For your Information:

We have LOGO (Kakai with Woodland Owners Clarion - Allegheny Valley)baseball style hats available for purchase at $12.00 a piece. If you care to purchase one let us know.

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July 28, 2008
For Immediate Release

New Publication on Valuing Trees and the Decision to Cut Timber

Timber harvesting is an integral part of forest management and perhaps one of the most important decisions a forest landowner will make. As a forest landowner you want the best prices for your timber.

If you have been following timber markets recently (see http://www.sfr.cas.psu.edu/TMR/TMR.htm) you know prices are down for most tree species in our region. Reasons are numerous but link to our sluggish economy as well as changing consumer demand for our high-valued hardwoods. One of the beauties of timber production, unlike agricultural crops, is that forest landowners have the option of waiting until markets improve before cutting timber. With annual crops you have to harvest no matter the market conditions. Using financial tools you can actually determine the optimal time to cut your timber.

A new publication (Number 8 in the Forest Finance Series, entitled: "To cut or not to cut: Tree value and deciding when to harvest timber" is available at http://rnrextRNRext.cas.psu.edu/FS/FSfinancepubs.htm) discusses the financial decision to harvest timber. The publication explains the process of deciding whether to cut today or wait. This is done by comparing the expected financial rate of return received from letting the trees grow and harvesting them later, to the rate of return received from an alternative investment (i.e., harvest today and invest the income elsewhere).

The publication contains worksheets and examples for calculating financial returns. It also addresses concepts such as financial maturity, timber value, grade, and price. Grade value, often ignored, is critically important for obtaining the correct valuation for hardwood forests. As our hardwoods grow, they shift from pulpwood to sawtimber grades to veneer grade and in so doing may increase exponentially in value.

The publication gives an example for a 12-inch DBH black cherry tree where the rate of return for waiting 7 years is 5%, waiting 14 years is 13%, and for holding off 21 years the return is 18%. The higher rate of return is not only the additional volume growth but also the shift from one sawtimber grade class to another.

Due to our long timber rotations (often over 80 years in PA) landowners may only cut timber once in their lifetime. Considering the financially optimal time to cut can make a big dollar difference; however, forest owners should also think about other sustainability issues. Financial return is but one of multiple factors affecting the decision to cut as harvesting will influence the condition, growth, composition, wildlife habitat, and biodiversity of the next forest.

The Pennsylvania Forest Stewardship Program provides publications on a variety of topics related to woodland management. For a list of free publications, call 800 234 9473 (toll free), send an email to RNRext@psu.edu, or write to Forest Stewardship Program, Forest Resources Extension, The Pennsylvania State University, 320 Forest Resources Building, University Park, PA 16802. The Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry and USDA Forest Service, in Partnership with Penn State's Forest Resource Extension, sponsor the Forest Stewardship Program in Pennsylvania.

Written by: Mike Jacobson
Email: mgj2@psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-3994 <

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May 29, 2007
For Immediate Release
Regenerating Hardwood Forests:
Managing Competing Plants, Deer, and Light

Where do the trees in the forest come from? Most of Pennsylvania’s forest trees are natural – they just grew there on their own. Today, it is not easy to grow a forest. Competing plants, white-tailed deer, and poor harvesting planning make it difficult to grow a forest.

A new publication in the Pennsylvania Forest Stewardship Bulletin Series, Number 15; Regenerating Hardwood Forests: Managing Competing Plants, Deer, and Light will help forest owners and others understand natural forest regeneration challenges. It describes how understanding competition, deer and light can lead to successful forest regeneration and sustainable forestry.

In 1985, a comprehensive study conducted in Pennsylvania examined 85 randomly selected timber sales across the state. The study sought to determine if timber harvesting practices were affecting forest sustainability. Half of these harvests were found unsustainable because they failed to retain quality trees of desirable species, failed to establish adequate regeneration, or left too much shade to allow existing regeneration to develop. Sustainable forestry requires focusing on regenerating the forest with new naturally developing trees. Failing to establish adequate desirable regeneration today will not leave sustainable forests for future regenerations.

Most hardwood regeneration occurs naturally, that is, no one planted the trees. Many factors affect forest regeneration. To regenerate a hardwood forest naturally, the current forest must produce seedlings, stump sprouts, and root suckers that become the next forest following a harvest. To be successful, regeneration has to have the right conditions. This takes planning and time; it just does not happen.

Competing plants, deer browsing, and inadequate light are the most common reasons for failing to naturally regenerate a forest. Competing plants “rob” light that would normally drive tree seed germination and seedling growth. Most common competing plants found in Pennsylvania are ferns (e.g., hayscented, New York, and Bracken ferns), some grasses, mountain laurel, striped maple, beech sprouts, etc., that cast dense shade on the forest floor. Deer have food preferences and their selective browsing can greatly reduce many tree species and allow competing plants to gain dominance – changing light conditions on the forest floor. Controlling light is a challenge; it affects regeneration growth and can encourage competing plants. Leaving too much shade after a harvest can give competing plants an advantage, as they might grow better in lower light conditions.

Forest Stewardship Bulletin 15 provides more detail on obtaining successful forest regeneration. It describes actions forest landowners can take to control competition, deer, and light to ensure a regenerating forest for the future.

Call the Pennsylvania Forest Stewardship Program to request your free copy of Regenerating Hardwood Forests: Managing Competing Plants, Deer and Light. The publication is available as a pdf at http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/freepubs/pdfs/UH181.pdf.

The Pennsylvania Forest Stewardship Program provides publications on a variety of topics related to woodland management. For a list of free publications, call 800 234 9473 (toll free), send an email to RNRext@psu.edu , or write to Forest Stewardship Program, Forest Resources Extension, The Pennsylvania State University, 320 Forest Resources Building, University Park, PA 16802. The Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry and USDA forest Service, in Partnership with Penn State’s Forest Resource Extension, sponsor the Forest Stewardship Program in Pennsylvania. Contact: Allyson Muth Phone: 814-865-3208 Email: abm173@psu.edu

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Soil maps are now available in digital format. You can access them from the Web Soil Survey link on WOCAV site. Check it out!

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Audubon has an excellent article on timber. It is worth the time to read and is posted on their web site at http://magazine.audubon.org/features0601/timber.html

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The Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry of the USDA Forest Service has just released a new publication called "Diameter-Limit Cutting and Silviculture in Northeastern Forests: a Primer for Landowners, Practitioners, and Policymakers." by L.S. Kenefic and R.D. Nyland

The text clearly describes what diameter-limit cutting and high-grading are, how they are not sustainable, and negatively impact long - term productivity of forest lands. The publication is based on and cites several research studies conducted by the authors and Dave Marquis. It also contains suggestions for rehabilitating heavily cut-over stands and a glossary of terms.

This free publication can be downloaded from the Northeastern Area USDA Forestry link on this web page.