The New York Forest Owner - Volume 31 Number 1

The New York

A publication of the New York Forest Owners Association

January/February 1993,

/

THE NEW YORK

FOREST OWNERVOL. 31, NO.1

OFFICERS & DIRECTORS

Stuart McCarty, President4300 East AvenueRochester. NY 14618(716) 381-6373

Don Wagner 1st Vice PresidentRD #1, Box 203CUtica, NY 13502

Robert M. Sand, Recording Secretary300 Church StreetOdessa, NY 14869-9703

Clara Minerd, Treasurer1123 Cold Spring RoadLiverpool, NY 13088

John C. Marchant, Executive Director45 Cambridge CourtFairport, NY 14450(716) 377-7906

Deborah Gill, Administrative SecretaryP.O. Box 180Fairport, NY 14450(716) 377-6060

1993David J. Colligan, BuffaloVerner C. Hudson, ElbridgeMary S. McCarty, RochesterSanford Vreeland, SpringwaterDon J. Wagner, Utica

1994Norman Richards, SyracuseRobert M. Sand, OdessaCharles Mowatt, Savona

1995Elizabeth Densmore, MachiasRichard J. Fox, MoraviaJohn W. Krebs, Honeoye FallsStuart McCarty, Rochester

AFFILIATE REPRESENTATIVESCharles Sprague-THRIFTKathleen Farnum-Calskill Forest Assoc.

CHAPTER REPRESENT ATIVESPeter Childs-Allegheny FoohillsWendell Hatlield-CayugaIrwin King-CapltaJ DistrictThomas L. Ellison-Central New YorkRobert S. Davis-Lower HudsonWes Suhr-Northern AdirondackTom Casey-Niagara FrontierErwin Fullerton--Southeastern AdirondackLarry Lepak-Southern TierPatrick J. McGlew-TlogaGeorge Appleton-Western Finger Lakes

All rights reserved. Contents may not be reproduced with-out prior written permission from the publisher. Opinionsexpressed by authors are their own and do not necessarilyreflect the policy of the publisher.

COVER:Red Maple, Acer rubrum L.

Photo by Lisa Richards, Syracuse, NY

NY FOREST OWNER

FOREST OWNERA publication of the New York Forest Owners Association

Editorial Committee: Betty Densmore, Alan Knight, Mary McCartyNorm Richards and Dave Taber.

Materials submitted for publication should be addressed to: R. Fox, R.D. #3, Box 88,Moravia, New York 13118. Articles, artwork and photos are invited and are normallyreturned after use. The deadline for submission forMar./Apr. is Feb. 1.Please address all membership fees and change of address requests to P.O. Box180, Fairport, N.Y. 14450. Cost of individual membership subscription Is $15.

CAY Cayuga, 1985 ................................................................•..•..•........• 66STC Southem Tier, 1985 ............................................•........•............• 112TIO Tioga, 1986 ................................•..................................•..•..........• 88WFL. Western Finger Lakes, 1988 ..................................•........•..•......• 246AFC Allegheny Foothills, 1989 ..................................•....•..•.•............. 107NFC Niagara Frontier, 1990 .•....................................•.•.•..................• 127CDC Capital District, 1991 .....•.......................•................•........•..........• 81SAC Southeastern Adiorndack, 1991 ........................•..•..•.............•.... 79LHC Lower Hudson, 1991 ............................................•....................• 46CNY Central New York, 1991 ...............................•.....•.....•....•............. 78NAC Northern Adirondack, 1991 .......................................•..•............. 76

CFA Catskill Forestry Assoc., 1982 ........................•........................ 120THRIFT Tug Hill Resources, Investment for Tomorrow, 1982 •........ 140

With membership as of December 1, 1992.

Table of ContentsPresident's Message 3A Tree To Respect, Norman Richards 4Forest Management Thoughts, Albert Brown 7NYFOA Fall Meeting, Bill Minerd 8Chapter Reports ..............................................................................................•.... 10Pine Shoot Beetle Management, Dave Taber 12Governor's Tree Council .......................................................•••..•....••......••........... 14Hunting Bucks, Wes Suhr 16Investing In Moose, Eric Johnson 17Christmas Trees All Year, Dave Taber 18The White House Tree, Dick O'Donnell 19

2 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1993

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGEThree years ago our grandson,

Oliver, twelve years old at thetime, gave me abook for Christ-

mas, which periodically comes to mindand almost haunts me. John Perlin, theauthor, writes in "A Forest Journey,The Role of Wood in the Developmentof Civilization" of the deforestationthat has occurred in many lands over aperiod of thousands of years. He goesback to Mesopotamia and ancientGreece when the rulers of those coun-tries decimated their forests and in theprocess brought down their nations.When the supply of wood, their mainnatural resource, was depleted, suffi-cient fuel for heating and cooking wasno more! Lack of wood for buildingdealt a death blow to the warlords whoneeded that vital material for the con-struction of ships.

The barren hills of these areas attestto the misuse of the forests ages ago.Erosion has made replanting difficult,if not impossible, and without trees theclimate has become less attractive forhumans.

Sound familiar? Man is still misus-ing that wonderful resource, the for-ests. Mary and I saw some of this whentraveling in the Pacific Northwest inSeptember, although state laws nowrequire that areas clearcut be replantedwithin two years. There is controversyabout what the destruction of rain for-ests and old growth forests may do toour global climate. There is certainlyno question as to the long run effect onthe climate and the economy of thecountries where mass destruction offorests has taken place.

Closer to home, one can say NewYork State and the rest of the Northeasthas lucked out in terms of the status ofits forests. Eighty to one hundred yearsago much of the state had been clearedfor farming. When farming becameuneconomical due to the vastly betterconditions for growing crops in themidwest, farm land was abandoned andfortunately came back into forests,thanks to a friendly ecology for regen-eration. Now we are told there is moreforest land in New York than there wasat the turn of the century.

Unfortunately, this same conditionis not true for some other parts of thecountry and of the earth. As a result, ourwoodlands are becoming more valu-

NY FOREST OWNER

President StuMcCarty receives supportfrom a Sitka spruce in the Olympic National Park,Washington. DBH of over 12 112feet, Age 500-550 yrs., height over 270 ft.

able as the supply from other areasdwindles. We should be doing all wecan to make sure our woodland re-source is treated with tender lovingcare. We, asmembers ofNYFOA whichis dedicated to encouraging the wisemanagement of the woodland resourcesin New York, must be carrying themessage to all owners in the state toencourage them to practice forest stand

improvement. Our efforts to recruitmore members is one effort towardsthis end. Another is the developmentof Master Forest Owners whose mis-sion is to get other forest owners think-ing ~mana&ement. We needmoreideas on how to awaken the owners towhat a wonderful resource they haveand on what they should be doing todevelop it.

HONOR ROLLCongratulations to those who qualify for the kudos in the Three-for -One

Membership Incentive Campaign. The following brought in a total ofsixteen new members during October and November:

Mike Brigden NAC 1 Harriet & Jack Hamilton WFL 2Ron Cadieux SAC 1 John Hastings SAC 2Dave Colligan NFC 1 Mark Kiester WFL 2Bob Childs AFC 1 Charlie Mowatt AFC 1Tom Ellison CNY 2 N.H. Thisse THR 1Norbert Gazin CNY 1 Bob White NFC 1

Twelve additional members were added, they having heard of us throughvarious sources such as the Cooperative Extension and the WoodlandSteward.

By the time you read this report, the four month Campaign will be over.Final results will be reported in the March! April issue of the Forest Owner.


