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UPCOMING EVENTS
There is limited space for this exciting day of exploration. Children are invited, but must be accompanied by an adult. To register, call Hogback Mountain Gif Shop at (802) 464-5494. Cost is $50 per workshop. You can register for one workshop or all three. The Woodland Owners Association has generously offered scholarships for this workshop. For additional information, call Lynn at (802) 254-4717.
Annual Meeting Wrapup by George Weir, President of WOA Heavy rains only slightly dampened spirits at the annual meeting at the Wimmelman property in Wilmington September 18 th. Despite the 3 inches that fell the night before and early in the day, the woodland tours went as planned. In the morning we walked through the Wilmington School Forest and inspected a Norway spruce thinning managed by Trustee County Forester Bill Guenther and operated by Trustee Peter Wimmelman. All were impressed by the quality of Peter’s workmanship and the careful layout by Bill. In the afternoon the rains let up and we visited a hardwood stand Peter has conservatively managed over the years. As always, many questions were asked and thoughtful discussion followed. The indoor meeting was held in a log cabin built by Peter and Frieda Wimmelman’s father over 50 years ago. A warm fire in the hearth dried us out between field sessions and made for a relaxed and informal atmosphere, appropriate given the weather outside. In addition to a review of the past year and the scholarship awards, we elected 2 new trustees, Ralph Coleman of Jamaica and Richard Holden of Guilford. They replace Bob Hindmarsh and Bob Twitchell whose terms expired. We welcome Ralph and Richard and express our thanks to Bob Hindmarsh and Bob Twitchell for their years of service. Many thanks to Peter and Nancy Wimmelman and Frieda Wimmelman and Alan Binnick for generously hosting the meeting.
President George Weir called the meeting to order at 12:30 p.m. Secretary’s Report The minutes of the 2003 Annual Meeting, which was published in the November 2003 newsletter, were distributed. They were approved with one correction: the year date was corrected from 2002 to 2003. Treasurer’s Report Copies of the Treasurer’s Report were distributed. George Weir explained the three accounts, the basic account for handling operating expenses, the Scholarship Fund for college scholarships, and the Halsey Hicks Fund for other educational purposes, such as subsidizing the Game of Logging. Membership is still only ten dollars per year, with donations to the two scholarship funds optional. The Treasurer’s Report was accepted as written. COMMITTEE REPORTS Nominating – The agenda incorrectly listed “Election of Officers and Trustees”. Committee Chair Dick Kelly explained that trustees would be elected at the meeting, but officers would be elected at the next Trustees meeting. Two current trustees were eligible and willing to serve another term: Barbara Evans and Bill Schmidt. The members voted that both Barbara and Bill serve second terms. Trustees Bob Hindmarsh and Bob Twitchell have served two terms and must step down for at least one year. The Nominating Committee nominated Ralph Coleman and Dick Holden, and the members voted them both in as trustees. Scholarship – Committee ChairJohn Caldwell reported that the committee had received scholarship applications from three outstanding Windham County students entering the field of forestry. Instead of awarding two scholarships and one loan, the committee decided to award a $1500 scholarship to each of the three candidates, Brian Hernon, James Sprague, and Jack Dix. Program – George reviewed WOA programs of the past year, and highlighted issues to be considered for programs in the coming year. No one in government is focusing on the deer browse and invasive plant problems, so WOA needs to keep up interest in these issues and make our case, partnering with other organizations where possible. Other topics are ATVs, the scarcity of young people entering forestry, and changes in Current Use standards requiring erosion control measures throughout harvesting. Workshops in using GPS and forestry tools were also suggested. Jeremy Schrauf requested that a Woodland Owners information packet be developed to be given to likely members. The meeting was adjourned at 12:50.
