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Cedar tree removal

Jwest said:
I’ll share what I have started. After research and some great advice from here on this board.
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Yes!!!! Love it!!! U accomplished the FIRST goal & did way beyond that…. U made it so deer can travel through easily!!

Here’s a major problem for anyone with thick cedars or whatever ….. when trees grow together - clearly deer Cant get through. More importantly…. I want EMPHASIZE THIS!!!!!!……. When deer cannot see a clear path out of a thicket- they will avoid it!!! It spooks them without having clear escape routes!!! So- say u had thick cover & cut Tiny trails that u curved so couldn’t see past 10 yards even- deer won’t hardly use them. They need wide trails with clear long clear visual site for escape!!! Same thing for hinge cuts, etc. - clear travel & escape trails through!!!
Part of the reason deer don’t like cedars is cause there’s nothing there for food & desirable cover of course BUT the other part is - the deer do not feel safe in it and do not want to be in it since they are a “prey animal” constantly being chased by predators & coyotes, etc.

The only upside to massively thick cedars…. Very cool temps in hot summers. But again- can still accomplish the same benefit after thinning the heck out of them.
 
Spysar said:
I don't know from experience, but a rancher told me they burn better green than dried out.
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Huh? That surprises me, but I am not sure that he is right or wrong. I can say that if you run a good fire through them while they are still standing and alive that most of the time the fire "skips" them. But when they catch, you will have only a skeleton remaining! :p

My feeling is that they tend to catch when the grass is growing up in the lower branches, etc. If it is a little bare or matted down around them then they tend to be fine. For guys that are using them as road screens, etc, you wouldn't want to risk it though IMO.

But, when I had cedars out in the CRP and then burned, probably 90%+ were just fine.
 
I know in NY here, hemlock greens will burn so hard it will scare you. Pile them in a dense pile. It might take a little but once they go, look out.
 
IowaBowHunter1983 said:
I think I might agree. Cutting and immediately burning works damn good. Lot more fuel before needles fall off.
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The needles hang on for at least 3 years. I've burned both, fresh cedar needles will burn but generally not with the intensity of dry cedars. As to how well a fresh cedar burns will depend on the moisture content of the tree. They burn a lot better in a drought but that's not exactly the time for a controlled burn.
 
My brother in law tries to find a live standing cedar with a pack rat nest in it and he will take a propane torch and put to the bottom of the nest. He keeps it at full flame until the whole tree starts to ignite and then backs off. One tree in a thick grove will burn a bunch of trees quickly. It's amazing how fast a tree will burn to bare branches. It's also cool to watch the flaming rats run out spreading more fire! :eek:
o_O:p
 
My grandpa used to talk about burning their pastures years ago. Said a fire got out of hand once and a cedar went up like that almost taking the woods with it..

This before the "prescribed" burn era :)
 
FWIW, I drove by a CRP field today that had obviously been burned recently. It had a goodly number of volunteer cedars in it, most in the 5' to 7' tall range. Although most/all of them were singed pretty good, they were by no means burned up.

I am not sure they were even burned enough to be top killed, time will tell.
 
Bassattackr said:
My grandpa used to talk about burning their pastures years ago. Said a fire got out of hand once and a cedar went up like that almost taking the woods with it..

This before the "prescribed" burn era :)
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To that point, if more people would burn their pastures once every few years they wouldn't have gigantic cedar problems later. And they'd have alot more of what they are after.... GRASS. I never understand it.
 
IowaBowHunter1983 said:
To that point, if more people would burn their pastures once every few years they wouldn't have gigantic cedar problems later. And they'd have alot more of what they are after.... GRASS. I never understand it.
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I think its a "nervous" thing!! People are gun shy to light shit on fire ! If gets away you can loose everything!

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Agree w/ Wi above. Out of comfort zone for most people.

Many prescribed fires today won't take out cedars in the ground, even small ones. Just fries their lower branches. Which allows them to live and resume on growing (like below). FYI - Our more recent field burns yielded similar results, but we didn't have the biofuel (switch) of many others.

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The "old school" fires.. now those nuked a few!
 
Bassattackr said:
Agree w/ Wi above. Out of comfort zone for most people.

Many prescribed fires today won't take out cedars in the ground, even small ones. Just fries their lower branches. Which allows them to live and resume on growing (like below). FYI - Our more recent field burns yielded similar results, but we didn't have the biofuel (switch) of many others.

View attachment 122222

The "old school" fires.. now those nuked a few!
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Fire is not nearly as effective in timber setting. There just isn't the fuel load. Fire is EXTREMELY effective in killing young cedars in a grassland setting. As an example, I have a CRP farm that I burned last year. No exaggeration.... I bet there were several hundred small cedar trees PER acre. Without addressing it, that CRP would be a complete disaster in sub 10 years.... like would take tens of thousands of dollars to correct. Fire wiped out nearly all the trees. Gone. Toast. Could be farmed.
 
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