Its amazing how much land the vegetation, limbs and branches take over at the perimeter of the fields around here. Its even worse when bad weather knocks trees and limbs over. Spring of 2009, following that Dec 2008 ice storm mess, I went ahead of my long time friend and farmer, clearing all the perimeters of the fields he plants, was about 500 acres worth, using his 3150 FWA JD my Stihl saw and my '64 F600, as I took in a couple o truck loads and some of the oak I still have to burn this year.
This was hard work, and highly dangerous with all the spring loaded blow down,leaners and so on, plus you can hear that 7420 and IH 5 bottom not far behind you, I think I lost 25 pounds between that and picking rocks when cultipacking after planting oats.
The icing on the cake was riding with the spray applicator in that fancy JD late model spray rig and seeing the increase in acreage, its significant, one farm he rented 60 acres from the perimeters in some areas were 20 feet into brush, it adds up.
I really had to hustle to keep ahead of him, filled my truck at the same time with 6'-8' logs, used the loader on the 3150 and my makeshift forks, so I was getting paid by him with the bonus of getting the wood, had to hustle though to get both done.
When I cut wood, I take everything down to 1" if possible, I either cut the tops up so I can toss em in where the hedge row is or other out of the way place, one thing I don't do make waste, the very tops ok, but theres enough heart wood in smaller diameter, it makes great kindling and it all burns. I know its easy to leave brush laying about, and loose the loader can usually make short work of it, anyone working in a field doing this ought to be cognizant of at least getting it out of the way. Its hard work, you get to keep the wood, at least toss the tops into a piles to be pushed off or by hand into the hedgerows.
The forestry outfit working on the power lines here had some long reaching on a boom with a buzz saw, that would have made limbing so easy, I got pretty good with his loader and shearing off branches, but I'd have loved to tried one of those machines. A power pruner and someone working off a bucket on a tractor, though not osha approved also works pretty good, then you just push off, use a grapple, no matter how you look at it, it can be a lot of work but really needs to be done, saves exhaust stacks, lights, window glass, mirrors and or anything that can get caught, also very appreciated if running any kind of open station tractor, the worst around here is the pricker bushes, they are just mean, I get ripped and poked by them often, also am getting good at rolling out of the barbs when moving slow, have to wear safety glasses, I got one across the eye, thought it scratched the cornea, that was war on those, they do uproot easily but they're smart they always grow in the worst darn places you can't get with the loader.
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Today's Featured Article - A Lifetime of Farm Machinery - by Joe Michaels. I am a mechanical engineer by profession, specializing in powerplant work. I worked as a machinist and engine erector, with time spent overseas. I have always had a love for machinery, and an appreciation for farming and farm machinery. I was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. Not a place one would associate with farms or farm machinery. I credit my parents for instilling a lot of good values, a respect for learning, a knowledge of various skills and a little knowledge of farming in me, amo
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