Live.... Shredding Operation

[Anvilheadtexas]

Oh... The Yaupon really took hold here, I bet it's 10 feet wider in places!

[KactusKiller]

How far below the surface does id grind the stumps down?

[txwhitetail]

Whats hourly rate on those?

Has anyone rented a skid steer setup like that? What did it cost?

[KactusKiller]

There is a bobcat dealership near dfw that rents them $1000 per day or actually weekend since they are closed sat/sun.

[b.a.saha]

I do that for a $100 an hour. They grind everything at least to soil level. I did the stuff in the gleaton ranch thread. I generally will shear larger hardwood stuff and stack then mulch everything else. Just depends on what's there. If anyone has a question about what they can and can't do shoot me a pm or text/call 979-215-8807. The effiencey depends greatly on the operator as well.

[bgleaton]

Britt Saha did an amazing job on our place. We definitely recommend him.

[Doe Doe Spike]

I have been wanting to have this done at our place. Do you recommend a certain time of year to have it done? How many acres could one machine cover in a day if just rough mulching yaupons and small cedar and not mulching them completely?

[bgleaton]

You can see how much Britt cleared at our place in 2 1/2 to 3 days of work. The thread is Gleaton Chip Ranch.

[BIG BONE]

Mine is working well in the Brush Country.

That skid steer still holding up good?

[HappyM]

So my place is in thick yaupon / oak country and I have gone back and forth between a dozer and skid steer/muncher. Lots of pros and cons for both. My comments are associated with ground that the trees are too close together to go between then with either machine so some must come down to clear ground.

If you want to leave mostly tree cover, the mulched is much faster on a per acre basis with a good operator. They can create virtually any pattern you want, leave as many trees as you want, and clean it to virtually bare ground if you want. Downside is they don’t get many roots so RE growth is a problem. Yaupon, huisache, mesquite, and running oak are the worst. You wil need to shred , spray or burn or it will come back and fast.

Dozer is way more efficient if you want to clear a multi-acre food plot or open up a closed canopy to the “big trees”. Good operators can do more intricate work but it is time consuming on a dozer because they have to retrieve what they push. The big advantage is they get the roots. RE growth is not as big of a problem and much slower. The other big advantage is cost effectiveness if you are really opening up the ground. Following up with fire (which is real inexpensive) in a few years does the trick.

With both applications the response is amazing. Cleaning out all the undesirable understory has huge impacts on restarting the natural cycle of grass and forbe growth.

M2c

[AgHntr10]

Anvil- Saw this thread get bumped to the top and wondered if this could have anything to do with your drop in deer sightings? Could what you mulched have been some of the preferred bedding on your place?

[camoclad]

We saw the same drop on our place. It's esthetically the prettiest place in the county, and more ag productive but deer are scarce.

We've started adding back edge, lots of it, via new tree and brush growth and seasonal wildlife plantings. Creeks are fenced and have always been left alone and off limits from machinery. This has been our lifeblood for deer that have stayed.

"Life is on the edges"
Got to have edge and transition, monoculture never equals diversity. Just wildlife 101 I've learned the hard way.