Respectfully submitted, Carol Morrison, Clerk
WOA TRUSTEES 2004-2005 President – George Weir, Williamsville Vice President – Stuart Thurber, W. Brattleboro Treasurer – Phyllis Weltz, Bellows Falls John Caldwell, Putney Ralph Coleman, Rawsonville Barbara Evans, Dummerston Richard Holden, Guilford Fred Humphrey, Guilford Richard Kelly, W. Brattleboro John Kristensen, W. Brattleboro Lynn Levine, Dummerston Bill Schmidt, Dummerston Peter Wimmelman, Wilmington Ex officio Gil Cameron, Brattleboro, Editor Bill Guenther, Newfane, County Forester Laura French, Wallingford, Asst. County Forester
Lifetime Ray Pestle, Brattleboro
by Bill Schmidt This acorn is an interactive internet site developed by Sam Schneski, a Masters student in forestry at the University of Massachusetts. Its focus is on the West River and Deerfield River watersheds though much of its information is more generalized. A monthly feature is presented (how leaves change color was October’s) and all manner of subjects relating to forest ecology, finances, recreation, and local history are covered, for example, invasive species, green certification, current use program, tree identification, Vermont forest types, forest insects and diseases, wildlife habitat stewardship, the Long Trail, trail sources for Vermont, the Vermont Tree Farm Society and many, many more. Woodland owners can ask questions about forest management from foresters like Bill Guenther and also exchange information with one another The site has GIS maps and orthophotos on which one can view the area containing one’s own property. WOA’s mission statement and a membership application form are included. Check the site out at: forest.fnr.umass.edu/acorn.
FALL WATCH FOR FOREST TENT CATERPILLAR In most of Vermont, the leaves have begun to fall, hard frosts are getting common, and most folks are concentrating on their woodpiles. But the forest protection specialists at the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation (FPR) are asking forest owners to spend a little extra time looking at the trees in their sugarbushes and woodlots this fall. This spring and summer, high populations of forest tent caterpillar caused heavy defoliation in parts of 12 counties, especially Rutland, Bennington, and Windsor counties. Aerial mapping by the State found 90,556 acres of forests affected by this insect. While most of the defoliation is occurring in sugar maple forests, other species, such as oak and white ash have also been affected. FPR is encouraging landowners to request tree health evaluations and egg surveys if they saw defoliation last summer, or if they see evidence of egg masses in their woods. Egg masses are small (1/2 – 1”) cylindrical dark masses on twigs in mature trees. Counts of these are used to predict next year’s forest tent caterpillar populations. In forests where defoliation was heavy this year, and defoliation is expected for next year, landowners may consider reduced tapping of sugarbushes, delaying of timber harvesting, or tree health protection through aerial application of a biological insecticide next spring. The last forest tent caterpillar outbreak in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s began in Rutland and Windsor counties, spread to central Vermont, then northward until the population reached its peak in 1982, leaving 323,000 acres of forests defoliated. Tree decline and mortality was observed on over 30,000 acres in forests that had several years of defoliation, or where additional forest stress was present. So far, indications are that forest tent caterpillar populations will again be high in Vermont in 2005. The FPR website, http://www.state.vt.us/anr/fpr/forestry/protect/foresttent04.htm has more details on forest tent caterpillars in Vermont. Southern VT forest protection contacts are Barbara Burns in Springfield at 802-885-8821 or Lars Lund in Pittsford at 802-483-2727. Recommendations — The Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation (FPR) is preparing for next year by assisting landowners with health assessments, population surveys, and management options. If your sugarbush is in an area defoliated in 2004, you can consider these actions to prepare for 2005: Predict populations for 2005. Request an FTC egg mass survey form to predict defoliation for next year. Assess current tree health . Consider collecting fall/winter root samples for starch analysis by FPR. This provides an assessment of current tree health going into the winter. Consider reduced tapping. Based on tree health and predicted defoliation for next year, you might consider changing to health spouts or reducing tapping in affected areas of your sugarbush. Delay timber harvesting activity. Based on tree health and predicted defoliation for next year, you might consider postponing any timber harvesting in affected woodlots. Protect foliage next year. Forest Tent Caterpillar can be effectively controlled through aerial application of a biological insecticide, Bt. If tree health is a problem, or defoliation is predicted, aerial spraying may protect trees from injury. FPR is providing technical assistance to landowners interested in aerial spraying. Contact FPR for additional assistance: (802) 241-3678.
