DoubleRidge
Well-Known Member
Looking for some ideas or suggestions on how to manage two areas on our property that are heavy with old cedar. As I mentioned in a previous post when I was younger these two areas were truly thickets with broom sage and the cedars that had low limbs.....today that's not the case, low limbs are dead 6 foot up, ground is shaded out, zero browse...one area is close to 11 acre the other is around 2 or 3 acre.
On the rest of our property it's majority hardwood and we have completed a TSI project which started in 2019 and ended early 2020....but these two cedar stands remain....talking with Forester recently and he has provided me the name of a company that will harvest cedar if you have enough tons per acre....he believes we have enough.... company has the equipment that cuts the tree, strips the limbs on the spot, cuts log to length.
So while it's nothing like hardwood...there is potential income to consider....this area also contains a random poplar, dogwood and maybe a red oak or two. (Sorry to ramble but I'm struggling with this project)
My concern is the large cedar thicket is in a major travel corridor of the farm... changing anything in this area makes my palms sweat....a portion of this thicket has always been considered "refuge" and we never enter it......BUT I know this ground isn't providing good bedding cover anymore....and very little to any nutritional value.....just torn being that it's going to be a significant change....Dr. Grant said once "good deer cover" is from the ground up to 36"....limbs slapping you in face at 5 to 6' high isn't good deer cover....I can see 80 yards in any direction in these "thickets"
So......if we cut the cedar....our goal will not be to create new areas for cultivated food plots...we currently have enough tillable ground to hurt my wallet and keep us busy.
Question is....if we cut these cedars what is the best option afterwards? Let nature have it's way? Try to plant different grasses in pockets? considered planting some mast producers? combination of all the above?
In the long run I know these changes will be better for the deer.... but how they react, being in a major travel corridor, makes me nervous......again, sorry to ramble, but I'm struggling with this project.
On the rest of our property it's majority hardwood and we have completed a TSI project which started in 2019 and ended early 2020....but these two cedar stands remain....talking with Forester recently and he has provided me the name of a company that will harvest cedar if you have enough tons per acre....he believes we have enough.... company has the equipment that cuts the tree, strips the limbs on the spot, cuts log to length.
So while it's nothing like hardwood...there is potential income to consider....this area also contains a random poplar, dogwood and maybe a red oak or two. (Sorry to ramble but I'm struggling with this project)
My concern is the large cedar thicket is in a major travel corridor of the farm... changing anything in this area makes my palms sweat....a portion of this thicket has always been considered "refuge" and we never enter it......BUT I know this ground isn't providing good bedding cover anymore....and very little to any nutritional value.....just torn being that it's going to be a significant change....Dr. Grant said once "good deer cover" is from the ground up to 36"....limbs slapping you in face at 5 to 6' high isn't good deer cover....I can see 80 yards in any direction in these "thickets"
So......if we cut the cedar....our goal will not be to create new areas for cultivated food plots...we currently have enough tillable ground to hurt my wallet and keep us busy.
Question is....if we cut these cedars what is the best option afterwards? Let nature have it's way? Try to plant different grasses in pockets? considered planting some mast producers? combination of all the above?
In the long run I know these changes will be better for the deer.... but how they react, being in a major travel corridor, makes me nervous......again, sorry to ramble, but I'm struggling with this project.