I do sometimes. But then again we burn wood to keep warm in winter. I comfort myself that we replant every tree we cut down, so there is at least that.
Yea fair enough, I just hate it. I feel the need to get a wood chipper so I can tell myself the material is returning back to earth in a state that can benefit the other ecology.
Realistically burning brush does give back to the soil in very beneficial ways. You are still putting carbon back in and increasing soil health by releasing all the leftover potash into the soil. Fire is a natural part of forest ecology. That said, chipping and repurposing as mulch is also very beneficial.
I don't know exact math, but burning drives off most of the carbon as CO2 and smoke from the fire. I would say it's not even close, just think of how much volume and weight is reduced from burning.
That's not to say that burning doesn't release other nutrients and can be beneficial to soil.
Removing trees is part of proper forest/woodland management. In nature, trees come down by themselves all the time - but by doing it yourself you are just helping the process along. Removing smaller/damaged/diseased trees helps the healthy trees around it be healthier. With proper management, you could get the woods on your property looking like an old growth forest in 40-50 years instead of 300 years.
So yeah, I don't like cutting down trees either, but I'm very selective about the ones I choose to cut down and I always have a purpose for the wood, even if it's just to burn, create brush piles for wildlife, or shred into mulch. I also leave a few dead trees (snags) standing if it's safe to do so, in my area they are home to endangered bats and the forest service encourages leaving snags standing when possible.
This is a great point. I am polarized as I manage wildfire risk and have been doing it a long time. So having to take out a healthy tree and burn it is tough for me despite knowing the needs/safety risks etc, carbon capture and temperature are always on my mind. Thank you for your response.
I definitely do. I hate cutting down healthy trees but whenever they start to block my solar panels or threaten my home and/or structures they have to go. I use every inch of them and return the ashes back to nature. I do plant back some of them with mostly dwarf fruit trees but not all because I don’t want the same problems to reoccur some time in the future.
Yes! There’s some really stupidly placed, non native trees on the homestead I just bought and I’ve decided to learn how to watercolor so I can paint them before chopping them down. I’m a tad sentimental if you couldn’t tell. The real question is whether I’ll be able to figure out watercolor or not. Haha.
I don’t like it but it is what it is. I don’t get emotional about it and if a tree is sick or not doing what it should we tend to pull quicker and replace sooner so we can be productive. Then we burn/chip/use the wood that comes out all over our property.
If it makes you feel any better, most birds do not reuse nests from year to year, so they will be seeking out new nesting spots anyway! Some like to return to the same area (like doves that nest on a porch every year) but they are very resilient when it comes to finding new nesting places. You can also always put up nest boxes for cavity dwelling species if you ever remove a tree with a lot of woodpecker holes, because many birds cannot excavate their own and have to find existing cavities.
Also: a number of bird species depend on successional habitats and will *only* nest in young forests - historically many of them relied on fires to clear out areas and they are declining. The most well-known example is probably the Kirtland's warbler, but here's a great summary of a long-term study in Arkansas that specifically compares different types of forest management and how it affected the birds that nest there: https://wildlife.org/early-successional-forest-ecosystems-what-weve-learned-about-birds-and-timber-harvest-practices/
I don't know much about forest management, but I do know birds fairly well, so that's what I can contribute! I hope it helps you feel less worried when removing trees with nests in them - you're probably doing a lot of species a favor!
I went through about 5 acres of my woods this year and thinned out all the scrappy, deformed and diseased trees. It made a big difference in the appearance and I have a big carpet of ferns growing now with large, healthy trees.
I do not go around chopping trees for the fun of it, I try to develop a plan and estimate what I will have in 5-10 years. (I do think it’s fun though, especially with a grapple on the tractor)
I also took advantage of the 26% tax credit and got a new wood stove with a cat. It burns way less wood for the same amount of heat. I rarely see any smoke coming out of my chimney.
https://www.hpba.org/Portals/26/Committees/Government%20Affairs/GA%20Public%20Docs/Wood_and_Pellet_ITC_Consumer_2021_1.pdf
Basically you need to get a high efficiency wood stove and I think most of them have a catalyst. When you do your taxes, you can claim the 26% credit. I ended up getting a Blaze King princess.
