Top 10 Hinge Cut Deer Bedding Area Fails

Many hinge cut deer bedding area projects are doomed for failure before ever even firing up the chainsaw. Great intentions and poor online hinge cutting information combine to give false hope, and a hinge cut buck bedding location is only the tip of the iceberg. After scouting hundreds of lands with failed hinge cut bedding areas created by landowners and resource professionals, there has been an extremely common trend of failure. The following top ten tips are your cheat sheet for not only creating hinge cut buck and doe bedding areas correctly, but for determining if you should even use the tool of hinge cutting in the first place.

[@Buterflycatcher7]

Thank you so much for your free information. And I thank you even more for getting straight to the point with every video and not wasting ten minutes with some ridiculous introduction and advertisements for sponsors. I am more inclined to buy products you support/use because you don’t ram it down viewers throats. Great stuff! You inspire me with every video to improve my land!

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

That means a whole lot to me...you are very welcome! I choose my sponsors based on products I am already using or should be using... because they fit me the best. I hope that comes through in the videos and that folks can actually see me using the gear I use, naturally and in my every day life! Your comments are spot on with how I how to deliver the content...thank you

[@Buterflycatcher7]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 Absolutely! There's no better way to deliver in my opinion and I greatly appreciate it. I look forward to all your content!

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

@@Buterflycatcher7 man that really does mean a lot to me! Thank you and I will do my best to keep them coming

[@sendit1158]

Nothing is free bud lol, do you pay a internet bill? or do you pay for a device to watch these video? Cell phone or tv it all cost, but yes his videos are great, ive been on a binge watching him

[@craigsmith7101]

Great video and good timing. I'm going to the farm next weekend and now I won't waist my time trying to hinge ironwoods as i did in years past. I'll also make sure i don't have any dead end trails and cut some larger trees to create bigger opening for light. I never believed the nonsense in other videos about creating buck bedrooms and canopies. Your videos are clearly backed by real woods experience.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

That's great to hear Craig, sounds like you have a very solid plan...your efforts will be rewarded for sure! Much of the other hinge cut info is based on very select areas, with very little experience outside of that area...or review and follow up experience with those cuttings in those same areas or other regions. The canopy info is really bad...I've seen deer avoid areas like that for 20 to 50 yards or more I'm some regions...use it sparingly in other areas or use it a lot in areas they had no other choice. I've experienced on client parcels in multiple states, moderate sized bucks not entering cuttings that were so tight I believe they just didn't want to or couldn't in some cases, jam their antlers through the mess. Anyways...I hope all the info helps! Making sure folks don't right is a huge passion of mine

[@edwineugeneeckerjr6335]

I cut a path to my tree stand years ago through a vast pine grove and the deer immediately changed their travel pattern the first year and followed that path to an from their bedding and feeding sites,this gave me a wealth of opportunities to harvest deer and actually pick and chose the deer I wanted.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Cuttings are incredible to define exactly where you would like deer to bed and move. Great feedback and experience Sonny!

[@MySliceOfHeavenoutdoors]

Great Info again Jeff, I appreciate everything you teach me.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

That is great to hear, thanks for the feedback...and your are very welcome. I think hinge cutting can be incredible in some locations, but I'm pretty picky how, where and when they are created so I hope all the info helps!

[@mikesutherland7958]

Really good advice on hard mass in the beddinging area definitely great information great video

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Thank you very much Mike...I hope that the info really hits home for folks!

[@BrianBartholomewChiro]

Great video. Now I know how to upgrade my bedding areas. Thank you.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Thank you very much Brian and you are very welcome! That's great to hear...enjoy making sure those bedding areas are used a lot more 🙂

[@Jonnydeerhunter]

I feel better about the unintentional hinge cutting I did today lol. Thanks Jeff

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

J, you are welcome 😊

[@backcreekcabin4994]

Love your videos. Very informative and useful.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Thank you very much!!

[@angelasutherland1611]

Hi Jeff, I am using a lot of your videos to work my small 10 acres. I have a 2 acre piece in which 1 acre I just clear cut to gain Aspen regeneration, this area was pretty wide open other than mature Maple, Aspen and some Ash & Oak. Adjacent to this I have Aspen, and Ash with Redwood dossier and Tag with some Witch Hazel what I want to do is cut out the Aspen for another regen and hinge the Ash for browse/bedding but what I am not sure of is if the "Brushes" would stunt the regen. The "brushes" currently aren't really thick, I can see through it across to the farmers field and most of the Ash in this area is no more than6-8" in diameter, the area gets about 10 hrs of Sun in the Summer. Really wished I could show you what I have done as a whole and go through the full scope of the plan but that's a lot of typing :) thanks and I appreciate every video! FYI im in N.E. Wi

[@buckeyebuckhunter3741]

Wow. Great job as always.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Thank you very much Dave, really hope it helps folks create better hinge cuts this off season!

