Creek Bends: Hit the woods with "hack-and-squirt"
Saturday join Wildlife Department habitat experts at Kaw for tips on woody growth
So, whatcha up to Saturday? How about hittin’ the woods, literally?
Although it’s prime time for gearing up and tuning up for archery seasons, July through September is also prime time for field work, including weeding out unwanted trees.
Tomorrow, Saturday, July 20, will be a great morning to learn tips for making your habitat fieldwork more effective. The forecast looks good from 8:30 to Noon, with partly cloudy skies and temperatures starting at 70 degrees and climbing to 80.
The opportunity comes with the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation’s Volunteer Field Day at Kaw Wildlife Management Area. They’re meeting just south of the intersection of Canteen Road and North 106th Lane. For Google Maps users, it’s 3427-3499 N 106th Ln Newkirk, OK 74647.
You must register before you go, but registration is open until 8 a.m. Saturday. If you’re headed to Kaw, you’ll be on the road by then anyway. The site is a drive of just over 2 hours from Oklahoma City and just under 2 hours from Tulsa.
Josh Richardson, supervisor of the Wildlife Department’s Private Lands Program, said the agency is jumping into more field days that don’t just get people on the ground but get them involved.
“A lot of times people come out to field days, and they see something cool, but when it comes to doing it on their own, there are some details you don’t exactly remember,” Richardson said.
The idea behind the field day is to bring folks out to see managed lands, show them what they’re shooting for, and then give them the experience of doing some of that work.
Saturday’s primary focus is “hack-and-squirt,” a targeted timber and woody encroachment tool, but it will also hit on other techniques. Hack-and-squirt targets manual labor best carried out in the summer and early autumn while trees are actively growing. It’s used to thin woodlands and help reduce or prevent woody encroachment into your grasslands.
Example: Our heavenly issue
So, what does this have to do with the pretty property at Snake Creek?
Well, having gone to the woods for some hack-and-squirt practice with the fine folks with Quail Forever last year and having received some on-site advice from a private lands biologist with the Wildlife Department, I still felt a little unnerved when I first went into the woods with a hatchet and a squire bottle full of herbicide.
Setting out to kill trees is no small thing.
“Everyone worries about screwing up,” Richardson said. “You take out a tree, and that’s something that took 20, 30 years to grow, so it’s not a quick replacement.”
“Everyone’s bought their own little piece of heaven, but you hate to get out there and do something because, ‘Darn, I might mess it up.’ Then you end up not doing anything, and it’s messed up anyway,” he said. “That’s why we put together a day to come out and learn about this and then actually put it into practice.”
The Invasive Tree of Heaven (also called Chinese Sumac or Stinking Sumac) was, and remains, the first subject of our hack-and-squirt efforts at Snake Creek.
We’ve got some big ones, 40 or 50 feet tall and 10 to 12 inches in diameter. We also have some growing in bunches with 3-inch-diameter trunks and some waist-high saplings. The more I look, the more I find.
It seems silly now, but I was nervous at first. Its compound pinnate leaves, similar to black walnut, pecan, and sumac, always made me take a second look. I second- and third-guessed every application. Now, I pretty much know it at a glance.
“Actively growing” means a period when a tree is neither going into dormancy, heat-or-drought stress, or springing to life. In spring, the sap flows too heavily and, basically, will push out your treatments. According to the experts, in late summer and early fall—barring drought—growth and circulation are on an even keel, and the odds are better for killing the entire root system. That root system kill is vital because some tree species will sprout again and spread via the root system.
Specifically for the Tree of Heaven, we also learned that Triclopyr fell short in its most potent recommended concentration with water. The trick for TOH is to use a Triclopyr-4 Ester (brands such as Garlon4 or Remedy) and follow the label for basal applications by mixing it with basal oil, kerosene, or diesel. I repeat: Follow the instructions on the label.
Every property is different
That’s just one of our challenges at Snake Creek. Like any other property, we have other timber management and edge habitat issues to address.
“It’s like going to the doctor,” Richardson said. “Everyone needs something a little bit different depending on their own situation.”
That’s where field days like the one Saturday help, as well as asking for on-site help from the Wildlife Department Private Lands program or getting in touch with local or regional Oklahoma Conservation Commission offices and the Natural Resources Conservation Service, among others. Make contact with one source, and depending on your needs, you’ll learn a long list of assistance is available through government and non-profit groups to lend expertise and, in some cases, help out financially.
If you decide to hit the woods, remember to wear pants and boots, a long-sleeved shirt, and apply insect repellent and sunscreen. You know the drill.
Here again is the link to register. If you have more questions, contact Richardson at (405) 637-7324 or josh.richardson@odwc.ok.gov.
Thanks for bringing attention to the harm invasives pose. Tree of heaven is also the host species for spotted lattern flies, a major threat to agriculture.