On our 12 acres we purchased in Sept 2013, there is a fence row near the south side of the property. It is no where close to the surveyed property line, and looks like the fence was put in maybe 30 years ago to contain cattle in the field portion of the property. It is hog wire topped with two strands of barbed wire overgrown with Japanese honeysuckle, poison oak (not allergic), grape vines, greenbriar, trumpet vine, blackberry, and wild roses, which are entangled in the fence along with numerous cedars, wild plum, elm, and privet bushes. What a mess! We have been working on it about 3 to 4 hours almost daily for about three weeks now and have cut out about 100 feet, with about 300 feet to go. I need to do this to clean up the place, and make a good place to spread the sludge that came out of the pond. Right now the sludge is covering about a third of an acre about two feet deep in what used to be a hayfield. It will probably take about another 8 or 10 months to dry out in order to be spread with a dozer. I don't have equipment other than a DR brush mower, chain saw, loppers, bow saw, etc. The DR will give a person a beating after an hour or so. It's not worth buying a tractor for a project like this when it might sit months without much use afterward. Going to burn the brush on top of the sludge field. I guess it is good exercise. Thanks for letting me vent. Suggestions would be welcome.

John,

Sounds like a big project clearing that fence row. Can you wait for the dozer? I would think that big job turns into a 30 minute job if you can.

Dozer......he will do in an hour what it will take you 3 weeks by hand and it will look better.

Talked to our dozer owner a few weeks ago. He said it would make a huge mess with the fencing wound up in the bushes, plus it is a wet and boggy area except for late summer. I want to leave the several medium to large cedars, elms, and oaks, and the dozer would tear up the ground, killing them eventually. Several of the large trees have fencing wire grown into them.

Then you're probably doing the best you can. I do recommend a three sided brush blade on a straight shaft trimmer...it works wonders.

+1 The brush blade works great! Unwanted growth is demolished. Only problem is it will come back. I had areas similar to what you are describing and hit them with a 41% glyphosate laced with 2-4-D cocktail first (recommended by the glyphosate manufacturer). I wacked them after they died off. That cocktail is now my go to mix in areas away from the pond.

FWIW Near the pond I use Aqua Neat and it has proven effective. There are several approved herbicides for areas near ponds.

Dragging the brush out by hand is a pain. Maybe I can hire a neighbor with a tractor to help drag some of it. The huge brush pile with 10 inch thick logs (not firewood species) from dozing the 30 to 40 years of growth off the pond banks is something I don't want to deal with again, if it can be avoided. I had to cut them up and burn them again after the first burn fully cooled. I really had no choice with the brush and trees there, to make the pond viable again. That old D-R brush mower I have is an amazing beast, and will deal with all the brambles once I get all the wire and small trees out. It literally pulverizes blackberry bushes and all types of vines into little pieces, and keeps on going. It cuts from the front, and I can run it way up under a rose bush or overhanging blackberries, and cut them off. One of the rose bushes had bases almost three inches in diameter and branches over 15 feet tall. The dozer took that one out for me last summer. Fortunately none of the others were/are nearly that big. Here is a pic of the area I already cleared of vines behind the fence row with the D-R. The fence row is on the right. Property line on the far left.

I have a straight shaft trimmer with a three sided brush blade. The frontal cutting D-R brush mower makes it look like a kid's toy in comparison.

BTW, the pond area is clean now after dozing. I can easily maintain it with the D-R.

is there any chance that the fence is in good enough shape to contain goats? i once was fighting a losing battle with kudzu and privet hedge. i installed an electric fence, bought a few goats and they did a super job. also made great pets.

i kinda have a similar situation here. i have 46 acres here and most of the woods are pretty thick. i broke down a bought a john deere 3038 last week. it has a 5 ft bush hog and a front end loader. i also have a caterpillar skid steer with bucket and grapple bucket. right now all i have is a bunch of trails that lead to no where. i want a road all the way around my property. but it is going to be pricey. surveyor wants $2200 to mark 3 sides of my property. one side is road frontage. probably another 10k to doze the fence line.

Surveys are expensive. This place did not have a valid survey. Previous owners had to provide one before selling, since they did not know within 50 feet where some of the lines were. If you have a survey, make sure you mark and protect the corner markers. I set T-posts just inside of each corner marker and keep them flagged with survey flagging. I think the survey of this 12 or so acres cost them over $2,300. Not something you I would want to repeat.

