BrushyPines

Before the thin, it looked very similar to what you're describing. The only difference would be that they were not neatly spaced, it was THICK 20 year old pines! We've mainly hunted the hardwoods during deer season, but turkey season we hunt just about the whole property. I strategically placed the food plot I was talking about in the middle of the property to hopefully hold wildlife on the property more. Deer mainly use it at night because it's so open. My goal for the plot was not to necessarily use as a kill plot, but more as a feed and hold wildlife plot. A kill off of it here and there would be nice! LOL. We have never hunted thinned pines and with it being so thick before, it looked like a desert on the understory. I was hoping the thin would allow new growth to emerge giving the wildlife food, cover and nesting habitat. I didn't know whether to keep all lanes bushhogged, some lanes bushhogged or none at all. Just looking for ideas from people that have experience with hunting thinned pines.

Wifeshusband

I hunt on a 300 hundred acre pine plantation, that started about 25 years ago. It gets spot burned between rows every 3 or 4 years and this does
two things: gets rid of competing plant growth interfering with trees and creates new green/grass growth birds and deer like. The burns need to
be done by someone who knows what they're doing. One year the owners sons and nephews let the fire get out of hand and it damaged some
pines and hardwoods. Contrary to popular believe, keeping it fairly clean between rows seems to attract deer and turkeys. They use the rows
for bedding and sort of as a highway to get to water and food. He thins the trees about every 6 to 8 years.
He does another thing that is very good by leaving a wide (about 100 yards) row between the pine fields and plants this
in rye, winter wheat, cover, etc.. This gives me the opportunity to set up on the edge of the pines where the trees meet these
open fields and this is where I see most of the der and turkeys.

wallhangr

I would keep the logging roads open, even it is just running at atv up and down them early in the season and again a month or so before hunting season. By doing this, the deer will use them and it gives you a clear trail to walk once the undergrowth comes in. We have kept several open on our property (although hardwoods) for 20 yrs or so now and the deer still use them as corridors and a few are strut zones for turkey. Also makes it easier to haul out deer.