Forest Tent Caterpillars in May New (above) and old (below) egg masses
NOTES FROM ELYSIAN HILLS by Bill Schmidt
“Invasives are from hell” says forester Andy Sheere. And right he is with respect to their aggressive and exponential growth and efforts to control them. My immediate focus is on buckthorn, barberry and honeysuckle. While I have been aware of them in our woodlot for several years, I’m only now seriously attempting to deal with them because of their pervasiveness in stands ready for harvest and elsewhere. And in dealing with them, I’m learning how extensive they really are throughout our 100-acre woodlot. They’re not only in a red pine stand, they’re also in sugarbushe, wildlife habitat areas, and to a greater or lesser degree everywhere on the property. I’m also learning there are other invasives as well, examples being Asiatic bittersweet and multi-flora rose. Some of these invasives have obviously been here a long time. There’s 25-year old buckthorn that’s 20-25 feet tall and huge barberry and honeysuckle. Big buckthorn look like apple trees. I discovered a dozen of them along the west boundary of our upper field while shearing Christmas trees in August. My efforts this year have been to inventory these invasives as best I can and begin control of them. My control efforts started with the buckthorn and barberry. In this article I’ll speak to what I’ve done thus far about the buckthorn. My experience with barberry and some experimental work honeysuckle will be shared in a future newsletter. When I refer to buckthorn I’m including both kinds, the common buckthorn (rhamnus cathartica) and glossy buckthorn (rhamnus frangula). Descriptive information on them and other invasive exotics can be obtained from The Nature Conservancy of Vermont, 27 State St., Montpelier, VT 05602. Tel:802/229-4425. For now, suffice it to say that buckthorn is one of the most seriously invasive exotics. It’s a prolific seed producer, the seeds are readily dispersed and distributed by birds, the seeds readily germinate and the new plants grow rapidly, and the new plants are very aggressive in a take-over of some of the places where they grow. Control of buckthorn at Elysian Hills started with hundreds of small plants in the 5-acre red pine stand. I spent several days in Sept. pulling out small buckthorn on about 3 1/2 of the 5 acres. The plants came out easily in the moist, soft soil. The objective was to remove as much of each plant with intact roots as possible. Taking care not to leave the pulled plants on the ground knowing they could re-root, I either packed them in plastic bags or hung them on pine braches or fallen trees well off the ground. The plants in plastic bags were emptied on a concrete slab for burning after they dry. The remaining buckthorn, with the exception of the tallest ones, were sprayed in October. With a backpack sprayer I applied a chemical mixture I obtained from Vegetation Control Service, the company of Jeff Taylor who’s a fellow Christmas tree grower. The chemicals interestingly are all non-registered so anyone can use them though I have to admit gratitude for already having a pesticide operator’s license and equipment to use herbicides and pesticides safely and properly. The biggest buckthorn in the red pine stand and those elsewhere that I was aware of, including the dozen on the western edge of the upper field, were cut in October and still another chemical was applied to the stump with a hand held windex-type sprayer. Internet advice from a Wisconsin forester, obtained from WOA member and fellow invasives hunter John Evans, says that fall is the best time to cut and stump-spray mature buckthorn. This is the time when sap is returning to the roots and therefore the time when stump spray applications are most effective. This is the extent of my buckthorn control efforts this year. Buckthorn elsewhere in the woodlot will be treated next year after I determine the success rate of this year’s control efforts. My guess is that I will have to return to the red pine stand and other treated areas for plants I missed and those that have withstood my treatment measures. Indeed, I’ve been advised by those with more knowledge and experience than I have, that I’ll have to do ongoing yearly buckthorn maintenance to keep the plant under control. Also next year I’m going to work with neighbors who also have a buckthorn problem, especially those to the south of the red pine stand where the plant has a very strong foothold. I’ve already discussed the matter with some of them. They’re agreeable to working with me. Control of the buckthorn on their lands is essential to control of buckthorn in the Elysian Hills woodlot and vice versa. I’m looking at my control efforts at this point as an experimental work in progress. I’m getting myself educated about invasives and how to deal with them. Looking ahead, I’d like to network more with other woodland owners who are confronted by invasives and want to control them to the extent possible. Sharing of information could be useful to all. It has become clear that total eradication of them is not possible. Decisions and choices are necessary on where, when and how to try to control them. As State Resource Protection Specialist Barbara Burns says, “we’re going to have to learn how to live with invasives…. They’ve been part of our landscape for a long time and will continue to be with us well into the future.”
