Hi, I had about 30 Acers of my land Logged, Due to the weather this year ( Real Mild ground wasn't frozen for long ) I didn't get as much wood as I had wanted out but still got a some. The area I had logged had a lot of Hemlock on it ( I have Cherry,ash Maple and other hard woods in different areas ) and I have a mill that takes that kind of wood not far from me. Now I know that Hemlock has a ton of Branchs and what not and I also know it depends on the kind of job the logger did. But I am wondering how long till the tops and the branchs start to rot? In ten years can you still tell it's been touched?
How long after logging does the land look natural again?
- Thread starter JOE.G
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Oldtimer
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Hemlock slash will last a little longer than hardwood, so will pine. But in 10 years all you'll see out there is the stumps. Hemlock and pine stumps can last for 50 years in the right conditions.
Hardwood slash will be gone in 3 years, and the stumps will either rot away in 10 or sprout new growth.
Hardwood slash will be gone in 3 years, and the stumps will either rot away in 10 or sprout new growth.
Can you burn the slash piles?
Oldtimer
Addicted to ArboristSite
Piles will take longer than if it's spead out low where moisture can help it decay. Nobody will want it for the wood, even for free. Too much work for low quality wood.
Spread it out, or if you can do it legally and safely...burn it.
Is this logged section to be used for other purposes besides growing wood?
Spread it out, or if you can do it legally and safely...burn it.
Is this logged section to be used for other purposes besides growing wood?
ShaneLogs
Addicted to ArboristSite
I have found out that in my experience, Hemlock slash lasts about 5 years if it spread out. Maybe even a little quicker in a pile because all the bottom of the pile will rot down first. Maybe some herbicide will take care of your problem ? Or take the slash and have a bon fire ? LOL
Al ot of people have out door stoves here, The Slash wouldn't be good for that but there are some big log's in there, Also there are a lot of people that sell camp fire wood around here also.
The woods is used for four wheeling, hunting and hiking. I could burn it in certain spots and I have thought about that, We had made some clearing made while logging. Now that the ferns are growing up it does look better, All the logging trails are still real muddy everytime it rains.
The woods is used for four wheeling, hunting and hiking. I could burn it in certain spots and I have thought about that, We had made some clearing made while logging. Now that the ferns are growing up it does look better, All the logging trails are still real muddy everytime it rains.
Oldtimer
Addicted to ArboristSite
IMO, forget trying to landscape the woods. Do what can be seen from your immediate yard, and let nature take care of the rest. It's erosion control, and food for the next crop of trees.
Less disturbance is generally better. Most soils have a limited tolerance for machinery. If the slash is already on the ground and spread out, leave it. If it's already piled, leave it. Burning is OK if you can do it, but check with your local FD first. Air quality is a political time bomb these days, and you may not be able to get approval for burning slash piles. Replant in accordance with local laws.
I bought my current place about two years ago, after gutting the house to the studs and re doing everything I have now moved on to the yard, I have added Chicken coop and some smaller sheds, I am going to add a larger out building this year I hope. I have about three acers that I mow and I have cleared out the wood line near my Lawn and home to make it look clean, Took out trees and lower Branchs and really opened it up so you can see a ways from the porch. The pole Saw I bought has been a real helpful tool. I have a cherry tree that dies in the yard and Ill be dropping that tom. I enjoy a nice clean looking property, Even though many people don't go walking all over my property I enjoy a nice neat woods when I go for my hikes or camping fishing or hunting with my kids.
Oldtimer
Addicted to ArboristSite
Neat and clean does not in any way mean healthy as far as forest goes.
But to each his own. More power to ya.
I know a guy who spent the best part of 20 years making his 90 acres look like a city park...no limbs, no rotting wood, looked like it was a campground almost.
He "finished" in the fall of 1997....and the ice-storm of january (?) '98 completely destroyed his 90 acres.
It's a battle mother nature always wins.
But to each his own. More power to ya.
I know a guy who spent the best part of 20 years making his 90 acres look like a city park...no limbs, no rotting wood, looked like it was a campground almost.
He "finished" in the fall of 1997....and the ice-storm of january (?) '98 completely destroyed his 90 acres.
It's a battle mother nature always wins.
Oh I am not going to clean up the all of the property, But I do want to be able to walk almost anywhere with out having to climb though a ton of brush. I don't mind wood laying on the floor feeding the other plant life and I don't want to open it up so much that it gets destroyed if there was a wind storm.
When I had it logged we went though and chose trees and laid it out so we could keep it healthy and safe from storm damage.
When I had it logged we went though and chose trees and laid it out so we could keep it healthy and safe from storm damage.
Oldtimer
Addicted to ArboristSite
In 5 years it'll be no trouble walking...except for the re-gen that should sprout thick.
Good luck, and be safe.