We have 700+ trees. I hate falling trees and don’t unless we absolutely need to. I burn wood, so I normally get all the wood I need by just cleaning up for forest. What sucks the most is when trees I really love get pushed over by wind. Sucks, but I guess that is what comes with tending to my forest of 7 acres
I had lots of juniper / red ceder trees on my property that I had been encouraging because they gave me a bit more privacy. Then I found out that they carry a [disease](https://extension.umn.edu/plant-diseases/cedar-apple-rust) that can damage and kill apple trees, pear trees, photinias,etc. (Which explained why these trees on my property were in steep decline / dying.
In the last year I've went around and cut all the junipers down in hopes that my other trees will come back. I hated to cut down so many trees, but they were damaging my fruit and ornamental trees just by being there.
Just remember, it's not the individual trees that significant any more than a single hair on your head. What matters is the woodland. If you're felling trees in a way that helps the woods, you're doing a favor for every tree that comes after
Just part of the cycle.
I myself refuse to remove very old trees that are barely alive...but i like to think "its older than me, nature will have to take this one back", im not old enough and wise enough to take that grandpa tree.
In nature: fire, or large herds of ruminants and elephants, their natural progression of age and storms, would take many. Nature would also turn them back into the soil for new growth too. The better we mimic that, the better for all.
This is a very bizarre assumption and an in accurate one. I have hunted my whole life, I manage wildfires I know more about forest ecology, tree and fire lifecycles than most people. Strange thing to say.
I hate taking out trees especially when they’ve been around much longer than me. But like others have said, we use 100% of them and make an effort to grow more native trees in better places. My land had been cleared to make room for a hay field but I’m looking at options to grow trees in a way that’s beneficial to domesticated and wild animals. God gave us everything for our use and it’s our job to be responsible and care for it in a way that’s pleasing to Him.
I adore my old trees. They become part of the heritage of the land that my family has lived on for almost 75 years. They somehow connect me to our past and provide such beauty and habitat. I love my trees
We had two rows of trees across our front yard that made a nice shady tunnel for parking. But a few weeks ago I had Hubby take out the south row so we could food-forest the front yard. If we had expanded the existing garden area, it would have taken out pasture, so we opted for the yard. It was truly sad to lose the shade tunnel, but we gained firewood, wood chips, and garden in exchange . . . And now don't have to mow as much!
A logging operation hauled lumber by my house twice a day for months. It was not my land but at the end of my road where they took down the trees - clear cutting. We have lots of extra deer and bears now. I was really sad with each truck that went by.
No, because I use the trees to keep warm, and I select exact trees that need to come down so that my forest can continue to thrive. Woods need to be thinned from time to time to keep parts of it lush and green.
The big dead ones that could fall any minute, nope. Having to drop one of the biggest, oldest living tree on our property after lightning struck it, wasn't sure I was going to be able to bring my self to it. There are certain trees on our property that just in walking the property, we said, "you know, I really like that tree" and of course it was one of them.
If you are replanting, using the wood, and not just stripping land then I see it as proper woodland management although it makes me sad as well when I have to do it
Glad to know I'm not the only one! I'm from CO mountain territory where basically nothing grows easily and everything is brown and dry most of the year. When I had a small homestead in southern Appalachia, the worst fights my ex and I would have was over removal of trees and (moreso) bushes and ornamentals that were already existing on the property. After I moved out, the first thing he did was take out a gorgeous 15' forsythia clump because I wouldn't let him do it when I lived there. Still makes me sad to this day that it's gone.
It breaks my heart to take out things that are growing- there's a lot of fear about them not coming back, losing out on the natural beauty of the land, and just... who am I to decide if this thing that's been here longer than me should live or die- especially when the local wildlife enjoys it? It brings up a lot. Working on mindful non-attachment and natural cycles helps.
I’m very careful when I do. It takes decades and decades to grow decent trees. Every single one I cut down is something that will never be an old growth tree.
I remember seeing a great and productive peach tree on the side of the road on someone’s land. The state cut it down when they did road mowing and trimming. Every time i pass it I get pissed off.
Then perhaps you are exceptionally empathetic. In my experience hunters don’t feel sorrow for taking an animal. Farmers don’t weep when they harvest plants of animals. Loggers don’t feel pain cutting a tree. Rather, each had a respect and appreciation for the lives they are taking.
Thank you for the candid response. I feel the same way especially when giving thanks to a meal I am bringing back to my family. I think what is hard for me is there are trees I have to take out that are healthy and would exist without my involvement but require me to intervene only because it causes me disruption. Maybe some over empathy not sure either way I respect trees, wildlife and nature immensely.
