The best defense against pests and other forest stressors is to maintain a healthy forest. To maintain a healthy forest, management is essential! It is apparent by this photo that this forest has gone without management, as you can see damaged and crowded trees. A sound management program would benefit the health of this particular forest and would enhance the beauty and the safety  as well as bring revenue to it's owners.

We can help you determine if your standing hardwood timber is overly dense. It is possible that a selective, sustainable harvest would benefit the health of your standing timber and release the younger trees to grow without restraint.

Feel free to contact us today!

Did you know your standing timber is competitive?
In any timber stand the trees compete with each other for light, soil nutrients, moisture and space.
The more crowded the stand the more intense the competition. In a crowded overly dense timber stand all trees are weakened and growth is slowed.  Mother nature naturally remedies this by disease and insects and the weaker trees will eventually die, albeit a very slow process. This is where a selective timber harvest will help.

The Deer Private Land Assistance Network grant application period is now open. The applications are due by Sept. 1.

The Deer PLAN, a cooperative grant program is designed to support private-land deer habitat improvement projects in the northern Lower Peninsula, is funded by Deer Range Improvement Program dollars. In 2019, a total of $50,000 will be available through a competitive grant process.
Given the limited amount of Deer PLAN funding available and the goal of producing tangible, on-the-ground efforts that markedly improve deer habitat, this program will have a focus area within the northern Lower Peninsula. The focus area for 2019 will include Alcona, Alpena, Crawford, Montmorency, Oscoda and Presque Isle counties. Funds will be allocated across these six counties based on grant application scoring.  
Proposals for deer habitat improvement projects on privately owned lands in the six counties identified seeking $2,000 to $10,000 in cooperative funding will be considered. A 25-percent match of funds in the form of financial match, cost share, volunteer labor, material contributions and/or other in-kind support also is required for each proposal.

Applications are due by Sept. 1, and successful applicants will be notified by Oct. 1. A selection committee will evaluate proposed projects and competitively score them on a range of criteria. The complete Deer PLAN grant application package is available online at michigan.gov/dnr-grants.

You may ask, "Are my  trees growing to close together?"  As you can see in the photos above, it does happen.
This is one example of the need for a selective timber harvest.  Trees growing too close are in competition with each other for nutrients and space.

With a selective harvest we will choose what trees will stay and what trees will be harvested in such a way as to benefit the forest. It takes a trained individual to determine this.

Thinning the overcrowded trees is one way you can increase your standing timber value because the trees left remaining will be allowed to put on growth freely growing out in diameter rather than vertically.

One Majestic Red Oak Tree!

This majestic red oak tree was found in a woodlot located in Byron Michigan a village of Shiawassee County . A selective timber harvest was performed. The woodlot had an abundance of young timber and the promise of a future harvest.

Yes, this tree was included in the selective harvest. Some might say "What a shame to cut that beautiful tree!"  Although we do greatly respect the beauty of it and stood in awe, we also understand that a tree this size has come to the end of it's life. Trees this size very likely have internal issues, as trees generally die from the inside out. If this tree was left alone and stood to die, than all value for the property owner would have  eventually  been lost! (This tree brought an approximate $2000.00 to the landowner).

So, by harvesting this red oak tree, the younger less mature hardwoods in close proximity were released to the opportunity to grow to their full capacity, by  receiving much needed sunlight as well as taking up the nutrients in the ground that the massive root system had been using.

We are sure this tree made many pieces of beautiful furniture. Furniture to be used and admired and handed down for years  come.