Clearing saplings and cedars?

[Little Joe]

What is the most efficient method to clear saplings and cedars? Some are in old fence row and a lot in the pasture area. This is new place I'm in the process of acquiring that hasn't been grazed in 25 years and hasn't been brush hogged in about 8 years. Has old fence with t posts around perimeter with a lot of cedars and small saplings growing up in it.

 

[Little Joe]

I'm leaning towards a track hoe with thumb and pull the cedars and saplings up. Any suggestions and experience would be appreciated.

 

[SBMF 2015]

If you have access to a track hoe that would be the best.

I don't have one so I use my MFWD loader tractor. It works fine. I can push out trees as big around as my leg with out to much trouble. You just have to go slow and keep your eyes out for T posts.

 

[callmefence]

Skid steer with a tree shear , grapple, and brush mower... just if you want to use the right tool for the job.

 

[Little Joe]

Skid steer with a tree shear , grapple, and brush mower... just if you want to use the right tool for the job.

How much stump will that leave, never used one?

 

[Dsth]

i would suggest a tree or post puller rather than a tree shear. with the shear, you will have the stump and depending on tree species and time of year that you shear, some may grow back. a puller will lift roots out of the ground and they will not regrow. i have used a brush mower also with a lot of regrowth. if you are leaving the fence in, you will probably have to cut them with a hand saw or buy a good hand shear. you will want to coat the stump that is left with a product like tordon RTU to keep it from growing back. it is a pain in the **s to remove the trees the first time, so do it right the first time so you don't have to do it the second time.

 

[callmefence]

Skid steer with a tree shear , grapple, and brush mower... just if you want to use the right tool for the job.

How much stump will that leave, never used one?

Non above grade if used properly.
Cut your biggest stuff with the shear and clean up with the grapple. Then run the shredder you can cut every thing down to smooth grade.
I posted videos of all this that should be back in the archives. We do this for a living along with building fence back on the cleared ground.
A stump bucket is a horrible choice for the work you describe. You'll make a mess and be slow about doing it. If you want to pull saplings up use the shear.
I'm cutting hay on mesquite flat that I cleared last winter. I don't care what you do you need to follow with herbicide. Tordon22 is much more cost effective than the garden store rtu.

 

[SBMF 2015]

Tordon is great advice. We have pulled a lot of trees just to have them grow back as a nasty bush. All depends on the species. Mulberry and hedge (Osage Orange) are two of the worst around here for regrow.

 

[shaz]

If you have access to a track hoe that would be the best.

I don't have one so I use my MFWD loader tractor. It works fine. I can push out trees as big around as my leg with out to much trouble. You just have to go slow and keep your eyes out for T posts.

+1

 

[callmefence]

Tordon is great advice. We have pulled a lot of trees just to have them grow back as a nasty bush. All depends on the species. Mulberry and hedge (Osage Orange) are two of the worst around here for regrow.

Tordon22 or picloram the p in grazon p×d is the only thing that will reliably kill cedar and prickly pear. 1-100 of tordan22 or 1-50 of grazon pxd is very effective in keeping most brush and trees from coming back. You do have to have a permit. But we're talking about the most efficient and doing it right.. Actually the best way to clean it up would be to spray it, clear it and spray it again.
Fwiw I've cleaned many a mile with a tractor fel.
And it can work. But it ain't the most efficient..lol. Beats a chainsaw and loper's, done plenty that way before we had a tractor. :nod:

 

[sstterry]

What is the diameter of the Cedars in the lot? Depencing on size, cedars have a root structure that is essentially a big ball, they are easy to push over and just pop out. When I cleared the area where I built my house, I used a track loader and got rid of a ton of them. Hardwoods are a different story. While I don't disagree with Fence, those Cedar stumps will stay there for years. I prefer to uproot them and and smooth out the holes.

 

[callmefence]

What is the diameter of the Cedars in the lot? Depencing on size, cedars have a root structure that is essentially a big ball, they are easy to push over and just pop out. When I cleared the area where I built my house, I used a track loader and got rid of a ton of them. Hardwoods are a different story. While I don't disagree with Fence, those Cedar stumps will stay there for years. I prefer to uproot them and and smooth out the holes.

You can disagree Terry you have every right to your own wrong opinion.
A 18" diameter cedar in clay may have a very large and deep root ball while one on heavy rock will have more of a mat that cover a couple hundred square feet. Either one will leave a mess you don't just smooth out. I guess I'm gonna have to dig out some pictures.... lol every one else do the same
The op description of saplings though makes me think more of a thick stand of young growth. Not going to be real efficient with a stump bucket or excavator. Lots of it probably doesn't have enough of a trunk to push.
And not much in the way of stumps either.

