Can a tractor do this?

[archis]

I'm new to the group so a big hello to all!

I just purchased 23 acres of old orchard in WV. I have about 10-15 acres that are pretty level but covered with thistle, wild rose and trees up to 12" diameter. I was hoping to use a 30ish hp 4x4 tractor to bring this land to pasture. Does this sound like a plan that will work?

Thanks

[NCLee]

I don't know enough about that type tractor to advise. However, I'd like to make a suggestion, if you don't mind.

Try to find someone with a good sized tractor and a bush hog to cut everything it'll go over. That will (1) take care of those and (2) make it so much easier from the standpoint of working to take care of the rest.

When we moved here, my Dad used his Ferguson F35 to pull over many of the small trees. Tied a cable as high as possible in the tree, then pulled it to uproot. The person with the bush hog may be able to do that for you, also.

Hope these thoughts help. (BTW, I HATE wild roses......!!!! - use Roundup!!!)

Lee

[Witterbound]

You're not going to have enough tractor to clear the 12" trees, if that's what you plan to do.

[uncle Will in In.]

Your tractor will clear out the small stuff. If you have multiflora roses, you need to take them out by the roots. If they aren't to huge, a loader might get that done. If you cut the trees with a chain saw level with the ground, the tractor would drag them away where you could cut out the firewood and push the brush into a burn pile with the roses. You could pasture right around the stumps until they rot out. If you have a bush hog and a loader on that tractor, you can clear the ground good enough to graze.

[wy_white_wolf]

I would advise cutting the trees off about 4' above ground level and clearing everything out around them. Then you can bring in a large loader/dozer and push over the stumps to remove them.

[NCLee]

BTW, forgot to mention.....

Leave some of those larger trees to provide shade and shelter for your livestock. It's better to just leave a section with trees, rather than leaving one or two isolated trees in the pasture. Those isolated trees are more subject to lightening, for one thing. Your stock will tend to seek those trees for shelter during a storm. I've heard of kills of many animals when lightening struck an isolated tree in the pasture.

Also, depending on what stock you plan to pasture, within a few years just a couple of trees left for shade will probably die from soil compacting and the accumulating manure and urine.

After reading the rest of the replies, I realized I should have mentioned the tractor / tree pulling is for small diameter trees. This method is good for clearing out the small stuff to get working room to fell the larger stuff with a saw. It's easy to pull the uprooted ones to the burn pile before unhooking the cable.

Lee

[Drew Cutter]

I would add do a ph test for the soil (for the grass that will be planted) . If you are new to having livestock in the pasture (don't know if you are) . Come up with a rotation strategy.

[watcher]

I can give you a very definent, maybe.

I have a 35hp 4WD tractor with a front end loader which I have use to bring down trees as large as you are talking about. But it takes time and work. What I had to do was use the bucket to dig out from the tree on two oposite sides. Then raise the bucket as high as possible and "rock" the tree by pushing on one side for a while then pushing on the other for a while. Think of when you were a kid trying to pull a tooth, you just kept wiggling the sucker until you could pop it out. Now depending on the type of tree you may need to use an ax to chop through some of the horizontal roots.

For the bush hogging if I could afford it, I'd do what NCLee suggested. I'd hire someone with a big tractor to come in and knock the stuff down the first time. Your tractor would do it but it'd be hard on it and take quite a while because you are only going to be pulling a 5' hog.

[archis]

Thanks for all of the responses. I want to do most of the work myself, but that may change once I get into it

For the trees, 12" is the max most are old apple trees that are smaller as I recall. I'll keep any larger nice trees for shade for sure.

I've never owned a tractor with a front-end loader, could I use the loader to scrape the rose and thistle out by their roots? Is the the best way to get rid of those plants?

Also how important is a hydrostatic tranny on a sub-compact tractor for around the farm work? Some folks say it's a must have.

[NCLee]

If you can get a cable around the roots/base of those roses, pull them out and drag to your burn pile. If the ones you have there are like mine, those things are dangerous. I tripped and fell into a pile of them we'd cut. Had to have help go get out of that mess. The thorns on them will go through leather gloves.

