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A windblown site is harder to harvest, and how a site is worked during harvesting can have a significant impact on the ground preparation ahead of replanting.
Harvesting a crop can have significant challenges, including wet or soft ground. On such sites the brash mats for the forwarder have to be built substantially enough to support the machine. The softer the ground the more support that is required. However, this can mean that saleable product is used in the brash mat. On occasion this can exceed what is required or reasonable. Long lengths left in the brash mat can cause damage and risk to ground prep machine operators and planting squads accessing the site post harvesting.
As ever in forestry this is a balancing act, but an incident on site last month illustrated the issue very clearly when a whole tree length laid along the brash mat became entangled in the ground prep excavator almost causing it to overturn onto its back.
Remember!
- Think about the impact of your work and how you leave the site for the next phase of the forest
- Brash mats shouldn’t contain unnecessary oversized timber