FOREST MANAGEMENT PLANNING STEP BY STEP Part 1 by George Weir Most landowners first develop management plans to achieve the goal of lower taxes under the Use Value program. Although an absolutely worthy goal, eventually we all have to carry out the plan’s recommendations. I think it’s essential landowners and those advising them tailor plans to the individual needs, vision and goals of the landowner. With that in mind, let me offer a few ideas on how the planning effort could unfold. As a first step, landowners should identify and prioritize their goals of ownership. In my view this first step often gets short shrift, yet it should inform all later management decisions. Often plans simply contain a list of generic goals limited to a desire to recreate in the woodland, grow timber, sustain aesthetics, produce wildlife and protect habitat. When it comes to carrying out operations, conflicts often arise between these goals. Prioritization will help avoid and resolve those. The second step involves an inventory of the woodland, based on landowner priorities. I recommend only creating information that will inform management decisions. In all cases a good inventory should include information on the species composition and age structure of woodland including the understory, pathological problems, stocking levels, wildlife use and acceptability of trees to meet landowner goals. Information on these features is always useful. From this step a stand map is developed. Sometimes it makes sense to provide more detail. When the primary goal is timber management that will provide an even flow of financial benefits well into the future, an estimate of timber volumes and appraisal of values are necessary undertakings as are estimates of growth and projected future returns. The intensity of fieldwork needed to accurately create that detail substantially exceeds the amount needed to develop good silvicultural prescriptions. I only recommend creating that level of detail when it will directly influence management decisions. If a landowner has keen interest in recreation or wildlife, it’s important to collect information that will help manage those resources and avoid conflicts with other goals, particularly those related to timber management. Obvious conflicts exist between harvesting red oak and beech or and saving them for wildlife. Cutting heavily along well-used walking trails will almost certainly reduce their value for recreation. By identifying important resources in light of goals of ownership, landowners can avoid conflicts. The third step involves developing a set of recommendations that will accomplish goals. This not only takes into account landowner priorities, but also the condition of the forest as identified by the inventory and consideration of all factors that may influence outcomes. Silvicultural treatments that work in one location may fail in others. For example, I often come across recommendations to establish seedlings in small openings while maintaining canopy closure throughout the majority of the stand. This regeneration method is often associated with group selection management. Although the recommendation may serve to sustain aesthetics, it creates ideal deer habitat. The approach may work in Londonderry where there are few deer, but throughout all of eastern Windham County it will almost invariably reproduce a limited species composition of beech, black birch and browse tolerant shrubs and herbs. So it’s important to consider the full range of factors that may influence forest development in a specific location.
PINE SHOOT BEETLE QUARANTINE The entire states of Vermont, New Hampshire and much of New York have been placed under a quarantine that regulates the movement of pine logs and bark from the quarantine area. Though this pine shoot quarantine will only indirectly affect our owners, it is worth passing the information along. It does simplify the movement of pine logs and bark between the states affected and makes life a bit easer for some of the loggers and mill operators. If you have questions, contact County Forester Bill Guenther at (802) 257-7967 DIAMETER-LIMIT CUTTING from Ralph Nyland, SUNY, Environmental Scientist and Forester in The N.Y. Forest Owner Editor’s note: Diameter cutting simply limits the logger to cutting only trees larger than a agreed upon minimum size. Foresters do not generally approve of the practice since it really only limits cutting to “merchantable” size classes, or the trees the logger wants to cut. Crop trees, fast growing dominants in the stand, will be harvested before they have achieved full value, and the stand will not be ready for further harvests for two-, three-, or four decades Forestry has found ways of using and locating the forest resources of the nation. Technology has provided ever more sophisticated means of utilizing the resource. However, landowners have, over the years, been slow to look for more and better ways to manage the growing stock to assure quality stands for the future. Diameter-limit cutting seemed like such a simple solution to any concern for the future! It requires little or no preparation. Demands no silvicultural expertise. And it adds nothing in costs to growing stock management. It also fits society’s short time perspective and interest in quick profits. However, if an owner wishes to practice silviculture and provide for planned future timber stands and harvests, there are a number of non-market benefits achieved. Silviculture focuses on regenerating mature age classes and tending immature ones. It takes the long-term perspective. Sadly, all too often, silviculture is not practiced and logging leaves understocked stands, removes the most valuable species, and reduces the quality of standing timber. It results in a patchy tree cover and makes no clear provisions for regeneration.
