# Making hemlocks into "pasture"



## outlawfarmer (Mar 15, 2013)

Step 1 Flee city and loose shirt on house
Step 2 Move to lake side community in rural New England buy 4 acres
Step 3 (opional) Find out you have big cancerous tumor inside kdney
Step 4 Loose 7 months of life and thousands of dollars to surgery and complications, but kick cancers ass
Step 5 Trade logger trees for stumping an acre after he cuts trees
Step 6 Use goats, then pigs, then chickens, then ashes and lime to build soil
Step 7 Grow goodness in newly found sunlight to improve soil and feed family
Step 8 Live happily ever after...

Today began step 5...






5hours into it


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## WhiteMountainsRanch (Mar 15, 2013)

*Awww I love it!  More pics please!



(Well all but step 3)... sorry you had to deal with that!*


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## Goatherd (Mar 16, 2013)

I like a fighter!  Best of luck to you.


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## alsea1 (Mar 16, 2013)

Looking forward to hearing more.
So far sounds like you have had quite the battle.


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## outlawfarmer (Mar 16, 2013)

Well I believe I'm picking up my first goat on Monday.  Shes a bred toggenburg and supposed to be used to being milked. So I'm trying to decide how I want the goat shed to look and where to fence first.  Very excied and the loggers are still doing their thing


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## Cricket (Mar 17, 2013)

Best of luck!   Don't know what part of NE you're in, but I'd think that trading stumping for logs is a good deal!  We've never gotten much for Hemlock at the mill.  My husband bought a used portable saw mill years ago and Hemlock makes good flooring for critter barns.  Just in case you want to add mill to your 'want' list and have trees left over.  (I'm always happy to complicate life!)


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## outlawfarmer (Mar 17, 2013)

I think the hemlocks are going for beams and fence making.  I will need more fences but now need open air spaces it was too thick to see the sky


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## outlawfarmer (Mar 18, 2013)

We're getting there.  Lots of nosey people asking what's going on.  So I may name it Nunya Farm.  "What's a nunya...  nunya business"
Or I'm gonna put up a sign... Walmart coming soon....


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## outlawfarmer (Mar 18, 2013)




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## marlowmanor (Mar 18, 2013)

outlawfarmer said:
			
		

> We're getting there.  Lots of nosey people asking what's going on.  So I may name it Nunya Farm.  "What's a nunya...  nunya business"
> Or I'm gonna put up a sign... Walmart coming soon....


 I love that name idea! Sounds like something my DH would come up with!  I say go for the name idea. It's totally original and you wouldn't have to worry about other people already having the same name!


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## Symphony (Mar 18, 2013)

marlowmanor said:
			
		

> outlawfarmer said:
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I must agree, that is by far the best name I've ever seen.  So how does that Logging deal work, do they take the stumps and you keep the trees?
Just wondering because on my land there is a area of Ash planted for future logging and they are mature.

Wish you the best on your journey and glad you beat cancer.

Symphony


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## outlawfarmer (Mar 18, 2013)

They take the wood and leave the stumps and if you get the wrong people they leave a huge mess. They walk around and down play the potential money they can make off your wood.  They talk about fuel costs, equipment costs etc.. I WANTED as much as possible stumped but they tell you later after doing the numbers how much they will stump. The area stumped is like the payment for your wood.  In my case and other guys it worked out tobe like 1/4 of the area they will cut when done.  Ash is more money than hemlock and a few oaks. So they may be willing to stump a higher ratio. He claimed people get about $2k/ acre to stump land after its been cut.  I am getting the part I can see from the house stumped and that satisfied me.  So its barter and uncle sam is out of it.  Guy at other end of road sold logs through logger, made some money and then paid for some stump removal.  In the end it worked out about the same but he had to pay taxes. I may rent a stump grinder or hire a guy next year who just does stumps. For this year I going to let goats and then pigs beat on them


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## nelson castro (Mar 18, 2013)

The common name hemlock is derived from a perceived similarity in the smell of its crushed foliage to that of the unrelated plant poison hemlock. Avoid knotty pieces. The more knots, the less strong the hemlock is and the less shake it has. If you can avoid knots and other imperfections Hemlock is actually preferred by a lot of home builders. It is cheaper than SPF (Spruce, Pine and Fir) and is stronger than those woods as well.


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## Symphony (Mar 19, 2013)

Ok, this may sound stupid but, why would you want the stumps.  I'm not a great builder more of a patcher if anything so I don't see the value in keeping the stumps, unless for firewood.  The spot I was thinking about thinning is mainly Ash with a mix of Cottonwoods, Oaks and some Catalpa's.  Had to look up the Catalpa didn't know what kind of tree that was.


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## outlawfarmer (Mar 19, 2013)

Nobody wants the stumps left. It just takes a lot to get them out. Time is money.   So unless ur trees r worth a lot they won't pull or grind out all the stumps with out extra money on top of taking the wood for payment .  Dropping reber into ground next to stump and making a hole and filling it with a few corn kernels gets pigs to loosen stumps at times. It takes a long time bit it works on smaller ones


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## outlawfarmer (Mar 20, 2013)

If anyone has ideas on grass or legumes I can plant to help enrich the now bare soil I'd appreaciate the info.  I want to getsomething growning to hold the soil in place and enrich it.


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## Symphony (Mar 20, 2013)

Depends on where you are or at least the climate zone.  Perennial Rye, Timothy, Orchard grass and Vetch.


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## nelson castro (Mar 25, 2013)

Symphony said:
			
		

> Depends on where you are or at least the climate zone.  Perennial Rye, Timothy, Orchard grass and Vetch.


Definitely agree on this one. The climate would be the primary thing to consider especially in growing plants.


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## outlawfarmer (Mar 26, 2013)

I'm in NH. Has anyone used metal grids sold to reinforce concrete as fence material. It looks same as feed panels for goats but less money


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