A TREE TO RESPECTby Norman Richards

Current environmental sensitivitiestend to treasure organisms in na-ture that are losing out in a people-

dominated world, and regard as 'weeds'those organisms that can thrive as wild-lings in cultural landscapes. In addition tobeing rather anti-human, this view ignoresa basic evolutionary precept that adapta-tion is key to continuing evolution andfuture biodiversity. A more sophisticatedecologic view may be to balance concernfor saving declining organism populationswith some respect also for species thathave shown the capacity to adapt anddiversify in an ever-changing world. Redmaple, Acer rubrum, is an outstandingexample of such an adaptive species.

Red Maple EcologyRed maple is one of the most wide-

spread trees in eastern North America,growing over the temperature range fromNewfoundland to the Florida Everglades.Its westward range defines the humid re-gion limits in Minnesota and eastern Texas.The species also grows on a wider range ofsoil conditions than nearly any other NorthAmerican tree. Often called 'swampmaple', red maple is primarily a wetlandspecies in the southern half of its range.But in the Northeast including New York,it ranges over the landscape from swampsand bogs to dry ridges, and from very acidto lime soils. Red maple's aggressive andplastic root system probably is an impor-tant factor in its wide site adaptation. Whileit can survive nearly anywhere within itsrange, reasonably good soil moisture andfertility is required for good growth.

As might be expected, the wide geo-graphic and ecologic range of red maple isassociated with high genetic diversitywithin the species, evident both amongregions and within local populations. Thisis a circular process, as wide range andgenetic diversity foster each other within aspecies. So far, there has been little geneticor 'tree improvement' work with red maple,except to select desirable cultivars for ur-ban or landscape use. Its biodiversityshould offer good potential for improve-ment as a forest tree, if there is greaterincentive for this someday.

NY FOREST OWNER

As red and sugar maple frequently growtogether in the Northeast, it is useful tocompare these species. The 1980 forestinventory ofN ew York found sugar maple,our 'number one' species, to be 16% of ourgrowing stock volume in cubic feet, andred maple to be second and catching up at15%. Our Northern Hardwood type thatcovers the majority of our forest acreagecontains 94% of our sugar maple cubicvolume. Red maple is more cosmopolitan,with 76% in the Northern Hardwood typeand the rest on sites less adapted to sugarmaple.

Red maple has spread as the majorspecies of much regrown forest in NewYork on lands previously cleared for agri-culture or by wildfire following logging.Several characteristics of the species havehelped this. It tends to produce largenumbers of wind-dispersed seed begin-ning at a fairly young age. The seed ripensin the spring after very early spring flow-ering, and may either germinate soon afterdispersal or lay dormant until the nextspring, depending on environmental con-ditions. The seedlings can survive well onexposed sites, especially in protected

Unthinned pole stand.

4

microsites near stones or logs; but also cangrow under moderate shade from otherplants.

Compared with sugar maple, red mapleseedlings usually grow faster on open sites,and also resprout more vigorously afteranimal or other damage. Faster heightgrowth of red maple tends to continuethrough the pole stage before slowing asthe medium-lived species typically reachesmaturity at 70 to 90 years. While thenormal mature height ofred maple is usu-ally listed as 50 to 70 feet, heights of80-85feet are fairly common on good hardwoodsites in New York. On these sites, how-ever, the longer lived sugar maple cancontinue its growth to greater height andage. Diameter growth of red maple isnormally faster than sugar maple but slowerthan white ash or red oak in pole-sizedstands in New York. Diameter growth ofyoung red maple responds well to thinning,but sugar maple can continue growth laterto larger diameters on good hardwoodsites.

Summing the ecology of red maple, itscurrent prominence as the number twovolume species in New York's forests prob-ably results from two major factors: redmaple's wide environmental tolerances,

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1993

and its aggressive establishment and earlygrowth in our regrown forests after agri-culture and other land disturbance. Theregrown forest in New York is continuingto expand and grow toward maturity, so itis likely that the close-second position ofred maple will continue for some time. Inthe longer run, New York can expect littlenew forest area, existing forests to be moremature on average, and quite likely therewill be more conservative cutting andperhaps more preservation. In this case,sugarmaple will increase its dominance ofour northern hardwood forests, and redmaple will be confined more to sites lesssuited to sugar maple.

Red Maple ValuesRed maple adds visual diversity to our

forests with its very early spring flower-ing, varied three-pointed leaves with lighterundersides shown off in summer breezes,early and striking fall coloration, andsmooth gray stems on young trees and theupper trunk of older trees, easy to spot inthe winter. In New York, seedlings andsprouts of red maple along with sugarmaple are valuable food for white-taildeer, snowshoe hares, and cottontails. Thegreater tendency of red maple to pioneer in

Mixed quality red maple stems.

NY FOREST OWNER

open fields and sprout more vigorouslythan sugar maple makes it a more usefulspecies to periodically small cut patchesfor sprout or 'coppice' growth specificallyfor wildlife values. A curious feature ofred maple is that this common wetlandspecies is generally spurned by beaver infavor of most other hardwoods. As thebeaver is an ancient native species, thisraises interesting questions of possible' co-evolution' in beaver helping red mapleevolve as awetland tree avoided by beaver.

Although many insects feed on redmaple, few appear to be significant pests.Dr. Douglas Allen, ESF entomologist spe-cializing in sugar maple insects, has notedthat the important sugar maple pests, foresttent caterpillar, saddled prominent moth,and pear thrip, are relatively rare on redmaple; the sugar maple borer does notattack it; and red maple is low in preferenceby the gypsy moth. On the other hand,many significant trunk rot fungi and stemdiseases attack red maple. Discolorationand decay advance much faster in red thansugar maple stems, causing serious dam-age to a greater proportion of red maplestems. Although red maple's tolerance ofenvironmental stresses has led to promo-tion as an urban tree, its susceptibility tostem damage and deterioriation whenyoung results in shorter life-expectencythan silver and Norway maple on high-impact streetsides.

The rapid youthful growth of red maplemakes it a good per-acre producer of pulpand fuel wood from thinnings of pole-sizedstands. On a weight basis, red and sugarmaple are about equally excellent for yieldof pulp fiber and fuel BTU's. The lowerdensity of red maple --80-85% of sugarmaple dry weight--makes it proportionallylower yielding per cord. But red maple'sslightly easier cutting, lighter handling,and faster drying may offset this, espe-cially for home firewood harvest.

In the hardwood lumber market, red andsilver maple are lumped as 'soft maple' asdistinguished from sugar and black mapleas "hard maple". Hard maple is one of thefinest woods in the world in terms ofstrength, hardness, and milling and finish-ing qualities; particularly for furniture andsimilar uses. Soft maple can substitute forhard maple in most uses except wherehardness and beauty are critical. Therelatively wide, white sapwood of softmaple cannot match the beauty of hardmaple, but is preferred for core stock and

5

Defective maple log - firewood.

upholstered furniture frames. Dr. WilliamSmith, in Forest Products Engineering atESF, notes that soft maple lumber pricesand demand tend to follow hard maplequite closely; when hard maple goes up,substitution increases soft maple demand.This is shown in Appalachian region--including N.Y.--Iumberprices as reportedby the Weekly Hardwood Review. Theaverage price over 1987-91 for green (fresh-sawn) #1 common lumber has been veryclose for hard and soft maple--$392 vs.$372 per 1000 board feet, compared to themuch higher priced Appalachian hard-woods: cherry - $695, ash-$598, and redoak-$553. For the highest grade (FirstsAnd Seconds, FAS) lumber, the averageprice difference is wider between hard andsoft maple--$588 vs $477 green, with botheven farther below average FAS prices of$1080, $878, and $967 for cherry, ash andred oak.

