Dirt Moving How should I clear this brush?

[Slowpoke Slim]

If a member doesn't wish to enter his location, that is his choice. Not yours. Enough already.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

Folks sure like to spend other people's money.

My recommendation would be to mow it all down with a brush hog. Then rake out as much of the cuttings and debris with a landscape rake as possible. Then spray it right away. Then be fully prepared to mow it all again in 3-4 weeks to cut down any new shoots that survived the spraying. You may have to do follow up mowing a couple more times to stay ahead of it. Once the grass takes over, it will be less of a challenge, and maybe your "roaming animals" will be able to keep it down.

Much cheaper than renting specialty equipment or hiring a contractor for a single shot visit.

 

[Egon]

Sheep & goats. They will do a very nice job of it.

 

[Diggin It]

Problem is, mowing isn't really an option for me. Pictures may not do justice but the ground is so covered in debris it would be a nightmare to mow through (take a look at the middle photo for reference). I don't own a rider but imagine that's what you all are referring to, given the condition of the ground, you guys think a rider can handle that type of terrain? And what type of sapling diameter can a powerful rider take on, like in the 20-22hp range.

I'm talking about a walk behind field and brush mower. Mine will take a 2-3" sapling. It just pulverizes everything to dust or mulch. There is very little left to dispose of. It's a lot of work to clear an area like that, but I've done it more than once. Repeated mowings with the same machine will make it more manageable over time. Eventually when you get some kind of rider, you'll be in a better position to use that. Problem is, you won't find a decent one for under about $2500.00

This isn't mine, but it's the same machine:

A small tractor with a trailing rotary brush cutter would also help considerably.

You mentioned a brush cutter blade .... does that mean a 2 stroke line trimmer type thing? I can't see accomplishing much with that.

 

[Avenger]

I understand goats love blackberry vine salad. Honeysuckle too if you have that.

This :number1:

Forgo the spraying. You (and your ground) does not need spraying.

Rent a small walk behind mower and mow it down first, but be warned that it is a friggen workout! Tractors with a rotary mower are much better. If you can, post a help wanted ad on Craigslist for tractor work. Someone in your area probably has a tractor with a mower that is more then willing to help out, for a small fee.
Once the brush is mulch, pulse a goat or three though in a paddock shift system (set up 2 or 3 pins, and move them around the area when the area is getting low). These dont need to be YOUR goats. Again, see if anyone in your area has a few goats they'd be willing to bring over for some free food. Goats are really good at eating just about anything. If you wish to own your own, they are great for small homesteads, but do your research first. Goat milk is awesome!

Alternatively, and what I would do with my tractor, is mow it down, then use teeth on the bucket of my FEL to remove the roots the best I can. Take it all the way down to bare earth if possible. Even go as far as rototilling the area. I would use my BH to remove any stumps as well. Stumps are always in the way. I would then seed back with a pasture grass mix of dutch white clover, vetch, fescue and the like. The thought process here is to get a healthy layer of seeds down quick. Nature will fill the vacuum with things like weeds if you don't fill it with beneficial plants first. Once the plants have matured, I would then pulse whatever animal I want though the area on a paddock shift system. You'd be surprised what goat or cow can do to the land, in terms of making it better, if properly managed.

Hope this helps. And good luck.

 

[Avenger]

And I just took a look at the photos of your land. Looks very similar to mine! Only difference is that your land is much flatter!

Swing by my YT channel (link in signature line), I just cleared some land in my latest video, on a steep hill side. You might see what I did to get some ideas.

 

[Gordon Gould]

Didn't you say in your first post that you have a brush cutter. That's what use. After a while you can switch to a riding lawn mower.

gg

 

[MH8675309]

You said something about a grazing area. I have beef cattle and they do a good job on everything from scrub brush to large bushes. Fence them in and let them work - it wont happen over night but they will eventually destroy the better part of the nuisance plants. Mine have good grazing available but still manage to somehow kill some large bushes.

 

[ning]

For blackberries, I typically chain them if a large thick bramble - get a long chain and wrap it around, pull the chain and most of the berries come right out of the ground, and I'm left with a compact mass of berry vines to burn. Most of a thick bramble is dead and dry, the few things that are still alive and sticking out of the ground can be dug out without a lot of effort. Net result: no poisons to you and me, and no more berries. For smaller patches, a ratchet rake will gather it up reasonably well but it's actually easier to deal with if it's a big clump.

If you're dedicated, you can mow it year after year and control it but you can't let the regrowth be unmowed for more than a couple of weeks before it starts replenishing the root's stocks. If you're dedicated, mowing will eventually kill off the root network but I prefer to yank the stuff out and just be done with it now (where I live you see large patches of blackberries taking over meadows and infiltrating forests).

Poison oak: pull it out. Spray it will kill it off till next year; you need to get the root nodules out and you won't see it again. Burn your clothes (mostly joking) and jump right in a cold shower, use a strong dish detergent, and immediately take benadryl so that you don't even start to react.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I was clearing fallen pines this last weekend. Fighting terrible prickly weeds. Is there anything not too environmentally offensive that would kill weeds but leave valuable saplings?