How would you guys clear this land? *Pics*

[RSKY]

I am bad about always trying to do things on the cheap. But this is only six acres. I would bushhog everything down that I could. Talking about grass, weeds, and small saplings. Then I would get a chainsaw and cut all the non mowable stuff down as close to the ground as possible. Close enough to mow over. Then I would go back with a bucket of diesel and a paint brush and paint the stumps with the diesel which should kill the roots. Wait a couple years and most small stumps will be rotted out.

RSKY

 

[deezler]

I am bad about always trying to do things on the cheap. But this is only six acres. I would bushhog everything down that I could. Talking about grass, weeds, and small saplings. Then I would get a chainsaw and cut all the non mowable stuff down as close to the ground as possible. Close enough to mow over. Then I would go back with a bucket of diesel and a paint brush and paint the stumps with the diesel which should kill the roots. Wait a couple years and most small stumps will be rotted out.

RSKY

I was liking it right up until you said to put carcinogenic petroleum right into the ground. Sounds like a good way to try to give your pasture animals cancer. Drill some holes and fill with glyphosphate (roundup) should do the same thing, but with far less long term toxicity.

Amazing how much of that type of thinking is still prevalent in this country and on this site. "just throw some diesel on it".... haha.

 

[ShowroomShine]

I am bad about always trying to do things on the cheap. But this is only six acres. I would bushhog everything down that I could. Talking about grass, weeds, and small saplings. Then I would get a chainsaw and cut all the non mowable stuff down as close to the ground as possible. Close enough to mow over. Then I would go back with a bucket of diesel and a paint brush and paint the stumps with the diesel which should kill the roots. Wait a couple years and most small stumps will be rotted out.

RSKY

Pasture needs to be useable, dont think it would grow grass or horses very well with stumps full of diesel all over the place.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Pasture needs to be useable, dont think it would grow grass or horses very well with stumps full of diesel all over the place.

That is a total misconception. Painting the stumps with diesel is not getting much if any into the ground, and I would prefer that to chemicals. You could pour diesel directly onto pasture grass and within 2 years it would be growing again, the same with straight Crude oil. Once the volatile evaporate, grass grows greener where the oil was at, seen that first hand and it looks like it was fertilized.

I am not condoning use of diesel on stumps but I sure wouldn't be afraid to use it. Stumps will rot out on their own with exception of sweetgum or thorn and those will keep sprouting back if even a small root is left so some sort of herbicide will be needed to kill those out.

 

[ShowroomShine]

That is a total misconception. Painting the stumps with diesel is not getting much if any into the ground, and I would prefer that to chemicals. You could pour diesel directly onto pasture grass and within 2 years it would be growing again, the same with straight Crude oil. Once the volatile evaporate, grass grows greener where the oil was at, seen that first hand and it looks like it was fertilized.

I am not condoning use of diesel on stumps but I sure wouldn't be afraid to use it. Stumps will rot out on their own with exception of sweetgum or thorn and those will keep sprouting back if even a small root is left so some sort of herbicide will be needed to kill those out.

I was more talking about trying to achieve a lush pasture with a bunch of stumps sitting around.

 

[Gary Fowler]

If you want to clear the land AND get rid of stumps, then just bush hog all you can, cut the trees as close to the ground as possible so the mower wont hit the stump (OR if money is available for a stump grinder to get them down below surface, go for that). The trees can be left where they lay or piled into neat stacks which will rot in 2-3 years. They will rot faster when left laying on the ground for the bugs and microbes to work on them. Other than burning or paying mucho dinero to have them hauled off, rotting is going to be the cheapest way out. They could be pushed back to the perimeter of the land and left to rot without much problem.
I would go with cutting low and/or the stump grinder and then just keep any sprouts mowed down vs applying chemicals every year.

 

[JamesHW]

I have slowly cleared about an acre of my 80 over the years. Left small stuff that I cut a couple of foot above ground and after a year or two could just kick the stump out of the ground and kept the rest mowed. Getting impatient (I only get to spend 4 weeks a year working on it) and wanting to get the old 6 acre agricultural field cleared that had been encroached by the forest over the years that judging by historic aerial images was last completely clear around 1950. I remember we rented it what was still clear (about 2 acres) out for growing corn in the early sixties. By the time we took it over it was down to about an acre that I kept mowed and worked a bit around the edges, but was left with about 5 acres of mixed trees

Researched a bit trying to find a good timber harvester to see what it would cost. Checking with my local Stihl dealer he relayed there was a dearth of good reputable crews and the good ones were booked up for a while.

