Lots of work ahead

Cavanaugh and Son Tree Service, based in Franconia, NH, did a great job at Hardwood Hermitage on Wednesday. They cut 18 trunks down as a means for us to protect power lines, add firewood by removal of some large trees with dieback, and expand solar production by removing some western and southern shade. Felling twisted trees and other difficult work can best be done by professionals! We've been going to work, with cutting and splitting over the last few days, with much work planned this autumn. 

Helping more hardwoods

One of the felling axes went to work this a.m. The main goal: Help a few oaks and birches by clearing away the highly inferior balsam fir. Below is a before/after of the work session. The surviving hardwoods will get more sun now, increasing their chance of survival.

Felling axes

A new implement has been added to the Hardwood Hermitage toolkit. Felling axes borrowed from a neighbor have thinned several trees over the last few days. Most of the dropped trees were balsam fir, with their demise helping oaks, sugar maple, and birches get more sun. The axes make for a great workout! Soft balsam fir can be taken down quite rapidly with a very sharp axe head.

The trial with a neighbor's axes tested different handle lengths and weights. The work sessions have been a lot of fun, with great benefits for the forest.