This job sounds like a project for a small tractor with front end loader and bucket forks, chain saw, your DR, wire cutters and some chain. Although you don't have the tractor, you may find them for a reasonable day rate at the local rental agencies. Several rental shops in our area offer John Deeres and Kubotas. Even a mini track hoe would help tremendously.
I'd cut manageable sections of the fencing, hook on to it with a chain, and yank the pieces out with the equipment. I'd have my saw ready to cut the trees and other vegetation grown in to the wire, freeing up the works before I pulled the mess out. Then I'd pile and burn, sorting out the fencing after the ashes cooled.
Look on tractorbynet.com and tractorforum.com for many described projects with pics.
If you're like many of us, you'll get the itch and then buy your own tractor. I try to drive mine nearly every day, because I can!
And, keep the tractor out of your pond. I believe Catmandoo and I have some first hand experience with what a pond tractor looks and feels like. :-)

I think a mini track hoe with a thumb would work great. It would allow you to scrape the junk away from the fence, pile it and burn it without compacting the soil around or disturbing the mature trees. Cut the fence out by hand once the nasties are removed from it.

OR

Use the track hoe to remove enough junk from around the good trees to keep them safe from fire. Burn the fencerow then remove the fence wire.

A pump up sprayer with a 75% diesel/25% gasoline mixture works pretty well keeping a line of fire going.

I almost found out what a pond ZTR mower looks like last summer when i was mowing a neighbor's pond bank in prep for a kid's fishing derby. I got too close to the pond side of the bank and almost slid all the way down to the water. Fortunately, another guy was there and helped me pull it out.

Tractor rental costs here are well over $100 per day. I would be better off hiring an experienced local operator with a small tractor. I have not driven one for about 20 years (used to brush hog some). With our usual traffic and the distance involved it would take a couple hours round trip to go get one and almost as long to return it.

If the fence isn't on the correct property line why rush to get the old fence cleared. Any chance the old fence is actually on the neighboring property?

If you must continue clearing the brush on the old fence, consider renting or hiring someone who has a forestry mulcher. The mulcher won't help with the wire removal but will clear both sides and the growth above the fence. The mulcher can be selective to keep the trees you like.

The property has a certified and recorded survey. The old fence being removed is well within my property boundary. It was never meant to be a line fence, only to control cattle within a field. I found a few remnants of the original line fence, and it is almost right on the property line.

I agree with JDM, a bobcat Mulcher is the way to go. Nothing to it. cost is pretty reasonable and I am sure there are a few operators with a mulcher around. I used one for a job of clearing out about 5 acres. Better off to get the operator and equipment over purchasing one. Breakdown repair on these bobcats are not cheap or easy, and I would never buy one after seeing the mechanical problems encountered. But when running they will mulch up some of the thickest stuff you will ever see and they leave the top soil where a dozer takes it away.

Tracy

I am of the opinion that nothing worthwhile gets accomplished on your own piece of property that doesn't involve losing blood and sweat. That's just how it is. The desire to look and search for ways to simplify the task will always be there, but in the end it always comes down to just jumping in and getting it done.

I have a couple tractors, three point finish mower, brush hog, DR brushcutter, six chainsaws, ZTR, straight shaft trimmer with brushblade, DR high wheel trimmer, gas powered and manual polesaws, assorted pushmowers, and a pickup bed full of hand cutting tools. But in the end, I usually end up with the brushblade on the trimmer. When you figure out the technique, it's hard to match its versatility, control, maneuverability, and even its speed. Yes, it will work you, but not as bad as wrestling the DR. And there will be the aforementioned blood and sweat. But in the hands of an experienced operator, I've found nothing else comes close.

Spark, I agree about the blood, if I walk on the property. I know I will be bleeding sooner or later. Someone will always say "you are bleeding" and I say "I know".

Tracy

+1 First stop when I come in from working outdoors is typically the bathroom to wash off the blood.

If you do decide to rent a machine and operate it yourself, check with them to see if the delivery/pickup costs are more than the hourly rental fee you'd be spending doing the pu/delivery yourself.....

I agree on the forestry head, and getting an operator to do it for ya. If you make a mistake, wrap the fence on the head, you will spend a lot of time getting it cleared.

Tracy, send me a PM on what they run down there. I'm curious to price compare to up here.

esshup, pm sent

One other advantage of hiring it done as opposed to renting a skid-steer (Bobcat), those things will beat you to death. They are a young mans machine to run on all but smooth surfaces.

Good progress today. Only 300 feet to go.

Yep. Don't misunderstand, I am all in favor of working smarter rather than harder. Still, there is a certain supreme satisfaction I gain from just wading in and going at it. Maybe, were I financially able, I might get the same satisfaction from signing the paycheck at the end of a hard day of watching someone else sweat. After all, they would be implementing my ideas and my vision. But it doesn't seem quite the same.

I need to sweat and bleed, in order for the improvements to provide me the greatest satisfaction. That's me putting my stamp on it, making it mine. Anyone can write a check.

As part of our remodel project, I mixed concrete yesterday. 40 bags, 80 lbs apiece, mixed in a wheelbarrow, rolled in, poured and finished, by myself. I could've had a truck bring it out for a small fortune, or rented a mixer, or even asked for help. But then it wouldn't have been mine. I need to own it, not so much in the financial sense, but as a matter of pride.

