r>H IMPROVING AND MAINTAINING GROUSE COVERTS 



Improvement practices, therefore, consist of periodic release to free the best developed trees 

 and shrul) cliinip-i fiirnishing good fall food from the competition of their more vigorous but 

 less desirable neighbors. Apples and thornap|)Ies, for instance, may be over-topped by trees 

 which normally grow taller. A few strokes of llie axe or poisoning tool may help to keep 

 many of the former in fruiting condition for years. It is also productive to trim u|) old apple 

 trees, relics of the past, but ofttimes capable of })roducing sought after buds and fruit for 

 many years, if given a little care. It is wise to have a backlog of such projects against the 

 time when other activities are slack. 



Limited grazing is also an aid in maintaining the fairly open character of the types mak- 

 ing up fall feeding grounds. Too much j)asturing, however, tends to make islands of the tree 

 and shrub clumps by maintaining close-cropped grasslands between them. 



Where fall feeding grounds are in imminent danger of growing into second-growth wood- 

 lands, a more extensive cutting, girdling or poisoning of the larger and less desirable trees 

 may be necessary if the type is to be perpetuated. In fact, of all the types making up grouse 

 cover, none presents a more difficult maintenance problem than do overgrown lands. Nor 

 is the problem made easier by the fact that one must be able to recognize a great variety of 

 valuable shrubs in addition to the usual tree species with which any competent woodsman is 

 familiar. 



In heavily wooded areas, where fall feeding grounds are not present, the development of 

 clear-cut units has proven valuable, since some species furnishing good fall food will always 

 be found there. The method of developing these is described later in this section. 



Spring Breeding Grounds 



Grouse have been known to nest in every type of cover from shrub-dotted fields to the cen- 

 ter of a small patch of dense forest. Most, however, prefer open woodlands where the under- 

 growth is not too thick. The presence of conifers in the immediate vicinity apparently makes 

 little difference. Most birds choose a site within a hundred feet of an opening, such as a 

 woods' edge, a piece of cut-over land, a w^oods road or a windfall, where succulent vegeta- 

 tion will provide food and shelter for the prospective brood. Any second-growth or mature 

 woodland, if it is not too thick, nor composed mainly of conifers, may furnish acceptable 

 spring breeding grounds. Even fall feeding grounds are occasionally used. 



The characteristics described here and in greater detail in Chapter III* are seldom difficult 

 to find in grouse coverts throughout the Northeast. The common practice of utilizing farm 

 woodlots for light pasturing, for furnishing the winter's supply of wood and for an occa- 

 sional crop of timber for farm use or for sale, has, in general, provided ideal grouse nest- 

 ing cover. 



In extensive forest lands, action by insects and disease often results in setting up somewhat 

 similar open conditions. Where the forest has not been lumbered or burned over for a long 

 time, the stand may sometimes be so thick as to make it desirable to selectively lumber small 

 areas or to cut deformed trees, here and there, to open uj) the crown cover. 



The most desirable conditions seem to result when the forest canojiy is not allowed to 

 occupy more than 60 to 80 per cent of the available space overhead. This allows sufficient 

 light to filter through to encourage a not-too-dense undergrowth. 



♦ See pafe 126. 



