Pennsylvania Game News - December 2011 - 27

on the ground. The VPA-HIP funding helps us pair landowners with PGC technical experts and provide the necessary funding to complete habitat projects. We have available funding for these habitat improvements and want to get projects completed by September 2013. In most cases, that means we need to start implementing them by next fall at the latest. How Big is Big Enough? Project size is set at a minimum of 10 acres, but projects can be as large as the landowner desires; there are no upper limits. We have completed similar projects in excess of 200 acres. The work will be supervised by PGC staff, and completed by private contractors who bid on projects, allowing us to complete more projects in a shorter amount of time. What Does it Look Like? These are not your typical food plots! Some recent examples of projects we have completed include converting a tall fescue grass strip mine to native grasslands and wildflowers, mechanical chopping and spraying of invasive shrubs in old fields, mechanical chopping and burning of declining scrub oak to invigorate new scrub oak re-growth and increased acorn production, felling pole and mature aspen and birch to allow young aspen to re-grow, and non-commercial forest cuttings to provide cover and forage. One of the social challenges of doing these projects is that they sometimes appear “messy” to the human eye, but to wildlife they look awsome. After completion, some projects may take a year or two to really produce habitat results, but, boy,

ONE month post-treatment, above, herbaceous plants are already starting to grow. After only five months, in this instance, after invasive shrub removal, a hawthorn stand has already created a lush herbaceous layer, providing optimal habitat for many species of wildlife.

are they worth it in the long run. How Do I Get Started? If you are in our Hunter Access Program, or are interested in joining, and would like to improve habitat for wildlife on a grand scale, there is no better time than the present to get started. To join our Hunter Access Program, contact your local PGC Region office(contact info is on our website, www.pgc.state.pa.us). If you’re already a cooperator, contact your region office, and let them know you’re interested in early successional habitat management using the VPAHIP program, and they’ll set up a site visit to discuss opportunities. In future issues, we’ll be highlighting specific habitat improvements and get into the details of how they are initiated, designed and implemented, and what wildlife will use them. 

DECEMBER 2011

http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=514&objID=620377&mode=2 http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=514&objID=620377&mode=2 http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=514&objID=620377&mode=2 http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=514&objID=620377&mode=2 http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=514&objID=562943&mode=2 http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=514&objID=562943&mode=2 http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=514&objID=562943&mode=2 http://www.pgc.state.pa.us

Pennsylvania Game News - December 2011

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