If I think it's possible for me to do something, I'm going to try. I do recognize that I simply don't know how to do everything I need done, and will grudgingly hire those jobs out. But you can bet I'll be watching when the contractor shows up to do his/her part.

Sounds strange I'm sure. Just another, curious perspective.

Spark: Me too. If I think I can do a project, and do it fairly safely, I will do it and own it. We are fairly healthy, retired, and have the time, especially in fall and winter. If we were rich, then I would hire things out more, but I would still be watching the work to make sure it was done like I wanted. We will finish this little project in due time. My goal was by spring, but it might be sooner, depending on weather. The original post was just venting about how impossibly grown up the fence row is, with an amazing variety of bushes and brambles and how frustrating it is that someone would build an arbitrary fence like that, and leave it to grow over. BTW, I have done a few concrete jobs with many 80 pound bags of concrete mix in a wheelbarrow too. (Three in the past 26 months). I hired the pond renovation job, and the minnow pond job because I knew it was impossible for me to do by myself. I don't do my own metal roofing any more either. A man has to know his limitations. (Where did I hear that?)

Nice work John. Stay after it.

+1 I have reached the point that, while I know how to do it, the mind is willing but the body is on the downhill side of the slope. I do what I can and am reluctantly forced to hire out the rest. My wife gives contractors cookies to keep them from killing me while I "supervise!"

Tony:

Next time you have a cement job, you are more than welcome to borrow my mixer. I have one that is like this:

Small Mixer

The wire in the mix is what kind of makes the project nasty for you. Not many machines I know of will not get tangled up in it. I have unfortunately run over old fence wire mostly buried in dirt with an old brush hog, and it made a fantastic knot under the deck. It took a lot of time to get it off, only to find it ruined the bearings so the transfer case leaked oil.

I would nuke the fence line with Glyphosphate, wait until the vegetation dries, and then lay down a line of diesel-soaked burlap bags along the fence line along with other spare brush to burn the whole line off. The hope would be to burn off enough vines to allow tie up of the wire and drag it off into an open area with a truck. Roll the wire up on remaining fence posts and dispose or complete burning and dispose.

And yes, if you are not bleeding (within reason) or don't have a messed up back after working, you are doing it all wrong.

X 2.......I have used up my body through decades of DIY projects.

I really enjoy watching others do it for me now.

I suppose the time comes when we all slow down and ask for help. However in my case, I don't see myself ever enjoying that particular aspect. It's just too ingrained that I take ownership of my own projects.

I made about 40 feet of progress today. Feels good.

Nice John! I know exactly what you're feeling.....keep at it!

You know how you eat an elephant?

One bite at a time.

John, that fence row will be done before you know it. That's the way to do it, keep plugging away at it.

John,
I also have spent many long days trying to clear out fence rows.I found a 18 volt reciprocating saw with an assortment of pruning and demo blades to be handy.The saw blades will cut thru wire and wood.These saws are also safer to use when pruning along the ground or overhead and the blades are cheaper to replace than chainsaw chains.

My mom was 82 and had some young gal over once a month ta clean the house. Now my family never had "extra" money. Each time after the gal would leave my mom would go around and re-do what the young gal did. I asked mom why she did that. She simply said "she doesn't do it to my standards". I asked why do ya have her come back every month? She said "she needs the job".
There is much to be said about Old school.

We have removed a lot of internal fence rows on our place with hand tools and a lot of patience. Forks on a loader can really help lifting out old pig wire fencing though. We still have a few old fences to remove in a newly purchased wood block.

180 feet to go. With decent weather, about 8-10 days. I have only been hitting it a few hours at a time. The next 30 feet and the last 50 feet are very thick and tough.

John F I am also a John F...Monroe. I have a great farmer who farms my two small fields. My fence rows are over grown and I fretted about that since the cost for bulldozing was estimated at a lot of money. The back hoe is his and a favor was owed him from a friend with the big shovel. For three days and a hired laborer tore out the fence roe brush and trees. He offered to do it for almost nothing, but I will see he is compensated. I wish you could have this kind of luck. But I have done the blood, sweat and tears on my little piece of heaven over the years of hard work as you are getting into now. So good luck and enjoy the journey.

About 90 more feet and the fence is gone, and I can cut the last part freely without regard to running into wire.

Awesome! Just please remember there is a difference between cutting and eliminating. That stuff might be growing back come spring. IMHO I would hit the whole area with a herbicide early next spring.

If you aren't yanking out the stumps, squirt the cut trees/shrubs with Tordon RTU.

Definitely I don't want to mess with sprouting stumps; the vines will be enough to control. I think I will keep the vines mowed with the D-R until grass takes over. I don't want to kill out to bare ground due to the probability of erosion. About 67 feet of fence left to remove.

