Eventually going to fence the backyard; currently looking to clear out all of this circled brush (or whatever you’d want to call it) and take some of the unhealthier trees with it – what are the best tools to get and approach to take without paying someone with heavy equipment to handle it?
Side note, I assume I’ll have to wait until Fall to try, but if anyone has any grass/anti-weed tips for my monstrosity of a lawn, please educate me…
TIA.
by mobymack
6 Comments
You need to keep the trees and probably a few of the bushes around them. Otherwise erosion will wash your backyard away. It won’t be fast, but it will be a pain in your ass.
That being said, if you really want to get rid of the trees and replace everything with a basic grass yard, I would recommend a chainsaw and a wire cable Weedwhacker. Then go over everything with a lawnmower.
The tree stumps can be done by you, but it’ll be a lot faster and easier if you just pay a company to come remove them
Excavator for trees and skidsteer to grade.
what is growing there? First figure that out and if you want to save/move any of it. Knowing the species you want to kill os also important cus there are different management techniques, but spraying with glyphosphate and adding a preemergent is a good start. Woody plants can be snip and treated. Hopefully you can save the oaks and hickories etc. It’s not clear what’s unhealthy about them but have an arborist assess. You’ll likely want at least a small electric chainsaw (AND PPE!!! AND a bunch of youtube safety videos/books/mentoring) as a homeowner with trees.
Avoid soil disturbances as much as possible- this includes trying to not dig things up or use heavy equipment or a rototiller (which destroys soil), and even trying to not pull weeds if possible. Transition areas often have considerable banks of weed seeds, coming from both the lawn and the woods, and pulling puts the soil on top an the seeds go nuts
Couple lbs of Tannerite and a .22
What will you do with the newfound space? My MIL did a similar thing this spring, omly to have a spent a few thousand, not have the fence money, and is now looking at all that stuff’s regrowth and a few thousand more. I’d recommend reclaiming what makes sense for your actual needs (garden space, entertainment space, etc) then fencing accordingly. You have a natural tree line going now, and what looks like decent enough space to just put the fence up and skip all the spraying, forestry mulching, and stump cutting.
Keep the trees bro. We need more trees and wildlife will thank you. No point in adding a couple more yard space if it’s not going to be heavily used.
Look into r/fuckLawns