Gene Kitchens Jr. is a farmer and dedicated bird hunter who strives to integrate agriculture and silviculture practices within a conservation framework in order to utilize and conserve the natural resources throughout his 1,200 acre of Bleckley County Georgia farm.
One aspect of that conservation framework is Gene’s participation in the Georgia DNR Bobwhite Quail Initiative (BQI), which began in 2001. He has continually re-enrolled multiple fields into the program, which has not only improved wildlife habitat but also maintained those habitat gains for the past eight years.
Through BQI, Gene has implemented 30 and 60-foot field borders around his cropfields, hedgerows, filter strips, Bermuda grass control and fallow patches in various combinations throughout the fields to both benefit quail and eliminate hard-to-farm and less productive farm acres.