LOGGING “ATHLETES”— THE EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE AT CHAINSAW COMPETITIONS by Bill Guenther, County Forester Former WOA Trustee Arthur Westing recently sent me an article from the International Herald Tribune published in Paris entitled “A New Sports Cheer: Timber!” This was a very different cultural look inside a chainsaw contest held in Europe. The first thing that jumped out at me was how the contestants were referred to as “athletes”, a term that seemed a bit strange in this context. The World Championship for Loggers was held this September in Italy and drew over 100 “athletes” from over 30 countries. This competition includes events in tree felling, limbing, bucking and chain fitting. A Dutch logger holds the world record for chain changing and has completed this usually 2 minute task in a scant 10 seconds!!! Team USA had some difficulties when their saws were confiscated at the airport and had to use local substitutes. Promoters of the event report that there is a big debate over whether the competition should focus on technique or showmanship. One competitor remarked that “fortunately doping has not touched the sport for now, the only problem is alcohol.” It is obvious that the Europeans take their competition seriously as team members train regularly and even go on retreats. The article goes on to report that “tree felling is to logging games what the 100 meter dash is to the Olympics.“
THE FOREST GUILD The Forest Trust, a consistent innovator in the field of sustainable forestry since 1984, recently transformed itself into “The Forest Guild” by merging with one of its sponsored programs, the Forest Stewards Guild. The Guild and Trust boards concluded that it would be desirable to combine the Forest Trust’s program strength with the Forest Stewards Guild’s mission and membership to form the basis for a powerful new organization to be called the “Forest Guild.” The combined capacities of the two organizations were seen as the catalyst needed to reverse the unfortunate results of irresponsible forest management practices on private and public lands across the nation. The Forest Guild’s website is: www.forestguild.org
There will be more about the Forest Guild and its policy statement on transgenic trees in the next issue of Woodlot Tips.
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Wildlife Adventure – A new approach to animal tracking is happening three times this winter: Sundays January 15, February 20, and March 6 at the Southern Vermont Natural History Museum (SVNHM). Participants will first explore the anatomy of mammals in our area via one of the largest collections of mounted specimens in the Northeast. Then we will amble on snowshoes at Hogback Mountain in Marlboro Vermont. The program allows people to study the daily routines of the wildlife which make the woods and other habitats their home, and to explore the tracks and signs these animals have left behind. This workshop will include a brunch at the Skyline Restaurant with, on a clear day, its 100-mile views. The mysteries of the outdoors will unfold through the knowledge and passion of naturalist and tracker Lynn Levine, and accomplished tracker George Leoniak. The amount of knowledge that Lynn and George can pass on during this 5-hour workshop is truly a gift. Lynn has been leading forest education and tracking experiences for the last twenty years. She is co-author of “Working with your Woodland” and “Mammal Tracks: Life-Sized Tracking Guide.” George taught tracking at Marlboro College, apprenticed with Paul Rezendes, and has studied extensively with Jon Young and many other advanced tracking teachers. Following the program, participants will be offered a 15% discount on all nature offerings at the Southern Vermont Natural History Museum’s Gift Shop.
AN ACORN FOR WOODLOT OWNERS 
INVASIVE PLANTS EVERYWHERE! 
Continued in next issue of Woodlot Tips 
