Thinning conifers

[Bigsnowdog]

I have a reforestation project in which I planted too many conifers. Specifically I will need to remove literally many hundreds each of scotch and white pines. These trees are typically 16 to 20 feet tall.

I have been cutting them and dragging them off to a place to pile and burn. Obviously, a large scotch pine that is freshly cut will occupy quite a bit of volume, making the piling of them problematic if you don't have unlimite space.

I have been considering killing them in place in large numbers, and then cutting them as time permits.

My question is this: What practical method exists in addition to girdling them? I was wondering if a person could use a cordless drill to bore a hole in the tree and then inject a liquid such as Roundup. Would that work? Would it create problems from the Roundup leaving the tree via the roots?

Do you have any other ideas regarding how to manage such a process involving hundreds of trees? To give you an idea, I am sure I could remove 500 trees this year and still need to thin another year or two.

I would appreciate any useful thoughts you may have. And, yes, I have learned a lot the hard way, including why not to plant so many conifers....

 

[Ryan Willock]

Take you're chainsaw or a clearing saw and cut into the base of the tree half way, that'll kill'em.

 

[wiley_p]

If you can schedule the time the cut them now stack piles then coover with visqueen then burn this Fall/Winter why walk to each tree now only to come back later to cut/stack/burn? The size you mentioned will be more than ready to ignite this Fall.

 

[Tom Dunlap]

There are tools that are similar to an ax with an injection needle on them. You fill the vial with an herbicide, smack the trunk and a squirt is injected into the tree. A systemic is used.

What diameter are the trees? Do you have a small chipper? Might be less work to drag the chipper into the bush with an ATV. That would put the nutrients right back into the soil so that they can be recycled and build up the other trees.

Foresty Suppliers had them in their catalog. I considered using them for killing Buckthorn...spit...


Tom

 

[Bigsnowdog]

I regret to say I have no chipper. I will investigate this thing you mention, thank you.