Saw Your Way to a Better Arkansas Wildlife Habitat

By Vanessa Torres

Arkansas -(Ammoland.com)- Leaving things half-done often yields lackluster results, but in the case of hinge cuts, an unfinished job can be excellent for wildlife.

Hinge cutting is simply cutting halfway through a tree and allowing the top to fall over.

The top creates instant cover but does not die, so it continues to produce leaves and vertical shoots. If the tree is a desirable browse species, a new food source also is created. One landowner with a chainsaw can create plenty of brushy cover and browse in one weekend that benefits all sorts of wildlife. This is effective on cedars, or small, low-quality oaks.

Native grasses and vegetation also are allowed to grow by increased sunlight penetrating the forest canopy. This can create good nesting habitat for turkeys, quail, rabbits and other creatures. Deer love to bed and raise fawns in these browse-rich areas as well.

The best trees for hinge cuts are around 4 to 6 inches in diameter and have little potential to provide hard mast for deer. You obviously don’t want to cut down your mature oak trees. …Read the Rest

Source:: AmmoLand