Our 5-acre property on the Olympic Peninsula is forested with mostly Douglas fir and a few cedars. We want a logger to remove some of these trees so we can plant fruit trees, berries, and vegetables using permaculture design. We'd like to use the slash (stumps and branches) in a way that benefits the soil, but since it's not deciduous wood, it may not be good for hugelkultur or wood chips. Would biochar be a better way of using conifer slash to improve soil fertility? If so, is there a way to burn the slash for biochar without the expense of having it chipped first? We've considered leaving the fir and cedar stumps in the ground and planting fruit trees around them, but we'd like to hear how others have fared after making similar choices.
