Prescribed burns may be conducted for a number of reasons including habitat improvement, enhancing appearance and access, managing unwanted hardwood competition, and reducing the fuel load. These are typically cool season fires conducted in the December-February time frame.
- If you are looking for ways to attract more turkeys to your land, prescribed burning should be on your list of wildlife management chores. Turkey love to use a recent burn to find insects and seeds. In the months following a burn, turkey will spend a great deal of time scratching and bugging in the clean ground.
- Prescribed burning is a great tool for improving your native habitat’s food value for almost all wildlife. The removal of years of leaves, limbs, and other dead plant material gives way to new growth on the forest floor of early successional plants that are nutritious and attractive to deer, turkey, and all types of small critters.
- In some landscapes, undesirable woody undergrowth or low quality hardwoods can take over after a timber harvest or land clearing. In these situations, a growing season fire is a very economical and effective means to controlling the unwanted growth and encouraging new plants and grasses. This new growth has a higher quality food value and is also great for nesting, and bedding cover for all your wildlife.
Be sure to contact the appropriate forestry and wildlife officials for proper permits and permission needed before a prescribed burn.
This tip is courtesy of the GameKeepers Field Notes, a weekly wildlife and land management email newsletter produced by the Mossy Oak GameKeepers.
A GameKeeper by definition is someone who truly loves AND lives the land, the critters and nature…not just during hunting season but all the time. A GameKeeper wants to be outdoors every day and work the dirt while living their personal “obsession”.
Find out more about what makes a GameKeeper by visiting our website.
