How to Use the Hack & Squirt Technique for Timber Stand Improvement

Utilizing the hack and squirt method in a timber stand improvement project is a low-effort way to improve wildlife habitat on a property. It is a very simple process and requires minimal tools, making it useful no matter your experience level or property size. I’m not a forester; I’m just a guy who’s passionate about improving his little plot of earth, making it beneficial to the creatures that call it home.

★ Tree and Brush Management & Timber Stand Improvement (TSI): https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiBilDABA650oANRRL9SSQ0EjhjG2vSYo

Our farm is dominated by trees like hackberry, sweet gum, and privet. These tree species are not marketable timber and offer little benefit to our native wildlife. My son and I also came across a black locust tree; covered in nasty thorns that can pierce the sole of a boot and are prone to stick in tractor tires, we have no desire to keep it around. Using the hack and squirt technique allows us to remove these unwanted trees so that other trees, like oaks and walnuts, may thrive.

★ Tordon RTU: https://amzn.to/3H7ZMj5

Select a herbicide based on the tree species you are targeting. We used Tordon RTU, which you can purchase at the Amazon Affiliate link above. Always read the label and follow all necessary safety precautions. Strike the tree (hack) about one inch below the bark, into the cambium layer of the tree, and then apply the herbicide (squirt) into this fresh wound. By applying the herbicide in this way the tree will be terminated without felling it, thereby saving many man hours.

After a year or two, once these trees have begun to decay, we’ll fell them and throw them in the burn pile. Thinning the trees will promote better plant growth on the forest floor which is better for wildlife, and it will allow us to make necessary repairs to our livestock fencing. There’s lots of work to be done and we hope you’ll subscribe to the channel and follow along. Thanks for watching!

0:00 How to Use the Hack & Squirt Technique
1:52 Following up, Benefits of TSI, & Herbicide Precautions
7:35 Terminating a Black Locust Thorn Tree
8:56 Trees we like, trees we don’t
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