clearing and pond project starts today

[tz666]

Today my contractor starts clearing a low acre of my property to make a pond. Its way too much to take on with my MF 1230. So far he has brought in a Case 850k dozer and the trackhoe should be here after the school busses quit running this morning. The area he will be clearing is a little over an acre and heavily wooded with small trees and briars. It is low and stays muddy and I get stuck every time I venture in there. There are trees that were uprooted or snapped all over the ground from last years storms. Its just a mess. When its all done I should have a 3/4 acre pond that horshoes around my one big oak that is left and I will plant more smaller ones. I took some before pics yesterday but havent got them off the camera. Ill get wife to upload them when she gets up and moving. Ill keep posting with updates and pics.

 

[EddieWalker]

How far out from the oak will your pond be? The reason I ask is those older trees are very picky about what goes on around them. Of the ones I saved, I've lost two. Both were on the opposite side of the road from my pond, but driving past them all the time must have compacted the soil. They both died on the same side. First they started dropping limbs during a storm. Every storm, I'd have to pick them up. Some were well over a foot thick. Two plus years later, they are both dead and coming out. They are both in the four foot thick and the base range and a real shame to have lost.

In hindsite, I don't know if I would have done anything different, but I did want to keep those two trees. If they had been closer to the pond or in the way of where I wanted to dig, then they would have come out. I took out some beautiful trees that were keepers in any other situation, but the pond took priority.

If the tree is stoping the pond from being larger, then take it out. If you think it will live, good luck. It might or it might not. It will take a few years to know that. If it dies, then it's a real shame to have lost the tree and not have made the pond as big as possible.

Another thing is that of all the thousands of trees that I've taken out on my land, I don't miss a single one. I remember a few of the bigger ones, but there isn't a single one that I'd want back.

Good luck on the pond. I'm looking forward to seeing your pictures and following along on your progress.

Eddie

 

[jinman]

Ill keep posting with updates and pics.

Terrific! I'll keep checking your thread to see how it's coming. I may not always post a response, but you can bet I love threads like this and check them often.

 

[tz666]

from what I was told I could keep the tree as long as they digg far enoug out from the trunk, which I was told was as far out as the canopy of the tree. If it dies it will be firewood at a later date and I will plant another one. I cant make my pond much bigger because I need to reclaim pasture for my horses.

 

[philbuilt]

I love a good pond story with lots of pictures! I will be watching as well. Will the horses have access? do you have fish in mind? Oh the pond will keep you thinking.
Best of luck
Phil

 

[tz666]

ok the clearing has started here is a link to my photo site...
Clearing and Pond Project | tz | Fotki.com
The horses will have access and there will be fish

 

[MarkV]

If you haven't already, spend some time doing a little reading at Pond Boss Magazine Home Page! .
There is a lot of information on building and stocking new ponds.

MarkV

 

[tz666]

I have already started threads on that site and gotten some good info

 

[tjc1989]

I wanted a little pond on my land, too, and was told it couldn't be done without a dozer. I didn't want to pay several thousand to have someone bring a dozer and do it for me, I did it myself with my tractor , that has a front end loader and a box blade. The little pond is about 100 feet by 100 feet, and about 7 to 8 feet deep if it was full. Here are some pics of progress. I first built the pond in November 2007, and the nearly full pics were in October 2008, and one of the pics with the tractor on top of the dam were in October 2008 also, when I was adding to height of dam.

 

[tz666]

Clearing and Pond Project | tz | Fotki.com
day 2 clearing pics up