The Most Beautiful Thing I've Ever Seen
June 18, 2011 |
18 Comments
posted by Ana White
Momplex Stats
Money Spent So Far:
$1000 + Cost of Property
Time Spent So Far:
80 Hours Although we've cleared land before, I'm a big fan of learning new things, or at least improving old habits. So before starting to clear the Momplex Property I googled "how to clear land."
And this is what I found from wikiHow
The land we choose had been burned by wildfires in recent years, and the trees needing to be cut were all small poplars, near the end of their lifecycles. A bulldozer would certainly have worked, but we were hoping to salvage trees to compost for garden beds. And wanted to avoid huge unsightly berms.
Mulching would have been great because the soil at the Momplex is a clay dirt, not good for growing much. With my mom being an avid gardener, this is a problem mulching could help solve. But the cost of mulch clearing was in the thousands of dollars. And we are on a DIY budget.
So what's left?
Buy Some Goats.
Great idea? I thought so too. Fresh milk, fresh cheese . . .
Then again, maybe not.
How many goats would we need to clear this land before the snow flies? After figuring in the cost of the goats, the costs of fencing five acres, and then waiting on the goats to eat up five acres . . . there had to be something else instead of goats.
Well, there is.
Us. And a chain saw. So we got to work.
First, we've gotta do a before picture. Looking south, right where the Momplex will be built.
The Ram cut.
And we hauled. And cut. And hauled. And hauled and hauled. And hauled and hauled some more. This is what I saw at night, when I closed my eyes . . . trees for me to haul.
And after a full week of cutting and hauling, and more cutting and hauling, just when I was beginning to think why did we not just pay the mulcher guys . . . thousands is starting to sound like a bargain . . . I can't do this, not one more tree . . . it's so hot out . . . can I go make lunch now . . . the Ram must have felt sorry for me . . . because the most beautiful thing I've ever seen showed up.
Apart from my daughter. And possibly the mountain view. But seriously, I've got a thing for a strong arm and shiny teeth.
Big muscles are not overrated.
Don't get me wrong, I love and appreciate a man who isn't afraid of holding my purse for me.
But I REALLY love a man who can get a days worth of my personal torture done in minutes.
Thank you honey.
Now let's see why you really rented that . . . thingamajigger . . . for those of you who read Dr Seuss one too many times. To be continued . . .
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clips
Precious! I hear ya! I'm
Precious! I hear ya! I'm super blessed to have a tampon buying, purse lugging MAN's man! I'm excited to see this project through with you and everyone else on here! Thank you so much for sharing! You guys are an inspiration!!
Live, Laugh, and Love...then laugh some more!
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posted by jamigraham | on Sun, 2011-06-19 23:55
I want a thingamajigger...
Okay...but I will start with a jigsaw. My father-in-law feels your pain. My mother-in-law wouldn't let him rent something to clear the land. This is his second land clearing done completely machinery-less. But, another beautiful -place -to -rest -their -feet later...it is all just a memory! :) The fun has begun.
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Thingamajigger
Ana, please tell me you took a spin on that thingamajigger yourself? Its a great feeling to have all that extra muscle!
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I begged, I pleaded! But the
I begged, I pleaded! But the Ram said, you can't take away all of my jobs! Sometimes it's nice to just watch too :)
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Aaaaah in a couple of months
Aaaaah in a couple of months youd be glad to be clearing land over what you'll be doing then.
I thought pulling up floorboards was bad until we had to lay flooring and build a kitchen.... Ill take those blisters back any day
Also: begging my husband for goats now instead of mowing the backyard, because hes too fat and lazy to do it and I am building a kitchen!
Two goats for $75.... DONE!
posted by emmarosemc | on Mon, 2011-06-20 09:54
clips
LOL! Great post!