Since 1987,lumberprices ofboth mapleshave increased steadily about with theinflation rate until a recent large rise inhard maple prices. Cherry, ash and red oak


Red maple: 7 years after thinning.

prices have varied more; peaking in 1988and declining through the recent recession.It seems reasonable to expect hard mapletrailed by soft maple to continue in fairlysteady demand as the backbone of NewYork's timber industry; priced somewhatlowerthan the less plentiful supply of cherry ,ash and oak quality sawtimber.

In contrast to the fairly close lumberprices, there is generally a substantial dis-parity in demand and stumpage price ofstanding sugar and red maple timber. Onereason for this is that cutting, hauling andsawing costs are fairly similar among spe-cies, so the small difference in lumberprices carries through to proportionatelygreater difference in stumpage prices. Also,there is a larger supply of red maple relativeto its lower demand, so the red maplemarket is more easily filled. Typicallysmaller maximum log diameters for redmaple also contribute to lower stumpageprices. An important factor noted earlier isthe greater susceptibility of red maple tostem defects and decay, resulting in gener-ally lower yields of quality wood from thisspecies. Red maple even more than sugarmaple shows great variation in timber qual-ity. Good, clear red maple stems are worthgrowing for quality timber; poor stems are

NY FOREST OWNER

only fuel and pulpwood.In 1984, ESF graduate student Paul

Jones and this writer conducted a briefstudy of pole-sized red maple in NewYork's Southern Tier. Sampling even-aged stands with at least one-third redmaple trees and average diameters of 8 to12 inches, we found no clear site or historyfactors distinguishing better from poorerred maple growth. But it was easy todistinguish good from poorred maple stemsin the woods. Most stands had a mix ofstem quality; some were predominantlypoor, but most had sufficient good stems towarrent managing the red maple alongwith other species present for quality saw-timber.

Red Maple ManagementFrom the discussion above, it should be

evident that, for hardwood stands managedfor timber along with other values=exceptsugar bushes, the quality of individualstems is more important than the speciesdistinction between sugar and red maple.Both maples will develop best quality whenestablished in dense enough stands orpatches to train good stem form. Theyshould remain crowded for 20 years ormore until the lower stem is clear ofbranches, and distinctions between goodand poor stem quality become evident.Good stems can then be favored for in-creased diameter growth by thinning com-peting trees; making distinctions amongspecies only where two or more good treesare competing directly. Multi-stem redmaple clumps containing good stems canbe thinned to one or two best stems.Thinnings which remove around 30 to 35%of canopy-level trees are generally appro-priate for maple pole stands. This usually

Wendell Hatfield(Over 35 years experience)

General Excavation,Road Construction,

Wetlands Enhancement,Ponds and Drainage

RD. 2, Moravia, NY 13118(315) 497-1398

6

Red and sugar maple: 7years after thining.

means leaving some poorer trees filling inbetween good trees, and removing these inlater thinnings. When fuel wood or pulp isremoved in thinnings, it is critical to keepdamage to favored trees to a minimum.This can be done by skilled cutting, andcareful use of tractors no larger than neces-sary for the job. As most damage toremaining trees occurs along skid trails, itis helpful to layout trails to be edged bylow-value 'bumper' trees; especially ondown-hill sides and on turns. Because ofthe moderate growth of maples, most for-est owners are unlikely to see the effects ofthinning young stands on final sawtimberharvest. But within a few decades, standresponses to thinning can visably improvea variety of values to give owners a senseof satisfaction from their stewardship ef-forts. This can be particularly satisfyingwhen one has shown respect for all speciesin releasing good trees from poorer ones ina typically variable stand.

Dr. Richards isaprofessor inforestry atthe SUNY College of Environmental Sci-ence and Forestry (ESF) in Syracuse, anda Director ofNYFOA. The photos in thearticle were taken this winter on theRichardsfamily Tree Farm (certified 1965)in Harpersfield, Delaware County, NY.


Some Thoughts About Forest ManagementBy Albert W. Brown

Ihave played, worked or re-created inwoodlands through all of my decades.Nearly forty years ago, I

became involved with Timber Stand Im-provement and experimental projects inIllinois and Michigan. In 1991, I was hon-ored to be involved in the Master ForestOwner Program. These experiences haveserved to increase curiosity, concerns andactive thinking about the status and condi-tion of our woodlands as they exist today.More demanding, however, is to defineand accept the crucial responsibilities weshare as we pass these woodlands on to thegenerations ahead.

The GoalA recent controversy over clear cutting

in a local State Forest led me to share somethoughts with our local Assemblyman,some of which are cited here. Essential, ingeneral is, (1) commitment to and skill insharing fundamental knowledge and (2)creating positive dialogue among the manyadvocates and partisans as, (3) we clearlydefine what we wish to do and, (4) imple-ment the procedures necessary to reachthese goals. III defined, mis-understood, orhidden goals together with un-explained ormisunderstood actions will only intensifypolarization and counter productivity.

Trees Do Not A ManagedForest Make

To many, if it' s green at times and aboveyour head, it's a forest and somehow goodin its own right. Consideration of species,stage, condition and the effects of misman-agement of our local woodlands for twocenturies or more are often not consideredas we look at our forest today and reflect onour goals for these lands in the years ahead.Increasingly, woodland owners and forestvisitors now have multiple goals for theirtimbered areas. Wildlife enhancement;recreation; timber and firewood produc-tion; esthetics; water retention and quality;hunting; solitude; nature study; bird andanimal study; photography; hiking; skiingand may other activities compete with andsupport each other as management deci-sions are made to reach the objectives of

NY FOREST OWNER

owners (private or state) and society atlarge.

We seldom think of management as atool to reach the goals we hold for wood-lands. However, our forests have beenmanaged and mismanaged, deliberately oraccidently, knowingly or un-knowingly,for many, many decades. Today it has beenestimated that 80% of the trees in ourwoodlands are sub-standard because ofspecies, condition and appropriateness forwhat we believe we want to achieve. It willtake more than a century to return to any-thing resembling a climax forest throughnatural succession while our current spe-cies mix may take even more centuries toachieve that. Climax forests are rather ster-ile habitats for wildlife of most kinds and afar cry from multiple usage and thebiodi versity which most people seek today.

Our forests have been managed by na-ture through fires, wind and diseases; byIndians with limited fires and usage; bypioneers for fuel, logs, potash, and slashand bum for agriculture; by loggers forlumber for buildings, structural timbersand fine furniture; by farmers for firewood,maple syrup and miscellaneous items; and,by well meaning reforesters. In general, thephilosophy of "take the best and leave therest" to fit the situation has resulted inmillions of acres which look like forests butare far from achieving any identified anddesirable goals for owners or society.

HELP!Management practices, to be success-

ful, must be acceptable, accepted and havea well informed and broad based consis-tency. Involvement of well informed andbroad based representation will help insuresounder decisions which, in turn, will standa better chance of successful implementa-tion. Established formal sources of infor-mation may at times project personal, out-dated and narrow perspectives and objec-tives. Less formal individual landownersor focused interest groups tend to be shortterm in perspectives, fragmented, partisan,and counter-productive among themselves.The process wherein an informed wood-land owner seeks, evaluates, and developsa management plan using the technical

7

knowledge, skills and experiences of theprofessional service or consulting foresterseems to hold most promise for successfulwoodland management. The critical ques-tion before each decision is "WHY?"

The need for all parties to recognize thecurrent transitions underway through eco-nomic, social and technical changes of somuch of our outdoor space has never beengreater as we close out the twentieth cen-tury. As we preserve, re-new and establishthe multiple resources needed and desiredfor tomorrow, what must be our roles asthoughtful instruments inreaching respon-sible goals for ourselves and the genera-tions ahead?

