How to Create a Better Timber Setup

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- It's time for a timber takeover!
I'm Matt Drury,
and this is Gamekeeper edition of DODTV.
This Segment of DODTV
is brought to you by Mossy Oak Gamekeepers,
your ultimate resource
for wildlife and land management.
(percussive music)
It's always exciting
when you get your hands on a new piece of dirt.
One of the first things people do
is usually figure out
where all those food plot locations should be.
But what about timber?
Well, you're in luck.
We're hitting the hardwoods
with Brian and Cody,
and they're gonna give us some tips
on timber stand improvement.
(reverent music)
- So, we are out here today
on one of our 40-acre properties here in Nebraska.
With all of your hunting properties,
you want to learn
as much as you can about them.
And so, this particular piece of property,
I wanted to learn a lot more
about the tree habitat that I have here.
So I called up one of my friends
at the Game and Parks Commission,
and basically, they recommended
that I thin out a lot of the Siberian elm
as much as possible.
So, to thin out the trees,
they recommended that I do two different things.
Number one is called a hack and squirt method.
We're using the hack and squirt method.
It's honestly really simple.
I got a little hatchet here,
and I'm using a herbicide called Tordon,
which is specifically for trees.
So it's literally simple.
You wanna come down at an angle,
so that way when you spray in,
it stays in that tree.
And that's it.
(industrious rock music)
Another thing you wanna watch out for is,
when you hack it and spray,
you wanna make sure that the spray,
especially the wind,
doesn't blow a lot of that spray around,
because it'll kill all the plants that it touches.
For larger trees,
you may want to give it a couple of hacks.
The biggest thing
with the hack and squirt method,
is that you wanna do it before the spring green-up.
And so, in the fall,
all the nutrients of the trees are
getting pushed down into the roots for winter dormancy.
And then, during spring green-up,
it's pushing back up.
Well, here in Nebraska,
it's still plenty cold out,
but if we waited another month to do this,
we may be in a little bit of trouble,
and our work would be less effective.
The second method that they advise
that I could do to thin out the Siberian elm
is actually called girdling.
And it's basically taking away
a ring of bark around the tree,
which kills it, as well.
- Now when you're girdling,
you gotta be aware of the hazards
that are around you.
Just like this branch here
is in the way of walking around it.
We'll chop that off,
and be aware of the debris around the tree trunks,
so your feet don't get tangled,
and you trip with the chainsaw.
Safety is key.
(chainsaw buzzing)
(industrious music)
- Now that you've taken care
of the invasive tree species,
the next stop on this tour
is to figure out how to create
a better bedding area for your deer.
Hinge cutting is one way to do this.
This creates cover for the deer,
while also providing good browse for food.
Let's get back with Cody and Brian
and go through some hinge cutting.
- Well, we've chosen this particular location
to create a bedding habitat,
because it is adjacent to one of our food plots.
If they bed here,
they're gonna feel nice and safe.
We can access and exit the food plot
and our stand location
without these deer ever knowing it.
However, it's close enough
that they'll get up during daylight hours
and get to the food plot
with plenty of time left
for us to hunt them.
- As a rule of thumb,
I like to cut three quarters of the way through the tree,
about hip-high
and perpendicular to the ground.
(chainsaw buzzing)
(industrious music)
- So, hinge cutting can create food,
it can create cover,
and it can create safety.
This particular hinge cut
is exactly what we like to see.
It laid on the ground perfectly.
It's still connected,
so there's still plenty of tree
to push the nutrients out to the top.
But one of the neatest things is,
because it's only a couple feet off the ground,
the sunlight has plenty of room
to touch the forest floor,
and the sprouts that will come up here
will give deer something to browse on
for years to come.
- Now that you have the tools
to create a thriving habitat,
it's time to get your hands dirty,
and get some work done.
Thanks for watching this edition of DODTV.
As always, we are shooting for 100,000 subscribers.
All we need is you to hit subscribe,
and you're automatically entered in
for a chance to win a free PSE bow.
Until next time,
safe hinge cutting,
and we'll check ya later!
- [Announcer] This segment of DODTV
is brought to you by Nomad.
I hunt, therefore I am.
(percussive music)
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How to Create a Better Timber Setup

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