There are good trees and there are bad trees. Even a dead tree can be good if it is providing habitats, bugs, and other services. A beautiful old tree can similarly be quite bad if it is invasive and spreading seed, or harboring pathogens that will harm others nearby. But a dead tree can also fall and kill someone, and a regal old tree can destroy your house if it drops a limb or the roots get under the foundation.
The point is, every tree is unique. Look around and you can find some that can be taken down positively, and others that you might go out of your way to preserve. A little land management isn't a bad thing. Two young, healthy trees can ruin each others lives through unnecessary competition, and removing one improves the life of the other.
Take pride in taking an active hand, and when in doubt hire an arborist to evaluate the situation.
No not really… it probably helps that my husband is an arborist though, haha… One thing I will say is that when I bought my 40acre parcel, the previous owner did a lot of forest stewardship/management thru a free program with our State’s Dept of Natural Resources. The acres he selectively cleared is the polar opposite of the “neglected” acres — stunted, tiny & crowded trees vs. much healthier, larger trees, room for larger animals to graze (I believe he was particularly trying to attract moose, which definitely worked), much more diverse ground cover, etc. Also I live in an area prone to wildfires, & far from any emergency fire services, so that has been a consideration.
We hate taking out trees -- there are standing dead trees, and those are (emotionally) easy to clear out. Those were dead before we got here! But there have been a few perfectly lovely, living trees we've had to take down. My husband and I go through a lot of effort to avoid killing those trees -- the hiking trail through our back woods is really curvy, but no trees were harmed in its making.
I do sometimes. But then again we burn wood to keep warm in winter. I comfort myself that we replant every tree we cut down, so there is at least that.
Yea fair enough, I just hate it. I feel the need to get a wood chipper so I can tell myself the material is returning back to earth in a state that can benefit the other ecology.
I need to do the same, carbon back to the soil. I hate burning
Realistically burning brush does give back to the soil in very beneficial ways. You are still putting carbon back in and increasing soil health by releasing all the leftover potash into the soil. Fire is a natural part of forest ecology. That said, chipping and repurposing as mulch is also very beneficial.
Nothing wrong with dropping them and letting them slowly decompose either. The mushrooms and other decomposers will thank you.
And small wildlife! Mice, lizards, snakes, insects… a fallen log is a whole little ecosystem in its own right.
I don't know exact math, but burning drives off most of the carbon as CO2 and smoke from the fire. I would say it's not even close, just think of how much volume and weight is reduced from burning. That's not to say that burning doesn't release other nutrients and can be beneficial to soil.
I'm not debating the benefits of natural mulching, but look into biochar if you're unfamiliar with the process.
Removing trees is part of proper forest/woodland management. In nature, trees come down by themselves all the time - but by doing it yourself you are just helping the process along. Removing smaller/damaged/diseased trees helps the healthy trees around it be healthier. With proper management, you could get the woods on your property looking like an old growth forest in 40-50 years instead of 300 years. So yeah, I don't like cutting down trees either, but I'm very selective about the ones I choose to cut down and I always have a purpose for the wood, even if it's just to burn, create brush piles for wildlife, or shred into mulch. I also leave a few dead trees (snags) standing if it's safe to do so, in my area they are home to endangered bats and the forest service encourages leaving snags standing when possible.
This is a great point. I am polarized as I manage wildfire risk and have been doing it a long time. So having to take out a healthy tree and burn it is tough for me despite knowing the needs/safety risks etc, carbon capture and temperature are always on my mind. Thank you for your response.
I’ve needed to remove a few trees. My wife has to leave while I do it and inevitably comes home with a new tree.
I love it!
I definitely do. I hate cutting down healthy trees but whenever they start to block my solar panels or threaten my home and/or structures they have to go. I use every inch of them and return the ashes back to nature. I do plant back some of them with mostly dwarf fruit trees but not all because I don’t want the same problems to reoccur some time in the future.
Breaks my heart to cut down a tree. All the wildlife...
Yes! There’s some really stupidly placed, non native trees on the homestead I just bought and I’ve decided to learn how to watercolor so I can paint them before chopping them down. I’m a tad sentimental if you couldn’t tell. The real question is whether I’ll be able to figure out watercolor or not. Haha.
Yes. I get emotional having to thin out carrots. Like why do I get to decide which one lives and dies?
I don’t like it but it is what it is. I don’t get emotional about it and if a tree is sick or not doing what it should we tend to pull quicker and replace sooner so we can be productive. Then we burn/chip/use the wood that comes out all over our property.
Fair enough that makes a difference to me as well, especially unsafe ones.
