Just a few trees

[jaustin]

Hi folks. I've got ten acres in Maine, with a lot of scrub and a few fairly nice trees. My wife wants to "open things up a bit," which means getting rid of some white pines. I just measured three of them, and they measured between 5 and 7 feet circumference about 4 feet off the ground. They're pretty straight, and they're not broken. Not sure how many others she wants to get rid of; probably two or thee more about the same size. They're in a little valley, but just a few feet from the edge of my driveway.

Any idea what these are worth? Are there people out there (even better, around here) who would come in and cut just a few trees?

Thanks,
Jim

[Ron Scott]

It's hard to sell just "a few" trees, but not knowing your area markets it would be best for you to contact your local Conservation District Forester, Extension Service, or a local professional Consulting Forester.

Have one of them look over your property and its landscape and get their advice on which trees to remove to meet your objectives and what the timber value might be.

[rebocardo]

I would use the "find a sawyer" here and see if you could find someone with a small mill to come and take them down and cut them up. Since it sounds like the trees are about 12 dbh (wide) there probably is not much wood in there. If you could get some 6x6x24s out of them the trees might be worth some money.

[rebocardo]

Just so someone does not think I meant 6 foot wide timbers
:-D

6" x 6" x 24'

Reason being these are hard to find and people building high end houses seek them instead of the laminate beams.

[Stephen_Wiley]

Rebocardo's advise may be in line with what you currently have.

But do not dismiss Ron's advise, either.

You need both - starting with a consultant or district forester to help set up a management plan. Who has the knowledge to identify harvesting, wind exposure, planting, disease and other disturbances which will result in a negative impact upon your property.  

The mill will get the most out of your smaller material with less handling than firewood.