Cow pasture maples

Donald Lehman

Well-known Member
You know the ones I'm talking about. 200 plus years old, 5-6 feet across the base, seven feet high trunk branches out into 7-8 14-18 inch branches that reach 40-50 feet in the air.

Got three of them to take down. All are 80% or more dead. Lotsa wood per tree, but a real pinta to take down, block up and split. A twenty inch bar ain't gonna fell them or block up the trunk. Twenty four inch bar might do it. We'll see. May end up going after a 30 inch bar before we finish all three. If those trunks are solid all the way through, 6 hp. is gonna seem like barely enough. The 385XP is gonna get a real workout.

Wonder how many maple syrup spouts are buried in those suckers????????? (cringe!)
 
If you've been by my brother's place on Erie Canal lately you may have noticed they took another one of his road trees down. Getting real shaky and figured they'd take it before it ended up on top of someone's car. Stopped by Sunday and he was pruning the stump down a bit--the Beaver boys had did the felling, and they'd took it off several feet up to avoid the butt swell. 24" bar going in from both sides wouldn't meet in the middle--he had to take off chunks to work it down to manageable size. Lot of dirt in the middle from the rot, and the stump had actually grown up around a good-sized rock, and so he left part of it there before he turned the chain teeth into little jagged bumps.
 
Locally the tall stumps get carved into totems. Whitehorse was Bear clan and some standing bears carved out of various 'stumps' around the old tribal area. Also a few Badgers -especially after college -Madison, Wisc Badgers-team wins. 'Druidic' thrones are another wood cutting project, smaller trees can make simple chair while a big oak stump with high back and a cushion is yard focus point. Cordless drill that can get 4 to 6 holes drilled in low base area that can take a bit of 'Plastique/primacord/detonation cord or thin 40% nitro dynamite sticks --and a clear area around it can make a interesting 'launch' project. Lots of toothpick/ kindling left over and a large solid now loosened wood block or several. Bit of paperwork to get the explosive some places. RN
 
I got a brand new 28"er for my Sachs 143 Don. Haven't even mounted it yet. That would work...maybe! I bought it for a tree I got pretty much like you describe, 'cept it's red oak.
 
What would happen if you threw some gasoline on the tree and dropped a match? Been clearcutting a path through pinoaks today and my 18" bar is handling the job. I feel for you.
 
The gas would burn and the tree be there after all the excitement is over. We burn for heat up here, no one wastes wood like that.
 

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