i've been doing this on the advice of a woodlot manager/sawyer - it should make a difference to the quality of wood in the future, but it definitely makes the bushes nicer to walk through. plus it has you looking up the trees and paying attention to them in relation to each other, maybe making thinning decisions, and thinking about the selection of trees you have.
i find this something to do in spurts, both to keep your neck healthy as mentioned, and to make it manageable to make brushpiles of the branches.
this is a very satisfying job- i feel elf-like doing it.