[@bluelineoutdoors2726]

Great info, Thanks!

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Thank you Todd and you are very welcome!

[@chadrap381]

Jeff your feedback is SO helpful. One question though: you have said on a few videos that only 25% of properties need hinge cuts. But how do we know if our land does or does not need them? Also, you mentioned the timber may not be the right size. Could you comment further on that?

[@bobwiese6128]

I Love this!

[@hornotostador1532]

Thanks very much for the information. What about hinge cutting Sweet Gum trees? Yay or Nay? What would be the reasons to or not to? Thanks again for sharing your time and efforts.

[@Patrick-wu6kt]

Thanks Jeff. My property was mostly hemlock which I had removed because they were dying from the wooly adelgid. There are now piles of hemlock branches. They seem to be hindering growth just because of how much there is. I cut some trails through for the deer to move easier and where I want them to go but I'm not sure if I like the way it's going. Do think it would be better to burn them off or let them there? The remaining trees are mostly chestnut oak and beech.

[@rocksteady394]

Hey Jeff thanks again for another great video! We all really appreciate the time you guys spend to put these together! I have two questions and you might have already covered them in other videos. Do you think the temperature plays any role in a trees ability to be hinged? Like if it is 10 degrees would a tree have a greater chance of breaking than if it was 35 degrees? Also I know the bigger the tree, the harder it would be to hinge and this probably varies from species to species, but do you have a diameter that you would say 'this one is 12" and thats too big' and fell the tree instead of trying to hinge it? I know there's no one size fits all answer on any of this stuff just curious to your thought on these.

[@randlerichardson5826]

Great video brother. Not had a chance to look up your books yet but I ain’t forgot it. Very informative video as always. Have a blessed day brother Amen.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Thanks a lot Randle, have a great day! Hopefully you enjoy the books when you eventually find them!

[@stevepalmateer]

Got the bedding point canopy opened up this month. Probably a dozen whitepines in the 36" diameter range on the ground now acting as side-cover. Sun can finally get to the forest floor on this hilltop. Red maples and red oaks in the 12" diameter range are now freed up and ready for hinging in March as the temperatures get nearer to zero. Should I take the poplar and just fell it or should I hinge it too?

[@ragnarragnarsson3128]

Just getting to this video now. If you have sufficient briar patches and hardwood regeneration with woody shrub tips, is there any advantage to creating hinge cuts? Thanks

[@MrCurtm]

I have a lot of persimmon trees on my property and the deer love them when they fall to the ground. A high percentage of the persimmons will hang on the tree where the deer can’t reach. They eventually fall after they are rotten and deer season is over. Will persimmon trees survive hinge cutting and would that be an option so the deer can reach the fruit?

[@wellsamateuraquariums9623]

Hey, my family owns a 100 acre plot with 8 acres of open field in western Wisconsin. Over the years we have seen our bedding area for deer decrease as the canopy of trees on our property thickens. This winter we are looking to go into the property which has a lot of poplars, birch, basswood, etc and create some new bedding areas. Would you recommend a hinge cut, clear cut or something else to best increase our success harvesting trophy deer? There are currently ag food sources surrounding our land, cause im guessing that will greatly affect what we should do! Any advice you can give would be greatly appreciated.

[@huntwarbukz4117]

Yes i think I will do it but then maybe leave a few completely cut and layed down so they can access closer to tree I clear cut a bunch cause it was wet sun getting in now and this will be a new structure within a opening thx bro

[@allenchickering6160]

Great video! Can you hinge cut poplar? Thank you!

[@luisrios5359]

A very well made and informative video Jeff! I have a 30 acre parcel in north central Illinois that runs along a major waterway. I have so many questions to ask you about hunting land management. Is there any way to email you? If not I understand.

[@rfb7117]

We have done some hinge cutting a few years ago to offer better bedding areas and concealment from neighbors on box alders and maples. They seemed to have work relatively well. Hope we get some meltdown of snow here in SW WI soon to be able to walk in the woods. Bob

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

That's great Bob...I love to follow up on those and scout how the hinge cuts are really doing. It would be GREAT just to get a melt so the snow is layered well for snowshoes...I will be bringing mine for sure!

[@rfb7117]

Yes you may have have to, although I'm hoping for a good melt. The deer have completely cleaned out the food plots. Hope all the trails and activity in the woods do not effect the overall view of the habitat. @@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

@@rfb7117 oh it will still be a great view for sure! Especially with your feedback during the discussion in the morning. Diane and I are looking forward to it!

