Our machine needs a minimum of a 5 foot gate opening in fences and adequate access to access the working area. It is helpful to move any obstacles such as furniture, lawnmowers, gardening equipment, tools etc or other obstructions out of the way before we arrive to allow for the job to proceed in a timely manner.
Graystone Tractor Services is well experienced in light land clearing and permanent removal of blackberries and other stubborn native brush common to the Pacific Northwest.
Permanent Blackberry clearing and brush removal is usually a preferred method of controlling native growth in a lot of areas of your yard, unlike brush mowing, which simply trims the brush
back to temporarily slow its growth and spread.
Our brush clearing method;
Our permanent brush clearing and removal services will remove the brush by the roots, usually by pulling out the roots or digging them out in some cases.
With our equipment, Blackberries, salmonberry, miscellaneous sticker bushes, salal etc. can all be removed quickly and easily, usually within a matter of hours.
Because the brush is removed by the roots, it is essentially dead as soon as it leaves the ground.
Once the unwanted brush is removed, the area is reverted to bare dirt, where it can be easily re purposed for new grass areas, garden, outbuildings etc.
Generally, the vegetation is uprooted and piled for burning. Alternatively, it can be ground up using our brush mower, hauled away by a third party or
relocated to another area of your property to decompose naturally.
Himalayan Blackberries, which is considered an invasive species in Washington State is by far our most common brush to be removed. This Blackberry species is
often spread to new areas by birds and other wildlife where it quickly takes root and establishes itself and often can double or triple its density annually into
large, prickly thickets. Himalayan Blackberries develop large, thick root balls over years of growth and will choke out most all other shrubs growing nearby.
Our blackberry clearing services will help to permanently remove this from your yard.
Step 1: Contact us at (360) 542-6460,
email us at graystonesolutionsllc@gmail.com or fill out
our Free estimate request form. If possible, please take several photos of all the areas
you would like worked on and send them to us, via text message (360) 542-6460 or email or include it on our estimate request form.
Step 2: We'll review your photos and the information that you provide. In most cases,
we can provide you with an accurate estimate based on your photos, as well as the approximate size the of area. In select cases, usually complex jobs, it may
be necessary to schedule an on-site estimate.
Step 3: We'll provide you with an estimate of the job based on the scope of work you
have provided. If you accept the estimate, we will schedule the work for you. Prior to our arrival, please ensure that we have easy access to the area to be worked on.
Step 4: One the day of the job, we will have a truck with a 22' long trailer, which we will need to park on the street
or in your yard. Please let us know if there is limited parking at your house or on your street..
We also offer light land clearing services, where you may have a combination of problems preventing you from making use of a portion of your property, including fallen trees, branches,
unwanted brush and many times unlevel ground. We can help clear it out, gather up the organic material (branches/fallen trees/brush) and usually pile it up for burning and reduce the area to
raw dirt, which we will then level the area out, allowing you to make full use of your property.
Please reach out to us to talk about your brush removal or land clearing project. We can be contacted via phone, text message
at (360) 542-6460 or email at graystonesolutionsllc@gmail.com.
This is the most common type of brush control used by homeowners, usually done by machete, weed trimmer or other means where the brush is trimmed manually.
While it is effective at temporarily controlling brush from spreading, the brush quickly springs back and creates an ongoing cycle where it needs to be trimmed several times a year. The major disadvantages is that it is very labor intensive and very temporary.
Additionally, the trimmed area tends to look unsightly with brown severed canes mixed in with the discarded trimmed brush.
Brush mowing
Brush mowing is trimming thick brush by mechanical means. While we offer brush mowing services, we usually recommend this
method in the cases of controlling brush in low priority areas, such as fields and pastures and wooded areas, or on sloped areas where the roots of the brush can help reduce erosion
problems. If the brush is located in your front, back or side yard or in an area where you will be making use of frequently, we recommend having it permanently removed.
Permanent brush clearing / brush removal
Our preferred method of brush control is our permanent brush clearing services.
We will clear out even the thickest native brush and blackberries and pull or dig out the brush by the roots. This method will permanently remove most of the brush forever, leaving behind raw dirt.
In some cases, some light post-removal control may be necessary, such as occasionally spraying any regrowth with brush killer.
We offer Washington State brush removal, blackberry removal and land clearing services in Arlington, Stanwood, Camano Island, Oak Harbor, Whidbey Island, Conway, Darrington,
Granite Falls, Lake Stevens, Marysville, Everett, Snohomish, Monroe, Mount Vernon, Burlington,Bellingham, Ferndale and areas in-between in Island County,
Skagit County and Snohomish County.
Frequently asked questions:
We will clear the area as thoroughly as possible, pulling/digging up the vegetation by the roots, leaving bare dirt behind. However small broken pieces of the roots of some native species including the invasive Himalayan Blackberry as well as Salmonberry can remain in the ground for up to 2 years and will periodically try to sprout and re-establish.
In such cases, after clearing off vegetation, it will usually be necessary to spot treat deeply buried roots that occasionally emerge with a brush killer product, such as Round Up Brush Killer.
If you are concerned about using herbicide on your property, a highly effective method is to cut a piece of the regrowth cane and dab a small amount of brush killer on the open portion using a dauber bottle, which can be purchased on Amazon. This will kill the cane down to the root without over spray on your property.
1. Piled & burnt- Removed brush is uprooted, piled up for burning at your convenience. (10x10 burn permit required to burn)
2. Relocate & decompose- Removed brush is uprooted and relocated to another portion of your property to decompose naturally
3. Mow & clear- Brush is mowed first with brush mower, then the roots are dug up [Extra time required to mow]
4. Cleared & hauled away - If you are unable or don't wish to burn the vegetation, it can be hauled away. Brush is uprooted, loaded onto truck and hauled away by a third party disposal firm. [Extra expense for labor, hauling and disposal].
In most cases, permanent brush removal is usually the preferred method as it clears away the brush by the roots, which results in minimal re-growth. In certain cases however, it may be advantageous to mow the brush, such as in large fields where you simply want to control overgrowth or on sloped areas where the roots from the vegetation may offer erosion control.
Yes. In most cases brush can be safely removed over septic tanks and drain (leech) fields. Our equipment is lightweight and we have a technique for carefully pulling up most vegetation by the roots. We recommend keeping septic fields free of invasive vegetation as the root systems can damage the field over time.