Been chipping away at an acre area. Although it is a great travel corridor, I decided to make it into a bedding area.
It was mostly small boxelder,elm, Hackberry and basswood.

Not much browse growng because of the shaded canopy.
There is still some BIG burr Oak and Ash. Will see how well things look after this summer to decide if the need to come down.
I did cut one big oak down.
First 4 pics are what it looked like before starting.

These are what it looks like after.
This will become a superb bedding area.

These 3 pics are spots i really thinka big buck will seek out for a bed so I carved out these spots with a hand pruner ,raked them clean and added 1/ 2 or a square bale of straw and old grass hay.
The first pic, deer were bedding it it after 2 days.
Lots of work but enjoyable.
Great weather to be outside.

I did a lot of wildlife cuts for the Michigan DNR many years ago that consisted of cutting any tree over 3 inches at chest hight except fruit or nut trees. Anything that was considered dangerous was just girdled at the end. I’d go back for firewood if it was accessible with a cutting permit.

Anytime I do cuts I make brush piles with the branches.

just grow some corn in there and the bucks will bed in it lol

Geez that looks GREAT! I will take a good bedding area over food any day. That should pay you huge dividends for years. Mine is around 20 years old and I stay out of it all year long but the deer know they are safe in there.

Thanks Rob.
Deer can walk 300 yards most directions and be in corn,beans, beets and of course PUMPKINS.
jerry, did you hinge cut those trees?

Well aint that cute, but you forgot the rose pedals and wine.

It would be interesting to put a cell cam on those beds. There are some good series of video’s on youtube by some professors at Mississippi State U. One of them stated if you can see more than 30 yards it’s not prime deer habitat.

Ok, curious why that is a bedding area now. Or are you saying once Spring and Summer arrive and sunlight can hit that area and you get vegetation growing it will become a bedding area?

And I'll call those researchers liars. I've been making deer beds using straw for probably close to 15 years now.

But I always make sure there is more then one way out of them.

I've had MANY deer almost explode at my feet in cattails where viz is in 3 feet.

I can't see cutting down trees just so you can kill a deer. Deer aren't that scarce.

Neither is stunted, poor value timber.

I think you mean you are feeding deer straw in the winter.
I don’t believe straw would last long enough out in the elements to be useful for long.
The cut trees should be helpful though.

Bedding habitat varies from region to region. Go to western ks and u will see plenty of whitetails bed in areas that if u are setting on your but u can see for miles and count the trees in sight on your fingers. Deer will seek the safest place to bed they can find in there area.

Spike, basswood,elm,boxelder have zero value for deer.
All it does is shades out the plants deer prefer.
And yep, deer here are easy to kill. Not doing it to make it so.

Joe, I live in extreme winter conditions. Never seen a deer eat straw. have you?

Yes Sir, iffn I lived in the open plains, after holiday Christmas trees would be stockpiled in strategic places.

Yup, grew up in northern Wisconsin. One bad winter the deer ate the fake wood paneling off Ma’s station wagon.
They eat woody browse, and they’ll eat straw. You should just put old mattresses out in the woods, make them real comfy.

Joe, that's the main reason I did this project, there is no woody browse.
Pay attention!
Browse doesn't grow in a 100% shaded canopy.

Yes, tree cutting part is good as I said. I’m just skeptical of the straw being useful for bedding, but have at it.

Joe, that's the main reason I did this project, there is no woody browse.
Pay attention!
Browse doesn't grow in a 100% shaded canopy.