# What's the best way?



## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

I've got about 4 acres of thick popular trees, that are about 35' to 40' high, and anywhere from 1" to 4" inches in diameter. Problem is that I want them gone. My acreage was logged about 12 years ago and I need to get some kind of opening to shoot. Not to worry, the rest of the 20 acres are covered with them too so, I have enough cover but need some gone.
I have a friend that's an excavator, that can push them up into piles, but then they're still there. I want to leave the mature trees and the pines.
Cutting them myself is most likely my last resort. Has anyone had a similar problem and how did you handle them?


----------



## fowl (Feb 15, 2003)

Why do you want to kill the trees if they are so popular. Just kiddin, its pronounced poplar.

I would suggest not using an excavator. That is a very high impact method that I would avoid. Aspen can be killed by girdling. Peel a 4-6" wide strip of bark off all the way around the tree. Once the tree is dead, then you can cut them down. I have also seen where elk have snapped them off at about 5-6'. This will also kill the trees. For this method you could cut the trees off with a chainsaw at 5' high. Once the trees are dead, cut them flush with the ground.


----------



## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

Never could spell..........:lol:

Looking for a way to get rid of them. The dozer would just tear up too much and move too much of the top soil. I figured that was out of the question.
I heard.... that there's some kind of equipment that attaches to a bobcat that grabs and cuts at ground level. Something like that would work for me, as physically I might have some problems with cutting them all. ALL is the right word. Thicker than heck.
I was hoping that someone might know about this equipment.


----------



## oldguy (Dec 16, 2004)

Fecon makes an attachment for high flow skid/track loaders. Take a look at their website, I think this is what you were thinking about......and yes, if you can find someone local that has one, it will do the job quite nicely.

http://www.fecon.com/


----------



## boomer_x7 (Dec 19, 2008)

get some beaver. they will clear you out in a month. When you say shoot i'm assuming a target range?? why not push them into a pile for a back stop.


----------



## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

boomer_x7 said:


> get some beaver. they will clear you out in a month. When you say shoot i'm assuming a target range?? why not push them into a pile for a back stop.


No water here, so the beaver wouldn't stay anyway. No water means no skeeters either. Top that! 
I already have a top of the line shooting range my excavator friend built. What I need is a place cleaned out good enough to hunt and see over 15 yds. I'm not used to hunting here at home and this was my first year. I've always hunted down below, where I leased 240 acres for over 20 years. I gave up the lease, as its just costing too much each year. Not the lease, but everything else. Its also getting harder, as I'm getting older.
Needless to say, I miss that hunting spot but now I need to work on things here. The poplars are thick and some have to go. I've got a dandy spot picked out to put a shack, but need trees removed. There's actually too many to doze up. I'd have too many piles and then have to wait a year to burn them. The soil would be all torn up and in the woods, its pretty thin anyway. Dozing is out. I'm going to check out that equipment and if there's someone around that has it, I'll hire it done. If not, someone will probably be looking for something to do this spring and maybe I can hire them cut by hand and rent a chipper. Either way, I don't believe it'll be cheap.


----------



## slowpoke (Jan 30, 2001)

Free poplar wood. You cut.


----------



## roostersbane (Nov 22, 2005)

Get a dozer with a brush rake. They roll the trees roots and all...most of the dirt is left behind. Push the brush piles to the back and you have instant rabbit/deer cover. 
Then you go thru and hand clear the roots that are left, throw down some lime and plant AWP next Aug/sept. 
Have him do 2-3 lanes radiating from your blind location. 
I have 3 similar pockets/lanes cut in my tag alders and we have seen deer working them every sit this year.


----------



## fowl (Feb 15, 2003)

The problem if you just cut them at ground level is that they will resprout thicker than ever. The best way to regenerate aspen is to clear cut it. That is why the methods that I first recommended would kill the tree first and then they would have to be cut down to ground level.


