small tree removal and general land clearing

[ctgoldwing]

I second the fel approach. I used this method to clear about an acre of woods of all trees / brush less than about 2" diameter - ok a couple were a little bigger. I would push over the trees to expose some of the roots and then use the edge of the loader to rip it out. The chipper made quick work of everything I ripped out. Then a 5' box blade with the scarifiers down made quick work of any roots remaining & all the scrub in the area.

 

[Chain Bender]

does any body have good ideas how to clear small saplings, thorns and undergrowth with my 3038e john deere cut with fel brush hog land scape rake, 2 bottom plow and rear blade. oh and this is all on a moderate incline have been using brush grubber heavy duty works great with 2" trees but does not work on smaller or very green saplings which just bends over sapling and just pulls off the end of the tree help anything will help.

XXXXXXXX

If you have a helper I'd go with a chain or some kevlar rope to pull the saplings out of the ground. There is a pretty good looking set of grabs made that sells in Northern for $50 and up. But you still need a helper unless your knees are in way better shape than mine. Crawling off and back on that tractor gets old to us old AND fat guys.

Good luck,
CB

 

[johndeerezach]

no i am young but knees are most likely worse than yours had acl surgery 3 months ago but thats what me and my dad have been doing is just using a brush grubber and pulling them out. takes a while but gets it done

 

[deepNdirt]

Most of the things I do is undergrowth thinning it wooded area's, Thorns included I dont push through and cut stuff that I cannot see into,
I've found the best approach for me is to back over them, some have advised to push over what you can with the FEL and thats good if it is rather tall standing stuff, I then turn the tractor around lift the brush cutter 2/3rd the way and drop it over the stuff need shredded, Note:The driver is pretty safe and out of the way while seating on the tractor, Although be sure you have no one standing around when doing this, things tend to sling out while the cutter is lifted and shredding, the cutter can cut through Pine sapling good,however when cutting the harder wood such as dogwoods you might want to limit the sizes to under 2" girth,

 

[EastTexFrank]

If there was an easy answer to this problem I'm sure I would have found it by now as I've been working on my "thicket" for years.

I'm also working on some pretty steep slopes and basically I do what deepNdirt does. I back into it. You don't want to run off into something that you can't get back out of. If there's some bigger stuff, I turn around and use the the chain to drag it out and then run the bush hog over it or I cut it up and take the thicker, unmulchable part to the burn pit. I know that it's hard on the knees and back but you just have to take it a little bit at a time.

The only easier way is to hire somebody with a mulcher head on a skid steer. He can probably do in two or three days what it'll take me the rest of my life to do.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I run the shredder over anything that the tractor can push over if it doesnt uproot. IF it uproots, then I can use the FEL to finish ripping it out and push it into a pile. Small stuff less than 3" sometimes will just bend over and is easily cut by the bush hog when bent like that. At worst case, it just knocks the limbs off, but it will mangle anything that gets under it enought that is isnt going to live any longer. If the shredded remains are thick enough, I then use the tooth bar on the fel to scrape them all into a pile and sometimes pull the larger tree roots out. Boxblade with scarifiers lowered helps with getting out the roots also. By shortening the 3rd arm to the max, it puts the scarifiers deeper into the ground and keeps the blade from gathering dirt. Small stuff like you are talking about, I just shred with the bush hog and keep it mowed as the sprouts try to come back. I have worked out a sweet gum thicket pretty well with just a bush hog and FEL. A few of the larger thorn trees required digging around them at all angles with the BB scarifies to pop the roots before I could push them over with and uproot the main taproot with the FEL. Thorn trees are the hardest to get out. Pines are about the easiest as they have very little root system, plus they dont sprout back out like the sweet gums. Sweet gums and thorn trees will continue to sprout out from the roots for years and will require frequent mowing to keep them down.

 

[MESSMAKER]

Don't discount a few hours with a sharp axe. Not that hard and you can cut low to the ground. Chain saw is fine, but the ground dulls the chain in a hurry.

 

[Treemonkey1000]

Don't discount a few hours with a sharp axe. Not that hard and you can cut low to the ground. Chain saw is fine, but the ground dulls the chain in a hurry.

Axes are a good way to get hurt if you aren't careful but you know that. A Pulaski would be a better tool if you want to swing a sharp implement..This is what we use when we are rebuilding trails here in the Northwest

 

[Bdavis]

Used this setup this past fall with pretty good results. I like the loppers because they are safe to operate and you can cut the saplings off low to the ground. What really makes them better than a chain saw is that you can cut your way to the saplings, it will cut a vine as easily as a sapling. They will get jammed occasionally but with a few small tools , you can quickly clear it.

 

[AndyG]

Sometimes I am amazed at the things that I read here. The whole point of spending $25K-$30K on a tractor and attachments is so you do not have to screw around with an axe and a weedeater. This is th type of work that tractor is made for. I will assume that the slope is not to steep to drive on. Put the bush hog on the tractor and mow everyting! The bush hog will shred the evidence. If you pull or cut them out then you have to haul the saplings away. If the slope is to steep for comfortable driving sideways just back down the slope then drive back up and your risk of overturning is greatly reduced. Keep the ROPS up!, wear the seatbelt, and move slowly.