A half finished job

[Hedge Monkey]

Hi everyone, I'm new here. I've just been to look at a mixed hardwood plantation (20 years old) and to my novice mind, there were a million red flags. The designated trees are down but some of them are hung up, there's been no de-limbing, no brash pile or wind rows and some the smaller sickly trees have been left standing. In short, the place looks like a mess, destined to become a giant Bramble patch / death trap. 

 

Am I missing something here? Is there any reason why the work might be better done in phases? I'm asking because I'll be doing a fair bit of forestry work in the area and perhaps in those woods. Based on what I've been taught this is bad practice. I'm keen to get in there and tidy the place up ASAP, if it's possible to do so between April and November. (trees were felled in mid winter, so no foliage) 

 

Thanks in advance for your time and any answers. 

Edited April 6, 2023 by Hedge Monkey
Auto correct had changed a spelling / meaning (wind rows / windows)

[doobin]

What's your role in relation to this? Are you a potential employee of the landowner? A contractor looking to work for the landowner? An employee of a contractor?

 

The first thing that springs to mind is that twenty years old is not very old to be thinning a mixed hardwood plantation.

Edited April 6, 2023 by doobin

[Stubby]

Are the hung up tree wind blown or has someone been trying to fell with no idea how to go about it ? Also what Doobs said above . First thinnings ?

[Hedge Monkey]

1 hour ago, doobin said:

What's your role in relation to this? Are you a potential employee of the landowner? A contractor looking to work for the landowner? An employee of a contractor?

 

The first thing that springs to mind is that twenty years old is not very old to be thinning a mixed hardwood plantation.

I'm an employee of the landlord and planted lots of the plantations 20 years back. I was offered the job of thinning in November but couldn't get my ticket in time to get in on it this year ( I'm being assessed on Monday) 

 

None of it is windblown, at least half of it is deseased Ash (Hickory). I haven't seen the other plantations yet but all that's been done in this one is the felling. My whole purpose in getting trained was to work the next 9 winters.

[doobin]

3 minutes ago, Hedge Monkey said:

I'm an employee of the landlord and planted lots of the plantations 20 years back. I was offered the job of thinning in November but couldn't get my ticket in time to get in on it this year ( I'm being assessed on Monday) 

 

None of it is windblown, at least half of it is deseased Ash (Hickory). I haven't seen the other plantations yet but all that's been done in this one is the felling. My whole purpose in getting trained was to work the next 9 winters.

I have to ask- what happens after nine winters? 

[Hedge Monkey]

57 minutes ago, Stubby said:

Are the hung up tree wind blown or has someone been trying to fell with no idea how to go about it ? Also what Doobs said above . First thinnings ?

Fist thinnings. I don't know how much experience in forestry the guy has, he's a trained tree surgeon and know locally as a bit of a nutter. He might have plans to bring some big machinery in at some point but that hardly seems necessary in a 4 acre patch, which is up a back road and right next to a farm house. The trees are all felled downhill towards the gateway, I have no idea how they plan to extract the timber, or what he hoped to achieve. 

[Hedge Monkey]

5 minutes ago, doobin said:

I have to ask- what happens after nine winters? 

As far as I know the Douglas Firs are coming out over a ni e year period. Not sure what the plan is for the other species. 

[Stere]

Ash and  hickory aren't the same

 

 

[Hedge Monkey]

40 minutes ago, Stere said:

Ash and  hickory aren't the same

 

 

lol, thought it was the American name for Ash, good to know 🙂

[Grassyass]

The way to work it would be to take out the dead or damaged first to give the healthy trees a chance I would think the wood is going to be processed into firewood, after nine years lying in a field they will be good for just the Bugs ,