Low-impact land care · Vermont + New Hampshire

Keep the good trees.
Give the forest room to return.

We reclaim trails, fields and woodlands with specialized equipment designed to work lightly—saving roots, soil and the organic life already on your land.

Request a complimentary site visit See the work

No herbicides Minimal soil disturbance Built for tight woodland access

01 A lighter footprint

The forest is already working

We remove what is in its way.

Healthy land rarely needs to be scraped bare and started over.

Forest Savers cuts, uproots, shreds and lightly incorporates unwanted brush in one pass. Nutrients stay on site, desirable trees stay standing, and the soil keeps its structure.

“Multiple tasks with one highly mobile machine—while causing minimal disturbance to soil, water and desirable vegetation.”

02 What we preserve

Forest Savers means exactly that

Save more than trees.

Every choice protects a larger living system—and saves landowners time and expense along the way.

Save healthy trees

Maneuver between closely spaced trunks and release the specimens worth keeping.

Save roots + soil

Work at the surface instead of excavating deeply through sensitive root systems.

Save organic matter

Shred brush into mulch that decomposes in place and returns nutrients to the land.

Save native growth

Control invasive plants so wildflowers, fruit trees and beneficial vegetation can thrive.

Save forests from fire

Reduce flammable understory around homes while retaining larger healthy trees.

Save time + cost

Cut, shred and finish in one efficient operation with less hand labor and hauling.

03 Services

Forest Savers' compact forestry machine uprooting invasive brush

The Forest Savers system, developed by Gerry Hawkes, is compact enough for close work and capable enough for large acreage.

From backyards to large acreages

One system.
Many kinds of renewal.

01Trails + woodland access

Thoughtful layout, construction and maintenance for walking, riding, biking, skiing and forest access.

02Invasive vegetation control

Cutting, uprooting, shredding and targeted flame treatment—without relying on herbicides.

03Woodland + wildlife improvement

Release good trees, create habitat openings and retain selected brush piles for wildlife cover.

04Field + pasture restoration

Reclaim overgrown acreage, pull back encroaching edges and turn heavy brush into mulch.

05Fire hazard reduction

Create defensible space and firebreaks with less displacement than conventional excavation.

06Storm + post-logging cleanup

Clear windthrow, tangled limbs and bent saplings; smooth damaged forest roads and trails.

07Wildflowers + special projects

Prepare sites for wildflowers, restore views, reduce tick habitat and solve unusual access challenges.

04 Field notes

Real land. Real outcomes.

Let the work speak.

Original photographs and field videos from Forest Savers projects across New England.

Overgrown hillside pasture before restoration — Before

Hillside pasture after Forest Savers restoration — After

Pasture restoration

A field comes back into view.

Dense growth is cut and shredded in place, leaving a cleaner edge and usable ground.

Apple tree crowded by invasive brush before work — Before

Apple tree released after invasive brush removal — After

Wildlife habitat

An old apple tree gets light again.

Removing competition helps valuable food-producing trees serve wildlife for years to come.

Woodland with dense flammable underbrush before reduction — Before

Woodland after flammable understory was removed — After

Fire hazard reduction

Less fuel. Better movement. Healthy canopy retained.

Selective understory removal makes woodlands safer and easier to enjoy without clear-cutting.

Watch the system work

From Gerry’s field archive.

Select a film to play. Video remains hosted on YouTube.

Field film 01

Uprooting, shredding + flaming woody invasives

Field film 02

View clearing on Prospect Hill

Field film 03

Reclaiming an overgrown field edge

Explore four more field films +

Flame control of multiflora rose ↗

Uprooting, mowing + shredding brush ↗

Flame treatment of buckthorn ↗

Invasive control on watersheds ↗

05 Our story

Designed from the ground up

Inventive equipment.
Old-fashioned stewardship.

Founder Gerry Hawkes developed the Forest Savers system for the places conventional machines handle poorly.

It is readily transported, highly maneuverable and made to complete several jobs in one pass. That combination lets us take on steep, tight or sensitive work while preserving more of what makes a property worth caring for.

Based in Woodstock, we serve landowners, farms, conservation groups, towns and institutions across Vermont and New Hampshire.

Tell us about your land

“We were amazed that there was so little evidence of the equipment’s path up the mountain. Townspeople can now once again enjoy the views from the summit.”

— Dummerston Conservation Commission, Prospect Mountain

06 Start a conversation

Complimentary site visits

Walk your land with someone who sees what it can become.

Tell us what is growing, what is getting in the way and how you hope to use the property. We’ll start from there.

Call Gerry(802) 356-3215 Toll free1-866-63-TREES Emailinfo@forest-savers.com

Based in796 Wayside Road Ext.
Woodstock, VT 05091

Keep the good trees.Give the forest room to return.