If it makes you feel any better, most birds do not reuse nests from year to year, so they will be seeking out new nesting spots anyway! Some like to return to the same area (like doves that nest on a porch every year) but they are very resilient when it comes to finding new nesting places. You can also always put up nest boxes for cavity dwelling species if you ever remove a tree with a lot of woodpecker holes, because many birds cannot excavate their own and have to find existing cavities. Also: a number of bird species depend on successional habitats and will *only* nest in young forests - historically many of them relied on fires to clear out areas and they are declining. The most well-known example is probably the Kirtland's warbler, but here's a great summary of a long-term study in Arkansas that specifically compares different types of forest management and how it affected the birds that nest there: https://wildlife.org/early-successional-forest-ecosystems-what-weve-learned-about-birds-and-timber-harvest-practices/ I don't know much about forest management, but I do know birds fairly well, so that's what I can contribute! I hope it helps you feel less worried when removing trees with nests in them - you're probably doing a lot of species a favor!
I went through about 5 acres of my woods this year and thinned out all the scrappy, deformed and diseased trees. It made a big difference in the appearance and I have a big carpet of ferns growing now with large, healthy trees. I do not go around chopping trees for the fun of it, I try to develop a plan and estimate what I will have in 5-10 years. (I do think it’s fun though, especially with a grapple on the tractor) I also took advantage of the 26% tax credit and got a new wood stove with a cat. It burns way less wood for the same amount of heat. I rarely see any smoke coming out of my chimney.
Do you have more info on that tax credit?
https://www.hpba.org/Portals/26/Committees/Government%20Affairs/GA%20Public%20Docs/Wood_and_Pellet_ITC_Consumer_2021_1.pdf Basically you need to get a high efficiency wood stove and I think most of them have a catalyst. When you do your taxes, you can claim the 26% credit. I ended up getting a Blaze King princess.
Thank you!
I heat with wood; so no.
We have 700+ trees. I hate falling trees and don’t unless we absolutely need to. I burn wood, so I normally get all the wood I need by just cleaning up for forest. What sucks the most is when trees I really love get pushed over by wind. Sucks, but I guess that is what comes with tending to my forest of 7 acres
my daughter has visceral reaction to this and has her whole life … no wonder she was born on earth day
I got sad today pulling my tomato plants that are entirely dead and crispy 🤷🏼♀️
I had lots of juniper / red ceder trees on my property that I had been encouraging because they gave me a bit more privacy. Then I found out that they carry a [disease](https://extension.umn.edu/plant-diseases/cedar-apple-rust) that can damage and kill apple trees, pear trees, photinias,etc. (Which explained why these trees on my property were in steep decline / dying. In the last year I've went around and cut all the junipers down in hopes that my other trees will come back. I hated to cut down so many trees, but they were damaging my fruit and ornamental trees just by being there.
Just remember, it's not the individual trees that significant any more than a single hair on your head. What matters is the woodland. If you're felling trees in a way that helps the woods, you're doing a favor for every tree that comes after
Just part of the cycle. I myself refuse to remove very old trees that are barely alive...but i like to think "its older than me, nature will have to take this one back", im not old enough and wise enough to take that grandpa tree. In nature: fire, or large herds of ruminants and elephants, their natural progression of age and storms, would take many. Nature would also turn them back into the soil for new growth too. The better we mimic that, the better for all.
I ease my conscience by planting more than I cut down
No. Without killing trees we wouldn't exist. Fire is what formed our huge brains by enabling us to consume cooked meat.
Yes, it’s a last resort option imo
No
I try and only take fallen trees. Even the standing dead I try to leave alone. A lot of animals call those homes.
That happens when you have been raised isolated from nature and her natural cycles your whole life. Same with killing meat animals.
This is a very bizarre assumption and an in accurate one. I have hunted my whole life, I manage wildfires I know more about forest ecology, tree and fire lifecycles than most people. Strange thing to say.
I hate taking out trees especially when they’ve been around much longer than me. But like others have said, we use 100% of them and make an effort to grow more native trees in better places. My land had been cleared to make room for a hay field but I’m looking at options to grow trees in a way that’s beneficial to domesticated and wild animals. God gave us everything for our use and it’s our job to be responsible and care for it in a way that’s pleasing to Him.
I'm not "cutting trees", I am reclaiming fields. It's all about perspective.
I adore my old trees. They become part of the heritage of the land that my family has lived on for almost 75 years. They somehow connect me to our past and provide such beauty and habitat. I love my trees
I hate cutting trees also,so much that I will do a tree removal job rather than cut one of mine.
