Hinge cutting

[JerseyJaysTaxidermy]

So many of you know I recently moved to Sussex County. (Fredon twp)

 

My backyard consists of 9 acres including a small pond and a small leech field. The rest is wooded, and hilly.

 

You can see right through the property this time of the year, and most of the property even when foliage is up..

 

I have water, I have acorns, I have only nocturnal deer from October on..

 

I'm wondering if cutting and dropping a few trees the back 2 acres will be enough to create bedding and hold deer. All larger trees so hinge cutting is out of my league for those trees.

 

The rest if the property I plan to hinge cut the smaller trres and maybe drop a few large ones to let light in..

 

My main concern is I don't want the whole property to look like a tornado zone, especially what I can see from the house or around the pond where my wife likes to sit over the summer..

 

Also, the only "field" is the septic/leech field.. wondering if it's worth it to kill the grass and plant clover there..

 

 

http://www.jerseyjaystaxidermy.com

[Rusty]

Absolutely, that's plenty of room for some good bedding cover.

 

How's your tree identification?  Thinning out the maples and birches will allow your mast trees to prosper also.

[Rusty]

I've done a bunch of forestry work over the years and can wreak havoc with a chainsaw.  If you want a hand with the planning and or the cutting let me know.  I'd love to come make some habitat. 

[rgw]

after christmas go to where ever your local christmas tree drop off is with a trailor and hull them home, makes great cover

[Thunderchicken]

Agreed! I'm working on mine in 28.... open Oaks and a 20x20 pond is all I got. If I didn't delete pics l'll post. I hinged about 3-4 acres. I have beautiful bucks, but all at night! Great post!

[JHbowhunter]

The only oaks I would cut are pin-oaks. Leave the whites, chestnuts (rock oak), and reds to feed the wildlife... Ash and Maple would be my main targets, they don't offer much if any food.  unfortunately where you live the big woods has a combination of being over-browsed by deer back when there were a ton of deer there, and over-mature mast to block out the sunlight. The deer bed wherever there are cedars or autumn-olive, as that is the only real cover in that area other than a few decent stands of Hemlock.

 

you could plant a ton of cedar trees the seedlings are dirt cheap but they would grow best in full sunlight, but in 6-10 years would have what I still consider the best deer bedding ever (cedars).

[Bucksnbows]

I'd be willing to help as well. I love enhancing habitat.  I would definitely add a dark timber component for bedding such as spruce and white pines.  Hinge cutting is great, but once our leaves drop, those areas are no longer deer bedding like they were in spring through fall.  Also, your leach field appears big enough for some clover, so you already have a food plot in waiting.  Your pond is just the right size for deer, so add a mineral station nearby and you're all set.   

[Bucksnbows]

Absolutely, that's plenty of room for some good bedding cover.

 

How's your tree identification?  Thinning out the maples and birches will allow your mast trees to prosper also.

 

And if you have ash trees which chances are you do, they will all be dead within 5 years or less anyway, so cut those out now to favor your mast producers.  You don't necessarily need to cut trees down to bring in sun as you can girdle some via TSI (timber stand improvement) that creates the openings you want as well as adding wildlife habitat for woodpeckers and such.  If you can fall them, great.  But if not, kill them where they stand and let them fall in time on their own.  Rusty and I work cheap - usually for cold beer.   

[Rusty]

 Rusty and I work cheap - usually for cold beer.  

 

Heck, if the beer is cold I'll even throw in a dozen spruce trees for that "dark timber" you're talking about. 

[BowhunterNJ]

Sounds like the making of a great property! No doubt in the open woods of northern NJ, hinge cutting can help tremendously to improve the appeal of the property for wildlife. I like the idea of hinging down the non-ideal/non-fruit bearing trees, has the dual benefit of better cover for wildlife while also eliminating competition for your oaks.

[TroutandBucks]

Bucksandbows is a great resource for a project like this. He has done so much great work on the property I hunt with him in Sparta. If you need an extra hand let me know as I help with all of our Sparta projects. 

[BCsaw]

Farm assessment already...

[JerseyJaysTaxidermy]

Awesome guys! I'd defiantly be looking for some advise rusty and bucksnbows, and trout and bucks, thank you!

I don't necessarily need anyone chainsawing, but I'd love for some help identifying trees and helping me ribbon off what to drop and what to hinge... any time your free give me a shout!

551-206-2623.

Also, should I be cutting now, in the spring before leaves bloom, late spring or summer after leaves bloom?

 

http://www.jerseyjaystaxidermy.com

[jakesbeard]

Let some Maples hit the ground in late Jan and it's like baiting for winter bow! Look for trees that are budding good and the deer think its candy.

Man I'm jealous any of you guys work in S.W.Va.? They do have beer there to. 

[Bucksnbows]

Also, should I be cutting now, in the spring before leaves bloom, late spring or summer after leaves bloom?

 

http://www.jerseyjaystaxidermy.com

 

You can hinge cut in winter.  Same for girdling trees you want dead so that more sun enters your forest.  Looks like you have a nice bench near the pond for a mineral station as well.  Just pick a spot that doesn't flood or have runoff.  I'm finally slow until after New Year and live nearby.  I'll defer to Rusty's and your schedules and can likely come up most anytime.  Tomorrow is my last day booked solid for work and after that it's just random office time until we're back in New Mexico to finish a big pond job after the 1st.