All Blog Posts (253)

Northern NYS EAB Info Meeting--Help Pass the Word

Run, Dorothy—Emerald City is Falling

Watertown is poised to become an Emerald City, but that’s not good news. Jefferson and Lewis will soon be Emerald Counties, and St. Lawrence County began the process of change two years ago. Unfortunately, this kind of transformation does not involve happy…

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Added by Paul J Hetzler on November 5, 2018 at 9:59pm — No Comments

Foresters Need Laughter, Too

Evolution, Just for Fun

Every time I make primordial soup, it tastes terrible, but maybe some element is missing.

Roughly four billion years ago in the original batch of soup—or possibly it was a stew or even a souffle; that detail is a bit hazy—single-celled organisms first made an…

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Added by Paul J Hetzler on October 13, 2018 at 5:28pm — 1 Comment

Cull Tree Treatment

If you enjoy working in your woodlot and struggle with the undesirable trees that you may not have time and skill to safely fell, this study is designed to find a solution for you.

Many woodland owners have a large number of undesirable trees, or large trees, they would like to kill, yet they lack the skill or time to safely fell these trees. Felling also may not be desirable because of the risk of damage to nearby…

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Added by Peter Smallidge on September 30, 2018 at 7:41pm — No Comments

Tree Planting and Care Workshop

Plant a Tree or Rental It: Your Choice

Planting a tree isn’t rocket science, which is good thing. If it were that complex, I’d wager we’d have a lot fewer trees lining our streets. It may not take a scientist to plant a tree correctly, but a lot of money is spent each year to buy and plant trees which may as well be leased, because they will only live a fraction of their…

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Added by Paul J Hetzler on September 30, 2018 at 5:30pm — No Comments

Porcelain Berry: Not Fragile Enough

Porcelain Berry

A total lunar eclipse is likely more common than the swift removal of a novel invasive plant infestation, but fingers are crossed that such a thing happened in St. Lawrence County this summer. The plant eradication, I mean—we all know about the celestial event this past July, the first central lunar eclipse since June 2011. Thanks to the sharp eyes of Dr. Tony Beane, a Professor of Veterinary Science at SUNY Canton who is also an avid naturalist, an exotic vine capable…

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Added by Paul J Hetzler on September 30, 2018 at 3:17pm — No Comments

New Tick Species

Water-Skiing With Invasive Ticks



Years ago I read an author interview, and while I don’t recall her name, an image she raised has stayed with me—something to the effect that writing ought to feel as if you were water skiing behind your work. Usually, I find this to be the case. However, when I tried to water-ski behind a new invasive tick that reproduces without mating, drains the blood from livestock, and potentially carries an Ebola-like disease, something changed. A few topics… Continue

Added by Paul J Hetzler on September 10, 2018 at 7:13am — 1 Comment

Forest Vegetation Management - FVM Network

Cornell's ForestConnect program is facilitating a network of forest vegetation practitioners to identify research needs and collectively build knowledge of safe and effective techniques. This network will focus on vegetation management in forest and woodlot environments using herbicide, mechanical or livestock methods. 

   You can help this network and identify needs…

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Added by Peter Smallidge on September 5, 2018 at 9:01am — No Comments

Colors Tell You Which to Cull

The First Shall Not Last

Paul Hetzler

Seems like competitiveness may be part of human DNA. But it does not always pay to be first.



No prize awaits the fastest car that passes a radar patrol, or the first person to come down with the flu at the office. And for trees, the first ones to turn color in autumn are not envied by their peers. If trees experience envy, which no one knows. The first trees to show orange and red and drop their leaves are telling us to get quotes from… Continue

Added by Paul J Hetzler on September 4, 2018 at 10:51pm — 2 Comments

Fall Meeting of NY Nut Growers to be Held in Steuben County on September 15th

The fall meeting of the NY Nut Growers Association will be held on Saturday, September 15th at the Albers Tree Farm, 6499 Wilbur Creek Road, Bath, NY and the Lisbin Tree Farm, 3361 Parker Road, Avoca, NY.  This will be a walking tour and discussion of new plantings of chestnut, hazelnut, hickory and walnut trees.  The meeting is open to the public.  For more information and to register please visit nynga.org.   