If we are to achieve biodiversity andmultiple goals for our millions of forestacres after decades of neglect and mis-usewithin the lifetimes of ourselves, our chil-dren and grandchildren, we need to startnow with informed, intelligent and achiev-able forest stewardship practices. It is nowquestions of "why" and "how" rather than"whether or not" management will takeplace. We cannot control the time ahead ofus. However, through management we maybe able to influence what will take place inour forests in the years ahead.

After virtually a lifetime in academia in-cluding some 20 years at SUNY Brockport.Dr. Albert Brown has been dedicatingconsiderable energy to forestry and help-ing forest owners. Al attended the MasterForest Owner Workshop in 1991 and wasa program participant for 1992.

Ken Westfall (607) 693-1031

APPALACHIN FORESTRYP. O. Box 208 Harpursville, NY 13787SERVICES & TIMBER APPRAISAL

T.S.I. Work Done

Marketing Forest Products& Forest Properties''licensed for real estate


parcel, a former hillside pasture. The 20ton tractor-trailer loads of fuel-bound chipsrequired costly construction of an accessroad. Bryan O'Neil and Mike Hanlon, thelatest generation of Cotton-Hanlon man-agers informed us that the managementplan to favor regeneration of preferredspecies would almost certainly require aherbicidal treatment of the remainingBeech and Aspen.

The next stop was a small parcel, for-merly a stand of White Pine, that had beenclearcut in 1929. The second growth standof regenerated mixed hardwoods and theirsize was an obvious testimony ofthe valueof the site and an example of hardwoodregeneration from a clearcut conifer stand.

Outside of Trumansburg; we stoppedat the "Smith Forest" a 25 acre stand ofmature trees. One of the most impressivetrees was a red oak that Bob measured tobe 41 1/2" in diameter and estimatedwould yield 1600-1800 board feet. Thecurrent market value of this oak was esti-mated at $2500.

The next stop was TaughanncockFalIsState Park. A short break in the program toadmire the beauty ofthis magnificent fallsagainst a backdrop of autumn color.

Our final destination was the Peter andBarbara Levatich "Hobnob Forest" fam-ily farm in Brooktondale, N.Y. Walkingup the drive leading to the house, one wasimpressed with the tightly manicuredgrounds and ordered symmetry of all itscomponents. After a quick lunch, Peter

NYFOA Fall Meeting 1992: Arnot ForestBy Bill Minerd

Autumn is my most favorite seasonof the year. Geese flying south,crisp mornings and the harvest of

colors that drip from the forests mark theprelude to winter. The tempo of life quick-ens, seemingly driven from a primordialgene long suppressed in our human ances-try. These feelings more than thoughtsseemed to intensify as we wend our waydown the back roads to Arnot Forest Longperiods of silence are punctuated by adjec-tives in an attempt to describe the naturalbeauty that surrounds us.

On turning into the Arnot Forest groundsour focus changes as we encounter familiarfaces of NYFOA members gathering forthe Fall Meeting held on October 9-10,1992. Through Friday's registration anddinner old acquaintances were renewedand new ones made.

Bob Sand served as program chairmanfor this meeting. After a scrumptious din-ner Bob introduced Don Schaufler, Man-ager of Arnot Forest who welcomed us andpresented an overview of the activitiespursued by the faculty and staff of CornellUniversity at Arnot. He explained thatcurrent efforts in timber management andmaple syrup production have yielded in-come that is used to support the operations.

The guest speaker for the evening wasDr. John Kelley, Director of the ArnotForest. Dr. Kelley's multimedia show ofslides and video took us on a tour of his

Bob Sand and the Smith Forest Oak. - Photo by Bill Minerd.

27 acre property highlighting various wild-life habitat improvements that he has madeover the years.

Saturday began with a hearty "lumber-jack" breakfast, during which Bob Sandpresented an outline of the day's activitiesand reassurances that it would not rain ...wewere underway. The auto caravan initiallystopped at Cotton-Hanlon properties thathad undergone whole tree chipping removalof the predominant 60-year old low gradeBeech and Aspen stems in the 248 acre

NY FOREST OWNER

Daughter Stephanie. son Tim. Barbara and Peter Levatich. - Photo by Bill Minerd

B JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1993

-- ---------------------!

presented his management objectiveswhich are the production of saw timber andrecreation. A well planned tour with manystops along the way demonstrated the vari-ous management activities that are on-going. The predominant species in thisforest are white ash, red and sugar maple.Peter has made a special effort to reestab-lish red oak in the forest. Oak's are grownfrom seed and transplanted on suitablesites with the added protection of Tubex®Tree Shelters.

The Levatich ' s have made a substantialinvestment in improvements to their forestland. It's evident that not all the returns onthis work will be measured in dollars. Thepride of ownership and stewardship arevery evident in this forest they call home.Peter put it this way, "The joy is to see theforest respond to treatment, to see theimprovement in tree quality and size. Thedream is to live long enough to have aforest of fat, tall and straight trees."

This NYFOA Fall Meeting was an out-standing opportunity to become acquaintedwith management for wildlife (John Kelley,one of the Great American Woodlot Se-ries), forever wild (the Smith Forest), fromagriculture to forest for pulp to a futureforest of valuable hardwoods, a clearcutconversion of conifers to hardwood, andfinally a former farm fully forested in 1975and since then intensively managed byMaster Forest Owner, Peter LevatichHobnob Forest.

The day ended with farewells and thesense that we had shared a special day withspecial members ofNYFOA. Our thanks toBob Sand and the Levatich family.

Bill Minerd is a graduate of the MasterForest Owner Workshop for '92 and News-letter editor for the Central N.Y. Chapter.

New York:Stewardship State of the Year

The New York State Stewardship Coor-dinating Committee was honored by theNan. Woodland Owners Ass'n. with thefirst FOREST STEWARDSHIP STATEOF THE YEAR AWARD. Presented at theannual meeting of the National Associa-tion of State Foresters on October 14, theaward recognizes effective programs andboard participation in implementing theForest Stewardship Act of 1990. NewYork's accomplishments are impressive.In fact, the state had so many completedSIP applications this year at the time of therescission that they received allocationsfrom other states that had not yet used theirfunding.

From WOODLAND REPORT, a publica-tion for Woodland Owners by the NA-TIONAL WOODLAND OWNER'S ASSO-CIATION.

'93 MASTER FORESTOWNER WORKSHOP

According to Gary Goff of CornellCooperative Extension and Director of theMaster Forest Owner Program, the 3-dayMFO Workshop for the program's thirdyear has been tentatively scheduled forSeptember 26, 1993. It is expected thatStewardshi p Incenti ve Programs (SIPs) willbe funded by the U. S. Legislature and thatthis program will continue to be supportedwith the uncertainty to be resolved in May.For potential candidates alert Gary atFernow Hall; Ithaca, N.Y. 14853-3001(607/255-2824).

ADDENDASome of our members who participated in the woods walk ofthe Fall Meeting askedhow I injected Roundup into undesirable trees to kill them. This may interest othersas well. The method is described in FORESTRY RESEARCH NOTES *. I use a 50-50 Roundup-water solution, which I squirt into a 1/2" deep, horizontal chain sawgroove, placing the solution all the way around until it starts flowing out, between June15 and the time leaves start to turn, in dry weather. Trees defoliate within two weeksto four months depending on vigor. Root systems also die, preventing root sprouts.This method works on all deciduous trees on my land, except not always on stripedmaple which tends to root sprout after all. It works on conifers also, except that it maytransfer to other trees of the same species which are in the same grouping by way ofroot contact (fusion). I use this method instead of the customary double girdling (2"deep) when the tree is less than 14" dbh and when I do not have a convenient placeto fell it- Peter S. Levatich

*FORESTRYRESEARCHNOTES:RN-SOF-83-001,SUNY,CollegeofEnvironmen-tal Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY 13210.