Such a fun post to read from you. LOL I love seeing this whole process! Thanks for blogging it!!!! :) :) :)
Ana.. Do N O T buy any
Ana.. Do N O T buy any goats.. We have 3 goats on a 10 acre farm. I love them dearly. I call them God's 4 footed weedeaters. They consume copious amounts of greenery, and in an amazingly short period of time. Your lot will run out of forage for them long before you run out of goats. The other thing about goats is that they are escape artists. Its hard to keep them IN the fence.. The thing to do is to see if there are any "Rent-a-Goat" type of businesses in your area.. That def is the way to go. You get all the benefits of voracious eaters without all the work. They will not clear out the trees, but they will make short order of the underbrush. The goat owner comes to your place, sets up temp fences, brings in the goats.. they and the owner stay for a few days (yes, only a few days to a week at the most) for a herd of goats, and were talking about 30 or 40 or so depending on the acrages of land to be cleared. When the land is clear,he trailers up his goats, rolls up his temporary fence, and hes gone. And you end up with amazingly cleared land complete with fertilizer and without using any chemical herbicides. They are amazing creatures, but not for the fainthearted.. lol.. Thanks for posting your progress!!
clips
I love this idea! However,
I love this idea! However, we ended up deciding we wanted to keep the parts of the lot treed in birch (longer lifecycle) as natural as possible, so just ended up clearing the pad for the building, and a little in front for sunshine and a garden, and then of course the road. I feel so much smarter after your reading your comment, great to know that the goat clearing actually works!
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Borrow Goats?
If you want to get underbrush or scrub trees under control, just borrow a few goats. Someone gets free pasture, you get less doghair and ladder fuel.
It's like being an aunt instead of a mom.
posted by Tsu Dho Nimh | on Mon, 2011-06-20 19:04
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Know those feelings
Ana: I live in Las Vegas and while I have obviously never cleared land, I had one of those amazing dad's that believed in teaching his children how to work. So we worked on our yard. Which was a glorified pile of dirt that needed to be raked and sorted and scooped and shoveled until just dirt remained. Even in the summer (upwards of 95 degrees by 7 in the morning) we woke every Saturday at 4 or 5 to go rake rocks as a family. At least your project has a sense of accomplishment and purpose. I am pretty sure my dad dumped 12 loads of dirt in our yard just to help us all build character! :)
posted by redhead_61 | on Mon, 2011-06-20 15:49
Dr. Seuss
It is a Snort! Not a baby bird's mother.
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LOL! That IS what they
LOL! That IS what they called it! I was actually thinking of thing 1 and thing 2 making such a mess . . . but now, we are going to have to visit the bookstore, Grace certainly can't grow up without reading about the Snort!
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Thank you for your comment!
Thank you for your comment! Totally inspired my next post and gave us a chance to relive one of my most favorite childhood books with my daughter!
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I want a goat!!!
We have a couple of acres and a regular lawn mower can't handle the terrain. I am worried about snakes since I have two little ones. My husband grew up with goats on his land to maintain the grass and I think it is an awesome idea!!! I feel much more encouraged to get a goat! Not sure what the husband will say though! Thanks for posting! I hope to one day have a "Momplex." What an amazing way to honor your mom!
posted by AllisonRipoll | on Mon, 2011-06-20 19:46
We have a beef farm and just
We have a beef farm and just bought a few goats to eat the shrubs in our pasture. We have a big problem with multiflora rose (super invasive) in one of the pastures and the goats love eating them. We only have 6 but once we breed them our herd will grow. Ours are meat goats so we won't be milking them- maybe someday we will get some dairy goats but we don't have time between both working full time, running the farm with around 30 cow plus calves and being hay season, 3 big gardens and household chores. It's exciting watching you build this! Can't wait to see the next step.
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Ah excavators
Yes, Excavators are alot of fun to drive. The grapnel buck makes it even more useful.
While you have it trench the drainage ditches, footings for buildings, the leaching field for septic, and for the garden space.
Since it is clay soil I would plot out with the areas for the garden and the berry bushes then trench that out. Then you are down 12" or more and you can lay in some topsoil, sand, and mulch to get a head start on the garden beds.
You could use a wood chipper to chip the brush down into mulch and fill in where the garden will go.
Ana! I am happy to have ONCE
Ana! I am happy to have ONCE inspired you, as you inspire me in SO many ways. I LOVE "Are You My Mother?" I miss reading that book now that my kids are 9 and 11.
I was visiting
I was visiting http://www.decorplanet.com/Bathroom_Vanities_s/1.htm while I found your article so I figured I should email this furniture company to let them know about these cut trees. Hopefully they chould collect them and turn them into nice furniture, and plant other trees.
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