Clearing 15-40 acres

[k alton]

First, I don't even own a bovine, but if the Lord allows me to live long enough (I'm 38 now) I will. Just bought 80 acres on which I plan to build and eventually have several types of critters, including cows. Make a good living already, farming would be my therapy.

Secondly, I love this board and eat up the wisdom so many of you post here. I read you guys a LOT, but I don't post unless it is a question. I try and shy away from the occasional cow poop that makes its way in. But to you wise guys who are sincerely trying to help instead of puff your ego I am very grateful.

The situation (about which I posted several months ago but now am really close to moving dirt): 40 acres of low land that was pasture 5-8 years ago but is now grown up in THICK ash, sweetgum, water oak, briars, etc...none of it over 6-8 diameter. It is THICK...absolutely no walking through it, no driving through it with 4-wheeler or tractor. Has a few lanes through it kept clear by hunters.

Want to clear the 15 acres closest to future home soon. Clearing means leave ready to be seeded for grass. No hauling off, just burning debris on premises. Got five prices from folks out of local bulletin board:

1) Big-time road-building outfit wanted 1,650/acre for the 15 acres. OUCH!! Was going to put a big dozier and a bid excavator on it.
2) Meduim size outfit wouldn't commit to a price per acre, but would put a small dozier (says they are quicker and less likely to get stuck) and an excavator on it for $2,100day. Says he could get 3 acres a day but I don't believe it. I think he could get 1-2 acres day at most.
3) Father/Son outfit just bought a dozier and thanks to all the stinkin hurricanes this summer, are having trouble making the payments. They will put their small dozier with root rake on it, and their backhoe with thumb. They will do it for $850acre flat. Know them, they are reputable.
4) Friend with backhoe will work for $100/hour just pushing it up in rows and leave it for me to burn myself and then level out with 6' disk/box blade. How long should it take him??
5) Guy with 6' woodgrinder says he can grind it all down to the ground for $650/acre, but stubs will shoot up and I will have to spray. He says the pasture will come back on its own.

Options #3,#4, and #5 seem the best to me. What do you think? How well finished/graded does the land need to be to make good pasture? Remember, I am not primarily looking for return on investment here, but rather a a good-looking place to see from the front porch as my wife and I grow old (Lord willing).

Know this was too STINKING long but thanks for reading and any responses.

 

[Double J Cattle]

In my neck of the woods the guys with dozers charge by the hour. We recently had 15 acres of cedar cleared as well as some work on the pasture roads and I think it came to 31 hours. They were on the place for 4 days. This was just brush in scattered bunches. I was just wondering if there was a reason they charge by the day like that. I know diesel is high and upkeep of equipment is too. Are there just not many dozer operators in your area or state for that matter. I know Texas and is it Alabama ? are different as night and day as far as most of the land and conditions. I was just wondering.

 

[jt]

ok... i did the same thing a few years back...a small ( i used mostly a john deere 550... pretty fast little dozier) dozier with a root rake should do a good job on what you have. i had most pine trees mixed with some oak, gum etc.. and briars.. i could clear an acre in 2-3 hours with it.

your prices seem high to me... i had a quote of about 250 per acre to pile it.. i rented a dozier by the week and did it myself.

the cleanest piles can be done with a track hoe with a thumb.. they can pile em high and shake the dirt off before piling and nearly everything will burn the first go around.

the dirt is a disadvantage of a dozier.. more dirt in your burn pile than you would have with a track hoe. for best results you will need the dozier there when you burn to keep the stuff piled and burning. if you have a big enough tractor and box blade you could use it to push with when burning.

you are looking at a lot of work... i really got tired of it by the time i cleared my 30 acres.

good luck

jt

 

[Campground Cattle]

Prices seem outragous to me over here you can get a D-8 with a shear blade and a root rake for 150 an hour. D-8 will do four to five acres a day, and when he pulls out its ready to plant.

 

[Conagher]

Very similar situation. Just had about 6.5 ac. cleared. Like your's it had been pasture 12-15 yrs ago but had grown up so you could not walk through it much less drive. Guy I know was waiting on a few jobs to start, problem making equipment payments, so said he would make me a deal at 500 ac. He "finished" in about 2 wks (lots of equipment breakdown) and then tried to tell me he cleared 10 ac. The reason I put "finished" was because he told me initially he was going to run one of those "environmental grinder" attached to his bobcat over the place to clear the stubs and roots - but later said he tried it and it dulled the blade to bad. So now I'm left with a bit of a mess.