NY FOREST OWNER 9

oTREE PROTECTORS

Which isBest???

The Health of yourTrees depends ongetting accurate

information.Call Today for your FREE

Sample and a studyreprint by the Pennsylvania

Bureau of Forestry.

We are your source for geneticallysuperior Black Walnut Seeds

(800) 875-8071445 Lourdes Lane, Lafayette, IN 47905


CHAPTER REPORTS<S•••ALLEGItENYFOOTHIUUS •••••V <S5fjlJWnl$.t\.$'f.t\.PIRfjNP1\~~)

Our annual fundraiser (this year gather-ing walnuts) netted us $951.00. This wasan outstanding effort which puts us in anexcellent financial position.

On Nov. 14 twenty plus gathered at theEllicottville Cooperative Extension build-ing to listen to Bill Wininger's presenta-tion on planting hybrid chestnuts as anincome producing crop. A very enjoyableday with a business meeting that featureda great many decisions made and livelymember input.

On Jan. 16, 1993 we will have ajoint potluck dinner with the NFC. It will begin at1 p.m. in the Holland Town Hall andeveryone is asked to bring a dish to pass,silver and dish. Call Tom Casey (NFC) at716-322-7398 or Peter Childs (AFC) at716-557-2529 for more information.

A winter picnic and "Tracks in thesnow" walk is planned in Allegany StatePark for Feb. 27 at 10 a.m .. Call PeterChilds at above number for further infor-mation.

( •••••..•.•..··NIi\Gt'\.RAFR.QN1JER. ··················9

The Chapter provided some very goodprograms in the past three months. In Oc-tober we toured Yanack Saw Mill andobserved how logs were debarked andsawed into boards; how the boards werethen graded and cutto length. This tour washeld Columbus Day and that may haveaccounted for the large attendance. InNovember we walked some of the ZoarValley State Forest. We compared thedifferences between plantation plantingand post-clearcut regeneration. And forDecember we walked a woods that hadbeen recently marked for improvement.Bruce Robinson, a consulting forester ex-plained why particular trees were or werenot selected for removal and why the choicefulfilled objectives of the managementplan. What an eye opener.

On January 16 we will have a pot-luckluncheon hosted by Bob White at the Hol-land Town Hall. This is our Second AnnualPot-luck and we expect it to be a good one.

NY FOREST OWNER

On Oct. 17th, thirty + members wentona woodswalkarranged by John Hastings(DEC Service Forester) and GreggMackey (V.P. of the NYS Timber Pro-ducers Assoc.).

We gathered at 9 A.M. at GreggMackey's tree farm under a tent (withtables and chairs donated by EmeraldParty Rentals of Ballston Spa) to view alogging truck being loaded with hemlocklogs. After the truck rumbled away toFinch, Pruyn & Co., Inc. Mill in GlensFalls we started our meeting. Gregg de-scribed his lumber yard's drying pro-gram; we then walked his past and presenttimber harvests on a mixed stand of hard-wood and softwoods. A selective cuttingof white pine and hemlock was discussedwith professional foresters, mill opera-tors, loggers and land owners answeringquestions.

We then drove to Jud Kilmer's hard-wood sawmill on Lake Desolation Roadfor a sawing demonstration. Concerns forthe need for high quality saw logs werediscussed. The thinking is that while weare growing more timber in this area dueto farms being abandoned, saw log buyerssay the percentage of good logs is de-creasing. This emphasizes the need forgood forest management to improve thequality of our product, and, of course,income.

At the log yard John Russel, a veneerlog buyer, described the specificationsfor marketing veneer logs. An interestingdiscussion followed as he graded logs andjudged the quality in view of knots, de-fects, straightness and staining. Again, ifwe can grow more veneer logs by goodtimber growing practices, the value of alog can be five to ten times more valuablethan a typical saw log.

Jud Kilmer finalized the program by atour of a very impressive, unique stand oftimber on a site not harvested in thiscentury. The park-like site included oak,pine and beech. as we gazed up at thetowering trees the forester estimated thatone oak would saw out 1600 board feet oflumber. Jud can certainly be proud of hisforest, located next to a hardwood milloperated by the family for over fiftyyears. We owe a big thank you to all whomade this tour possible.

1 0

Jud Kilmer'sforest. Saratoga County

C ....·.....·CENTRALNEW.YORKt •••••.·.·····0The September 12th NYFOA meeting

at Heiberg Forest featured an expert onpond development. Richard JMcClimans,a NYS licensed professional engineer andfounder of the Syracuse-based firm ofPonds Unlimited, gave an interesting talkduring our lunch break beside the largestof the Heiberg ponds. His presentationtouched on all aspects of planning, build-ing and maintaining dams and ponds withconsiderable emphasis on good engineer-ing practices

One of McClimans' messages was thatcreating an attractive and useful pond isnot something that happens easily - itoften takes a lot of time, effort and invest-ment capital to do it right The PondsUnlimited brochure states that in the rightsetting, a healthy pond can be the focalpoint for many years of quality outdoorrecreational experiences. Further, they as-sert that ponds can enhance property val-ues and can serve important functions forfish and wildlife

Ponds Unlimited also points out thatconstructing a dam that controls over 640acres of drainage area, or which is morethan 10 feet high, or which stores over onemillion gallons of water requires a permitfrom the NYS-Departrnent of Environ-mental Conservation, unless the pondclas-sifies as a "farm pond" in which case thethresholds are 250 acres, 15 feet, and 1 5million gallons, respectively.


C2NQ);i'JJIRII~lgQNP~g~.WOn October 3, while it was raining over

most of northern New York, it was a beau-tiful, sunny fall day in the great LakeChamplain Valley on the Macomb Reser-vation State Forest. We walked under thecanopy of three different timber types, mixedPine-Oak, pure White Pine and nearly pureRed Oak. The discussion about past and thebest future management for these standswas very interesting and lively .We countedfive pines on the forest: white, red, jack,pitch and Scotch pine.

Our interest also focused on some uniqueunderstory plants, such as leatherwood,maple-leaf dogwood (both shrubs), pipsis-sewa (Pyrola family) and partridge berry.

Sometime in February, we plan to visit acommercial logging job. Woodland roadsand main skidtrails that are used this time ofyear will freeze-up, reducing damage tosoil.

As part of the walk, we also hope to visita portable sawmill in the area. Our idea is toestimate volume of standing tree(s), mea-sure volume in the cut loges), then saw intolumber, and measure the actual board feetgenerated. All this in one area may be toomuch to hope for, but NACer's will benotified of our efforts in December or earlyJanuary.

At our last NAC Staff conference inCanton, we all agreed that we need moremembers, and the best way to achieve thisis a one-on-one contact with the woodlandowner. We all know of at least one land-owner in our neighborhood. Make yourcontact and encourage the person(s) tojoin. We still have a free NYFOA capand patch available for you when yourneighbor or contact joins.

The most current activity of the CayugaChapter involves preparations for the FifthAnnual Cabin Fever Festival at FillmoreGlen State Park, February 13 and 14, 1993.The Cayuga Woodsmen and the many draftanimals intend to participate snow or shine.

