Deforrestation

The children and I started the day hearing machinery noises. The neighbor who own the back 1 acre of property decided to completely clear the property of all shrubs, saplings, and the many many locust trees.


Here is Jubilee enjoying a cup of peanuts during the excitement.

Sawyer was SO excited, he could barely eat his breakfast. He was running around outside, hollering for me to come watch, and wanting to know everything that was going on.

Phil helped out when he got home. There were several big locust trees, including this one that lined our fence. They were leaning in such a way that you really needed to have some knowledge and experience to cut them down safely. Since the workers that were hired felled a sapling on one of the other workers (and the following day, felled one on the neighbor's metal shop), I would say they weren't experts. Phil hooked up a roping system and notched the trees so that they would fall away from houses and fences while the workers pulled the ropes.

This is not quite the after picture but getting close. Thankfully, the huge pine trees are left up at the top of the acreage. It definitly looks a lot different - much more open and a lot more light in our backyard. Our fear is that the property will be developed and someone will build houses (it is zoned for 2 lots back there) that will overlook our backyard beings that it is on a hillside. The man also owns an acre in front of his home that is zoned for 3 lots. He doesn't have plans to develop at this point because the road improvements that he would have to make are too complex and expensive but he is thinking about selling his entire property and moving.

Phil and I have asked several times for him to consider selling us a lot (not that we could afford it) but he can make more money selling the entire thing to a developer or to someone who wants to own a 2 acre chunk of land. I have always drooled at all that space back there just waiting to be gardened, fenced for animals, and used for treehouses, forts, and a forresty playground.
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