 Agroforest
Equipment
To say that I'm at newbie at forestry would be a huge understatement. Aside from
farming and gardening, I really had no experience maintaining a forest, in fact,
my only contact with any forest was the occasional camping trip in the San Diego
County mountains of California, and an occasional trip to the Sequoias or other
national parks in America. With this lack of knowledge and experience under my
belt, I decide to go ahead and purchase our 4.5 acre heavily forested mountain
without even a thought to the potential work involved or the equipment needed.
After the equivalent of Japanese escrow closed on the property, I immediately
went online for help. Fortunately there's a plethora of DIY forest maintenance
sites, many of which explain, in detail, exactly the tools you need to maintain
a healthy forest. Some use only hand tools while others go the power tool route,
while the majority of mountain folks, fall somewhere in the middle with a mix of
both.
The next step, ugh, shopping. I hate shopping, in almost any form, and this
feeling goes way back. I come from a time when there was no Amazon or online
shopping, in fact, from a time there was no Internet....yes I actually used a
typewriter in college....I can actually hear my kids laughing as I type this. To
be fair though, I was semi okay browsing at a building supply store because they
were stocked with stuff I was interested in....a clothes or shoe store, FORGET
ABOUT IT. Anyway, it was time throw myself into the ring, sit back in a
comfortable chair and visit The Amazon Rainforest
Shopping Site and the thousands of choices that showed up. What a daunting
project, I thought, and then I began to realize the convenience of this shopping
system, choices, reviews, easy returns, and no fuel cost or parking problems.
Hey this was actually pretty good. Knowing what to buy, that was a problem. And
back to watching videos I went. Anyway, to make a long story short, the
following are a few of the tools I am using to date with a bit of information
about each.
Note: These products came from Japanese
distributors and may not be available in your country. I recommend Googling
these products in your country to avoid any shipping or import fees. That said,
the Japanese link to each product is included for your information. Use Google
translate on the shopping page to read in your language.
And BTW, I am not affiliated with Amazon in any way and not making any money
from the purchase or sale of these products. This simply an FYI moment to let
you know which tools work if you decided to embark on a similar forestry
project. |
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Forest Equipment
The following products are begin used to remove unwanted, non-native, invasive
species, mostly consisting of understory growth, in order to facilitate food
production in our agroforest. |
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 Camping
Knife
MOSSY OAK Sheath Knife, Full Tang
Construction, Natural Wood Handle, Total Length 10.8 inches (275 mm) (Case
Included)
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I bought this more for looks than
anything....you remember the old Crocodile Dundee movie and the famous quote,
"that's not a knife, THAT'S a knife." Anyway, I suppose this would work for
cutting vines, making chopsticks, and for whittling twigs into marshmallow
cooking sticks. |
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 Axe
HFS(R) Axe for Wood Breaking Camping 14.4
inches (36.5 cm), Hatchet, Garden Hand Axe for Outdoors, Home, Garden, Camping,
Hickory Wood with Sheath
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: This tool has turned out to be extremely
useful for debarking trees, and especially for taking out tree stumps and large
roots. The blade tends to get dull fairly quickly when used on hard woods such
as oak, but I suppose this is normal for any kind of axe.
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 Chain
Saw
HAIGE Chainsaw, 10 inches (25 cm),
Displacement: 25.4 cc 2 Cycle 1.3 hp HG-TM32500A
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I really pushed against buying a chainsaw
in the first place, but my shoulders began to give out using only a bow saw and
I ended up giving in and bought it anyway. This chainsaw turned out to be way to
small for the size and type of trees I'm dealing with, but with a little effort,
it turned out to be adequate. This model is pretty loud, about 112 decibels, but
not a problem with the property ear muffs. The handle will come loose if pulled
too strongly and eventually this developed a chain saw leak.
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 Chain
Saw Engine Oil
AZ 2-Cycle Engine Oil [Smokeless/FD
Grade] (4L)
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: Really not much to say about this as most
of these engine oil products are probably pretty similar. Um, it seems to work
okay.
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Protective Clothing
The following products are begin used for protection while working. |
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 Hiking
Boots
HI-TEC HT HKU10 Aoraki Mid WP Trekking
Shoes, Breathable and Waterproof
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: These are not the first HI-TEC boots to
cover my feet and certainly will not be the last. When I began our agroforestry
project, I was still wearing a very old pair of HI-TEC boots. I desperately
needed a new pair to handle working on the sloping topography of our new
mountain and, of course, went with this brand again. For about 40 bucks, these
boots are extremely comfortable, very stable, and have incredible traction for
keeping my balance on all the slippery leaf litter.
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 Socks
YUEDGE Men's Socks, Set of 5, Outdoor
Wear, Trekking, Mountain Climbing, Antibacterial, Odor Resistant, Cotton, For
Work, Men's Sports Socks
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I bought these socks to were at night,
mostly during the cooler months and they turned out to be incredibly warm and
comfortable. |
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 Socks
(1906) Men’s Socks, 5-Toe Socks, Set of 4
Pairs, High Cotton Percentage, Refreshing Easy to Wear Military Legs, Heathered
Gray, No Kato, Perfect for Work, 9.6 - 10.6 inches (24.5 - 27 cm)
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I have rheumatoid arthritis which has
forced some of my toes to curve slightly and rub together. I bought these socks
to keep my toes separate while working and they work out really well. |
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 Gloves
Heat Resistant Gloves, Fireproof Gloves,
Work Gloves, BBQ, Camping Gloves, Outdoor Leather, Cowhide Leather, Orange
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I bought these for debarking trees and for
building a cabin and have not actually used them. |
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 Gloves
Kinco Gloves Youth's Split Cowhide
Leather Driver 50Y
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I bought these for the kids for debarking trees and for
building a cabin and they have not actually used them. |
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Camping Equipment
The following products are begin used during our extended overnight camping trips
to the mountain. |
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 Camping
Light
Vantozon LED Lantern, Set of 2, Camp
Lantern, High Brightness, USB Rechargeable, Battery Operated, 2 in 1 Power
Supply Method, Lantern, Foldable, SOS Lighting, Three Light Modes, Portable,
Magnetic, Waterproof, Splashproof, Outdoor, Mountain Climbing, Night Fishing,
Disaster Prevention, Power Outages, Emergencies, Disaster Goods (Gray)
Details at Amazon Japan
Review: I cannot say enough about these
lights....possibly the best purchase I made to date. The lights are really
powerful and can be used as a lantern or as a flashlight. We use them mostly in
the flashlight mode for illuminating our eating table or for interior lighting
of the buses, AKA our bedrooms. The bottom is magnetic which works out great
when used on the outside of our metal buses. The lights last for a long time and
there is a USB charging unit included. |
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 Camping
Flashlight
BOIFUN Flashlight, LED XHP70+ L2 Set,
Ultra Bright 4,500 Lumens, Zoom Type, 5 Modes Dimming, Military, Strongest, USB
Rechargeable Two-Way Flashlight, Low Power Warning, IPX67 Waterproof, Mobile
Battery, Handy Light, Lantern, Shockproof, 4.9 ft (1.5 m), Small, Lightweight,
Bright, SOS, Outdoor, Disaster Prevention, Emergency Prevention, Bicycle, For
Mountain Climbing, Night Fishing, Camping 26650 (Included) 18650 (included); AAA
battery compatible, PSE certified.
Details at Amazon Japan
(link not working)
Review: These lights turned out to be quite a
disappointment. The smaller light is basically pretty good and last for a fairly
long time. The larger light worked for awhile and then began to flicker and now
only works when hit, and even then, usually turns off. |
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