Also, Arbor Day 1993 (the last Friday inApril by NY State Statute) the CayugaChapter, NYFOA will formally dedicate asecond bronze plaque/boulder monumentto commemorate the work of PresidentFDR's 1930's Tree Army, this time, inFillmore Glen State Park. The bronze plaqueis expected to be available for inspectionduring the Cabin Fever Festival.

NY FOREST OWNER

SOUTHERNTIER

STCmembersviewing acustom. handbuilt LOK llLOGmodel log home.

The October meeting featured atour of the Webb & Sons (LOK.nLOGS) log home model center andfactory in Sherburne. Memberstoured both precut-type and hand-built-type (Swedish cope method)log homes. The factory precut linewas reviewed in detail.

The December meeting featuredCotton- Hanlon Forester Frank Roserepresenting the State Tree Farm

STCmembersviewing aLOK II LOGprecut loghome.

Committee discussing the future ofthe Tree Farm System.

The next meeting will be on Janu-ary 14, 1993 at the Cooperative Ex-tension Building on Front Street inBinghamton. Doors open at 7 PMand the program will start at 7:30.Theprogram is entitled: "How Prop-erty Assessed Valuation is Deter-mined for Tax Purposes. Is yourlocal Assessor'Ireating You Fairly?"

<§'I'IlRI-fJ'A.-fmJAJ'Jlij·VOn November 7 THRIFT members

and other woodland owners met for awoodswalk near N. Boylston in OswegoCounty. Bruce Schneider from the DECLowville Office showed us how to locatethe egg mass oftheeastern tent caterpillar.We used binoculars to inspect the top 30inches of Maple ,Ash, and Cherry branches.Bruce severed some of the branches,showed the group of owners how thecaterpillars spend the winter and emergein the spring. The area we inspected wasvery heavily infested. A bright sun andcold temperatures provided the backdropfor a very educational program enjoyedby about 30 woodlot owners.

11

On November 13 some 25 THRlFfmembers and interested persons met at theSalmon Run Mall Conference Room inWatertown. Lyle Raymond, a native oftheCarthage area and currently with CornellUniversity was our guest speaker. He pre-sented a program on the Historical Per-spectives of Tug Hill and discussed thedifferent areas that determine the Tug HillRegion. It was a fascinating program en-joyed by all.

THRIFT members are currently in-volved in the election and installation ofnew Council members to be celebrated atthe annual holiday dinner at the Coltons.


Pine Shoot Beetle ManagementBy David W. Taber

On November 13, 1992 a Federalquarantine that included NewYork's Erie and Niagara counties

was made effective, "on an emergencybasis." Its goal is to restrict and/or preventthe spread of the pine shoot beetle by"restricting the interstate movement ofregulated articles from the quarantinedareas."

On November 24, 1992, a New YorkState Intrastate Pine Shoot Beetle Quaran-tine was immediately adopted and en-forced "as an emergency measure" for Erieand Niagara Counties, by the New YorkState Department of Agriculture and Mar-kets. This "parallel" (to Federal) quaran-tine requires that "pine Christmas trees;pine nursery stock; and pine, spruce, larch,and fir logs and lumber, with bark at-tached, shall not be shipped, transported orotherwise moved from any point withinErie and Niagara Counties to any pointoutside of said Counties," without properauthorization as provided by the Statequar-antine.

Since September 21, ajoint effort oftheNational Christmas Tree Association;USDA APHIS, PPQ; the NYCTGA;George W. Hudler (Director of the Christ-mas Tree IPM Newsletter) and David W.Taber of Cornell University; Robert J.Mungari, Director of Plant Industry, NYSDepartment of Agriculture and Markets;and others have implemented strategic plan-ning efforts to protect Christmas tree grow-ers, tree nurseries, forests and forestlandowners, forest -product industries, and con-sumers from losses and potential lossescaused by the insect.

Five growing sites in Erie and Niagaracounties where the pine shoot beetle had

_~ CLEAR CREEK"'::"~~CONSULTING

Professional Forestry Services

TImber Appraisals • TImber Marking •TImber Trespasses • FOf8st Management Plans

And Ot".r Forestry Services

PATRICK J. McGLEW(SOn 699-3846

P.o. Box 104Nictlols. NY 13812

NY FOREST OWNER

been identified in 1992 were placed undera NYS Dept. of Agriculture & MarketsQuarantine in October, as a practical in-terim precaution. In addition, protectiveaction occurred in October by the follow-ing governmental entities which have im-posed "reverse quarantines" that prohibit"regulated articles" (that might spread thepine shoot beetle from counties or stateswhere it is known to exist) from being sentto their jurisdictions: Canada, Mexico,Oregon, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida,and Louisiana.

In 1992 the pine shoot beetle (Tomjcusojnjoerda L.) was found in 42 counties in6 states, including Niagara and Erie coun-ties in New York. The other states areMichigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Penn-sylvania.

Prior to this outbreak, the insect had notbeen known to exist in the Nation exceptfor its interception with packing and crat-ing materials on imports, since 1946; thetrapping of one beetle in Savannah Geor-gia in 1971; and a New Jersey nurseryinfestationof1913 1914, which waseradi-cated.

However, in 1992 the insect's extensivedistribution included Japan, China, Sibe-ria, Europe including Great Britain, and

Common pine shoot beetle galleries existunder the bark. With a round entrance holein its base, a single (vertical) egg gallery isparallel to grain a/wood. Larval galleriesoriginate on both sides a/the egg gallery.All galleries were excavated in the wood/bark inter/ace.

12

Adult pine shoot beetle tTomicus.piniperdati L.)

Africa's Algeria. This massive land area isincluded between geographic latitudes thatencompass North America, thereby indi-cating a potentially significant threat tosome 35 species of pine trees that rangeover the continent.

The USDA APHIS Quarantine was pub-lished in the November 19, 1992 FederalRegister (vol. 57, No. 224 - page 54492-54499). It states that "the present value ofpotential losses and increased productioncosts in the United States over the next 30years attributable to this pest is $742 mil-lion,"

For NYS quarantine information con-tact Division of Plant Industry, Robert J.Mungari, Director, NYS Department ofAgriculture and Markets, 1Winners Circle,Albany, NY 12235 (Tel. 518/457-2087).

For Federal quarantine information,contact USDA, APHIS, PPQ, NYS WorkUnit Office in Avoca, NY (Tel. 607/566-2212 - Richard B. Gaines, Officer inCharge) with field-staff sub-offices in Al-bany, Batavia, Buffalo, Canandaigua, Le-icester, Newburgh, Rouses Point, Syra-cuse, Treadwell, and Westharnpton Beach.


Catskill Fisher ReintroductionBy Richard Henry, New Paltz

Fisher were at one time fairly com-mon in the Catskill region. By thelate 1800's, much of the forested

area in the region had been cut down forfuel, furniture, and bark for the flourishingtanning industry. Due to extensive habitatloss, fisher were forced into small areasand were extremely vulnerable to uncon-trolled hunting and trapping. Fisher wereextirpated from the area prior to 1900.After the forestry products industry de-clined, natural vegetative succession slowlyreturned the area to large, uninterruptedtracts of mature forest suitable for fisherpopulations.

In 1976, we began a program to reintro-duce the fisher to the Catskills. Potentialfisher habitat was identified and we boughtlive fisher from cooperating fur trappers inthe northern zone for a fee slightly higherthan the market value of the pelt. Between1976 and 1979,43 fisher were released in

Bruce E.Robinson,

Inc.FORESTRY

CONSULTANTS• FOREST PRODUCT MARKING

&. MARKETING• TREE FARM MANAGEMENT

• URBAN FORESTRY &.COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT

• TIMBER APPRAISALS• ACCESS ROAD DESIGN

&. SUPERVISION• TREE PLANTING

• TUBEX® DISTRIBUTOR• SUGAR BUSH MANAGEMENT• BOUNDARY MAINTENANCE

• CHRISTMAS TREE MANAGEMENT• FOREST MANAGEMENT PLANNING• FOREST RECREATION PLANNING• WOODLOT IMPROVEMENTS IN

IMMATURE STANDS• WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT

• FOREST TAXATION PLANNING

(716) 665-54771894 CAMP ST. EXT.

