Making Tree Stakes
Recycling and repurposing as many natural resources as possible is a big priority here at my Bedford, New York farm.
We always save whatever materials we can in case they can be used at a later time - especially wood. Last year, Mauricio Guevara, a skilled lumberer, master woodworker, and owner of New England Antique Lumber Inc., in nearby Mount Kisco, set up his portable sawmill, and made some beautiful floor boards and planks out of felled trees here at the farm. Most of the wood can be used for future building projects, but some of it is used for making stakes to support all my young, developing trees.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
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- All the stakes are made right here in our shop from leftover unused scraps of wood. I try not to waste anything. I am fortunate to have the room to store these natural materials until they are put to good use.
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- This is our Powermatic table saw. It is a rugged cabinet saw that only requires 115V of power.
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- Here is the blade, which can be adjusted to various heights. One can also see the space between the blade and the straight edge that guides the wood through the cutter.
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- Pete measures the boards and cuts them down to a manageable stake size – This board will be used to make six foot stakes.
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- Next, Pete uses one of our STIHL chainsaws to cut the board to size. STIHL designed and built its first electric chain saw in 1926 and 94 years later, it is still one of its best pieces of equipment. This one is run on an AP 300 S Lithium-Ion Battery, which is powerful and compatible with a wide range of other STIHL tools.
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- Then, the cut piece of lumber is passed through the table saw.
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- Pete measures the wood again to determine exactly what size each stake should be. He cut it first to two inches and then decided that was too thick.
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- Pete passes the piece of wood through the machine again to make it smaller.
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- This wood is oak, which is a heavy, strong wood. 1.5 inches was still too heavy for our stakes, so Pete decides to cut the stakes down to one by one inch square.
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- Table saws are excellent for cutting straight lines with a high degree of precision. Once it is set up, the machine makes the same exact cut every time.
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- This bright yellow push stick allows one to safely feed material through the table saw. The push stick has a comfortable pistol grip handle with an anti-slip guard and a notched end to help maintain even pressure as the wood is moved.
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- Many stakes are made within a few minutes.
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- Each one is made perfectly square.
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- Pete made two different sizes – six foot and five foot stakes, allowing extra for the amount of wood that would be buried into the ground.
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- A lot of sawdust is generated during the process – thankfully, it was not a windy day.
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- These stakes were cut within a half-hour. They are the perfect size. Brian takes a load of stakes to the allee of London Plane and Cotinus trees in the middle field.
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- These growing London Planes were left leaning to one side after Hurricane Ida, so Brian needed to stabilize them using these new stakes. He uses a digging bar to to help clear dirt, rocks and other items out of the way. Digging bars are typically five to six feet long and weigh 15 to 23 pounds and usually made entirely of cylindrical or hexagonal forged steel.
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- Once the hole is made, Brian hammers in the newly made stake about a foot deep.
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- Brian positions the stakes about a foot away at a 15-degree angle, so that there is always a bit of tension once it is tied.
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- We use natural jute twine for many of our projects around the farm. Jute twine is a vegetable fiber that can be spun into coarse, strong threads. It is 100-percent biodegradable and pollution-free. Here, Brian holds the tree perfectly straight and then secures the stake with twine.
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- The knots used should be very simple. I always teach every member of the crew to twist the twine before knotting, so the tree or vine or cane is not crushed or strangled.
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- Each piece is tied just tight enough to keep the tree secure, but not break it.
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- For these trees, Brian doubled the twine to secure them and then cut off the ends.
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- Because these trees are in the field, they are exposed to all the winds that blow through the area. Foe extra security, a third stake – here, a tall bamboo stake, is placed closer to each tree and behind it between the two wooden stakes.
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- These trees are now well secured. The London Plane tree grows at a medium to high rate, with an increase of 13 to 24 inches in height per year. I am pleased they will be well supported as they develop. In a few years, this allee will be so stunning, I can’t wait.
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