Lee

[archis]

I wonder if those rose thorns will go through tires?

I'm starting to think that getting someone with a serious machine to make the first pass may not be a bad idea after all.

[sammyd]

I prefer a Cat when pulling stuff out of the ground.

[haypoint]

Most trees left for livestock shade will be killed by the livestock. They strip bark.
Hooking a cable or chain high on the trunk of a tree has a potential of flipping the tractor over, crushing you.
Thornapple thorns do go thru tires.
Brush hog what you can, then in the spring when everything starts growing again, spray the area with Round-up or another herbicide that kills the plants you are trying to eliminate. If you were getting your side yard cleaned up, I'd advise pulling everything up bu the roots. But anything more than 2 or 3 acres is generally beyond most people.

Chain saw anything bigger than 3 inches in diameter. Back hoe those roots. If you juust want unimproved pasture cut the trees off level with the ground and leave the roots. You'll have to use a brush killer on the stumps for a couple years to prevent regrowth. Once the weeds are dead, decide on what you want to grow in your pasture and toss seeds around.

Any thoughts on how you'd like to restore the orchard?

[Old Vet]

Hydro static transmision will be good for short work like useing the front end loader but useing the bush hog it will tire out your leg if it has the petals you push. I had one and on uneven ground they are great. If you have strong legs it is no problem. And yes the thorns will go through a tire expectingly the front ones. What you do is to put a tire sealant in them (like Slime) and don't worry about them. The back tires have more rubber in them and don't pick up thorns like the front you get them in their but they won't go through expectingly if they have a tube in them.

[Madfarmer]

Don't cut down trees you want to remove completely. Even with a dozer, it's much harder/takes longer to dig out a stump that to push a standing tree out of the ground.

Madfarmer

[coup]

i am in central wv and i got estimates from two brushoggers and went with biggest baddest guy......i watched closely,it can be dangerous,,,,and the next year i hogged most of it with my two wheel drive tractor....best money i ever spent... you can do a little at a time and learn as you go......
generally if the brushogger says it is to big,,then you would get a dozer with blade made for shoving brush off.......then after that you could mow......

have seen some folk just fence very well and let the goats clean it up......

[archis]

Coup,

If you don't mind me asking, how much did that brushhogger in WV set you back?

Haypoint I figured I would just save a couple of the orchard trees for myself. The property is surrounded by large commercial orchards so growing apples probably is going to be worth the while.

[Old Vet]

Originally Posted by archis

Coup,

If you don't mind me asking, how much did that brushhogger in WV set you back?

I charge $30 bucks per hour if the ground has been taken care of (no big stumps or down fences to get in the way. On what you will have it would be nearly $40 bucks per hour. I know my price is low I have seen others charge as much as $80 per hour.The reason for the price increase it to take care of any breakage in my machine.

[fixer1958]

If you have thistle I would think you would have to burn it off x2, but it is too late in the year because it has already seeded. The neighbor was covered in them (hundreds) and he burnt it off for 2 years and it hasn't returned.
It's a noxious weed in these parts, and if you don't take care of it the county will at your expense.

As far as the trees, about 12 acres, and I was inudated with cedar trees. I got a bobcat with a tree shear and averaged 1 a minute and did it for 5 hours. The biggest was about 10" diameter. I tried digging them out first with a root grapple and it was too slow and made a mess. So far they haven't resprouted.

Next I got a mini excavator with a thumb and dug out all the misc. hedge trees, about 40.
It was pretty easy because they don't root deep. The biggest was about 12" diameter.
Those are in the firewood pile now.
I have been working on it for a year now.
It looks better, but not done yet.

The best advantage I had was, my son worked for bobcat and I could use the the equipment for the cost of fuel and don't break anything. Not the case anymore, I'm back to the backbreaking way of doing things.
It will get done, just longer.

[Old Vet]

Once you get it in shape the first time Bush Hog it about 2 times during the year and you won't have any problem. The first year you will have a lot of sprouts but cutting them will keep them from reseeding.