Wood Chipper?

[jcarlberg]

As we go down this firewood selling rabbit hole; it's of course easy to just keep adding equipment - problem is, it all costs!

We have a couple of acres of forest plus access to many, many more acres with tons of downed trees, standing dead, etc. Lots and lots and lots and lots and lots of wood to buck, split and sell.

Of course because a good deal of what we harvest is from downed or diseased trees, we have a lot of waste wood - more than we can (or would want to, probably) ever burn. I can leave it in the forest, and maybe I should - but it feels like something should be done to get it out of the forest & keep it from providing habitat for insects and disease. But maybe I'm looking at that wrong? Even for stuff like oak branches; doesn't feel right to just leave it laying around.

I wonder if a wood chipper would be a good investment? I don't really want to spend needless cash on one at this point, but maybe it's worthwhile. Kind of interested in what others think or of others in my situation have made the decision to buy one.

Appreciate whatever advice anyone has!

 

[GMB74]

I don't want to discourage you from buying a piece of equipment that you obviously need.

But,
Brush piles make excellent wildlife habitat. Food for deer ( if the tops are fresh), shelter and protection from predators for small animals, nesting places for birds. Sometimes these small creatures become food sources for predators. It's all part of nature.
Humans like things to look neat.
"Wildlife likes the woods to be messy"
There are organizations that can help you manage the forest from a wildlife management perspective. Often there is very little extra work required, just doing things differently from a different perspective.

 

[Seachaser]

Most logging crews, around here, push it in huge piles after clear cutting. Gone in just a few years. Provides cover and nutrients for future trees.

 

[Woodpecker]

Yeah it’s not wrong to let wood decompose in the forest. In fact that’s the natural order of things.

 

[jcarlberg]

You guys have made me VERY happy! I've felt like I am doing something wrong leaving it out there, but it's a load off my mind to know it's not only not harmful, but perhaps beneficial to the ecosystem!

 

[Bill G]

I want to be clear I am not totally disagreeing with what others have said but I will provide a bit of a different perspective to consider.

Yes brush piles do provide habitat for small animals to escape from predators. In this area the coyotes are thicker than the meth heads and we have almost no rabbits. Brush piles do help them escape. Now on the flip side they also allow coons to escape pursuit from dogs. Coons will not tree if there are dozer piles to hide in. It is tough on dogs because they need to tree them.

Next if you are removing the forest canopy then that will allow sunlight to reach the surface. You will need to reforest the area and maintain it. If the surface is littered with brush that will be tough. In many cases it allows scrub or invasive species to take over. You can plant all the desirable species you want but if you are prevented access to maintain them due to litter then it will not happen.

If you do pile it do it in an area that you will be able to easily access for years to spray around as the piles will be overtaken with undesirables such as multiflora rose and honeysuckle.