I think option 3 is your best bet with the dozer and rake, BUT agree IN WRITING what will be done and how may ac. it is BEFORE they start any work, regardless of how well you think you know this guy.

Good Luck.

 

[preston39]

Prices seem outragous to me over here you can get a D-8 with a shear blade and a root rake for 150 an hour. D-8 will do four to five acres a day, and when he pulls out its ready to plant.

======
campground cattle,
How many hours in the day for 4-5 acres? Sounds like a pretty good price...was that sparecly grown up or covered in woods?

 

[Campground Cattle]

Thats a 8 hour day in virgin timber. Shear blade clears in a hurry.

http://www.rocklandmfg.com/Dozers/clearing_blade.html

 

[RainMan]

Don't know what the ground is like in your neck of the woods, but with all things being equal, I would rent a medium sized excavator (with thumb and blade) for week ($650-750 around here) and try it myself. Ideally you would run a JD450-550 (many others to choose from) through and knock the stumps then use the excavator to stack your piles, but with a medium sized excavator you can just pull the tree and roots then cut the grade and level with your blade accordingly.

Most contractors price jobs like this by the acre. By charging a flat rate per acre contractors also avoid any quarrels on price, regardless of the time used. By what your describing your freinds deal seems the best, but your probably gonna end up with a lot of dirt in your piles (burning trouble?). This tends to be a big hassle. Better off hitting them with a match and using the excavator to restack as they burn.

Don't know if you've ever run equipment, but I would guess the dealer would give you enough of a lesson on the machine to get you going. Even with no experience on the machine I would think you could clear at least a couple acres within a weeks rental time (Probably a lot more). CW

 

[SF]

Anyone in your area with a "Hydro Ax" This is like a huge bush hog that will mow up trees that size. Should cost less than your estimates thus far. Hydro Ax it and then just keep it mowed. Grass will grow.
My other idea would be to rent a dozer. Should be able to rent one for 1500 per week or less. JMO

 

[Crowderfarms]

I just had about 5 acres cleared. Got a Guy to do it for 50.00 an Hour. Mid-sized Dozer. Some areas thicker than others. Took him 22 hrs. Has to be some of the best money spent. A good operator that back fills his ruts is priceless, and finish grades everything to prevent any washouts. A Hydro Ax is a good idea, but you'll be raking the rest of your life, not to mention staubing a tire here and there.

 

[Arnold Ziffle]

Only 38 years old? Hell, a young buck like you should just get in there with a machete and an axe --- make your ancestors proud.

Just kidding! Damn, those prices sound really high and it also sounds a little like you've been talking to guys that possibly are not real experienced in doing that sort of work. Don't get in too big of a hurry, continue to make inquiries and price comparisons, but make sure you talk to guys that have a lot of experience at doing machine work in the sort of conditions you have.

My situation was very similar to yours and I did a combination of things. First, I bought a good pair or snake-proof chaps, a machete, a ditch blade and some blaze orange surveyor's tape. Then I slowly walked and wiggled through the entire property and marked every single desirable tree that I wanted to preserve on the first go round. Next, on some portions of the property I was able to maneuver around with a tractor with a heavy duty 6 ft. Rhino shredder with a slip clutch and shredded quite a bit of the smaller stuff (trees, brush, briars, blackberry vines, etc), then backed up to and ground up quite a bit of 3 and 4 inch diameter trees. After that I got in there with my chainsaw and took care of a lot of other bigger trees; hot, sweaty work but it was "therapeutic". ;-) For the thickest, most impenetrable areas I hired a dozer operator that really new his stuff, and he was well known around my area for doing an excellent job on similar properties. He used a D-6 and charged $75 per hour (about 10 years ago) and had a waiting line of customers.

If your place is really as thick as you say it is perhaps machine work is the only route to go. One other thought to possibly consider, I've read accounts about the really thick brush country in south Texas (no tall timber) where landowners have hired pilots to fly over portions of the ranch and drop pellets of Spike (or something similar) and then in a year or two it is relatively quick and easy to get a dozer to just scrape the dead stuff onto burn piles.

