them. If you have, please share a link.

Jason - You must be thinking of the very northern portion of the whitetail's range. Have you tried this technique?

Phil - care to explain?