[@randlerichardson5826]

Afternoon brother

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Afternoon Randle!

[@jackc.3079]

Hey Jeff, Can you hinge balsam? Or would it be better just to top them for cover/windshielding?

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

I would not hinge balsam, but great to just drop them like you said...good call Jack! That applies to any cedar...

[@dennisullman4188]

Are green ash a good species to hinge cut?

[@huntwarbukz4117]

Great vid .. I have a large swamp type willow in woods I was thinking of hinged whole thing it would end up a giant structure in center of where I clear cut would this work ? It would be like a spider shape

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

I think that would work pretty well! The deer may not bed all the way into the center but they can certainly use the outer edges if not too wet. I guess my only concern would be if you blocked current dry bedding on the raised root structure around the base.

[@MDR-hn2yz]

Is it ok to clean out briars and over grown mess with a controlled burn in the winter or spring?

[@RickLarsonPermacultureDesigner]

I pollarded aspen and it regenerated from the trunk, not the roots.

[@bennyboom63]

Dam I got alot to learn.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

I hope you feel like you have come to the right place Benny!

[@042monty]

What’s your thought on privet? I have a 20-25 acres piece of property to hunt that’s rectangle in shape. The land runs long east to west with my house being at the road on the east side. The far west side I have bout 4-5 acres of woods that has been overtaken by mature privet not allowing sunlight to hit the ground. Other trees in this area are cedar, elm, and hackberry mostly. The ground is mainly dirt throughout the woods because of this. Any suggestions? In between the woods and my house I have a food plot and about 5 acres of native grasses with burn strips around them. Along the length of both sides of my property(north and south) I have trees in tubes that I planted as saplings about three years ago. They include chinkapin oak, red northern oak, sawtooth oak, persimmon. I still have some available open space that I’m thinking about doing either bush plantings or maybe spraying and killing and then running a disk through to regenerate natural weeds and things. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[@ragnarragnarsson3128]

I have some on my property as well. It's so invasive I don't think you will ever be rid of it. I mow it if it comes in the pasture but allow it if it stays along the edge of the woods. The turkeys love to eat the berries. I don't have proof but think deer eat the foliage as browse as well. Horses love it I know. Cheers

[@williamschablowsky5764]

Do you have cue cards or stop the camera between points ? If not, your ability to remember and go through each list without a mistake is impressive if these are one or two take videos

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

They are nearly all 1 take videos, we never have a lot of time lol. Sometimes go by lists...I have to when there are 10 points+. I try to remember 3-4 at a time. I check my phone...or draw a list in the snow, and Dylan patches the edit. We keep the camera running...make sure the camera batteries are good too! 3-5 points I just typically remember by bullet point. I usually just organize any numbered points or bullet points by 3-4 words. Then we shoot 🙂 Typically 6-8 vids in 4 hours or so, including time to get to each filming location.

[@realitywhitetails2024]

Where do you get your vine for your scrapes and stuff

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

They are all over the woods that I hunt...and if not, a white oak branch works great, or a jack pine branch up north is awesome! Jack pine branches we're my first mock scrapes back in the early 2000s...

[@blazeice111]

Excellent video. I wish I had seen this before we did our first rounds of hinge cuts. You confirmed what we learned from our mistakes. Question though: You mentioned cutting down large canopy trees. What do you do with them after? Do you try to haul them out or just leave them lay for cover?

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Thanks a lot Nick! If they are great timber harvest logs, I would have the logs removed...not the tops. But often for poor timber species,, cutting them up and letting them lay, then opening up movements and travel throughout the cuttings with a never ending corn maze of deer movements. Hinging to compliment the major canopy reduction is often a last step in the process but s lower priority of you don't have the time to complete. Also, grreat to hear you have seemed the same thing Nick! You can always clean up cuttings too...just opening them up, eliminating any dead ends, chopping thru the canopy, etc

[@bigweb0311]

How do you determine if a property needs a hinge cut or not?

[@RayMalaski]

Michael T +1 on this question! I’m perplexed since we have daytime browse already but the bed all over our property. I know I want to control that movement so I hing cutting the best way to do that?

[@OaK-_R]

How do popular trees do with hinge cutting? Ive got big stands of oaks that are suffocating pretty much all light, so I lack alot of browse. I do however have a popular stand too, its thicker than hell and id like to cut walking lanes through them.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Mike they do not do very well at all. They are brittle and break. Also they need to be completely cut so that they can fully regenerate from the lateral and expansive root system. I would definitely cut some oaks! The leaners and subordinates can all be cut down. I would estimate in most stands of oaks at least a 50% reduction in canopy if the junk trees are removed.... I hope that helps!