Lastly, remember that you'll probably have a lot of re-growth from severed roots as well as from years of accumulated seed just waiting for sunlight and soil disturbance to germinate. I think it may be a good idea to not spend a lot of money on establishing permanent pastures right away. After the initial clearing work is done consider frequent discing and/or spraying with Grazon, Remedy, etc. and also for the first year or two planting something like pearl millet for spring/summer grazing and then ryegrass, oats or winter wheat for fall/winter.

Sorry to be so long winded, but good luck to you; take lots of pictures and remember that it doesn't all have to happen in a week or two.

 

[dph]

I agree with Rainman. We have places here that will rent you equipment. I believe they were renting a high track D6 for around $3200/ month here in Iowa. See if you can find a similar deal down there, if you feel comforable doing it yourself, or if you keep looking, you might find a guy like Crowderfarms mentioned, and that would be a great deal.

 

[Bama]

I'm in northern Al. ( Lawrence County ) the soil around her is red clay. Those prices you were quoted per acre seem awfully high to me also. I can get a D8 work done for 100 per hour. A dozer this size can do a lot of work. I havn't saw any of the blades Camp was referring to but it looks like it would do a great job. As far as the piling I usually burn what will then later come back in with a smaller dozer ( 6 ) to kind stir things up a bit, before buring a second time. This alows me to burn it down enough to where I can use a tractor an box on what is left.

 

[Crowderfarms]

Not to bore Yall' with another post, but I have another 15 acres of thick woods, with non-marketable Timber, that I'm going to clear real soon. I'm going to be sure to post before and after pictures of this project. Hoping to get it done in time to sow it this Fall.

 

[RainMan]

I just had about 5 acres cleared. Got a Guy to do it for 50.00 an Hour. Mid-sized Dozer. Some areas thicker than others. Took him 22 hrs. Has to be some of the best money spent. A good operator that back fills his ruts is priceless, and finish grades everything to prevent any washouts. A Hydro Ax is a good idea, but you'll be raking the rest of your life, not to mention staubing a tire here and there.

Agree with this statement. Any good operator is normally worth the asking price. Never seen a "Hydro Ax" used around here, must be regional thing. Would still prefer to use the excavator around here, unless I had a lot of grade to cut or needed to use a ripper for rock. I'll shut up now. 8) CW

 

[Mahoney Pursley Ranch]

Prices seem outragous to me over here you can get a D-8 with a shear blade and a root rake for 150 an hour. D-8 will do four to five acres a day, and when he pulls out its ready to plant.

I agree with Camp. Check around with the local folk and see who knows a guy like Camp is talking about. That's what I did for part of my land. If you don't know what your doing on rental equipment it can take alot longer than you think plus you need to buy the diesel. Heavy equipment is dangerous and you can get hurt if you don't know what your doing. Especially knocking down trees.

 

[dd]

The only thing I'll add is that you mentioned its in a low area, you might want to check and make sure with NRCS first that it isn't a 'wetland'.

 

[SPRINGER FARMS MURRAY GRE]

I agree with camp....but the first thing I would do is go to the county extension office (NRCS) and request a "soil survey map" of your property.This will tell you what kind of soil you have,and what kind of grass will do the best in each area,and even an estimate of how much dry matter you can expect to produce.You can tell more about your land by this map than you can tell by walking over it. ;-) :cboy:

 

[Caustic Burno]

I'm in northern Al. ( Lawrence County ) the soil around her is red clay. Those prices you were quoted per acre seem awfully high to me also. I can get a D8 work done for 100 per hour. A dozer this size can do a lot of work. I havn't saw any of the blades Camp was referring to but it looks like it would do a great job. As far as the piling I usually burn what will then later come back in with a smaller dozer ( 6 ) to kind stir things up a bit, before buring a second time. This alows me to burn it down enough to where I can use a tractor an box on what is left.

I can't believe that shear blades are not common there also they are everywhere over here. Heck you can't tell East Texas form Alabama if it wasn't for road signs.

 

[Angus Guy]

My brother does this sought of thing for a living. He usually bids this type of job by the hour. This option is almost always cheaper than by the acre. The other reason for doing it this way is if you start to run short on money you can find a good stopping point. But always tell the person you hire exactly what you wat done (be very precise). Getting it all in writing is a good idea also. Hope this helps and good luck.