Added by Carl Albers on August 23, 2018 at 1:28pm — No Comments

Breeders Seek NYS American Hazelnut Seeds/Plants

From the New York Growers Association website:  nynga.org, Professor Thomas Molnar, a hazelnut breeder at Rutgers University, would like to obtain seeds of the American hazelnut, Corylus americana for use in their breeding program. The goal is to select superior individuals for Eastern Filbert Blight resistance, for cold hardiness, and for boosting genetic diversity available in hybrid hazelnuts. The nuts will be grown out by a team of researchers, and the best will be propagated and…

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Added by Carl Albers on August 23, 2018 at 1:20pm — No Comments

Breeders Seek NYS American Hazelnut Seeds/Plants

Tom Molnar the hazelnut breeder at Rutgers University and Shawn Mehlenbacher the hazelnut breeder at Oregon State University would like to obtain native American hazelnut, Corylus americana seeds/plants from across NYS.  American hazelnut has good resistance to Eastern filbert blight and has good cold hardiness, unfortunately the nut quality isn't as good (size, shell thickness) as with the European hazelnut.  The breeders would like to increase the American hazelnut genetic material they…

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Added by Carl Albers on August 11, 2018 at 1:24pm — No Comments

Growing Black Locust in NYS

Black locust is one of the most rot resistant woods native to North America.  Straight black locust posts and poles are in demand by grape and hop growers, and organic farmers who wish to fence in livestock or fence out deer.  The heartwood of locust trees is the most resistant to decay so larger diameter material will be the longest lasting. 

NYS-DEC considers black locust to be invasive and there are restrictions on planting black locust in certain areas of NYS.  Before considering…

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Added by Carl Albers on April 29, 2018 at 9:09am — 2 Comments

Ticked off about Lyme

Ticked Off

The downside of nice weather is that ticks like it too. Blackflies and mosquitoes can take the fun out of a day of hiking or gardening, but a single deer tick can ruin a whole summer if it transmits Lyme or other serious disease. Fortunately, there’s a relatively new tool in the battle against deer ticks: mice.

As recently as fifteen years ago in northern NY state it was rare to find a single black-legged tick, commonly known as a deer tick, on your person even after…

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Added by Paul J Hetzler on April 28, 2018 at 9:05pm — No Comments

Arbor Day

What is an Arbor, Anyway?



Muskrat Day. Velcro Appreciation Month. Hair Follicle Hygiene Week. Arbor Day. You know it’s an obscure event when the greeting-card trade hasn’t bothered to capitalize on it. I like to think the industry knows Arbor Day is worthy of a Hallmark line, but that they’ve decided to honor its spirit by conserving paper. (C’mon, it’s possible.) While not the best-known observance, Arbor Day has a respectable history, as well as a local… Continue

Added by Paul J Hetzler on April 25, 2018 at 10:59pm — No Comments

Science Under Fire

Theory of Language

I’m amazed how communication, more complex than a spider web and far more fragile, actually seems to work from time to time. Even among those who share a common tongue, each has an internal dictionary, none of which entirely agrees with the next person’s. My wife is francophone, which adds a layer of complexity to the challenge of sharing ideas in a relationship.

But an even bigger issue can arise when folks fail to notice they’re speaking different…

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Added by Paul J Hetzler on April 23, 2018 at 8:03pm — No Comments

Growing Nut Trees in NYS

Nuts are good for your health; they are truly super foods.  Like anything else worthwhile they do require a bit of work to grow, harvest and make use of.  However, doing so can be rewarding and is a way to add some healthy, locally grown food to your diet.  The best adapted nut species for NYS are black walnuts, butternuts, chestnuts (depending on your hardiness zone,) hazelnuts, and shagbark hickories.

Hazelnuts are easy to grow and come into production in roughly 4 to 5 years…

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Added by Carl Albers on April 20, 2018 at 7:11am — 3 Comments

Agroforestry: Log-grown Shiitake Mushrooms

Let Them Eat Wood

Nearly all historians agree Marie Antoinette probably never coined the phrase “Let them eat cake,” a saying already in popular culture before her time. The phrase was ascribed to her by opponents to bolster her reputation as callous and arrogant. She would have seemed far more benevolent if she had said “Let them eat wood.”