[@OaK-_R]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 Thanks! That does save me a lot of needless work. I just hate cutting oaks they are rare in my area and a good producers of acorns typically every year. But I'll consider hinging a few.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

@@OaK-_R even just cutting a few down. Not every oak is a good oak. The subordinates, leaners and weak take from the healthy mast producers. Some are great to cut down! Every woodlot is different but I've seen woodlots where 50% of the canopy could be removed, just by focusing on the low quality mast producers...

[@OaK-_R]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 Makes sense!

[@randlerichardson5826]

I cut timber nearly 30 years I’d like to help you do that that cutting would be a picnic for me. I’d do it fir the fun of it.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Ha that's awesome Randle...everyone loves a picnic, lol. I enjoy it greatly myself!

[@joshfisherback1612]

Jeff any videos about honeysuckle for bedding in the future. I have 60 acres of woods that is old pasture. The deer bed everywhere. And come from everywhere. It’s hard to hunt when you can have deer come from 360 degrees around you. I’m interested in having you come out this summer. I sent a message two weeks ago with no response. Great videos!

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

High Josh...deer live those honeysuckle! You can create some great bedding areas and travel corridors with a forestry mulcher on a bobcat! Deer will follow or live within any openings that you make. I'm sitting I am hoping she didn't miss your email! What state are you in Josh? She will check it out right away...thank you!

[@joshfisherback1612]

I live in Ohio on the Ohio/Indiana border.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

@@joshfisherback1612 I will make sure that Diane finds your email...I also know though that we probably will not be in that area this year. If you are close enough to Indy it would be great to visit with you after the ATA in January of 2020...but I know that is a long way off! Diane will check things out though and thank you very much for the interest Josh!

[@joshfisherback1612]

@Whitetail Habitat Solutions I live an hour east of Indy. That would be awesome as there is to much honeysuckle to move threw during the summer.

[@shawnb789]

@@joshfisherback1612 I live north of indy up by muncie. I took a forestry mulcher through one of my clients honeysuckle groves last week. It worked very well. We installed new travel corridor and re worked and enhanced the bedding areas where we wanted them to stay. The honeysuckle had kinda taken over his farm and much like your experience, the deer were starting to show up from all over. We fixed that in just a few hours. This video put out by Jeff is spot on. I've experienced all these things he touched on the hard way. Several failures over several years have now led to success though.

[@alacy777]

Jeff how would not having AG in affect your habitat? The only ag I have in middle TN IS COW pasture.

[@ragnarragnarsson3128]

Nice to see another mid tn resident on here

[@alacy777]

Ragnar Ragnarsson gallatin

[@ragnarragnarsson3128]

@@alacy777 Fairview

[@dougbarber3400]

Open ended question here. Break down first. Tennessee. Open hardwoods, hills with elevation changes of 80 to 200 ft. When creating bedding up on benches where deer often can seeing out 50 to 100 yards or more. Would you do your hing cutting on the upper part of the benches, so that the deer can bed and still see out and down. Or do you hing cut closed to the down hill side of the bench, shorting the overall sight line distance. I know its an open end question with many factors that could be factored in as well. Was just looking at it from the point of sight distances the the deer in the area are use to. Any thoughts?

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Good question! Typically both, perpendicular to the actually bedding area... perpendicular to the bench system. In that way the deer can still typically see thru the branches, or between cuttings. It doesn't end up being a solid wall, bit it will offer a great deal of hardwood regeneration. The downhill cuttings are the most important vs the uphill cuttings. In that type of habitat, cuttings should be fairly minimal in terms of not creating too tight of an area...deer are use to space, so fairly large areas where deer can move around fairly freely...not canopies, easy movement for deer or you. I hope that helps you out Doug!

[@dougbarber3400]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 Thank you Sir. Keep up the great work.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

@@dougbarber3400 you are very welcome Doug and I will certainly do my best!!

[@robclinejr4085]

Well I know I screwed up a good stand going to have to go back in and fix it

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

That's too bad to hear Rob! Check out my bedding area playlist. BUT, it is always correctable. Opening up passage ways, eliminating dead ends and canopies, making sure sunlight gets into the cuttings, etc. Always a way...just a lot more work 🙂

[@robclinejr4085]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 I made some dead ends and after I did it I stopped seeing deer at my stand they started using a new trail so from the bed they would go north to food instead of east to food it even change the food source they used and I didn't make sure it got the light it needed but thank you for this video it helped me see what I did wrong

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

@@robclinejr4085 sounds like just a little bit more time with the saw and you will have the bedding area that you want! Always enjoyable anyways

[@helenjohnson4593]

How do you use hack and spray?.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

I do not...and I rarely if ever recommend it. But someone will hack a tree, squiet chemical into and let it die standing...

