BMP Field Manual

Chapter 8 - Mechanical Site Preparation and Tree Planting

Site preparation prepares the land for planting, direct seeding and/or natural regeneration. Using machinery to prepare sites and plant trees often exposes soil, so you need to proceed carefully to avoid impacts on water quality.

Common site preparation techniques include scarifying, shearing, raking, disking and roller chopping. Select a technique based on specific site characteristics including soil, topography, vegetation, access and distance to surface waters. Prescribed burning and herbicides are also used for site preparation; BMPs for these management tools are listed in Prescribed Burning and Wildfire and Chemicals.

• Avoid operating mechanical site-preparation and tree-planting equipment on slopes greater than 30% where the slopes drain directly into a waterbody.
• Operate mechanical site-preparation and tree-planting equipment on the contour where necessary to minimize erosion into waterbodies.
• Minimize raking in areas, or under conditions, in which soil could erode and enter waterbodies. Two preferred practices are: (a) shearing and raking when the soil is frozen; and (b) raking lightly to remove slash only.
• Suspend operations during wet periods if equipment begins to cause excessive soil disturbance that will increase erosion into waterbodies.
• Deposit site preparation residues in stable locations outside riparian management zones.
• Use patch scarification or low-intensity prescribed burns on sites that have steep slopes, erodible soils or saturated soils, and on sites that drain to surface water.