Looking at managing 150+ acres of, my non professional opinion, very nice mixed hardwood regeneration. The full property which is a good bit larger than acreage I'm presently focusing on had been logged heavily at several points in the last eighty years. The last cut was 15 years ago. Most of the 150 acres in question had been essentially clear cut/ received a lot of skidding through. The result, aside from many many gullies, is some really nice hardwood regeneration. The looong term goal of the land owner is sugar farm diversified with other non timber forest products where viable. I've done some thinning and the result is very promising- crop trees are beautifully spaced and diverse. What I want to determine is what is an appropriate rate for this work, and what a reasonable timeline to achieve it would be. My test thinning went really nice working solo with my 346xp. How much ground might an expert expect to cover in how long? I worked roughly four acres in two days. Some areas look like they'll go faster others slower. Does anyone do this work in the Northeast and how would you charge, acre or hour?
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I worked at $35.00 an hour, my gas-oil and time starts when I left the house and stopped when I close the tail gate on the property. 2 to 3 acres a day in a heavy stand of 1" to 6" dbh is a good average.
19-03-2024
Ed_K
By the hour is always nice as you know what you are making and your costs will be covered. If you go by the acre there are a few variables to consider to determine your rate/area. Density (stems/acre) and height of the stand usually are the most important. The denser the stand the higher the rate and the taller the trees the higher the rate. Ground conditions such as terrain (steep slopes), windfalls etc. should also be considered. A good maximum rate around here is about $150/acre.
20-03-2024
gump
How tall are the trees? The only thing for me is when working with hardwood regen is avoiding the temptation to get in too early. If you get open it up too much too early will get more branching, (which isn't as big a deal if the end goal is a sugar bush) and opens it up more to wind damage. Its fine to go in a weed out your undesirable trees that you know will never make a crop tree, but its good to keep your options open since alot can happen to a young stand before it becomes truly established. I personally wait until its 7-8 meters before I start really doing a spacing/crop tree selection.