# Forestry: Thinning operation at the farm



## GFC Firefighter (Jul 15, 2010)

Howdy everyone. This is the user DocHolliday. Lost my password and can't get it back. But since I've been gone I have gotten the timber company I work for to send one of their crews out to thin our timber.

The timber is around 14 years old and the tract acreage is 60+/-. Mostly Slash pine with some Loblolly pine here and there. Most of the wood is pulpwood. We are also having a little older tract of timber on the same timber tract thinned as well. It consist of pulpwood and chip n saw.

We are doing 4th row thinning. 4th row thinning is where they will cut out the 4th row of timber. For example, for those who do not know anything about timber, if you have planted timber in rows in lines, side by side, you will count 1 row, 2 row, 3 row, and the 4th row. The loggers will then cut the 4th row. Same with the rest of the timber.

There are also many type of thinning but the common thinnings are, "Select thinning"; (the landowner/company chooses which kind of timber they cut as in Pine, Hardwood, etc or what type as in pulpwood, chip n saw, saw timber, piling, and poles, and "5th row thinning"; (will be like 4th row thinning but the 5th row instead).

The 5th row will be ok to do but the 4th row will let you access the middle row later on without having to manuever around trees like when you do the 5th row thinning. 

Most of these thinnings are common down in my part of the world. 

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I came to mind in having this timber thinned for my grandmother at our farm due to it being thick. It was so thick that the loggers said, "..it was like a jungle and that the vines and other trees are as tall or taller than the pine trees".
The trees weren't going to grow if they had things covering them up like the vines or stealing the nutrients like the non-pines are doing. Plus if a fire would get out of control, it would basically toast these trees up and leaving profit in ashes.

I have taken some pictures from the beginning to present and will continue doing it until the job is finish. I will probably update the pictures when we clean up the logging debris after the thinning, painting tree wound spray on damaged trees, cut diseased/dead trees, plowing/harrowing firebreaks, mowing, and burning the tract. 
Maybe we can burn this tract this winter (if vegetation will dry up enough and settle down) or we will wait til next winter. 

Below are the pictures from the beginning to present. Enjoy.
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*Here is a view of how the timber is before it is thinned*



























*Here is the crew starting to come in and clear out bushes for a landing and loading dock and pushing over trees that need to be cut down to allow the semis the crew uses to pull the trailer from the loader to the landing after the trailer is loaded and ready to be picked up by a better suited semi to carry to the mill*


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## wjjones (May 28, 2010)

Keep us updated, i watch every season of Axe Men on history channel and this is how as you explianed to keep the forrest healthy. Do you plan to replant the 4th row for future harvest?


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## Hoodoo Valley (Nov 14, 2006)

Sure makes the trees grow healthy when you nthin things out! I just cleared out a bunch of small and unhealthy trees here


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## GFC Firefighter (Jul 15, 2010)

No, we don't replant the 4th row. It is left open so the trees left standing will have more room to grow so the sunlight can hit them. Plus it makes it easier for the cut-down machine to squeeze between the other rows to get to the middle row and take out trees which also helps not hitting many trees as you would if you've done the 5th row thinning.

I'm sorry I didn't keep it updated. Been busy but I will get the rest of the photos up! I am working with the State now and we went out and had all of it plowed with pre-suppression firebreaks (firebreaks that have been established to prevent fire escape or keep fire from hopefully jumping your break). Looks like we might be able to burn there this year. It's dry still but we got a good bit of rain so let's see when this winter comes if it will still be wet enough to burn.


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## 1720Bluebell (Dec 19, 2012)

Firefighter. How did the logging work out? I'm a retired (some tree huggers would say reformed) timber feller from the western mountains-Or. Wa. Id. Ut. I'm doing some small scale tractor logging here in sw Colorado with my Ford 1720. We have a dandy fire problem down here, as you may well know from the news accounts of last summer. I've been working some juniper/pinyon pine pygmy forest ground, removing dead and overgrown stuff, salvaging firewood, piling slash for winter burning and for wildlife brushpile habitat. I get into the aspen woods occationally to cut and skid bigger aspen logs for a local furniture maker. 
I only today read your post, so cannot access the photos. Do you still have them in a form that could be posted?
Thanks.


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## GFC Firefighter (Jul 15, 2010)

The thinning operation went great. They did leave some stumps too high though. We are planning to do a prescribed burn on it this winter. Will keep yall posted!


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## 1720Bluebell (Dec 19, 2012)

*fuels mitigation work*

As you undoubtedly know from reading the news this year, we here in Colorado have had a horrendous fire season with record breaking fires for our state, followed by bizarre rainstorms and flooding. This morning we've got a skiff of snow on the ground after 2 days of rain, so it's time to think of burning some slash.

