Removing small trees

13bullets

13bullets

Chris
Joined
Dec 14, 2008
Location
Lincolnton
The back 1/3 of my lot is wooded and has a ton of small trees that I'm going to be removing, 3-6" in diameter or so. I've got no problem cutting them down but I don't want to leave the stumps in the ground. I also don't think grinding that many tiny stumps would be feasible. Is there a better way, shy of pushing them over with a D6 or the like, or would something like that be my best bet? My entire lot is only 3/4 acre so it's not something most professionals are going to want to bother with.
 
How many trees are you looking at cutting down? Also, what do you plan to do with the area once cleared?
 
drkelly said:
How many trees are you looking at cutting down? Also, what do you plan to do with the area once cleared?
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I don't know, maybe 200 or so? It's been allowed to grow unchecked for a number of years. There's dead trees down in there too, I just want my yard to be usable space, not an overgrown mess. I intend to put a building in there somewhere.
 
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This is what I'm looking at.
 

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A large skid steer--especially with a toothed bucket--would push those over in a day. Counterintuitively though pines are much harder to push over than a similar sized or larger hardwood and those are right on the edge of what a sub 10k machine might do.
 
An alternative would be to cut them as close to flush with the ground and AS SOON AS you cut them, wipe the remaining truck with pure Round Up concentrate. Use a small painters bucket and a paint brush. Its amazing how fast they will rot if you kill them when you cut them.
If you come in with a skid steer or excavator it will make a large mess to clean up plus disturb the ground a lot.
 
With that density, I'd be prone to pay decent money to someone with a forestry mulcher to come in and take care of it. I don't have any recommendations of anyone, but check out pics 12 and 13 on this Craigslist ad to show the before and after:
Forestry Mulching-Underbrushing-Land Clearing
 
jeepinmatt said:
With that density, I'd be prone to pay decent money to someone with a forestry mulcher to come in and take care of it. I don't have any recommendations of anyone, but check out pics 12 and 13 on this Craigslist ad to show the before and after:
Forestry Mulching-Underbrushing-Land Clearing
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I'll definitely look into finding someone locally to me that can do this. I didn't know this was a thing.
 
I'm currently clearing about an acre with my trail jeep and a chainsaw. I run over the small trees then pull the stumps up after I cut them off.
 
13bullets said:
I'll definitely look into finding someone locally to me that can do this. I didn't know this was a thing.
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Cost almost $8k to have a guy spend two days with a mulcher reclaiming the trails at our place in MS. They do a good job but they ain't cheap.
Besides why let someone else have all the fun.
 
braxton357 said:
Cost almost $8k to have a guy spend two days with a mulcher reclaiming the trails at our place in MS. They do a good job but they ain't cheap.
Besides why let someone else have all the fun.
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Holy cow. Nope, can't pay that.
 
I had my stuff done last year. Over 2 acres. Came through and mulched first, then brought in the bulldozer and big excavators. Cost 2400 to mulch and then 7000 ish to finish up.

Most of the guys with forestry mulchers will charge 150 to 175 an hr, but they can get a LOT done in a day.
 
Yea it will be hard to get someone to come do a job that small unless you find someone local. What will you do with the brush? If you can't burn it or dump it, hauling it off is a pain without a grapple bucket.

I suggest just cut them down and leave about 1' tall stumps, once you have the brush cut and piled up go rent a mini excavator and dig out the stumps. A skid steer with a 6ft blade is hard to dig stumps with.
 
Tacoma747 said:
Yea it will be hard to get someone to come do a job that small unless you find someone local. What will you do with the brush? If you can't burn it or dump it, hauling it off is a pain without a grapple bucket.

I suggest just cut them down and leave about 1' tall stumps, once you have the brush cut and piled up go rent a mini excavator and dig out the stumps. A skid steer with a 6ft blade is hard to dig stumps with.
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I can burn, which is what I did with trees in the past. It'd be a lot to burn though.
 
braxton357 said:
Hire @jeepinmatt to bring his dozer over. He's a pretty cheap dude, can't be much.
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This is actually an option too. I could probably knock it all down in a couple hours with the dozer, then come back with the skidsteer, get a fire going, and load 20ft see tions of trees onto the fire.
 
jeepinmatt said:
This is actually an option too. I could probably knock it all down in a couple hours with the dozer, then come back with the skidsteer, get a fire going, and load 20ft see tions of trees onto the fire.
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If it takes you longer than 30 minutes to knock 1/4 acre down of those little trees you are doing it wrong haha.

Unless your dozer runs like that tractor you sold @shawn
 
Tacoma747 said:
If it takes you longer than 30 minutes to knock 1/4 acre down of those little trees you are doing it wrong haha.

Unless your dozer runs like that tractor you sold @shawn
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Knocking them down is one thing. Grubbing out the stumps of the ones that broke off in the mix and mess is another. I can make a mess really fast, it's cleaning it up that takes some time :D
 
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