If you’ve visited our cemetery, you may wonder why we leave big piles of brush scattered around the cemetery. Or, why we’ve left dead trees just standing around. Our reason is simple: these “unsightly” piles are excellent places to shelter small wildlife! They make up the natural features of our landscape that encourages the re-wilding of a habitat for animals that have been previously driven from the area due to agriculture overuse. Read on to learn a little more about these methods.

Brush or Slash Piles

Any time you see these piles of brush and branches, you can assume that there is abundant life and activity going on inside from a whole bunch of animals and bugs – and that’s a good thing.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service tells us the following:

“Made up of woody debris and loose leaf litter stacked together, these piles provide great shelter for small mammals like voles and squirrels, along with salamanders and snakes. Weasels, foxes and hawks will also use them for shelter and hunting grounds. Many birds use these woody sanctuaries for cover and will oftentimes nest along logs or under piles of branches on the ground. Over time, the decaying wood will bring insects for birds and small mammals to feed on and ultimately give nutrients back to the soil.”*

So you see, there is a method to our messiness.

*U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Brush Piles – A Safe Space for Wildlife, May 9, 2023

Half Cuts

This is a good example of a half cut.

This particular one is not on our land but it clearly shows how a branch can be cut halfway through so that it can continue to grow and provide accessibility to browse and to create instant cover. Quail and turkeys especially love half cut trees to facilitate nesting and travel.

The half cuts we have made tend to be near large trees and surrounded by native shrubs which renders them practically invisible to the casual visitor.

Snags and Logs

Dead trees, also called snags, and fallen trees and branches, also called logs, are an important part of our overall wildlife management plan.

The Wildlife Federation has this to say: “Dead trees provide vital habitat for more than 1,000 species of wildlife nationwide. They also count as cover and places for wildlife to raise young. By some estimates, the removal of dead material from forests can mean a loss of habitat for up to one-fifth of the animals in the ecosystem.
Wildlife species use nearly every part of a dead tree in every stage of its decay for things such as:

• A Place to Live—Many animals, including birds, bats, squirrels and raccoons make nests in hollow cavities and crevices in standing deadwood.
• A Food Source—By attracting insects, mosses, lichens and fungi, deadwood becomes a gourmet restaurant for wildlife looking for a snack.
• A “Crow’s Nest“—Higher branches of snags serve as excellent look-outs from which wildlife such as raptors spot potential prey.
• A Hiding Place—The nooks and crannies of deadwood are put to good use by squirrels and other wildlife looking to store food.
• A Soil Refresher—Mosses, lichens and fungi all grow on snags and aid in the return of vital nutrients to the soil through the nitrogen cycle. Decaying logs on the forest floor also act as “nurse logs” for new seedlings.”*

If you put your imagination to work, snags can even look like sculptural elements among the trees!

*Wildlife Federation, Gardening for Wildlife, Trees and Snags