 

[Brute 23]

Try to find a local burn association and burn it. Now is the best time since it has plenty of fuel.

 

[Rmc]

Most efficient and cost effective way to clear saplings and neglected pasture i know of is a herd of horned scottish highlands. The will clear all the brush and saplings and thrive on it. No need to spend thousands of dollars on mechanical means and chemicals . When you can do it with little to no effort using hundreds of years of evolution. Scottishhighlands are browsers as well as grazers. They can digest and thrive where other types of cattle will struggle. They will eat all the saplings and will remove all the leaves from all the trees up as high as they can reach . They will also scrub and scrap there horns on the larger trees stripping the bark of and killing and breaking many of the smaller trees . And damaging the branches of the larger ones.

 

[callmefence]

Well there you go..............

 

[sstterry]

What is the diameter of the Cedars in the lot? Depencing on size, cedars have a root structure that is essentially a big ball, they are easy to push over and just pop out. When I cleared the area where I built my house, I used a track loader and got rid of a ton of them. Hardwoods are a different story. While I don't disagree with Fence, those Cedar stumps will stay there for years. I prefer to uproot them and and smooth out the holes.

You can disagree Terry you have every right to your own wrong opinion.
A 18" diameter cedar in clay may have a very large and deep root ball while one on heavy rock will have more of a mat that cover a couple hundred square feet. Either one will leave a mess you don't just smooth out. I guess I'm gonna have to dig out some pictures.... lol every one else do the same
The op description of saplings though makes me think more of a thick stand of young growth. Not going to be real efficient with a stump bucket or excavator. Lots of it probably doesn't have enough of a trunk to push.
And not much in the way of stumps either.

Texas is a lot different than East Tennessee. I have nver seen a Cedar with a spreading mat of roots. Hardwoods yes not Cedars.

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

Most efficient and cost effective way to clear saplings and neglected pasture i know of is a herd of horned scottish highlands. The will clear all the brush and saplings and thrive on it. No need to spend thousands of dollars on mechanical means and chemicals . When you can do it with little to no effort using hundreds of years of evolution. Scottishhighlands are browsers as well as grazers. They can digest and thrive where other types of cattle will struggle. They will eat all the saplings and will remove all the leaves from all the trees up as high as they can reach . They will also scrub and scrap there horns on the larger trees stripping the bark of and killing and breaking many of the smaller trees . And damaging the branches of the larger ones.

Where would one go to purchase these incredible beasts?

 

[Little Joe]

The saplings are mostly gum. I have some longhorn cows, I actually thought about clearing the fence rows and fixing fence so I could put the longhorns in there and maybe add a few more longhorns in and let them clear what they can. There's about 20 acres that's like that, has some wild blackberries in there too.If it wasn't for having to have such a good fence I'd turn in a bunch of goats. The cedars are fair size so will have to handle them with equipment one way or another.

 

[callmefence]

What is the diameter of the Cedars in the lot? Depencing on size, cedars have a root structure that is essentially a big ball, they are easy to push over and just pop out. When I cleared the area where I built my house, I used a track loader and got rid of a ton of them. Hardwoods are a different story. While I don't disagree with Fence, those Cedar stumps will stay there for years. I prefer to uproot them and and smooth out the holes.

You can disagree Terry you have every right to your own wrong opinion.
A 18" diameter cedar in clay may have a very large and deep root ball while one on heavy rock will have more of a mat that cover a couple hundred square feet. Either one will leave a mess you don't just smooth out. I guess I'm gonna have to dig out some pictures.... lol every one else do the same
The op description of saplings though makes me think more of a thick stand of young growth. Not going to be real efficient with a stump bucket or excavator. Lots of it probably doesn't have enough of a trunk to push.
And not much in the way of stumps either.

Texas is a lot different than East Tennessee. I have nver seen a Cedar with a spreading mat of roots. Hardwoods yes not Cedars.

Your turn....

 

[sstterry]

You can disagree Terry you have every right to your own wrong opinion.
A 18" diameter cedar in clay may have a very large and deep root ball while one on heavy rock will have more of a mat that cover a couple hundred square feet. Either one will leave a mess you don't just smooth out. I guess I'm gonna have to dig out some pictures.... lol every one else do the same
The op description of saplings though makes me think more of a thick stand of young growth. Not going to be real efficient with a stump bucket or excavator. Lots of it probably doesn't have enough of a trunk to push.
And not much in the way of stumps either.

Texas is a lot different than East Tennessee. I have nver seen a Cedar with a spreading mat of roots. Hardwoods yes not Cedars.

Your turn....

I am not saying you are wrong, but I am not in the habit of taking pics of the Cedars I have uprooted. I don't have time to crawl off my track loader and snap a pic for every tree I push over.