I burned off a small (8 acres) pine woods today. Burning is one of the best management tools for the timber and for wildlife. Controlled burning reduces the risk of wildfire by keeping too much fuel from accumulating, reduces insect and disease pressure, and recycles nutrients, stimulating the growth of wildlife beneficial plants, such as sericia lespedeza, rather than hardwoods and privet hedge.
Starting a backfire.
After the backfire has created a buffer between what you want to burn and what you don't want burned, you can start a headfire.
Backfire and headfire about to merge-mission accomplished.
I'm going to have those pines thinned down to a "plantation stand" this Summer. I am going to put a livestock fence around the pines and the adjacent field, totaling about 20 acres, and make an area where I can train and run bird dogs in a contained area. The fence will contain the dogs. I have Winter wheat planted in part of the field, and I'll let it stand all Summer. I will plant other food plot type stuff, corn, grain sorghum (milo), browntop millet, sunflowers, Egyptian wheat, etc. this Summer. I'll leave some standing for cover, and mow and harrow some down. We don't have many wild quail, and I'll supplement them with pen raised birds for training and recreation. The picture below shows one end of the field and some of the pines.
Starting a backfire.
After the backfire has created a buffer between what you want to burn and what you don't want burned, you can start a headfire.
Backfire and headfire about to merge-mission accomplished.
I'm going to have those pines thinned down to a "plantation stand" this Summer. I am going to put a livestock fence around the pines and the adjacent field, totaling about 20 acres, and make an area where I can train and run bird dogs in a contained area. The fence will contain the dogs. I have Winter wheat planted in part of the field, and I'll let it stand all Summer. I will plant other food plot type stuff, corn, grain sorghum (milo), browntop millet, sunflowers, Egyptian wheat, etc. this Summer. I'll leave some standing for cover, and mow and harrow some down. We don't have many wild quail, and I'll supplement them with pen raised birds for training and recreation. The picture below shows one end of the field and some of the pines.