I was able to make all manner of piles last spring with my Ford tractor. I accomplished the skidding by removing the blade itself from my Rhino and keeping the 3 pt. attachment on the tractor. I could loop a bull rope around brush, tie a running bowline, hook the other end of the rope to the 3 pt. and take off. I used the bucket to make the actual piles. No bucket forks yet, but they will be the next purchase or fabrication. I skidded many logs this way, too. 

Next time out I'll take the camera and get some photos.

Too bad about those high stumps. Just pack a light weight saw when you're out and about and knock the top off them. But be sure you have your file and bar wrench in your pocket!

Thanks for your quick update.


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## GFC Firefighter (Jul 15, 2010)

1720Bluebell said:


> As you undoubtedly know from reading the news this year, we here in Colorado have had a horrendous fire season with record breaking fires for our state, followed by bizarre rainstorms and flooding. This morning we've got a skiff of snow on the ground after 2 days of rain, so it's time to think of burning some slash.
> 
> I was able to make all manner of piles last spring with my Ford tractor. I accomplished the skidding by removing the blade itself from my Rhino and keeping the 3 pt. attachment on the tractor. I could loop a bull rope around brush, tie a running bowline, hook the other end of the rope to the 3 pt. and take off. I used the bucket to make the actual piles. No bucket forks yet, but they will be the next purchase or fabrication. I skidded many logs this way, too.
> 
> ...


Yeah I was out in Idaho/Utah this year on a handcrew...year before I was in Oregon and Virginia on another handcrew. Was pretty dry out there! Yall got a bad bug problem out there. 


I let the stumps rot. When we burn it should burn many of them up. 

Yeah, get some pictures man. Would be nice.


We got to re-harrow our firebreaks.


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## GFC Firefighter (Jul 15, 2010)

Well we just burned the thinned timber off this past weekend. Will post pictures soon.


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## GFC Firefighter (Jul 15, 2010)

Well here are the burn photos. I will post the after this weekend. I'm sorry that I had deleted the thinning operation photos...when you see the after photos you can see what they done to the timber.


Anyways, 

Here are some before pictures of the timber we burnt (thick with brush....WAS THICKER BEFORE THE THINNING. It was so thick you could see nothing in the woods. The air was hard to breathe)

BEFORE

*Old skid trail (where the skidder dragged the cut timber to the logging loading deck)*


*Main road that goes through the property*



*The logging loading deck*





*Where they pulled the log trailers for the log trucks to hook up to, to carry to the saw mill*



*The area around the back pond*




I was doing most of the firing off so I let my brother get a chance of doing it and gave him the driptorch (it's his first time burning timber; he didn't like it too much...too much walking he said..haha)


Tested a little spot before I light the woods on fire (made sure the fire conditions were right...they were ok but not like they should've been)



Tractor got stuck. The fire jumped across the canal and was heading into the other timber. Had my brother to try to cut the firebreak there because one spot wasn't under water. He got stuck in the process. The fire was coming. He didn't like that...but he saw what I had to face with my job. Got the tractor out but the harrows are still back there.




THE PRESCRIBED BURN BEGINS!


















Walking back to the house and saw a beautiful sight.





The smoke wasn't sticking around the area which was good and fog didn't set in til the next morning. You have to watch for smoke/fog mixing on the highways which would cause a wreck. I should've stopped lighting when it got dark but I was just about done. What helped me out was that our place is in the middle of no where.


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## 1720Bluebell (Dec 19, 2012)

Great photo shoot! Playing with fire can be so much fun, and satisfying, too.
How did you lose the stack on the Ford? I recently caught mine on a low hanging limb as I was backing up to a brush pile to be skidded and ended up with it all cattywhompus. I'm not ready to try to bend it back for fear of it cracking right at the first bend out of the manifold.
You may end up having more turkeys on your ground with the clearing work you've done. Are you a turkey hunter? I am-our season opens in just a few weeks. Good luck, and thanks for the posting.


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## GFC Firefighter (Jul 15, 2010)

1720Bluebell said:


> Great photo shoot! Playing with fire can be so much fun, and satisfying, too.
> How did you lose the stack on the Ford? I recently caught mine on a low hanging limb as I was backing up to a brush pile to be skidded and ended up with it all cattywhompus. I'm not ready to try to bend it back for fear of it cracking right at the first bend out of the manifold.
> You may end up having more turkeys on your ground with the clearing work you've done. Are you a turkey hunter? I am-our season opens in just a few weeks. Good luck, and thanks for the posting.


Yes it can be fun then it can be a PITA if it gets away from you! :lmao:

Lost the exhaust working in the woods...vines would snag it. It's loud when I drive but I will eventually put it on once I get a little cage on it. 

No, I'm no hunter. We lease out land out for hunting. Couple of our hunters were out there this morning turkey hunting so was two game wardens. Saw one of our hunters tag was from Wisconsin and checked on him. 


Will post them after photos tonight!


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