OlympicYJ
ArboristSite Guru
What is your management goal in the logged area? Are you replanting or leaving it open. Piled slash doesn't help many seedlings grow as the nutrients are concentrated to a very small radius around the pile. Slash piles furthermore limit available planting space if in deed you are planting. Burn the slash if you can. And if you can't I guess your only option is to leave them as I wouldn't go back in and move them, too much cost and you are creating more compaction and erosion problems.
Maybe you could include a picture of the slash piles so there is better understanding of what you've got and better advice can be given.
As everyone said around 5 years scattered slash should be pretty well gone. Piled slash takes more than 5 years to fully decompose. I wouldn't be suprised if it took around 10 years, all dependant upon the pile size.
Maybe you could include a picture of the slash piles so there is better understanding of what you've got and better advice can be given.
As everyone said around 5 years scattered slash should be pretty well gone. Piled slash takes more than 5 years to fully decompose. I wouldn't be suprised if it took around 10 years, all dependant upon the pile size.
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ShaneLogs
Addicted to ArboristSite
Yes pictures would be appreciated 
I try to keep my wood lot kinda clean looking. It is a ever going battle though. If I was you and I really wanted to get the slash out of my sight I would take my skid steer with the brush grabber on it and take chunks out of the slash pile and dump it over some ledge or some rocks to smooth out your trail some. A flat trail is a happy trail
I try to keep my wood lot kinda clean looking. It is a ever going battle though. If I was you and I really wanted to get the slash out of my sight I would take my skid steer with the brush grabber on it and take chunks out of the slash pile and dump it over some ledge or some rocks to smooth out your trail some. A flat trail is a happy trail Ill take a walk one of these days and take pic's, Some areas the stuff is piled and other it is spread out most of it is cut real low so you don't see it unless you look down or walk though it.
I Did take some of the stuff in fill in some water damaged areas and ravines that don't flow much anymore or at all.
My plan is to have a usable happy healthy wood lot.
I Did take some of the stuff in fill in some water damaged areas and ravines that don't flow much anymore or at all.
My plan is to have a usable happy healthy wood lot.
:msp_thumbup:
I guess I should pack my camera around the valley and take some pictures of what old, unburned slash piles/stump piles look like. They make good trellises for Himalayan Blackberries. The Forest Service leaves a few unburned for rat habitat, too.
Unless you plan on turning all your acreage into a mud bog four wheeling mecca, I'd leave the slash as is.
It is possible to plant trees through it, we did that here. We don't see much 6 foot deep slash anymore. It is just harder for the tree planters, of which I was one, to plant in the slash. Slash provides nutrients and helps with erosion control, as Oldtimer says.
This is NOT me.
View attachment 239205
I was on the Skagit Watershed Group and Stillaguamish Watershed Group for way to many years
Part of my job was getting in planes and fly over logged off areas up in the upper watershed; between 15 years 25 years we notices alot more slides in the hill here in Washington State specialy on the Stilly
But I'm talking about a bigger area than your talking about thu and on hill sides
Part of my job was getting in planes and fly over logged off areas up in the upper watershed; between 15 years 25 years we notices alot more slides in the hill here in Washington State specialy on the Stilly
But I'm talking about a bigger area than your talking about thu and on hill sides
Joe do you realy want the land to look natural or do you already have a preconceived idea of what natural is? Most people I have dealt with have a snapshot in their mind of what the area in question should look like. You will probably need a county ologist to tell you what plants, trees, animals, etc are actually native the your land and how they are "arranged". At what point of sucession do you want your woods to be? What will be next as the forest evolves? Maybe your forest in its natural state could not be seen through or walked through. Maybe a creek ran through it but does not anymore.
Burning slash piles will kill most of the seeds and micro-organisms if the fire is very hot. You will need to make small piles, lots of work, or reseed after a large fire. Burning hemlock may create a hydrophobic layer in the soil, one that water can't penetrate, soil some soil work may be neccesary at the fire site. If you remove or grind the stumps then you may have to lay down "bug logs". Blasting stumps works great but is hardly practical.
Post logging sites are rarely ever natural again. Live with that thought and just decide what works best for you. Also, research and try to grasp the concept of biodiversity vs tree farm. Best of luck.
Burning slash piles will kill most of the seeds and micro-organisms if the fire is very hot. You will need to make small piles, lots of work, or reseed after a large fire. Burning hemlock may create a hydrophobic layer in the soil, one that water can't penetrate, soil some soil work may be neccesary at the fire site. If you remove or grind the stumps then you may have to lay down "bug logs". Blasting stumps works great but is hardly practical.
Post logging sites are rarely ever natural again. Live with that thought and just decide what works best for you. Also, research and try to grasp the concept of biodiversity vs tree farm. Best of luck.
