Best way for clearing HUNDREDS of stumps?

[bcp]

I fully expect it to take me all spring and summer to get the trees down,...

Get a large excavator or dozer to push the trees down, then there won't be 100's of stumps left to dig out.

Bruce

 

[4570Man]

Get a large excavator or dozer to push the trees down, then there won't be 100's of stumps left to dig out.

Bruce

Agreed. Cutting the trees first is a big waste of time.

 

[nybirdman]

I had about five acres cleared of brush with a skid steer with a Fecon head;left some trees that were good for firewood(cut over the winter)spring time I hired a guy with a 6000 lb.excavator with a thumb to dig maybe 50 stumps and I cleaned up and piled with my tractor and grapple.Burned the piles and no big holes to fill.

 

[NYCheese]

Get a large excavator or dozer to push the trees down, then there won't be 100's of stumps left to dig out.

Bruce

What size machine are we talking about here, to be capable of pushing down trees that are 24"+?

I'm not at all opposed to this idea, I just don't have any experience running equipment that would be big enough to do it.

 

[BoylermanCT]

I hired a large excavator to demo my barn, and while he was at it, I asked him to remove a stump from a 20" diameter oak tree. Took him less than 2 minutes. Get the right tool for the job or you will be clearing your field forever! This is a 70,000 lb excavator.

 

[TractorGuy]

What size machine are we talking about here, to be capable of pushing down trees that are 24"+?

I'm not at all opposed to this idea, I just don't have any experience running equipment that would be big enough to do it.

15,000 lb minimum.

 

[oosik]

I helped a fellow clear a windrow of willows. At first we fell the trees and left a stump about five feet high. We pulled the stump over & out with his large agricultural tractor. What a mess. It left gigantic holes. And we still had the stump and root ball to deal with.

Then we started cutting the trees at or a bit below ground level. Left the stump & root ball in the ground to rot away. Rented a large self propelled chipper and over a two week period all the trees were chipped.

His windrow was at the property line. Depressions & holes from the rotting root wad presented no problems. After about five years he ran his crawler tractor over the area. It fill all the holes - compressed the ground - leveled everything out. He just might have to do it again with his crawler tractor in another ten years or so.

 

[1010]

Hardwood is in big demand in my area $$$ I certainly wouldn't waste my timber. I dunno what you have either but a 14 inch + tree is worth something..

 

[Jstpssng]

Hardwood is in big demand in my area $$$ I certainly wouldn't waste my timber. I dunno what you have either but a 14 inch + tree is worth something..

I was thinking the same thing. That's before we start talking about what to do with all of those trees afterward. As a very rough estimate if the field is completely grown in. you have 1 cord of biomass per acre for every foot of height.

This is the proper tool for land clearing...

 

[caver]

Getting rid of the trees will also eliminate "rotors" coming off them. Never flew a paramotor but flew a trike for several years and a Weedhooper before that.

 

[ruffdog]

I had 1800 evergreens removed and the stumps cut flush.

 

[Jstpssng]

^^^^ Did they blow the chips back out onto the ground, or is the chipper waiting for a truck?

 

[ruffdog]

^^^^ Did they blow the chips back out onto the ground, or is the chipper waiting for a truck?

They blew the chips to the ground and spread them with the Hydro-ax. The Hydro-ax also ground up the small brush like the Buckthorn and Mulberry. With the right equipment, good operators, lots of work gets done quickly....and safely.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

You got your answer already, either knock over with dozer with roots attached, or cut and use excavator

 

[Kioti Dave]

How about a large mulcher on a cat? They seem to shred everything, and leave a smooth finished surface. I have seen them build trails in the bush and do a very good job.

 

[NYCheese]

How about a large mulcher on a cat? They seem to shred everything, and leave a smooth finished surface. I have seen them build trails in the bush and do a very good job.

I think with the amount of rocks in the ground here, that's probably a no-go. As most others have said, a large excavator is probably gonna be the way to go. Just a matter of comparing the cost of renting vs the cost of hiring it out.

 

[Fallon]

How about a large mulcher on a cat? They seem to shred everything, and leave a smooth finished surface. I have seen them build trails in the bush and do a very good job.

It would have the same drawbacks as a stump grinder mostly. Any stump or pile of chips in a hole will rot & shrink over the years. Creating divots or holes. Perfectly fine in many situations, but not great for lawns & stuff. Downright hideous for foundations & roads.

 

[pmsmechanic]

Would this work?

 

[Jstpssng]

^^^^^
The only problem with that is all of your topsoil ends up in the stump pile. You will also lose some with an excavator, but not as much.

 

[pmsmechanic]

^^^^^
The only problem with that is all of your topsoil ends up in the stump pile. You will also lose some with an excavator, but not as much.

Did you watch the video?