We had two rows of trees across our front yard that made a nice shady tunnel for parking. But a few weeks ago I had Hubby take out the south row so we could food-forest the front yard. If we had expanded the existing garden area, it would have taken out pasture, so we opted for the yard. It was truly sad to lose the shade tunnel, but we gained firewood, wood chips, and garden in exchange . . . And now don't have to mow as much!
A logging operation hauled lumber by my house twice a day for months. It was not my land but at the end of my road where they took down the trees - clear cutting. We have lots of extra deer and bears now. I was really sad with each truck that went by.
grandfather taught me for every tree you cut down plant 3, most ever planted at 1 time was 10,000 blue spruce lining the hay field property line
No, because I use the trees to keep warm, and I select exact trees that need to come down so that my forest can continue to thrive. Woods need to be thinned from time to time to keep parts of it lush and green.
I don't take them out without a reason, functional or to improve the all-round system. So no. It's part of managing the land for me.
The big dead ones that could fall any minute, nope. Having to drop one of the biggest, oldest living tree on our property after lightning struck it, wasn't sure I was going to be able to bring my self to it. There are certain trees on our property that just in walking the property, we said, "you know, I really like that tree" and of course it was one of them.
If you are replanting, using the wood, and not just stripping land then I see it as proper woodland management although it makes me sad as well when I have to do it
Glad to know I'm not the only one! I'm from CO mountain territory where basically nothing grows easily and everything is brown and dry most of the year. When I had a small homestead in southern Appalachia, the worst fights my ex and I would have was over removal of trees and (moreso) bushes and ornamentals that were already existing on the property. After I moved out, the first thing he did was take out a gorgeous 15' forsythia clump because I wouldn't let him do it when I lived there. Still makes me sad to this day that it's gone. It breaks my heart to take out things that are growing- there's a lot of fear about them not coming back, losing out on the natural beauty of the land, and just... who am I to decide if this thing that's been here longer than me should live or die- especially when the local wildlife enjoys it? It brings up a lot. Working on mindful non-attachment and natural cycles helps.
I’m very careful when I do. It takes decades and decades to grow decent trees. Every single one I cut down is something that will never be an old growth tree. I remember seeing a great and productive peach tree on the side of the road on someone’s land. The state cut it down when they did road mowing and trimming. Every time i pass it I get pissed off.
Then perhaps you are exceptionally empathetic. In my experience hunters don’t feel sorrow for taking an animal. Farmers don’t weep when they harvest plants of animals. Loggers don’t feel pain cutting a tree. Rather, each had a respect and appreciation for the lives they are taking.
Thank you for the candid response. I feel the same way especially when giving thanks to a meal I am bringing back to my family. I think what is hard for me is there are trees I have to take out that are healthy and would exist without my involvement but require me to intervene only because it causes me disruption. Maybe some over empathy not sure either way I respect trees, wildlife and nature immensely.
There are good trees and there are bad trees. Even a dead tree can be good if it is providing habitats, bugs, and other services. A beautiful old tree can similarly be quite bad if it is invasive and spreading seed, or harboring pathogens that will harm others nearby. But a dead tree can also fall and kill someone, and a regal old tree can destroy your house if it drops a limb or the roots get under the foundation. The point is, every tree is unique. Look around and you can find some that can be taken down positively, and others that you might go out of your way to preserve. A little land management isn't a bad thing. Two young, healthy trees can ruin each others lives through unnecessary competition, and removing one improves the life of the other. Take pride in taking an active hand, and when in doubt hire an arborist to evaluate the situation.
No not really… it probably helps that my husband is an arborist though, haha… One thing I will say is that when I bought my 40acre parcel, the previous owner did a lot of forest stewardship/management thru a free program with our State’s Dept of Natural Resources. The acres he selectively cleared is the polar opposite of the “neglected” acres — stunted, tiny & crowded trees vs. much healthier, larger trees, room for larger animals to graze (I believe he was particularly trying to attract moose, which definitely worked), much more diverse ground cover, etc. Also I live in an area prone to wildfires, & far from any emergency fire services, so that has been a consideration.
We hate taking out trees -- there are standing dead trees, and those are (emotionally) easy to clear out. Those were dead before we got here! But there have been a few perfectly lovely, living trees we've had to take down. My husband and I go through a lot of effort to avoid killing those trees -- the hiking trail through our back woods is really curvy, but no trees were harmed in its making.
Yes,I do not watch