Looking for suggestions to make sure I have thought this through properly.
I've got about 50 aspen on my land from 12-18" DBH that need to come down. About 10% dead, 50% dying, and the remainder not looking so great, which means they are about a year or two from starting to show dead limbs. For those unfamiliar with aspen, once it is standing dead or dying, you need to get it down and split or it will be rotten in short order.
If looking at the property on a map, figure a 2 acre woodlot disected by a road running east to west about 1/3 of the way from the bottom (south) and a power line right of way that intersects the road at the southwest side and runs from southwest to northeast diagonally across the middle of the tract.
My initial plan is as follows:
1) Allow the power company to take dying/dead from along the right of way and those leaning towards right of way that could hit a line and/or pole. Although they always cut them down in odd shaped chunks (go figure LOL) it is worth dealing with irregular pieces to remove any physical or financial risk from accidentally dropping a tree onto a line. This should take a dozen or so trees out of the equasion.
2) This winter (early before snow gets too deep) or early next spring I will fell half of the remaining trees with focus on the dead and least healthy live trees.
3) Following winter fell remaining trees.
The good news is that as these trees are dying the understory has already grown up significantly. I've got red maple and norway pine coming in thick and with careful felling these will quickly replace the trees that are coming down.
I usually figure that an aspen of this size will yield 1/3 cord of stacked splits. That will keep me busy for a while in addition to the birch/maple/norway pine scrounge I already have ready to come home this fall.
Any suggestions?
I've got about 50 aspen on my land from 12-18" DBH that need to come down. About 10% dead, 50% dying, and the remainder not looking so great, which means they are about a year or two from starting to show dead limbs. For those unfamiliar with aspen, once it is standing dead or dying, you need to get it down and split or it will be rotten in short order.
If looking at the property on a map, figure a 2 acre woodlot disected by a road running east to west about 1/3 of the way from the bottom (south) and a power line right of way that intersects the road at the southwest side and runs from southwest to northeast diagonally across the middle of the tract.
My initial plan is as follows:
1) Allow the power company to take dying/dead from along the right of way and those leaning towards right of way that could hit a line and/or pole. Although they always cut them down in odd shaped chunks (go figure LOL) it is worth dealing with irregular pieces to remove any physical or financial risk from accidentally dropping a tree onto a line. This should take a dozen or so trees out of the equasion.
2) This winter (early before snow gets too deep) or early next spring I will fell half of the remaining trees with focus on the dead and least healthy live trees.
3) Following winter fell remaining trees.
The good news is that as these trees are dying the understory has already grown up significantly. I've got red maple and norway pine coming in thick and with careful felling these will quickly replace the trees that are coming down.
I usually figure that an aspen of this size will yield 1/3 cord of stacked splits. That will keep me busy for a while in addition to the birch/maple/norway pine scrounge I already have ready to come home this fall.
Any suggestions?
Never tried extracting heat from aspen.
