Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Burning to improve habitat ???

It can be criminal I know that, if it was done and got away from the folks doing the burning and destroyed other stuff, if it was done during a burn ban or when the weather was such that you "knew" better than to start a damn fire.

And I agree with that totally.

When we burn, we check double check the weather,if there's a doubt in my mind we don't burn. Knock on wood we have never lost control of a fire yet, we have had bordering ranch's lose control of a fire, and burn some of our land and we have fought fire on other ranch's to help control wild fires. if starting a burn doesn't scare the crap out you, your a fool. anything can happen when you start a fire, you better be ready to fight it, you can't run from it. Rio7

Nope, not weeds. That would be forbes. Native warm season grasses like Big Blue, Indian, Switch, Little Bluestem, Sideoats Gramma, Easter Gamma and the like. Some of the best grasses if your wanting to improve the habitat for small game and deer and some of them make excellent hay for cattle or horses or pasture for the same. Much better then fescue in many ways.

Absolutely!! I always seem to stop and ponder for just a moment before tipping that drip torch as its an all or nothing sort of deal. Once you light off a field of NWSG, especially the big stuff like big bluestem, indian or switch, its all over. Its a pucker moment for sure!!

Neighbor to the West of me has 60 or so acres of this stuff, don't know which exactly but it grows tall. He has to have it burned by April 1, if he burns it, and some years it is too wet, but when He does you can feel the heat from 150 yards through a double pane window. The volunteer fire department does the burn as a training night. They always wait until late afternoon when the humidity is going up and it is still quite a sight. My land is wetter and usually when I can burn, there is too much baby wildlife so I usually end up shredding. miles

Well if you can burn instead of shredding by all means do that. Or if you cant burn, try using a disc to knock down the stuff your shredding, much more wildlife friendly. A veteran wildlife biologist once told me that a guy should wear out at least two disc for every shredder that he uses. In other words stay off the mowers all that you can but if you must at least hold off till July or so.

Folks don't understand a lot of things on fires. That it creates its own weather as it heats up. That can change wind direction quickly on its own. That its not only the fire you need to stop at the fire breaks, assuming that you know what it takes to have a good fire break, its the embers that can kill you.

Embers, IIRC, will go up to a mile in the air. Viably. I"ve been the downwind side of fires as a spot fire crew, and found fires igniting to what we have measured with GPS to be .6 mile in front of the fire at that time.

We had a salt well struck by lightning a year ago on July 4. It is about half a mile in front of my house. Fiberglass tanks in the battery.

A few days later I found burnt pieces of the tanks over a half mile behind my house...

I've lit fires at home on brush piles when I was sure it was ok... and almost had em get away due to wind shifts and embers. Although I won't burn without a pump and nurse tank or water hose handy. And a cell phone.

I"ve no issue with folks that light fires under good conditions and it all just changes and gets away, thats what we are for. The ones though that light it with dry weather and a 25 mph wind blowing to the neighbors dry waist high field of grass.... those I have issues with about ignorance. Burning my field is one thing, but stupid burning my vehicles or barns or houses down, thats another thing.

Regardless like you folks, we all go help whenever we are needed, all the neighbors do too for the most part.

We had a 3000 acre fire start from power lines bumping in high winds, just across our fence. I had 6 other folks on our neighbors place helping us with the right flank before all the fire departments arrived. Thats how it goes in the country.

But man is fire a good thing too.

FWIW I"m scared every last time I light a fire at home. Even though I'm trained in it. And prepare for it. I'm still a bit scared. I"ve had fire chase me. Out of the blue when it wasn't expected. ITs not fun.

When I circled the 5 acres of Big blue and Indian grass with the drip torch after letting it back burn for 40 feet or so, it went up in a flash and I had an almost perfect mushroom cloud overhead. Seemed like it took 5 minutes for the ash to come back to earth.