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Photos 1 & 2:  April 2009, Guilford County, NC.  This is an example of a typical maintenance burn.  The landowner had kept most woody brush at bay with a bushhog, leaving a site that looked okay for quail, but had a dense mat of grasses, mowing debris, and vines.  While there is not a noticeable difference in the landscape at first glance, huge improvement has been made.  Just a few weeks after these shots were taken, the bunch grasses were greening up and many native quail food plants were popping up (ragweed, partridge pea, beggar's lice, wild strawberry, etc.). 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Photos 3, 4, & 5:  March, April and May, 2008.  Halifax County, VA.  A routine hazard reduction burn in a thinned pine plantation.  These photos were taken along the main road.  Due to the semi-shaded environment, there was very little regrowth three weeks after the burn (photo 4).  However, by early summer, many native plants had slowly emerged along the edges (photo 5), creating a lush understory with open ground conditions.
 
 

Photo 6: Using Field Cutouts and Corners (October, 2011. Guilford County, NC)

 

This is an example of micro-managing every acre of habitat. This wildlife area sits to the west of a managed cool-season hayfield.  The landowner "leaves this for the birds" and maintains it in different forage and cover types by routinely burning, discing, and planting. 

 

Whenever there is discing elsewhere on the farm to be done, he simply takes 10 minutes and runs a couple strips across the wildlife field, never discing an area that was recently treated.  Areas that have saplings beginning to grow in them are either mowed or burned.  Roughly 1/3 of the field is burned annually, 1/10 is in small grains, and another 1/3 is disced.  This leaves a small area that is not treated every year and is allowed to grow into "rough" cover for winter conditions.

 

As you can see, there has been little time or money spent in planting and yet there is still a very diverse plant community available.  This creates the infamous "patchwork" landscape that is very beneficial to upland songbirds and insects.