Best Practices for Timber Production (webinar details and more)

[Peter Smallidge]

Many woodlot owners and maple producers are interested in better sawtimber production from their land.  Ten core best practices will help maple producers or woodland owners improve the volume and value of timber on their property.  Participants will learn about principles and strategies related to topics such as: why fast growth is important, the role of foresters and loggers, avoiding high-grading, protecting against timber theft, and good use of the timber tax code.

Today's webinar on "Best Practices for Timber Production" involved 102 people at noon and about 33 for the evening session.  Links to the archives are below and handouts are attached.  Here is an outline of the practices covered in the webinar and the handout.

• If you fail to plan, you should plan to fail
• Encourage faster tree growth
• Foresters are not loggers
• Don’t high-grade or diameter limit cut
• Maintain good roads and trails
• Protect yourself from timber theft
• Avoid damage to the residual stand
• Consider legal options to control costs
• Have a good timber sale contract
• Continue your education in woodlot management

As a follow up to a couple questions plus the recorded webinar links...

• Guidelines for trail design, see this Univ. MN resource page
  
• Deciding When to Cut, see this Penn State resource page
  
• Link to noon webinar
• Link to evening webinar (the evening session had updated slides and links, but a technical glitch in the middle)

Attached resources

Best Practices for Timber Production (article from NYFOA January 2012 Magazine)

• Best Practices for Timber Production (NYFOA Article)

Best Practices for Timber Production.pdf (slides of the evening webinar) 

• best practices for timber production (slides.pdf)

Article on tax considerations for selling timber

• Timber Sale Tax Considerations

Happiness can include a pile of (nice cherry) logs.  FYI, the logger sorted the lower grade logs into a pile not included by the picture.