Hi all,
First-time land-owner here. Purchased 5 acres in need of some landscaping. A lot of the property is heavily wooded, but also has a cleared area with a fruit orchard and many other younger trees planted a little haphazardly by the previous owner.
We have the following goals:
- Clear around the house for easier access/mowing/pest control
- Clear some wooded space to expand parking and build a 2-car garage w/storage for moderate equipment
- Clear some field space for horse paddocks
- Clean up driveway entry for safety
We have some experience cutting down trees, and bushes. There's room to stack wood and compost, though we already have a big brush pile left from previous owners, and I don't want to burn brush due to fire risk and close neighbors. We have a community transfer station that will accept brush two days per week. I'd rather reserve spending money for mandatory big tree jobs we can't handle ourselves. We own tools like a lawn tractor, chainsaws, axes, and trimmers.
We have questions like: Do you wait until Fall? Cut brush down to small bundles and take to the dump? Pile it up and rent a chipper once or twice per year? Buy a chipper or other equipment? Throw it all over the woods and let nature do it's thing? What do you do with tree stumps? Is this going to take us years of weekends to accomplish?
Curious to hear what has worked for everyone's yard cleanup and site clearing DIY.
Pics provided for reference.
Man, this is almost the same situation I was in last year. New place on acreage that required a lot of land maintenance. It sounds like you have the visions and tools, now it's just a matter of the physical work. Congratulations on the new place, that's exciting!
Your place is really green, looks good.
Start around the house, prune up and trim nearest the house first and work your way out. Take down any trees now that they are fall hazards. For reasonable items that needs to be pruned back, I'd wait until fall/winter to help keep the tree healthy. You can mark themniw though so you know what limbers to cut. Otherwise everything looks the same, gangly and dormant and its hard to know what to trim.
If you have dead standing, take it down now, same for dead limbs attached to otherwise healthy trees. They house termites, beetles, ants and other wood borers that can cause problems and infect other trees.
Burn the trash wood pile. It'll house bugs, rodents and cause problems if you leave it. You don't need to burn it all in one huge pile, that can be a pretty dangerous proposition if your vegetation is tall and you dont have the wide berth for the flames and heat. Instead designate an area you can have a good sized fire pit. Dig it down, and use it like a recreational burn while you gradually widdle the pile away, burning when you have free time. Keep the fire snall and manageable. Itll take time, but its safe and you WILL get through it. Believe me, I did the same. Took 4 mths.
You mentioned renting a chipper once or twice a year. That's a good idea as long as it's the big commercial pull behind chipper. These homeowner sized chippers are undersized and underpowered to get through anything other than straight branches and limbs.
I burned and chipped branches, burning was much easier.
Do purchase a brush mower. I've got a
DR Mower Pro XL30 22HP
This thing will clear brush no problem. Itll take down undergrowth and handle sapplings up to 3". Its a big machine.
For stumps, cut them down as close to thr ground as possible so they don't damage any axles on mowers or utvs cause they stick up too far. You might actually get tree regrowth if you leave them. If that's your goal, let it be after that. If you want to kill the stump, use the saw to crosscut the top like a waffle fry. It'll rot.
Depending on how long the property was neglected you could whip it into shape in a year. But itsnot out of the question itll take a few years to see the property get healthy and see the results of your work. I will say, you will see a difference in a year. And each time you work on a piece, take before and after photos so you can see your progress.
I would advise doing your study for a utv or compact tractor. Both will be useful. Only you can determine which to buy (first). The utv is a huge help to carry tools, gear, people and firewood, water etc.
For this size property youll still need a range of equipment as it jumps off away from residential and put you into needing commercial strength machines. Don't skimp on equipment. But you'll need small stuff too around the house, to trim and mow. But youll need heavier equipment for the property further out.
