Chainsaw Mania

Anyone else getting fired up to start their chainsaws???? I’m going to start cutting towards the end of December after the muzzle loader season. No sense in doing too much work while the season is going on that might potentially push some deer to the neighbors properties.

I have a few areas of mature poplar trees that are doing nothing for wildlife. The deer simply move past these areas and don’t live there. The hinged trees will provide cover for bedding and the tops for wintertime browse. This will also open up the forest canopy to encourage undergrowth of new plants, trees, shrubs, etc.

Anyone hinge cut around food plots? I’d like to thicken up the areas all the way around to create a visual barrier and make deer feel more comfortable using them during daylight hours. It will also help me direct deer as they are entering the food plots in areas that I want them to go and areas that I don’t want them to go.

How big of area would you suggest cutting for bedding areas and how far apart? I’ve heard mature does are territorial and prefer to have separated bedding areas.

Yep, I’ll be firing up the Husky next time up at the property.

First off, I need to finish clearing the site for the cabin. Cabin construction starts this summer and I’m only half done with clearing the site. So the Husky will be getting a workout there for sure.

Then I’m going to start doing some hinge cutting if there’s time.

Ranger, I have a similar situation to you, I have some areas of mature popple that I’m going to try to make into bedding areas. I’ve watched some vids and it looks like a pretty easy process. Don’t know about how big the area should be, I kind of figured I’d try a few different sizes and figure it out as I go based on what appears to get used.

I was thinking about shelling out for a new saw this year. I use a Husky 141 for the vast majority of my work because it’s super light and 90% of what I do is limb removal where power really isn’t an issue. The only place the Husky is lacking is in felling larger trees, it does it, it’s just a little slower than I’d like. May go with a Rancher 350 or something like that.

BTW, wear your face guards and helmets out there and BEFORE you cut, LOOK UP!

A lot of us are up in popple/aspen tree country and popple trees tend to die off at the tops first, creating a very dangerous situation with big chunks of dead wood falling out of the tree that you just started cutting on down below.

It wasn’t with a chainsaw, but with a brush cutter this year I cut loose a golfball sized chunk of wood that shot like a bullet, ricocheted off a tree, and came back and hit me right in the cheek, still at a good rate of speed. I’m sure if that would have hit me in the eyes, nose, or mouth there’d have been some damage. Be careful out there!

Grouse

Good point Grouse and get some good quality chaps!!

The hinge cutting I have done is mostly contained to a 18 acre area. I have not nor will I do the entire thing. A bedding area of 1/2 to one acre is plenty big and not all the trees in that area need to be cut. Be selective when you cut. Start out with little chunks, maybe 50 yards square and take out the large trees with huge canopy. I wouldn’t cut the oaks, but popple, maple, basswood, box elder. The lower value trees that don’t produce mass, but will sprout new shoots. Again, start small, drop a few trees piled up together, then move 50 yards and do a few more. Trying to drop the trees on or near each other. Leave enough room between each pile of trees that a doe and a fawn or two can bed by one without interfering with a doe and fawn at the other pile.

I look for basswood in our area because it is soft, hinges well, usually grows in clumps, and produces new shoots like mad. Find a group of 3-5 and drop them all together, then move to another clump. Opening up the canopy and producing good browse not only for this year but also in the future. Those new shoots will create browse for several years.

Good luck and BE SAFE!!

Thanks for the replies guys.
I will definitely be picking up the proper safety gear.

Grouse-I’ve being reading that .25 acre to 1 acre hinge cut areas are ideal, and like sticker said, you want to space them apart from each other.

Proved again this weekend that you cannot be too careful when felling trees.

I had a clump of about 6-8 maple trees all in one pile in the area I’m trying to clearcut for a cabin. I went to fell the biggest one, notched it, and did the through cut and there must have been internal tension on the tree because it started falling 100 degrees the wrong direction. I wanted it to fall east, it fell north. I had to scramble to get the saw out of the cut and get out of the way and I didn’t have time to warn the guys working with me.

Luckily nobody was in the way and they were both watching, but a good lesson to me that you have to tell everyone “eyes up” before each felling cut to make sure they’re watching in case it doesn’t go as planned. Any tree can fall in an unintended direction and it’s the job of the guy with the saw to make sure everyone knows that and is watching with a clear escape route.

Grouse

How do you know how far to cut so that you dont kill the tree?

My readings have all said things about living horizontal cover, for security, browse and cover?? Thinking that if you cut it all the way to just a sliver like alot of the photos show, no way a tree could survive that???

SKTR

I have used this rule of thumb. As long as there is enough of the tree left to carry nutrients to the rest of the tree they will usually live. Some trees hinge a lot better than others.

A consistent hinge requires a different technique than what you may think. This modified cutting technique simply attempts a downward cut at a 45-degree angle. This angle is a little more difficult to start, but consistently produces better results. A good hinge usually cuts around two-thirds to three-quarters of the way through the tree between knee and waist height, cutting just enough holding wood to allow you to push the tree to the ground. Depending upon the tree species, the more of the tree you leave intact, the more growth you’ll get from the felled tree.

Fired up the stihl this past weekend. We cut the majority of the large trees around one of my food plots with the goal of steering deer to certain entrance/exit points on the plot. I think we accomplished the goal. They can only enter in 3 different spots now and are all within bow range.
The food plot should do better now with more sunlight and the edge should grow up a little thicker for a better plot screen. We only successfully hinged about 20% of the poplar trees(as expected though). The amount of food we dropped from the tree tops was amazing. It will be fun to watch trail cam pictures and see how fast they hammer them.
I was also able to move my bow stand further east and move the deer trail to the west. The trail to my bow stand is now a dead end.
I still have 3-4 more areas I’d like to get at this winter to start creating some better bedding areas and screening from the neighbors. Half our time this past weekend was clearing the trees that fell into the plot due to the direction they were leaning. As always, we never enough time to get everything done, but felt good to get out in the woods and not worry about spooking deer.

Here are a few before/after pictures. The box blind in the picture will be moved this spring. It’s not in an ideal spot for a clean entrance/exit and not good for N or NW wind(thought it was at the time we put it up). I’m always bumping deer walking in or out. It will be moved to the NE of the plot(off plot by 100 yards) and my entrance will be from the north with perpendicular access of deer movement. I’ll follow a swamp edge and the last 40 yards to the stand is a 15 foot rise in elevation allowing for a stealth approach to any deer that might already be in the plot. It’s a trap door entrance, so I’ll likely wrap the exterior 4×4’s with camo burlap or landscaping fabric to block my movement while entering the stand. This will be done with 3 other stands as well.

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You did an excellent job!!! Multiple improvements at the same time, NICE WORK!!! Sounds like you are really getting this area dialed in.

Depending on where in the state you live you may be able to get money for some of this stuff. My buddy was telling me that they have been hinge cutting some trees and because it benefits grouse they got money for it. I guess it is grant related. I would call your local county office.
DT