----------



## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

fowl said:


> The problem if you just cut them at ground level is that they will resprout thicker than ever. The best way to regenerate aspen is to clear cut it. That is why the methods that I first recommended would kill the tree first and then they would have to be cut down to ground level.


If they resprout, I can deal with that. It'll bring back the grouse. I talked to my buddy this afternoon and he's aware of the root rake. He doesn't have one, but he's going to check out AIS, way over in Traverse, and see if they rent them.
I think that if we have to roll them up, I can cover them in the fall and when we get snow, light them up. I plan on leaving all the hardwood trees and the white pine.
When the wife and I bought the property 10 years ago, it was just beautiful. All those poplar were small and the color was what probably sold it. I took many a grouse of here but, they're almost non-existent now. I took one bird this year.
My neighbor owns property adjacent to mine and it was logged at the same time. I've already talked to him about getting rid of the poplar but he's not very savy on habitat. I think he's afraid that he'll loose his hunting if he cuts. Another good friend that I have, had the same problem that I have and didn't do anything about it. Now, he's stuck with 8" poplar, 60' tall and can't get rid of them. He didn't think that with the growth, that it would eliminate game from his property. He's stuck now, and there's no way for a logger to get in for the pulp.


----------



## Chip (Jun 6, 2005)

Depending on what you were willing to offer, lots of young college aged lads that I know would be willing to do some labor as a "fundraiser". Particularly if there were some money and cold beverages available for a day or two of work. PM me if you are interested.

Chip


----------



## answerguy8 (Oct 15, 2001)

Are they really 35 to 40 feet tall but only up to four inches wide?


----------



## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

answerguy8 said:


> Are they really 35 to 40 feet tall but only up to four inches wide?


Yes, thousands of them. Ten years ago when we bought the property, they were only about 4 or 5 feet tall. It was perfect cover. Over the last 3 years, they've just shot up!
Left alone, some of them will die off, but there will still be to many and it will choke out any ground cover that there might be. As they are right now, they're worthless. I talked to a logger about them and he said that they don't want them until they get to about 12" or larger in diameter to cut for pulp.
I have considered having someone (like post above) come in and cut them, pile them up and then rent a chipper. Its not a bad idea, but then there's liability if someone cut themself with a chainsaw. Which is why I've pretty much decided to have someone in business do it, that carries their own insurance.
I have a better understanding now, about why some of the larger clubs and property owners have continuous cutting programs. Its not as easy as one might think and it will cost money.


----------



## answerguy8 (Oct 15, 2001)

ENCORE said:


> Yes, thousands of them. Ten years ago when we bought the property, they were only about 4 or 5 feet tall. It was perfect cover. Over the last 3 years, they've just shot up!
> Left alone, some of them will die off, but there will still be to many and it will choke out any ground cover that there might be. As they are right now, they're worthless. I talked to a logger about them and he said that they don't want them until they get to about 12" or larger in diameter to cut for pulp.
> I have considered having someone (like post above) come in and cut them, pile them up and then rent a chipper. Its not a bad idea, but then there's liability if someone cut themself with a chainsaw. Which is why I've pretty much decided to have someone in business do it, that carries their own insurance.
> I have a better understanding now, about why some of the larger clubs and property owners have continuous cutting programs. Its not as easy as one might think and it will cost money.


It would seem that all you need is a good ice storm to bring them down. They couldn't possibly have enough strength to remain standing with a coating of ice on them.


----------



## johnhunter (Jun 17, 2000)

ENCORE said:


> I've got about 4 acres of thick popular trees, that are about 35' to 40' high, and anywhere from 1" to 4" inches in diameter.


You mean to say that you've got 35 foot tall poplars that are one inch in diameter?

Apart from the difficulty I have of imagining such trees. I'd consider cutting loose a HD bush hog on them.


----------



## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

farmlegend said:


> You mean to say that you've got 35 foot tall poplars that are one inch in diameter?
> 
> Apart from the difficulty I have of imagining such trees. I'd consider cutting loose a HD bush hog on them.


