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SPRING 2016 • VOLUME 32 • NO. 2 NAN Publicationoo of rther Oregontth hSmall Woodlands,wwee Washingtonsstt FarmW WForestry, Idahooo Forestoo Ownersdd & Montanallaa Forestnn Ownersdd Associationsss MMAANNAAGGIINNGG FFOORREESSTTSS FFOORR EEXXTTRREEMMEE EEVVEENNTTSS UUppss aanndd DDoowwnnss ooff FFoorreesstt IInnsseeccttss LLaannddsslliiddee BBaassiiccss MMaannaaggiinngg wwiitthh MMootthheerr NNaattuurree IImmpprroovveedd SSeeeedd OOppttiioonnss AArree YYoouu RReeaaddyy ffoorr FFiirree SSeeaassoonn?? NEXT ISSUE . Recovering from PERMIT NO. 3142 NO. PERMIT PORTLAND, OR PORTLAND, PAID Extreme Events hhls A98532 WA Chehalis, U.S. POSTAGE U.S. P.O. Box 1010 Box P.O. Non Profit Org Profit Non This magazine is a benefit of membership in Northwest Woodlands Northwest your family forestry association. Contact the officers listed on page 5 for membership details. TABLE OF CONTENTS DEPARTMENTS 3 PRESIDENTS’ MESSAGES Spring 2016 6 DOWN ON THE TREE FARM FEATURES 7 THE UNDERSTORY 28 TREESMARTS BUILD IT AND THEY WILL COME: THE UPS AND DOWNS OF 30 TREEMAN TIPS FOREST INSECT OUTBREAKS When native insects and pathogens reach outbreak levels, widespread forest ON THE COVER: damage is often the result. Forestland managers will learn how to assess the risk to their forestland and where to find assistance to increase the resilience of their forest stands. 8 BY GLENN KOHLER DO YOU NEED TO MANAGE YOUR LANDSLIDE RISK? The 2014 ice storm was no Some of the most destructive and costly losses from natural disaster have respecter of age or species of trees. These are 65-year-old been the result of landslides. Where do landslides occur and why? What can trees, most with their tops 12 be done to prepare for this extreme event? broken due to the ice storm. Photo courtesy of Jeff Minter. Ponderosa pine (orange) and MOTHER NATURE ALWAYS HAS THE LAST LAUGH lodgepole pine (red) killed by mountain pine beetle. Photo Forest management at any scale is subject to the whims of Mother Nature. courtesy of Glenn Kohler. Foresters at Starker Forests, Inc. discuss important aspects of preparing for wind and ice storms using their November 2014 experiences as an example. STAFF: ANNE C. MALONEY, Editor 16 BY RANDY HEREFORD AND JEFF MINTER PO Box 1010 Chehalis, WA 98532 WHAT ARE THE BEST SEED CHOICES LANDOWNERS CAN [email protected] MAKE TODAY? MINTEN GRAPHICS, Graphic Design Northwest Woodlands Advisory The ODF Schroeder Seed Orchard coordinates the Oregon Seed Bank to Committee Members: provide a wide variety of reforestation seeds to forestland owners. What do Dick Alescio geneticists have to say about planting in anticipation of a changing climate? Mike Barsotti 20 BY DONALD J. KACZMAREK Anne Hanschu Chuck Higgins Jim James PREPARING FOR WILDFIRE ON YOUR PROPERTY Anne Maloney Vic Musselman Wildfires can be expected every year. There are some very effective risk Tom Nygren reduction treatments for forestland owners to consider. One of your highest Elaine Oneil priorities could be an evacuation plan. Northwest Woodlands is published 22 BY STEPHEN A. FITZGERALD quarterly by the Washington Farm Forestry Association for members of the Idaho Forest Owners Association, Montana Forest Owners Association, Oregon Small Woodlands Association and Washington Farm Forestry ALSO IN THIS ISSUE . Association. Other than general editing, the articles 28 CORRECTION: The Winter 2016 issue of Northwest Woodlands gave conflicting appearing in this publication have not been peer reviewed for technical accuracy. The dates for the June 9, 10 & 11 OSWA annual meeting and Tree Farm recognition tour. individual authors are primarily responsible for Please see the corrected announcement in this issue and plan to join us in Baker City. the content and opinions expressed herein. “All registered marks, trademarks and service marks belong to their respective owners.” 2 . NORTHWEST WOODLANDS . SPRING 2016 • Observe hazardous work on neigh- boring properties, such as cutting grass PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE at high fire danger times, and educate your neighbors on the dangers. • Follow the daily fire weather closely and stay out of the woods on Oregon SCOTT HANSON extreme days. Close the property to any public access under extreme con- ditions. Managing for Fire • Give a tour of your property to the protection district crew that hen I purchased my tree the end of dead end spurs. patrols your area and show them the farm in 1994 I did not think • Limb up trees near roads to roads, ponds and other potential fire W too much about fire. The accommodate commercial fire trucks. problem areas so they are familiar majority of the woodland property • Develop ponds and pump ahead of any emergencies. was recently harvested so my main chances where feasible. Things I cannot control: concern was controlling brush and • Manage fuel loading on your • Drought conditions in your region. planting tree seedlings. A