Dealing with Stumps on large properties

[DRG3]

I have a have a friend who recently purchased 800ish acres of old timber company ground. It's covered up in stumps to the point that every area he could do somthing is going to need to have the stumps dealt with.

In talking the only thing we've been able to come up with are to get a dozer and backhoe- and he does have the abilty to do that, but my question is- is there a better way to deal with stumps in areas of wanting to do food?
Same question for areas where he's trying to get succesional growth. Does best practice for managing stumps in successional areas change?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Turkish]

I have a have a friend who recently purchased 800ish acres of old timber company ground. It's covered up in stumps to the point that every area he could do somthing is going to need to have the stumps dealt with.

In talking the only thing we've been able to come up with are to get a dozer and backhoe- and he does have the abilty to do that, but my question is- is there a better way to deal with stumps in areas of wanting to do food?
Same question for areas where he's trying to get succesional growth. Does best practice for managing stumps in successional areas change?

Thanks in advance!

In my experience, your options are to either wait or hire the equipment. You can try to work around them, doing no-till helps with this a little, since it enables fewer passes, but it’s still a pain. Another option is to leave the areas as early successional spots managed with fire, rather than food plots.

If you must get the stumps out, an excavator is the best, with a big dozer running second place.

ETA: I don’t recommend working around the stumps. We flipped an ATV last year trying to spray a spot before planting because it was loaded down with a tank of herbicide and we didn’t see the stump in the tall dog fennel.

 

[Natty Bumppo]

My 2 cents....if you're going to do any kind of major tillage or seed drilling you've got to remove the stumps. Rent and excavator for a week and get them removed. If you're going to simply disk and cultipack and that kind of a thing in my experience low cut, half-rotten stumps really have no effect. A disk will roll right over them as long as your moving slow. After a few years it's hard to even tell where they were. Renting a stump grinder would also work in that second scenario to get the bulk of the stump at or below ground level.

 

[rocksnstumps]

Some on here have worked areas with stump grinders but before even going that direction are the stumps sticking up some or pretty flush with ground? Hardwood or soft wood (pine) stumps?

If stumps sticking up some the excavator 1st or dozer 2nd choice as mentioned above. At least with excavator you can shake a bit more dirt off. Realistically with 800 acres would think your friend is thinking in bigger scale so stump grinder is likely not an option anyway. And a further assumption, if he can afford 800 acres he can afford to get some big equipment in to knock out a big chunk of work

 

[DRG3]

Some on here have worked areas with stump grinders but before even going that direction are the stumps sticking up some or pretty flush with ground? Hardwood or soft wood (pine) stumps?

If stumps sticking up some the excavator 1st or dozer 2nd choice as mentioned above. At least with excavator you can shake a bit more dirt off. Realistically with 800 acres would think your friend is thinking in bigger scale so stump grinder is likely not an option anyway. And a further assumption, if he can afford 800 acres he can afford to get some big equipment in to knock out a big chunk of work

I think your correct on all fronts. There is a mix of hard and softwood, but all are sticking up enough to be taken by dozer or excavator. My guess is he'll use the big equipment I just wanted to see if there was anything else folks had done. I don't have any experince with this large or type of property with the stumps.

 

[Foggy47]

Some on here have worked areas with stump grinders but before even going that direction are the stumps sticking up some or pretty flush with ground? Hardwood or soft wood (pine) stumps?

If stumps sticking up some the excavator 1st or dozer 2nd choice as mentioned above. At least with excavator you can shake a bit more dirt off. Realistically with 800 acres would think your friend is thinking in bigger scale so stump grinder is likely not an option anyway. And a further assumption, if he can afford 800 acres he can afford to get some big equipment in to knock out a big chunk of work

I would echo the concerns on the types of stumps and how low they were cut. Also number of acres to clear.

I chose to grind my stumps out over a period of a few years. I have ground out over 4000 pine stumps and other than an odd stump here and there......I am pretty much done. I have cleared about 10 acres in total......but I got started plotting after clearing an acre or two.

I started with a self propelled 25hp grinder.....before buying a 3 point stump grinder. My stumps were mostly sheared quite low and many had been rotted down a few years.....which helped some too. When things go right.....I can grind hundreds per day, but it is hard on your neck when looking over your shoulder hour after hour. Good thing is.......no stump disposal and no giant holes to fill.