 The 4" diameter are that high. Even the smaller ones are over 20'.


----------



## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

answerguy8 said:


> It would seem that all you need is a good ice storm to bring them down. They couldn't possibly have enough strength to remain standing with a coating of ice on them.


We just got through with an extremely wet snow, that had the tops laying in the snow on the ground. I went down my trails, that I plow with the quad and had to shake them to get the quad through. None of them broke.


----------



## slowpoke (Jan 30, 2001)

How about cutting them down, make brush piles with them then when they start coming up this Spring spray with a good brush killer.


----------



## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

slowpoke said:


> How about cutting them down, make brush piles with them then when they start coming up this Spring spray with a good brush killer.


Cutting them now, in 30" of snow would be impossible. I've cut about an acre here by the house. It looks great but, you can't walk out there. Even the smallest of stumps are not rotting and you'll end up face down if you try to walk through there.
I think that I like the root rake idea the best so far. If I can tear up most of the roots without tearing up the complete topsoil, I might be able to plant a food plot or two.
I need the new growth to bring the grouse back in also.
I found out that there's a lot to this........


----------



## bishs (Aug 30, 2000)

You should be able to cut narrow shooting lanes without much re-growth. These trees need sun to grow. If your trees are 30-40 feet tall, you should have a dense canopy. Narrow lanes shouldn't be a problem, even better if the lanes run East and West. They will stay shaded. Cut them with a chainsaw after the snow melts. Cutting several narrow paths would be better than a large opening that allows sun in. 

If you want a large area cleared, the chipper is the way to go. They require some acreage to make it worth their time coming out. It's best for deer and wildlife to have different age stands of Aspen, created by cutting sections every year. Other than grouse, mature Aspen doen't offer much wildlife benefit.


----------



## KS up north (Jan 2, 2004)

Encore, when saying chipper, do you mean a logging company that will chip them? There is a wastewood powerplant in Lincoln that could use the chips. If you want, I can PM you with a contact name and number, or you could look for forest management or logging companies in the yellow pages.


----------



## the rapids (Nov 17, 2005)

sounds like any management technique worth considering would be problematic in one way or another.

if you want to kill them now and get them down later,
maybe consider a "drill and fill" or "hack and squirt" technique with a systemic herbicide this time of year, as low as you can on the trees. with any luck the herbicide will translocate to adjacent trees as well and you wont have to do that to every trunk. poplars are clonal, and there is a good chance that if the trees are that tightly packed they are all still part of one or a few organisms that originally started your poplar grove. you would have to do this now as opposed to the spring to maximize your herbicide's efficacy.

if they are 1-4" in diameter, maybe consider investing in or renting a clearing saw (basically looks like a heavy duty weed whip with a circular saw blade for cutting woody plants). clearing saws are way easier to cut a woody plant low than a chainsaw, and safer.


----------



## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

KS up north said:


> Encore, when saying chipper, do you mean a logging company that will chip them? There is a wastewood powerplant in Lincoln that could use the chips. If you want, I can PM you with a contact name and number, or you could look for forest management or logging companies in the yellow pages.


*Yes, send the information*. If they want them and will cut them, they can have them just to get them out of here. Heck, if they'll do it for the chips/pulp and not tear everything up, they can have about 15 acres of them.
Of course all the hardwood and pines stay and they'd have to work around them.
There's so damn many that a single guy would work himself into the ground trying to get rid of them, especially if you did it anyway by hand. Then once cut you have to get dispose of them. I know that brush piles would keep small critters, but I don't hunt rabbits and the wife absolutely hates them, as they eat up her plants. I certainly don't need any more **** (>200 so far) or skunk either.
I try to stay away from herbisides and perfer not to have to use them unless necessary. I guess I'm just trying to get out of this the most economical way that I can.
If they want them they can have them. If that don't pan out, I'll look into the root rake, as my excavator buddy will help me out on that (he hunts here too). Worse case, I have to go out with the chainsaw and make just a few shooting lanes.