If you put the Tordon RTU in a coffee can and use a paint brush to paint the cut surfaces, it will last longer (won't waste as much in overspray) and you can also "paint" the cut vines too.

John, I have 3 small kids I can rent you but you will have to pay for travel and all their meals. They whine occasionally but usually step back into line when their dinner is on the line.

Made them clear and burn brush similar to yours this past fall. I usually use the chainsaw and the truck with a chain, drag it out and burn it. They move about 100ft every 4 to 6 hours. Still have about 800 feet to go. Best way, in my opinion, is to keep humping it, good luck sounds like you are close.

I have painted like that some stumps I have cut since I got the place in fall of 13. None of them have sprouted. Some of what I have cut is cedar, and those stumps don't sprout even without treatment. I might be finishing getting the fence out tomorrow, and then it will be all cleanup, D-R brush mower, and piling brush. Then on to the next fence row, but it is in less of a priority area.

From what I was told about the Cedar, you need to make sure and cut it below the lowest limb, even if it is a tiny one. If you get below all the limbs it will not re-grow, but if you leave a small lower limb it can grow from it.

That is just what I heard. I only cut a few myself.

The small cedars also have a shallow root system. In most cases I have been able to pull them up by hand after wiggling them around.

Way to go, John. Almost there!

Fence is gone, brush all cleaned up except last 200 feet. I only need to clean up bushes now with a chain saw and use my D-R mower to mow the row of vines, and pile the remaining brush. I already have a huge brush pile. I could be finished in a week, weather dependent. The fence tangle being out really makes the finish a snap. Thanks for the encouragement.

Good going!!

Substantially finished today! All the vines and briars on the ground are gone. In their place is a coating of ground up sticks like a chipper would leave, thanks to old D-R. I may cut a few more wild cherries from the former fence row later. Those gnarly wild cherry trees are a pain and a scourge. They tend to crawl low over the ground when covered by vines. Any tree not near vertical was cut already. Considerable muscle built over the project, and no power tools used other than a chain saw and D-R brush mower.

I now have a huge brush pile to dispose of composed of masses of vines, cedar limbs, wild plum, privet, elm, and thorny locust. I piled the brush on top of the nearly two foot deep flat of sludge from the pond, so no grass will be killed in case it catches fire.

If you decide to burn the brush pile, it will burn a lot better if allowed to dry and compress about a year. Burning fresh brush piles is a lot harder and often requires added fuel to get it done compared to a 'seasoned' brush pile.

Those old, tangled fence rows and brush piles sound like great quail cover to me....we are trying to get more of that at our place rather than less. Wish we had more of that problem here in W Central Illinois quail country!

I used to hunt quail here back in the 1960s and 1970s, but by 1982 or so, they had all but disappeared around here. They did not inhabit the kind of fence rows I had, as there wasn't a lot of Japanese honeysuckle around here then. The rise of fescue grasses and overgrazing, together with non native predators, contributed to their demise. Once in a great while I see or hear a quail.

That is too bad John. We certainly have fewer birds than when I was a kid hunting with my grandpa (mid-50s now). Of course, all the farm machinery was much less efficient then....every time they made a turn while harvesting there would be scattered grain all over the ground. These new combines are too good at grabbing every kernel/bean.

We have tried to manage and have a good amount of cover but the fescue is a constant pain and we have tons of hawks that love the taste of quail. We are still able to do a number of good hunts each year fortunately and are working on some additional habitat projects this winter and spring.

Also John....can you tell me how to attach the "I Subscribe" logo to the bottom of my posts? I can't figure it out in the "edit profile" or any other section of the forum. After all, I do subscribe to PB! Thanks.

I asked a moderator, and he attached the I subscribe for me. I think they have that power.

I know waiting until it's dry and settled will burn much better. I have already burned six piles in the past two years. (This place was an overgrown mess, from many years of neglect.) None were burned green. The last one dried three months, but had a lot of big trunks and dirty stuff from clearing the pond area. I had to cut up the big trunks and re stack and re burn later, but it finally burned up. The current pile doesn't have anything in it over six inches, and most of it is briars, twigs, vines, cedar branches and dead wood. I think it will probably burn up ok after a couple of months. I need to get rid of it before spring. When burning, I keep pushing stuff in with a pole as it burns down and it eventually becomes a pile of ashes.

Before and after. In the before picture, only a little mowing had been done along the edge. The after picture doesn't really look as brush free as it is. In the after pic, my big brush pile shows to the right of center

That is quite a transformation! Looks good. Ought to be able to keep that mowed without a problem.

That looks really, really good! That was a LOT of work.

That looks great! Some light work and better than hitting the gym.

Handling that older D-R brush mower is more than light work for me. Pulling up some of those cedars was kinda tough too.

Great job John.

Nice job, looks like the beginnings of a golf course, I can see where the golf flag would be

Tracy