From remote villages to five-star urban restaurants, people around the world consume all manner of delectable dishes featuring second-hand…

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Added by Paul J Hetzler on March 28, 2018 at 1:41pm — No Comments

Good Forestry Critical to Water Resources

(Note: This is by Joe Hovels, a longtime forester and proponent of good silviculture from Wisconsin. If you like this essay, consider signing up for his newsletter Wisconsin Partnerships in Forestry at logcabin@nnex.net)

Water:A Tragedy of Responsibility Joe Hovels, Wisconsin Partnerships in Forestry Environmental problems place great constraint on all societies. The response of the society, its leaders in particular, determines the…

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Added by Paul J Hetzler on March 26, 2018 at 12:58pm — No Comments

Adopt a Trap Tree this Spring

Trap Trees

When I hear the phrase “trap tree,” an image of Charlie Brown’s kite-eating tree in the Peanuts comic strip comes immediately to mind. But trap trees, or sentinel trees, are meant to nab a much smaller airborne object, the emerald ash borer (EAB).

The idea is to make certain ash trees more attractive to EAB, to serve both as a monitoring tool and as a means of slowing the rate of ash death. Early in the growing season, a chosen ash tree is…

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Added by Paul J Hetzler on March 24, 2018 at 11:32am — 1 Comment

Life's a Beech Sometimes

(Note: This is intended as a resource to pass along to general audiences as an introduction to the issue. Peter has loads of detailed information on beech thickets on his blog and elsewhere, so the only thing Forestconnect members will gain form reading this is possibly a smile.)

Beech Gone Wild

The sturdy, long-lived and stately American beech, Fagus grandifolia, has been slowly dying out since 1920, when a tiny European insect pest was accidentally released…

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Added by Paul J Hetzler on March 7, 2018 at 3:30pm — No Comments

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Looking for white mulberry trees for research

Started by Connor Youngerman in Agroforestry Aug 14. 0 Replies

Greetings forestry ning communities! My name is Connor Youngerman, and I’m an extension support specialist at the Cornell Small Farms Program; my focus is agroforestry and mushroom production. We are currently working on a research grant to…Continue

How to get rid of buckthorn

Started by Randy Williams in Woodlot Management. Last reply by John McNerney Aug 2. 3 Replies

I have some property where the best timber was harvested several years before I purchased it.  There are now many areas where the buckthorn is so thick that nothing will grow under it.  I am looking for suggestions on how to get these areas back…Continue

Small-Scale Logging

Started by Peter Smallidge in Project Profiles. Last reply by John McNerney Apr 15. 4 Replies

Small-Scale Logging: Sugarbush and Woodlot Management Issue:  Many woodlot owners and maple syrup producers want to be more active in gathering logs or firewood from their property.  Often there are too few acres or too few trees to attract a…Continue

Tags: yourself, harvesting, woodlot, management, it

Replanting after timber harvest with climate change in mind

Started by Ben T. in Woodlot Management. Last reply by Patrik Schumann Mar 26. 1 Reply

Hi Everyone,I’ve been wondering what tree species are going to thrive over the next 50+ years as the climate warms in New York and I’m curious if folks are enhancing plantings of particular tree species for future commercial harvest with warmer and…Continue

Rust Colored Hemlock Bark

Started by Carl Albers in Woodlot Management Dec 31, 2023. 0 Replies

Picture of a hemlock with rust colored bark.  When I cut a nearby tree, also with rust colored bark, it was infested with HWA.  Attached picture shows a Logrite ATV arch in use.Continue

Rust Colored Hemlock Bark

Started by Carl Albers in Woodlot Management Dec 31, 2023. 0 Replies

The hemlocks in my woodlots have been infested with hemlock wooley adelgid (HWA) for at least three years now.  Lately I've noticed some of them having a rust colored bark and I wonder if this is normal and that I just didn't notice it previously? …Continue

How to control mature white pine and hemlock to allow enrichment planting of hardwoods

Started by Peter Smallidge in Woodlot Management Nov 28, 2023. 0 Replies

I had a question about control of mature white pine and hemlock to improve sunlight for enrichment planting of hardwoods.  Following is my response, but I would like to know if anyone else has any experiences to share with control of these to…Continue

Story in Northern Woodlands Magazine on Deer Impacts

Started by Brett Chedzoy in Woodlot Management Aug 8, 2023. 0 Replies

This Spring we had an opportunity to speak with writer John Litvaitis about the big picture of deer impacts on the hardwood forests of the Northeast.  I posted the original story from the summer edition of Northern Woodlands to the…Continue

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