There are some huge stump grinders that are used by highway departments and such. If your going large scale acres.....I would compare the price of using one of these big commercial units vs an excavation approach. My 2 cents.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

My buddy has one of these. Cleaned up a 7 acre plot in 2 days. It’s tedious but it gets the job done. He could drill it immediately after

 

[b116757]

Get D6 in there if you want to do tillage food plots or hire a brush clearing company and have them grind them flush with the ground. On heavy equipment your better off going with the largest equipment available locally a D6 at $200 an hour will do way way more work than a D4 at $100 for the same money spent.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

Get D6 in there if you want to do tillage food plots or hire a brush clearing company and have them grind them flush with the ground. On heavy equipment your better off going with the largest equipment available locally a D6 at $200 an hour will do way way more work than a D4 at $100 for the same money spent.

You think a d6 is better than an excavator? I think a dozer would struggle getting stumps out that have been cut close the ground. An excavator is a tree clearing machine. On a smaller scale I’d much rather knock a tree down with my mini ex than my skid steer

 

[Baker]

My buddy has one of these. Cleaned up a 7 acre plot in 2 days. It’s tedious but it gets the jump done. He could drill it immediately after
View attachment 61861

I used one of these last summer and it worked terrific. I'm going to buy one. I posted a video showing it working...creating a savannah...I followed it up with a grinder but in hind site I don't think it was necessary. Ive also used a tiger cat muncher. Expensive but effective. For men problem with dozers or trac hoe is the hole it leaves behind.

 

[Baker]

 

[SwampCat]

I have hired both a dozer and an excavator for stump removal. An excavator is the way to go. But also note, digging stumps will leave a depression after a few years - in most cases. You may need to bring a dozer back to level it up. If grinding stumps flush, I would run disk based equipment over them. Not sure I would want to run a drill over them. Leaving stumps flush really compromises a lot of blade work. My choice, excavator and then bring a dozer in a few years later if need be.

 

[Foggy47]

I have hired both a dozer and an excavator for stump removal. An excavator is the way to go. But also note, digging stumps will leave a depression after a few years - in most cases. You may need to bring a dozer back to level it up. If grinding stumps flush, I would run disk based equipment over them. Not sure I would want to run a drill over them. Leaving stumps flush really compromises a lot of blade work. My choice, excavator and then bring a dozer in a few years later if need be.

I agree with (not) taking the stumps to ground level. But, so much depends on the type of equipment you plan to use after taking the stumps down. I would hate to run a drill in stumpy ground....as I would a tiller and even a disk. Those stumps taken to ground level are going to plague you for some time.....IMO. I ground mine deep enough that I can do any tillage or run any equipment over it without fear of breaking stuff. Still, I get a few roots that appear each year....but they are of little concern. It takes a year or threee to get all the debris out of your plots.

I wonder if anyone rents a machine and grinder as shown above in post #7. You could get allot done in a few days with a piece like that.

 

[Foggy47]

Just did a google on one of those skid steer units. That might be one of the best solutions for a large project IMO. Seem to work pretty quickly. May need to clean up the sheared off pieces? as compared to grinding.....where there is little left to pick up IME.

Here is a video on the virtues of this machine. Maybe there are others?

 

[Baker]

In the " for what it's worth " category. After we finished treating the stumps as I show in the above video We ran over the entire area with a disc, broadcast sorghum and grazed it twice. Then this fall I broadcast oats, elbon rye, red clover and arrow leaf clover which is all up doing well. I will graze it hard with cattle come spring which should break down the rationing woody parts ...limbs, etc...put about 3 tons/acre lime broadcast sorghum alum, Egyptian wheat, cow peas, and sunn hemp into the clover. Hit that with the cattle to assure good seed soil contact and use it for winter stock pile. Over time I want to see what native species start to Regen though If not satisfied with that with continue with selected cultivars. No problem at all running disc over the stumps.

 

[Triple C]

Excavator in tandem with a dozer is the ticket. Excavator to pop the stumps n dozer to pile for burning. Did it on my place in 2016 n very happy with results. Able to lime n plant thereafter with no issues.

 

[SD51555]

Carve off and sell the least desirable 40 into 2- 20's and use the funds to dig the stumps and put in the fish pond.

 

[b116757]

If he was able to buy 800 acres hiring some clearing done is likely not really an issue probably not a reason to sell off any land anyway.

 

[Foggy47]

Carve off and sell the least desirable 40 into 2- 20's and use the funds to dig the stumps and put in the fish pond.

I would think if the owner can afford an 800 parcel of land.....he has the wherewithal to pay for some stumping. Maybe just me? lots of variable and unknown here.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

I’d rather have 8 million stumps than have 2 20 acre neighbors