----------



## bishs (Aug 30, 2000)

The "Chipper" I was refering too, takes everything from the tree. Tops and all. Leaves nothing but a stump.

How are you going to maintain the area after it gets cleared? You should get a brush hog. The Aspen will be over your head in two summers.


----------



## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

bishs said:


> The "Chipper" I was refering too, takes everything from the tree. Tops and all. Leaves nothing but a stump.
> 
> How are you going to maintain the area after it gets cleared? You should get a brush hog. The Aspen will be over your head in two summers.


Do you have a web site or a picture of the "chipper" that you're refering to? Does it attach to a skid steer or front end loader? One problem that I would have with a brush hog, is that there are still pretty good size stumps and tops from the original logging. Although the tops have pretty much settled, I probably still need something with tracks to get around in there. I have a couple valleys and slopes that a tractor might have a problem with.
I cleared about 1/2 acre from one side of the house to allow for better viewing. I did that three years ago and have been lucky that nothing has grown back. As far as the rest of the areas, I would perfer that it regrow and provide cover. I've seen properties like mine, that have been let go and they grow up with virtually no cover, which means no critters.
Loggers don't want them until they reach 12" or larger in diameter. They'd take them for pulp at that time. In the mean time, I'd like to keep what deer I have on the property and hopefully improve my grouse hunting.
I'm beginning to understand more about how much work this is maintaining habitat.


----------



## KS up north (Jan 2, 2004)

Encore, PM sent.


----------



## Whit1 (Apr 27, 2001)

As mentioned above poplar/aspen will root succor/send up new shoots). You can clearcut them, root them out, etc., but by next fall they'll be back and with a vengence. Personally I'm a firm believer in clearcutting aspen because of this. When cutover aspen stands send up new shoots from their roots the stem density (the number of new stems per square foot of area can be stunning to say the least. In that first year it might be 4-5 new trees per sq. foot. In one year they could grow to 6' in height.

If you want shooting lanes then cut just for that and you'll have to keep in maintained by on a regular basis.

As for food plot areas the same will be true. You can apply herbicide to the plot area to kill the new aspen shoots, but over the years they'll come back and eventually fill in that food plot area.

Your best bet might be to selectively cut the shorter aspen trees. As was mentioned above aspen are sun lovers. The taller trees will shade the ground and lessen the number of new aspen stems that will sprout. It will take some time, but might be the simplest method of opening things up. Grouse love to bud on aspen in the winter, but the tree needs to reach a certain height and diameter before the grouse will use them.

A series of thinning cuts as I mention above would open the ground up, limit the succoring of new trees, cause the trees left behind to grow at a much faster rate, and still provide cover for wildlife. You can leave the cut trees where they lay to rot and add organic matter to the soil.


----------



## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

I'm going to just cut them in the areas that I want open and leave them lay. I've been back in there on snowshoes and checked it back out. It might take me 3 or 4 days, but for this next year I think I'll just cut them. Buddy can't seem to find a root rake locally.


----------



## NATTY BUMPO (May 12, 2001)

Hydro-Ax


----------



## Ken Martin (Sep 30, 2003)

In the early summer when they are leaved out you can spray them with Round-up (hand sprayer) and it will kill them. That's what I do to keep them under control. They die and can just be broke off at the ground the following year.

Ken


----------



## huntfisheat (Jul 30, 2007)

Sorry but this is what we affectionately call them, they are used to pull different size cable in the electrical industry. Picture a large Chinese handcuff made of thin cable with a cable loop at one end. Cut the tree about four feet from the ground, slip on the cable puller on the long stump (like a condom) and the other end to a cable that goes to your tractor or excavator. As you pull, the cable puller gets tighter around the thin tree stump (like a chinese handcuff) out comes the stump root and all. Topsoil stays in place. You just do one tree at a time, this works best with two people as it saves you from getting on and off the machine. I believe that the official name is a cable pulling sock.


----------