JAMESTOWN. NY 14701

NY FOREST OWNER

two locations in Ulster County. All of thefisher were thoroughly examined andeartagged prior to their release.

Fisher movements were monitoredthrough observations by sportsmen, hik-ers, other outdoor enthusiasts, and our fieldstaff. Bait stations were established eachwinter to determine possible fisher pres-ence evidenced by tracks in fresh snow. By1984, fisher were documented throughoutmost of the potential range. Examinationof reproductive tracts from several roadkills and other accidental mortalities indi-cated that reproduction had occurred.

In 1985, an experimental, limited fishertrapping season was established in a por-tion of their range. Fisher managementlargely is dependent on biological infor-mation gathered from fisher taken duringopen trapping seasons and this informationwas needed to determine the success of theCatskill fisher program. From 1985 to1987, 19 fisher were taken by licensedtrappers. Mandatory carcass examinationswere conducted by our biologists. All butone of the 19 fisher were progeny from theoriginal releases, and almost all of themwere taken incidental to other land trap-ping activities. As a result of the informa-tion gathered from cooperating trappers,annual trapping seasons were establishedin those Catskill units where fisher arepresent.

Only a limited number of fisher havebeen taken in recent years. As a result of adepressed fur market, trapper participa-tion, especially for land set species, hasdeclined. Two cases of canine distemperhave been documented in juvenile fisher .This disease became prevalent in raccoonsin the 1 980' s and may have had an impacton fisher since fisher often eat raccoons.However, deer survey crews recently ob-served a strong fisher presence in much ofthe High Peaks region of the Catskills.That fisher now are present in southeasternNew York is testimony to the excellentresults that can be attained through thejoint efforts of the Department and li-censed fur trappers .

From Furbearer Management Newsletter.Fall 1992. Bureau of Wildlife. WildlifeResources Center, Delmar, NY 12054.

13

Rabies UpdateSince the first of the year, there have

been 1,368 confirmed rabid animals inNew York. The breakdown is as follows:bat 57 muskrat 1cow 14 opossum 2cat 26 pig 1coyote 2 red fox 81dog 6 raccoon 1,058deer 3 sheep 1gray fox 13 skunk 82horse 3 woodchuck 18

These cases have occurred in 38 coun-ties. Three counties (Franklin, Clinton,Essex) are affected by the fox rabies out-break. The remaining, listed below, areaffected by raccoon rabies. Remember:any mammal can get rabies so be wary ofany odd behavior in domestic or wildmammals.

Raccoon Rabies CountiesAlbany Delaware Putnam SteubenAllegany Dutchess Rensselaer SullivanBroome Erie Richmond TiogaBronx Greene Rockland TompkinsCattaraugus Livingston Saratoga UlsterChemung New York Schenectady WestchesterChenango Ontario Schoharie WyomingColumbia Orange Schuyler YatesCortland Otsego Seneca & Cayuga

GENERAL FUND34%

The four major funding sources for NewYork'sfish and wildlife management programs.

aJNSERV AnON FUND51%

F~ ••.• Aid irdJdM Pitrn.,-Roblrtaonn:I Origell-Jotn.on Md•.

Nolan'sSporting Supplies

Outdoor EqUipment SpeCialist

37 - 47 Genesee StreetAuburn. NY 13021

315/252-7249


A Balancing ActIssues that the Council will address

include retention and expansion of theforest industry, development and expan-sion of a value-added wood products in-dustry, open space conservation and forestuse, and protection of long-term forestresource productivity and renewability.

Since the Governor's TaskForce on theForest Industry issued its report in 1989,New York State has taken a number ofsteps to maintain and expand the state'sforest industry, including:

-conducting aggressive and responsibleforest management programs on state for-ests and wildlife management areas tomake more wood products available whileproviding recreational opportunities andother environmental and social benefits;

-promoting natural resource educationthrough such programs as Project LearningTree, Tree Farms and the Pack ForestEnvironmental Education Center inWarrensburg;

-continuing to work with the forest in-dustry to expand domestic and interna-tional markets for New York wood prod-ucts and working with local economicdevelopment groups on regional forest in-dustry development;

-monitoring forest health and dissemi-nating information about forest pests anddiseases and their potential impacts.

-funding wood products developmentstrategies in the North Country and West-ern New York regions through grantsawarded under the Urban DevelopmentCorporation's Regional Economic Devel-opment Partnership Program; and

-awarding in the past three years over$1.3 million in State economic develop-mentgrants and loans to 14 wood productsmanufacturers in most regions of upstateNew York and in New York City. Stateresources have helped to upgrade the skillsof employees, promote exports, modern-ize facilities, and assess productivity andcompetitiveness problems.

'TheFiuure of ~W 'Yor/( is in the TorestGovernor Forms Tree Council

overnor Mario M. Cuomo has an-

Gnounced the creation of a ForestResources Development Council

to help the New York State forest productsindustry become more competitive whilepreserving the forests as a recreationalresource.

The Council will be co-chaired by rank-ing representatives of the New York StateDepartment of Economic Developmentand Environmental Conservation.

"New York State recognizes the impor-tance of the forest industry and values itscontributions and economic potential. Wealso recognize that we must ensure thatfuture generations will be able to enjoy ourforest," Governor Cuomo said. "The For-est Resources Development Council willenhance dialogue with the forest industryand promote a more effective partnershipbetween industry and government."

The Council will provide advice andrecommendations to the Governor onpolicy, administrative and legislative ac-tions to improve the forest industry as wellas preserve forest resources. The Councilwill also focus on ways to implement therecommendations of the Governor's Task

Force on the Forest Industry.

"We realize our forests are not only theraw material source for other countries, butincreasingly serve as the source for a vi-brant and growing finished wood productsindustry here in New York State itself,"said State Director of Economic Develop-ment Vincent Tese.

"New York State has done much toensure that our forests continue to providethe many benefits that all New Yorkersenjoy," Department of EnvironmentalConservation Commissioner Thomas C.Jorling said. "The Governor will be look-ing to this Council for recommendationsthat will strength the industry while en-hancing the quality and stability of thisvast resource for generations to come."

The Forest Resources DevelopmentCouncil, one of Governor Cuomo's Stateof the State initiatives and a key recom-mendation of his Forestry Industry TaskForce, includes 24 leaders of the woodproducts industry and will be co-chairedby DEC Deputy Commissioner RobertBendick and DED Senior Deputy Com-missioner Dennis Allee.

A treefarm inDenmark.

Yes, I'd like to find out more about the NYFOA tours.Please send me information about

o the NYFOA Southern Tour March 13-23.

o the NYFOA Alpine Tour May 9-23.

Please check the tour(s) of interest, clip, and return to:Alan Knight, 96 Targosh Road, Candor, New York 13743.

(Please include your name and address when returning this form.}

NY FOREST OWNER 14

Announced by NYS DEC CommissionerThomas Jorling at the November 5.1992Empire State Forest Products AssociationAnnual Fall Meeting. North Syracuse.