Then I found a pro outfit that does a lot of work for the state and clearing for commercial concerns that has a lot of the heavy equipment. Called them up and the guy came by within days to take a look. After we walked the property he was able see that we had enough saw logs on the areas last logged in the early sixties and the late 40's (judging from the old stumps) to more than pay for clearing our ag field. He cruised the property using a device that estimated log value broken down by specie real time and that data was included in the contract we signed and a licensed forester on their staff also came in and consulted. We gave them a deposit that I understood essentially protected them coming in, putting in the 120 foot gravel road back to the field and clearing the 5 acres and having me kick them out before the job was finished. Once the field was cleared it acted as the yard for processing the logs and chipping and loading all into trucks for removal. If I had wanted to clear just the 5 acres without harvesting any timber the quote would have been over 5k per acre.

The work is almost done and I can't be happier. The 5 acre field is cleared and they are finishing up pulling the stumps and will leave the ground clean and graded. Already have received inquiries on renting the field for crops and am very happy with the quality of the soil. Will be testing the soil in May and deciding on a cover crop to plant ASAP.

The harvesting of the rest of the land (excluding wetlands) has resulted in fantastic roads and clearings throughout the property, exactly what I wanted. They were able to mainly keep to existing fire roads, ATV/pony trails & old logging trails, using their equipment to reach into areas to extract trees, resulting in zero damage to surrounding younger trees or the forest floor. Walking the trails you almost can't tell that areas have been harvested except for the low stumps that I will leave to rot. Almost all the slash and non-saw logs have been hauled out and chipped (chips sold to local pulp mill for fuel), leaving not a lot of work for me. I might rent a stump grinder to take out a few stumps that sit in clearings that may become campsites depending on our plans.

Now I have to figure out a barn of some sort...

 

[dickfoster]

I sort of lost the plot here, was thinking this project is in California.

There are lots of tub grinders here. In the Central Valley orchards are being ripped out for subdivisions, over here on the North Coast ripped out to plant vineyards. Its a common sight.

Seems to me renting an excavator, maybe with operator, then a tub grinder crew when you eventually locate one, would work for this.

I've been thinking a tub grinder would be ideal too but I haven't seen any up here in the hills.
I see can't understand why PTO stump grinders cost so much and no one can seem to give me an answer. Compare what's in a PTO chipper then a PTO stump grinder then compare the prices. It's just plain nuts. The price for a chipper seems reasonable but a stump grinder costs like a backhoe. Crazy.

As a test, I buried the end of my chainsaw into a freshly cut oak stump several places about 8" deep to see if that would make it rot any faster.

 

[RSKY]

I have used the diesel method several times and had no problems. As somebody else said it pretty well disappears within a few months. And it kills the stump better than any other 'chemical' you can buy. Didn't say pour gallons on it, said to paint tops with a paintbrush. Or you could pour salt on the stump. Cost you a little bit more and the ground will be bare for two-three years, but it works.

I agree with Fowler, just cut the stumps as close to the ground as possible and paint with WHATEVER you have that will kill the stump and stop regrowth. In a few years you won't be able to tell where a tree stood. Pile the trunks and limbs up in one big pile and either let it rot or burn it when snow is on the ground.

Be out a thousand or so for time and fuel and a good chainsaw.

Or spend thirty or forty thousand and get the same results a couple years earlier.

RSKY

 

[J35]

If it was me, I would rent an excavator and pull/dig everything out of the ground and make a burn pile. If I couldn't burn it all at once, I would take my time and do it over several years and just live with the pile until it was gone. I'm cheap and I hate spending money on somebody else's labor. Why can't you dig a pit and put everything in the pit while it was burning? Then fill it up when your done?

My neighbor has hired out mulchers several times on his land and it's fun to see the quick results, but in every case, the trees all grow back in a year if he doesn't keep mowing it. Grass never seems to grow in those areas, just shrubs, trees and monstrous weeds. He currently is dealing with the aftermath of having it logged. It's costing him twice what he made from the logging to dig out the stumps, burn all the debris and grade the ground so it will be ready to plant. I still don't know what it will cost to plant it all. He sprigged it last time and that was several grand.[/QUOTE

Kinda like this

-----J