Brainerd Area Forest Improvement/Browse Protection

This project will do a variety of treatments in the Brainerd Wildlife and Backus Forestry work areas. Treatments will include budcapping, mechanical release, and mowing brush to rejuvenate browse. Budcapping and mechanical release will occur in jack pine stands. Jack pine is a species that is disappearing across our landscape and this project will seek to maintain this species as a component of our forests. Additional mechanical release sites are proposed for spruce, red pine, and hardwood stands in order to release them from competition to ensure that these species will be maintained in the stands. And finally we are proposing lowland brush mowing to rejuvenate rank brush. Mowing lowland brush will provide fresh deer browse in these areas.