(N)ice Meadows

Now that the weather has finally warmed up, we can appreciate ice a little more. Among other things, ice greatly improves summertime drinks, and an icy watermelon is hands-down better than a warm one. And in this part of the world, ice also provides us with unique wildflower meadows. Along stretches of riverbank in the southern Adirondacks, rare Arctic-type flowers are blooming now in the fragile slices of native grasslands that are meticulously groomed each year by the…

Most Things in Moderation

As a teenager, my son had a saying, whether original or borrowed I don’t know (the saying, that is), which went something like “All things in moderation. Especially moderation.” It would seem Mother Nature took that to heart, and dispensed with moderate rainfall and snow melt this spring. If not her, then maybe it was Creepy Uncle Climate Change. At any rate, the resultant flooding has been heartbreaking to observe.

While I am of course sensitive to…

A New Silent Spring: Where Are the Turkeys?

"That habitat is declining, including on our national forests. The acreage of timber harvested on federal land has fallen dramatically in the last 30 years, thanks mostly to environmentalists. The mere mention of cutting a tree in a national forest is often met with a lawsuit, even though timber harvest ultimately results in outstanding wildlife habitat. Even private landowners are cutting fewer trees.

Those that do often replace…

Plant a Legacy on Arbor Day

Muskrat Week. Velcro Month. Arbor Day. You know it’s an obscure event when the greeting-card trade hasn’t bothered to capitalize on it. While not the best-known observance, Arbor Day has a respectable history, as well as a local connection.

Rooted in northern NY, Arbor Day is observed on the last Friday in April. J. Sterling Morton of Adams, NY germinated the concept in 1872 to highlight the need to conserve topsoil and increase timber in his adopted…

Geographical Sciences researchers develop new system to map MD forests’ potential to store carbon in the future

Developing an Understanding of Carbon Sequestration-Northeastern Woodlands

It was suggested by Brett Chedzoy that I develop a blog on the issue of carbon sequestration as it applied to forests and forest management decisions. Much of the emerging forestry science on the subject is counter-intuitive and perhaps that is what leads to the confusion. The other confusing issues are  that carbon production/release, carbon sequestration, and climate change are…

Carbon sequestration: Managing forests in uncertain times. Valentin Bellassen & Sebastiaan Luyssaert…

If anyone needs DEC pesticide Credits, this course was just approved for NYSDEC Pesticide Credits as follows:

5.50 in Categories 2, 3a, 9 and 10;

4.50 in Category 25;

3.00 in 6a;

1.00 in 1a.

ISA CEU Credit also pre-approved.

See sidebar under Upcoming Events for details.

• Sample Location: Swamps near Dodge Pond in Lyman
• Scientific Name: Prunus serotina

The black cherry tree is widely distributed in the eastern half of North America.  It grows everywhere in the United States east of the Mississippi River, except for the lower portion of that river valley itself, far northern Maine, and south of Lake Okeechobee in Florida.  It can also be found in the Canadian Maritimes, the Midwest as far west as eastern Kansas and…

Unnatural Selection

Paul Hetzler

After a winter fraught with temperature swings, ice and near-record cold such as this past one, being able to finally plant things outdoors is especially welcome. While flowers can be dug up and replanted around the yard much like arranging the lawn furniture, it is different with trees.

Consider that the act of planting a tree is in many ways a transcendent one. Sure, a new tree will give us shade, beauty, energy savings and increased…

About a year ago, I started a paper, which attempts to describe all the trees found in New Hampshire, my home state.  I started this project as a school project, where I would just observe trees and their habitats and write what I saw, but it quickly morphed into an informal research paper focused on silvics and commercial uses of the described…

Tree Pruning Workshop

Or:

Neglecting Young Trees Leads to Delinquency!

When: Wednesday, March 20, 2019 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM

Where: St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES Learning Center, 40 West Main Street, Canton

Agenda:

9:30: Registration

10:00 to 10:45:Tree Wound Response & Compartmentalization

10:45 to 11:15: Trees and Threes—The Commandments of Pruning

11:15 to 12:00: Why We Prune, & Reality…

Love Trees

Generally speaking, I love trees, even those I must admire from a distance, such as the love-tree, a.k.a. the cacao, Theobroma cacao, from which chocolate is derived. Not only is chocolate associated with romance—most notably on Valentine’s Day—it can potentially help us feel more lovey-dovey thanks to some of the chemicals the tree produces.

Native to Central America, the cacao tree grows almost exclusively within about twenty degrees latitude either side of the…

Happy New Year!  and Happy New Name!  We're now Firewood for Charity (F4C) and I'm pleased to announce that Dave Keebler is the winner of the naming contest.  Dave receives a $20 gift card to use as he pleases.  Dave is very creative and hard working and.....a happy winner! 

Congratulations and thanks Dave!

It was a bit…

Emerging Invasive Forest Pests: Identification, Prevention & Management

When: Wednesday, January 16, 2019 9:00 AM until 3:30 PM

Where: St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES Center, Classroom A, 40 West Main Street, Canton NY

Cost: $10.00 Includes lunch and materials.

Pre-registration required; please call (315) 379-9192. For information, email…

Many woodland owners harvest timber, yet wonder how to handle (optimize) the tax liability.  The "go to" website is www.timbertax.org

Another resource is from the USFS Timber Tax team and their annual timber tax "tips" attached here  TaxTips2018.pdf

https://nationalzoo.si.edu/news/new-smithsonian-study-links-declines-suburban-backyard-birds-presence-nonnative-plants?fbclid=IwAR0v_un3xd1Bl3QBF0sIxrJ0tcTtkIgjkTOMdaIQSGGn3e_pH_KGWyChQCw

A new mountain of great timber was donated and delivered to the landing today by the Wagner Companies.  We're extremely grateful to our partners at Wagner Hardwoods for their strong and continuing support.  David needed a wide angle lens to capture all of the wood!  There's good work to do on this mountain of logs and Eileen is in the process of scheduling upcoming C4C gatherings.…