Brontosaurus

In Braintree!

by Bob Eddy

Apparently dinosaurs are not extinct. There was a Brontosaurus on Braintree ridge this fall. Weighing over 15 tons, it marched through the woods munching down everything in its path. When finished, over three acres of field lay where trees were growing just a few hours before.

Faun Kaplovsky of Braintree is the man behind the controls of this enormous heavy-duty mowing machine. His business, Land & Mowing Solutions, provides "pristine restoration" of fields all over New England.

"My services are sought out for many reasons" Kaplovsky explained while sharpening the forty 6" steel teeth of the 2.5 ton grinder on the business end of this monster. He provides wildlife habitat clearing, opens up viewscapes lost to reforestation, clears building lots, and cleans up logging sites.

On Braintree Hill, just a mile across the valley from his own home, Kaplovsky was clearing a field on our property, which had become choked with trees during the past 30 years.

"This work is similar to the 30 acres of clearing I did last year in Castleton under the auspices of WHIP, the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program," Kaplovsky explained, adding, "Grassland songbirds require field habitat with no trees, which harbor predatory species."

The dramatic reforestation of northern New England in the past century has also significantly reduced boundary areas between forest and field, valuable habitat for many plants and animals.

Using conventional methods, clearing land is labor intensive, time consuming, and expensive. The Brontosaurus (the actual trade name for the custom-converted track Caterpillar excavator) can clear from one to two acres a day depending upon slope and density of growth. When finished, the land is left with an even covering of chopped and chipped wood which, with yearly brush-hogging will compost into soil in about seven years.

"Conventional clearing," Kaplovsky explains, "leaves behind brush piles which must be buried or burned, and stumpage requiring removal by heavy equipment. Pulling the stumps loosens soil and exposes the terrain to erosion. By contrast, the Brontosaurus chips trees right down to the ground, leaving behind an even carpet of wood chip. This method protects the soil with a layer of material to slow water run-off. In addition, the retention of roots preserves soils on banks and slopes until grasses are thoroughly established.