I have 75 acres of land in east Spalding County that is my little piece of heaven on earth. It is mostly wooded with two small ponds and a two acre field, and I have seen deer, turkey, squirrels, geese, ducks, raccoons, possums, fox, coyotes, beaver, otters and muskrats there. The ponds have bass, bream, catfish and shiners in them.

When I bought the land in 1999 I knew little about managing it, so I contacted the Georgia Forestry Commission here. Through them I had a Forest Stewardship Plan written. It gives me guidelines on everything from productive timber practices to pond management.

To start the plan I had to fill out an application and list my priorities for the property. I chose wildlife, soil and water, timber, recreation and aesthetics, in that order, as my management goals for the property. The plan would be developed around those goals.

To set the plans, my property was visited by the Management Forester and District Stewardship Forester from the Georgia Forestry Commission, a wildlife biologist from the Department of Natural Resources, the District Conservationist from the Natural Resources Conservation Service and someone from the Soil and Water Management Service.

Along with topographic maps showing soil types, vegetation types and contours, I received written information about these subjects. These maps would help with tree and soil management, and instructions were given for avoiding problems like erosion around creeks. There was also information about endangered and threatened species that might be found there.

A section discusses both ponds in detail and suggests how to keep them in good shape. One is very old and there is not much that can be done for it since there are big trees on the dam and it could leak at any time. I did have the water tested in both and got liming and fertilization guidelines from the local County Extension Service.

The notebook prepared for me had several hundred pages of information, including practices to improve the land for wildlife. Sizes and types of food plots were suggested as were tips on controlled burning, thinning trees and planting fruit and nut trees for forage.

I have followed most of the guidelines and they seem to be working well, with one exception. I was supposed to do a controlled burn on about 1/3 of the property each year in a three year rotation. Controlled burns help wildlife as well as improve timber growth.

A little over a year ago, just before the burn ban went into effect, I had scheduled a burn for about 10 acres. The Forestry Commission technician arrived that morning and warned me the humidity was very low, but I insisted we go ahead and burn anyway. He unloaded his bulldozer and plowed a fire break, and we started the burn.

As warned, the fire got way too hot and most of the pines lost their needles in the next few weeks. But within days they has put out new needles and looked good. Unfortunately, during the winter I found pine beetle damage and had to clear-cut the area to stop them. I was going to end up with no trees anyway, so I might as well get some money for them.

After the timber company finished I waited until just before the burn ban went into effect the beginning of this month and burned off all the residue left. I waited as long as possible to let it dry as much as possible, and it worked. I guess fire and me just don’t get along. The fire burned way more than expected, moving across what looked like bare ground to me, and I had to call for help to stop it before it got into the woods.

Right now the place looks bad, but I will plan pines there and will have a new stand of trees growing soon. Again, the Georgia Forestry Commission people helped me with what I needed to do and even provided some grants for planting some kinds of pine trees.

As the weeds, grasses, briars and other plants grow in the cleared land, deer and other wildlife will find it a great place to live. I will add food plots in the cleared area so there will be plenty for them to eat as well as good cover. I expect to have an abundance of deer for the next few years.

If you have land and want to manage it wisely, contact the Georgia Forestry Commission. They can help you be a good conservationist, managing your resources and using them wisely.