To circle back to the original question, I regret all the hinge cutting we did. Hinge cutting has its applications, but I wish I had learned about the hack and squirt method sooner. It would have been a good way to save time and backache and completely remove less beneficial varieties of trees like ironwood.
Improvement projects you regret doing?
- Thread starter Shooter77
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BSK
Well-Known Member
North-facing slopes are cooler and wetter, hence better growing conditions for white oaks.
I've never planted oaks specifically. All I've ever done is push a lot of acorns into the ground.
squackattack
Well-Known Member
I have never been a fan of hinge cutting. It has its place, but most of the time you can accomplish the same results with just putting light on the ground via timber harvesting or TSI.
I don't wear a tin foil hat but my hat has a tin foil lining...
I also search for and eat mushrooms (food mushrooms not magic) and just can't see injecting chemicals into trees and adding to the "safe" chemical load on the environment when I have chainsaws...
Hinge cutting has worked out ok on my place, in a limited capacity. It's all overly mature hardwoods. Never been cut. The little bit of hinging I've done adds some instant side cover that doesn't exist otherwise. And in a few instances I've used it to block or redirect travel. Otherwise I'm not a fan of hinging.
I usually cut and remove what I want/need and build brush piles/corridors strategically. I have already established here that I have no trust in big chemical so manual labor and judicious use of pigs for my clearing efforts.
Boys and I working on strategies for two separate properties soon as meat down for this year. One property we have allowed to completely "thicket out" to defeat road poachers, and are ready to cut the new internal lanes & food plot areas now. (Working actively to get some thieves arrested there too.)
The other area gets a lot of trees thinned this year, some tree planting and springs piped to existing and planned food plots.
Lots of good exercise
Boys and I working on strategies for two separate properties soon as meat down for this year. One property we have allowed to completely "thicket out" to defeat road poachers, and are ready to cut the new internal lanes & food plot areas now. (Working actively to get some thieves arrested there too.)
The other area gets a lot of trees thinned this year, some tree planting and springs piped to existing and planned food plots.
Lots of good exercise
Post pics ad you go! It's nice to have it documented and it's fun for us to see what others are up to!
Depending on the state property is located I'm understanding that hack won't work during winter . May be wrong
DoubleRidge
Well-Known Member
Curious about the comment "springs piped to existing and planned food plots"
Gravity fed piping? Pump fed? Or?
Just curious because we have some water pipe left over from another project and I've tried to figure out how I can use the pipe for a habitat project.
I have 5 springs around my the end of my hollow, all between the 3/4 and maybe 7/8 elivation line. One is captured for our house water and bottom land hydrants and overflow keeps the pond topped of.
Working to capture two of the springs for some trees/orchard, plots, mushrooms, garden irrigation and to simplify livestock water. Also backup incase the main spring ever cracks/shifts. (New overflow to my pond and then channeled to my next two neighbors to help with their ponds.) If I get enough consolidated flow will add a micro-hydro system to my solar. Have between 100-150 ft of head so even without a catch tank have enough pressure for anything. Main system has a 550 gallon tank 20 feet below spring and then over 900 feet of 2" pipe and 150 feet head,,,would peel paint if we didn't restrict the pressure.
If you can use gravity it is the way to go.
I am going at this slow because the springs feed the PawPaw & persimmon trees we are encouraging in wild abundance and even am growing Wasabi in one ravine spring Channel.
Hoping to maximize the "free" water impact. If I dump it all into open crop land too much evaporates.
DoubleRidge
Well-Known Member
Very interesting...thanks for the detailed description...good stuff! And 2" pipe is what I have left over from another project....I've thought about trying to gravity feed water to a holding tank or small pond for wildlife.... hadn't studied on it much...but you've given me some information to chew on... thanks!