[@ammoharris7087]

See more to it than just cutting some trees down, specific purposes behind it.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Very, specific purpose that is very site specific. For one there are different types of cuttings needed for different regions based on the % of cover...and then on most parcels hinge cuttings are not even the type of cuttings needed...

[@nathanhager7082]

Going to hinge cut some on my land this year hoping I can hold a family group of doe's so I can hunt it during the rut

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Nathan I hope the info helps you don't right! Good luck and enjoy...hinge cutting can be a lot of fun, and very effective when performed correctly

[@nathanhager7082]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 going to try only can learn from my mistakes lol I would send u picture of my land let u tell me if putting in the right spot.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

@@nathanhager7082 that is how I've learned...a lot! Either my mistakes or those of others. I wish I could do that for folks,. But man I just don't have the time with working with 70-80 clients per year, creating 250 articles and vids a year, finishing a book or two...hunting, working on my own land, etc. Of course spending an hour per day answering KZbin comments 🙂 but yes, just can't fit helping folks out at that level anyways! Really wish I could...

[@nathanhager7082]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 understandable my friend

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

@@nathanhager7082 thanks for understanding Nathan! I get a couple dozen requests per week. Heck I have a hard time keeping you with KZbin comments, lol...which is a priority because then more eyes have the potential to benefit from the questions.

[@haroldcallahan4887]

I don't see hinge cutting as a practical method of habitat modification- we had a storm in Connecticut that had blown over hundreds of acres of forest and snapped trees in half so now we have lots of cover- many acres look like piles of logs

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Harold it is an extremely useful tool in the bucket...just not as much as some folks think 😉 Thank you Harold!

[@haroldcallahan4887]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 It may very well be but I just have a difficult time envisioning deer just moving in after you hinge a bunch of trees- anyway our new storm habitat should be interesting to observe this spring. My top 3 hunting locations have been completely ruined - it literally looks like a war zone with numerous mature trees just piled over on eachother - you cant even walk through most of it - hopefully teh deer find it useful

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

@@haroldcallahan4887 hinge cutting is MUCH more effective than a windstorm if you create them right. I've literally seen windstorm areas unused by deer for several years in a row...10 acres in that case. Too thick for deer to use. Think of hinge cutting as an organized, perfectly defined windstorm exactly where you need it...again if done correctly.

[@haroldcallahan4887]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 Large sections of our property are completely ruined then-I don't know if you saw or heard of the storm we had in May in southern Connecticut - it's nothing I had ever seen in my life time- I see the potential of hinge cutting but it's just difficult for me to envision it working for us- especially now. We have 160 acres of property with everything except cover- fields, ag- fields mature hardwoods and conifers. I get alot of good ideas and insight from your channel

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

@@haroldcallahan4887 like I said in the video only about 25% of all lands should have hinge cutting on them 😉 Now all that you have to do is clean up! Cutting travel and pockets thru the windstorm mess would be perfect now. A lot of the work has already been done for you! A forestry mulcher on a bobcat would make quick work of it all...

[@randlerichardson5826]

The hinge cutting would make great rabbit and quail hiding spots to.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Oh for sure...and fawning cover...great escape cover in general.

[@tommyhunter1817]

Hinge cut is a waste of time and money. Just harvest timber. About like people building “buck beds”.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Anyone who says that hinge cuts are a waste of time and money, completely discredits themselves in the hunting industry. Knowledge and experience is power...I suggest you find some 😊

[@tommyhunter1817]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 Jeff, I’m not in the “hunting industry”, I’m just a lowly landowner.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Exactly...make sure to gain some experience, knowledge and then form an opinion. Hinge cutting is an extremely viable tool in a qualitybhabutat manager's toolbox...appropriate on roughly 25% of all lands. Just need enough experience and knowledge to realize... BTW, the best whitetail habitat has very little harvestable timber on it...the worst whitetail habitat has a high % of harvestable timber on it.

[@tommyhunter1817]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 LOL.

[@dls7976]

I hate Hinge cutting. Respect our trees.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Knowledge is power...find some buddy 😉Any habitat manager who thinks hinge cutting is a bad idea, lacks complete credibility in anything they do. It is easily appropriate on at least 20% of all lands...anyone who says otherwise really doesn't have enough experience to know better ☺️ Sorry...sad, but true...