Tree Guys Don’t Know Anything          Paul Hetzler

What is an arborist?

1. What a resident of Ann Arbor, Michigan calls herself/ himself.  

2. A person who has received extensive training in all aspects of tree care.  

3. As opposed to your borist.

Tree topping is:

1. A type of syrup that forest-industry workers prefer on their ice cream.  

2. An incorrect way to reduce a tree’s height, one which leads to a very weak and…

Only Bury Your Tree After It’s Dead

Paul Hetzler

In springtime, driving around on weekends makes me sad. Invariably I’ll pass someone out in their yard, shovel in hand, maybe with their kids or spouse, and they have a cute little tree from the garden center on one side of them, and a wicked deep hole in the ground on the other. If I wasn’t so shy, I’d stop and offer my condolences, because clearly they are having a funeral for the tree.

Here’s an arborist joke: What do…

sorry fdor the NNY bias...feel free to use this any time/way you like, and to edit out the offending parochial sentiments.

Helicopters and Handkerchiefs: Signs of Stress

Paul Hetzler

Here is a forecast the entire region can bank on: this spring will be characterized by pollen storms, and in a related development, it will rain helicopters this summer. Don’t panic—it has nothing to do with aircraft. It has everything to do with stress.

Short-term, moderate…

Sugarbush management is an important part of the responsibility of maple producers to ensure healthy and productive trees.  Like all the duties of a maple producer, learning how to manage your sugarbush will take some time, involve learning new skills, benefit with assistance from others who are more knowledgeable, and take some time to achieve mastery.…

Another perfect day in Western NY and the C4C Team completed the first log load on NOV 6.  Thanks again to Tom Gerow and Wagner Hardwoods for their kind donation of logs; they are really a great company.  Check out the Team below after the day was done...they look well fed and well exercised!

That's Tony Ross sitting on the skid and Dale Schaefer way up on the pile.  Chris Howard is on the left, then Greg and Kathy Lessord, Dana Allison and David…

The big log load donated by Wagner Hardwoods continues to decrease in size while the firewood stacks grow and grow.  After one more cutting session, all of the logs will have transmigrated completely into about 35 face cords of well-seasoned firewood.  Here's a picture of the NYFOA C4C Team from yesterday; we had ten participants:…

Google Earth and Web Soil Survey

Google Earth Pro is free software that allows the user to visualize specific locations any place on 

earth.  Google Earth Pro (GEP) is available free to download from this web URL  https://www.google.com/earth/download/gep/agree.html

Woodland owners can obtain useful data from GEP.  GEP allows the user to draw property boundaries, locate positions…

As the old sage goes, "the way to a firewood cutter's heart is through their stomach!"  An even dozen NYFOA volunteers came out on Sunday October 9 to help Habitat for Humanity, Rotary Club's Camp Onseyawa for Children and the VFW's Veteran Outreach...and eat!  They enjoyed great food, drink and camaraderie!  Here's what they looked like beforehand at David and Celia's...…

I just came across a new Forest Science Fact Sheet publication by Dave Jackson of PSU on the ecology and management of ferns.  If you're dealing with ferns, this is a great resource.  I've pasted the first paragraph below, and linked to the full publication. The publication is developed in the context of…

The NYFOA Membership Committee seeks a few energetic and enthusiastic member-volunteers to help grow NYFOA Rewards, our member discount program (see www.nyfoa.org), and the NYFOA Auction, which will raise significant funds for forestry-related youth programs in NY. If you have time and interest, please email Dean Faklis (dfaklis at frontiernet.net) for more information. It's all easy stuff and many hands make lite work.  Thanks!

Roadside trees present special considerations for management given their crown may have an imbalance of sunlight and thus crown architecture, and because if the tree fails the consequences may impact transportation or public utility…

Workshop

Interference with the Regeneration of Hardwood Forests

Come to Cornell’s Arnot Forest on September 30, 2016 for a day-long workshop that will (i) provide foresters and woodland owners information about the ecological role of American beech (and other interfering vegetation) and deer in limiting forest regeneration, and (ii) review herbicide, organic and fence management strategies to ensure effective regeneration.…

Just a quick post about a new NYFOA initiative.....Chainsaws for Charity.  NYFOA members generate firewood and the cash proceeds benefit various charities like Habitat for Humanity of Ontario County, Rotary Camp Onseyawa for Children, and the VFW, which helps our veterans.  The goal is $10,000 in the first year!  It's a stretch, but we'll see.  Want to learn more?  See below for contact info...we'd love your input.…

Today's webinar recording, slides, materials, and certificates of attendance will be emailed to attendees within one week. There will be two emails - one with the recording / materials, and one with the certificate of attendance (if applicable).

call the office at 608-828-3000 and ask…

https://news.mongabay.com/2016/08/deforestation-has-been-occurring-continuously-in-new-england-since-the-1980s/?n3wsletter

Want to get more from your woods? Take a six-week online Woodlot Management course with the Cornell Small Farms Program with extension forester Peter Smallidge and Extension Agroforestry Specialist Steve Gabriel.



Examine the methods to assess forest resources and discuss common woodland activities such as cutting firewood, harvesting logs for mushroom cultivation, and support for wildlife and long-term forest health.



The course runs September 27 to November 1, with weekly…

Timber sales are relatively uncommon for most woodland owners, yet most properties are harvested at some point.  Harvests are infrequent, potentially of high value, and are unique in that the harvest puts the next crop at risk. Timber harvests need to have a written contract, but what details should be included in a process that isn't standardized.

A webinar on this topic will be offered on Wednesday July 20, 2016 through…

I am offering an invitation to participate in focus groups which I am going to be conducting on biomass boilers.

We are trying to collect marketing information for the Cleaner Greener Grant we won to initiate bulk wood pellet delivery as a green alternative for fuel and propane delivery dealers.  I am trying to cover some ground in at least 3 of the 8 Southern Tier counties we are part of so if you know of someone besides yourself  in Steuben, Schuyler, Chemung, Tioga, Tompkins,…