There are a variety of ways to clear land but it really boils down to two. You can hire it done by spending a lot of money, or you can “do it yourself”. The DIY method involves hard work, long days, and sore muscles. It is much cheaper but takes longer. We choose the latter method and spent about three months working each weekend to make the place “presentable”.
My plan was to work outward from both structures, the house and detached garage. We would cut the heavier timber with my chainsaw and the little stuff with loppers. Matt, our oldest, preferred the axe method and cut many the old fashioned way. I took a few swings and decided to stick with the saw.
Where feasible, I burned off the ground debris afterward. We put all the heavy stuff in burn piles for disposal. Those became somewhat numerous because of my caution to burn them.
I would only burn when it had rained or was about to rain. I had no desire to meet the volunteer fire department while uncontrollable flames were in the area. Both sides of our acreage are covered with pines and therefore, pine straw. It burns very fast and very hot, and being a former firefighter myself, I was aware of the dangers. None of the fires got away from us, but I’m sure the neighbors were annoyed from the smoke.
We kidded everyone that our work days were from sunup to sundown and that was usually the truth. When the sun set, we stopped for lack of light and literally “crashed” because we were so tired.
We finally reached the point where I needed someone with a tractor and bush hog for the final cleanup, since I had neither. I sold my tractor and all the attachments when we moved to Birmingham, so I needed to hire someone to mow. I searched Angie’s list, the Internet, and asked the locals. One business kept popping up and it was “Man With A Tractor“. Intrigued, I sent a text to the number saying I needed about three acres mowed. In about ten minutes, Allen called me with an estimate and the day he could be there. That’s the way I like to do business!
He did a great job mowing and even relocated a large pile of rocks with the front end loader, to the rear of the property. I was planning to move those with a pickup truck, so it was a big help!
I would suggest that if you need mowing or clearing done in North Alabama, Allen is your man. You can contact him at 256-653-1145.
