Finally we had a good day to burn.  Although it rained several days earlier the wind had dried out the field.  And the wind had slowed down enough for a burn to be safe.  Some wind is needed in order to facilitate the burn, because we use the back burn method, where a small fire is started into the wind, burning back toward the main fire.

If the wind is coming from the SE, the fire is started on the NW edge of the field.  Then a fire is started on the SE edge.  The wind pushes that fire along until it meets the fire from the NW edge, and then, since all of the material has burned at that point, the fire dissipates.

We were fortunate to have 2 Georgia Forestry Commissioner (GFC) rangers help us.  Once Bill lit the match to start the fire one of the rangers used a drip torch

Drip Torch

,

walking around the field and literally dripping flaming fuel from the torch to burn the field.  It only took about 30 minutes for the entire 3 acre field to burn.

Around the perimeter of each field and line of trees we have disked a fire trail.  And between the food plot and the field we have disked another fire trail.  This helps to keep vegetation under control and make it easier to access various parts of the acreage.  Right before we plan a burn we disk these trails again so as to provide a break between fields that will help us to control the fire.  We plan to only burn several fields each year and to burn them all on a rotational basis.

The Department of Agriculture offers many programs to help landowners manage their property in a way that will help and support the environment.  The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is responsible for overseeing some of these initiatives.  We applied for the Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program (WHIP) through the NRCS several years ago and were accepted.  As part of this program we planted several small fields with native warm season grasses to improve the habitat for wildlife.  Along one edge of each field we planted a small food plot.  On the outside edge of each field we have planted various fruit and mast trees, many of which we have purchased from the GFC’s Flint Nursery.

Signs of Deer Along Corridor

This is a buck rub, a definitive sign that a buck has passed by this area.  Bucks rub against trees with their antlers to visually mark their territory.  However, they are also rubbing the trees with a gland that is in their forehead to pass along information about their presence via scent released from this gland.  It has been determined that rubs are more commonly made by more mature bucks which also might give the landowner some information about what is traversing the corridor.  Buck rubs usually appear close to rut activity.

Deer Also Use Linear Openings

These linear openings between different wildlife habitat areas are also utilized by deer.  Once these trails are established the exposure to additional sunlight encourages the growth of various foliage that provide food for the deer.  And the deer tend to follow these trails to get to other habitat areas.

Linear Wildlife Openings

One of the recommendations that was in our Forest Stewardship Plan was to make and/or widen roads on our property.  These roads provide a firebreak and also provide openings for wildlife.  This is a road that we added with the help of the Georgia Forestry Commission (GFC).  It is also a linear wildlife opening that provides connectivity between the creek and acreage where mast trees and native warm season grasses were planted.

Forest*A*Syst -Check out this interactive website

The Forest*A*Syst interactive website has information about developing a management plan for your acreage.  By zooming in on the map provided you can pinpoint your particular property, find out about the predominant types of forest cover in your location, and print an aerial photo of your land.   Contact information is also available for various natural resource specialists.