secondary woodland by burning, scattering or • Lightning strike location in your issue was improving the road system chipping slash, limbs and woody region. so I could get to where I needed to debris concentrations. Good luck and stay safe managing plant the trees. As the years marched • Share cell phone number and lock fire on your property! I by, I knew precommercial thinning information with ODF protection dis- was necessary and important, but I trict and rural in case of emergency. never managed to get it all done due • Follow industrial fire closure to other commitments in life. Now, 21 updates that restrict operating hours LORENZ years later, my woodland has greater for harvesting, falling, and other FORESTRY timber asset value, as earlier planted activities. CHUCK LORENZ, CF 1770 seedlings transitioned into a fine • Make sure you have a permit for young timber stand. The timber stand power-driven machinery for any Forest Management Planning & health would be better if I had done power tool use during the fire season, Operations, Inventory, Valuation for over 40 years more precommercial thinning. But and have required fire tools on hand. still, the greater timber asset value has • Place fire trails where you border raised my awareness of a potentially high-hazard activities, such as railroad 360-951-0117 [email protected] quick and devastating fire on my tracks and power lines. woodland. What are things I can con- trol and what are things I cannot con- trol related to fire? Things I can control: • Carry fire tools (shovel, axe, chain saw, water-filled backpack sprayer) on NORTH PLAINS, OREGON • LONGVIEW, WASHINGTON the pickup during the fire season. • Equip the farm truck with a water tank and pump to be a first responder before professionals arrive. WANTED • Hold a fire drill with your con- tractor and test their equipment, and Conifer and Hardwood Pulp Logs do the same for your own. Make sure anyone on your property knows who and Chunks over 3’ in length to call in case of a fire and the proper- ty legal location. • Keep roads mowed and/or PACIFIC FIBRE PRODUCTS, INC. sprayed. Rob Vance (360) 355-2817 • Keep roads open (especially after winter storms and wind events). Paul Hadaller (360) 431-9661 • Have adequate turnarounds at NORTHWEST WOODLANDS . SPRING 2016 . 3 property, as people are a major cause of forest fires. Have phone numbers PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE of the local firefighting authorities and your neighbors. Reduce the Washington amount of dead vegetation near road BOYD WILSON edges and near buildings. Stand management If soil moisture is lacking, think about reducing your trees per acre. Be Prepared for That will give trees more room to grow and less competition for the lim- Extreme Events ited soil moisture. An extra measure is to lop the slash from the cut trees and ar drums beating in the dis- As we head into spring and expect get it flat on the ground, so it decays tance, dark clouds gathering another normal growth cycle, news quicker and becomes less of a hazard. W on the horizon, warm winds stories indicate that there are drought Chipping or burning are other slash moving down the gorge, high waves conditions in parts of North, Central disposal methods. pounding the jetty: all signs that and South America, China, Australia I’ll even give you some numbers, things are about to change. If our and Africa. Close to home, we know but these are only guidelines because weather patterns are really changing, that Southern California, a major all tree farms are not the same. In add these signs: low rainfall on the food producer, has experienced a five- coastal forests, by age 12, reduce trees slopes, warm winters in the woods. year drought. In the Northwest, the per acre down to about 170. That 2015 snowpack was unusually low. We would be 16-by-16 spacing. Spacing Change had water for people, electricity and should be wider in Inland forests. We know now that Smokey the fish because of timely reservoir man- Opening up the stand will promote Bear was wrong; the forest needs to agement, not because nature was gen- understory vegetation growth and burn to be healthy. After years of erous. wildlife habitat. Pruning up trees at beating back the summer wildfires, What can forest landowners do to least to head high will keep a ground fire is more of a threat than ever. In deal with these changing conditions? fire on the ground. addition, high winter temperatures First, I think we need to be aware that In this part of the world, hard- and low rainfall have resulted in wide- higher temperatures and lower rainfall woods are usually more fire resistant spread forest insect damage, particu- are possibilities. Then be alert that than conifers. Thus maintaining a few larly in the inland west. The bad news they are actually happening. Look for strips of hardwoods through a conifer is widespread. drought-stressed trees (red is not forest would reduce risk.