X-mas boughs

[Chainsaw Master]

Has anyone ever cut and sold evergreen boughs for X-Mas wreaths & garland?
This might be off topic for chainsaws, but I figured your all out in the woods alot, and if you can make a couple of xtra bucks selling the brush from your trees, ya wacked down, well then you can put it toward a new saw.

Nursery's & flower shops usually buy boughs this time of the year, mostly balsam, whitepine, cedar.....altho all evergreens are bought, depending on location, and availibity. Heres a pic of my main tools. 90% of the work is with the hand held shears.

Boughs are baled in about 30 lb bales for handling and sold by the pound, usually 15-30 cents a pound depending on species & quality. A person can cut 1/2 - 1 ton in a day. I usually look forward to cutting boughs every year. It helps make Christmas Merry.....

 

[RiverRat2]

Never even thought about it!!!!

But it makes sense, Could you use a pole pruner to cut them ?
I have a Stihl Ht 101 that has about 12' of reach so you could reach about 16 feet easily

 

[Chainsaw Master]

But it makes sense, Could you use a pole pruner to cut them ?
I have a Stihl Ht 101 that has about 12' of reach so you could reach about 16 feet easily

yea you could, you might have to remanufacture them, ie cut them in to usable sizes of about a 1-2ft long. The boughs need to be covered in needles, and healthy green. The least amount of handling is the best. Heres a pic of an hrs work, about 250 lbs.

 

[manual]

Those pole loppers are the best way. Used them before.
What ya got the chainsaw for cutting the whole tree down ?
easier to take the boughs while the tree is standing.
Unless.

 

[Chainsaw Master]

Those pole loppers are the best way. Used them before.
What ya got the chainsaw for cutting the whole tree down ?
easier to take the boughs while the tree is standing.
Unless.

Had to cut the skid trail......can't cut the trees down here, this a second cutting. I cut here 5-6 yrs ago, a renewable, sustainable resource......

 

[manual]

ya herd your cutting, back behind me ,next to the 400.
good deal.
Going to do any ceder this year ?

 

[RiverRat2]

What kind of saw is that????

Looks Kinda red

 

[manual]

Good News,
Looks like the one and only Dolmar in town. just got out of the shop.

 

[RaisedByWolves]

Dolmar.


I can spot that fancy badge from a mile.

 

[beowulf343]

Has anyone ever cut and sold evergreen boughs for X-Mas wreaths & garland?
This might be off topic for chainsaws, but I figured your all out in the woods alot, and if you can make a couple of xtra bucks selling the brush from your trees, ya wacked down, well then you can put it toward a new saw.
Nursery's & flower shops usually buy boughs this time of the year, mostly balsam, whitepine, cedar.....altho all evergreens are bought, depending on location, and availibity. Heres a pic of my main tools. 90% of the work is with the hand held shears.
Boughs are baled in about 30 lb bales for handling and sold by the pound, usually 15-30 cents a pound depending on species & quality. A person can cut 1/2 - 1 ton in a day. I usually look forward to cutting boughs every year. It helps make Christmas Merry.....

Interesting, I didn't know you could sell evergreen boughs. I know when I used to trim we always had a couple people who would stop and scrounge through our brush piles looking for evergreen branches. We were usually happy to give them away though-less chipping for us.

 

[manual]

Chainsaw Master is probably out cutting balsam boughs.

Yes, The boughs are sold to wholesallers in are area, to make wreaths, Grave blankets and ropes.
Then sold all over the State.
One wholesaler takes them to the Farmers Market in Detroit, Sets a display of his trees and all the stuff made of Boughs, Weeks before Christmas.
One year walt Disney Bought two semi loads to take back to Florida.
Chainsaw Masters brother is one of the fastest wreath makers I have seen.

Boughs bought are Balsom, White Pine, And the king of the crop is Cedar.
These are the one to two years growth of the branch.
Maybe Chainsaw Master can show a Pic. Of how much is taken off the trees for marketing your product. "Hint Hint"

 

[Like The Woods!]

Tipping

Around here it is called tipping. Balsam tips are harvested without tools. Just break the tips off. Around 0.30/lb. this year.

As always, there is some problem with "poaching".

 

[Freakingstang]

Good News,
Looks like the one and only Dolmar in town. just got out of the shop.

Glad my eyes weren't decieving me...lol

So what was the problem with it? (in the shop for a month, right)

 

[MikeInParadise]

Around here it is called tipping. Balsam tips are harvested without tools. Just break the tips off. Around 0.30/lb. this year.

As always, there is some problem with "poaching".

Wow, I wish I could get that here for them. I just burned a bunch last week!

Around here they are readily available and I doubt anyone would pay for them.

 

[Chainsaw Master]

Glad my eyes weren't decieving me...lol

So what was the problem with it? (in the shop for a month, right)

Nothing really...was high reving...they readjusted the carb....shop is an hr drive & I don't get that way often, so it sat there for awhile. I haven't gave it a good work out yet, just some trimming...

 

[Chainsaw Master]

Wow, I wish I could get that here for them. I just burned a bunch last week!

Around here they are readily available and I doubt anyone would pay for them.

Mike have you ever tried to sell the boughs....called some flower shops?? They use X-mas Decorations every where? don't they? Thats a bummer to burn all those pretty boughs.

 

[powelllake]

Around here in British Columbia Canada, Balsam and Cedar is harvested for essential oil production. Cedar and Balsam Bows and cones are harvested for florists. Spagnum moss and Salal is collected for the florists. Several mushroom varieties are collected off of the forest floor. Wood waste is being made into Ethanol but a lot of it is still just burned up. Our Pine forest is being desimated by the Pine beetle because it doesnt get cold enough anymore to winter kill them. The beetle kills the tree but also makes a purple stain in the wood. Maybe we will find more uses for purple wood also. Got to love the forest.
Mark