LEGISLATIONBy David J. Colligan

he State of New York has a veryT active legislative body. Thou-sands of individual legislative

pieces are introduced annually. Eachact is supposed to receive careful con-sideration and deliberation. Unfortu-nately, many of the acts that are passedare enacted in a "whirlwind" final ses-sion. True to form, the New York StateAssembly approved 798 bills in the twoweeks before the session ended July 3,1992 (based upon an Associated Pressreport). This represents almost half ofthe 1,688 bills passed by the Assemblyin 1992.

It is simply amazing how quicklyand thoughtlessly major legislative ini-tiatives are passed into law in this state.As land owners, we must be vigilant toidentify potential legislative issues and

Stop LosingYour Seedlings

Seedling trees needtuo things:Prdediooand moisture. ~~~~fTubexTreesheltersgive them both.

A 4 foot Tubex installedover a 12 inch seedlingkeeps it safe from animals,herbicides, andIt also captures humidity,like a mini-qreenhouse,increasing survival andgrowth ... everything aseedling needs to becomethe crop tree you want.

CaD today for a FREEcatalog. Written byforesters, it explains howTree Farmers nationwideuse Tubex to make theirregeneration Pans successful.

1-800-24TUBEX(1-800-248-8239)

etulbax*NY FOREST OWNER

follow them from their inception to addour views to the legislative processbefore a law has been passed. We needto be able to convey our views to legis-lators. Many legislators vote on for-estry and land owner laws with only anurban viewpoint which is often com-municated to them by New York Cityspecial interest groups. Most legisla-tors welcome contact from their ownconstituents to help educate themselvesand clarify the impact of these legisla-tive initiatives on voters within theirdistricts. One very effective method ofcommunicating the views of forestowners is for members of NYFOA tovolunteer on an individual basis to con-tact their respective district representa-tives in the Assembly or the Senatewhenever an importantlegislative pieceis being considered by the legislature.

Please write a short note to me, incare ofNYFOA's corporate offices atP.O. Box 180 Fairport, New York14450 and indicate your willingnessto contact your legislators.

Even if you are not sure who yourlegislators are, if you give us youraddress, we will try to ascertain thedistrict you are within. Thereafter, alist

of names will be compiled which willreceive "legislative alert" notices fromNew York Forest Owners Associationto indicate that matters are being con-sidered by the legislature that needs ourimmediate input. These matters willnot occur very often, but when they do,fast action will be necessary. If eachperson contacts their legislators, a newvoice will be heard from the land own-ers who are effected the most by manyof these new laws; and we feel confi-dent that it will make a significantdifference.

We look forward to hearing from asmany members as possible.

David Colligan is Chairman ofNYFOA's Legislative Committee.

-- VOSS SignsDept. NIT. Box 553. Manlius. N.Y. 13104

Ph. (315) 682-6418(Mon.·Frt.9-5)

F'lmUy Owned & Operatea for over 25 years

LANDOWNERSMaples, Cherry & Red Oak are in strong demand, if you are

interested in selling some of your standing Timber consider ...Each tree to be sold is marked according to YOUR specifications.We send notices to reputable log producers & exportersSealed bid opening determines the highest bidderPayment is made in advance to any harvest operationAll harvest operations are supervised by our forestersWe retain a security deposit until owner is completely satisfied.Guaranteed to net YOU the highest price for your timber.

Write or Call For A Free PamphletRobert Synowiez - Professional Forestry Consultants

~-,~) ~jlJ1wb!r.!got o, NY 13827:.r 607/687 -0460


Hunting Bucks. Hun t terrain that is frequented by deer.. Know the terrain you're hunting.Most experienced hunters may remark

that all of the above goes without saying.Yet many of them are unsuccessful still-hunters, mostly because they move toofast. In the last 10 years, 80 % of the bucksI've taken have been by stillhunting, usu-ally one buck each year. My success is dueto following the conditions stated above.

Some say that bagging a buck is luck,but! believe in the adage, 'You have to bein the right place, at the right time and dothe right thing." Sometimes, it is just plainluck, but usually it takes skill to bag a buck.

ByWes Suhr

Killing deer offends some people,and I can respect their opinionwithout agreeing with them. The

white-tail is a magnificent animal, highlyadapted to the hardwoods and mixed coni-fer/hardwoods of our Northland. His coloradaptation is about the best camouflagegoing, unless there is snow in the back-ground. His acute vision, hearing, andsense of smell make it difficult to getwithin shooting distance while still-hunt-ing. I don't think there is an environ-mentalist who appreciates deer more thanI do, but I love to stalk them and I also likevenison.

"Stalking" the buck has many benefits.It sharpens your senses, makes you morealert. The quiet exercise is great for thebody, and the serenity of being in thewoods releases, almost voids, everydayproblems.

And it helps to manage the woodlot.You may see acoupleofwindfalls tocutupfor firewood, you plan a thinning job for adense stand, you see superb trees thatshould remain and diseased stems thatshould be cut. Mostly, you see a lot of workout there, but today you are completelyenjoying the hunt. If you don't bag yourbuck, so what; you're content with justenjoying the woods.

To me "still-hunting" is stalking. Itamounts to moving very slowly and takinga series of short duration stands. Usually Itake 3-to-6 slow steps, followed by a standof a few minutes. If the conditions lookpromising for deer, I'll stand for severalminutes. Glance down often so you don'tstep on and crack any branches on theground. If you lack patience, still-huntingis not for you.

There are some necessary conditionsfor successful stillhunting:

· Wind blowing from your front quad-rant (into your face).

·Quiet or wet ground litter (may as wellstay home if litter is frozen or cracklin'dry).

·Proceed up the leeward side of slopes.As you approach the top, go very, veryslowly and quietly. Take your stand whereyou can just barely see over the top (headis exposed, not the body).

·Snow cover is a real asset, not only forrecognizing fresh tracks, but deer reallystand out against the white background.

NY FOREST OWNER

NOTE' This article does not reveal myfeelings on killing a buck. It is best de-scribed with my accompanying poem:

Buck Kill at Running Brook

You knew the Running BrookAnd tasted its cool water,

You leaped the riffled courseAnd browsed its brushy cover.

On the bank of Running BrookAs you rubbed on sapling bark,

In your moment of unawarenessThe hunter found his mark.

Gone in precious momentA gift of grand creation,

Awakened sudden sadnessAnd ended recreation.

A veil of compassionSettled on woodland scene,

As hunter offered solemn prayerNear that running stream.

All these gifts were manifestEach flowing from the Maker,

Joined living woods to harvestWith loving thanks, creator.

16JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1993

INVESTING IN MOOSEBy Eric A. Johnson

ames reveal a great deal about his-

NtOry,because they rarely change asrapidly as the world around them. Inthe part of the country where I live,

the names given long ago to physical fea-tures like mountains, towns and rivers, area lesson in natural history-usually reveal-ing much more about the past than thepresent.

Few if any moose live anymore in myneck of the woods, the Central AdirondackRegion of the six million-acre AdirondackPark in New York State. Still, the town Ilive in forms the headwaters of the MooseRiver, and there are numerous other refer-ences to the species in both natural andman-made features. We've got the MooseRiver Plains, BigMoose Lake, Little MooseMountain, Little Moose Acres (sub-divi-sion), the Big Moose Inn (a restaurant andbar), and so on.

My guess from reading the map and roadsigns is that this area was crawling withmoose of all sizes at one time. But no more.I'm told that excessive hunting and a brainworm carried by increasing white tail deerpopulations did them all in.

Somebody actually spotted one of theungainly creatures crossing the highway afew weeks ago--such a rare event that thenews made the local papers. This roughlycoincided with an announcement by thestate that it intends to re-introduce moosepopulations in an area east of here (out onthe Moose River Plains past Little MooseLake and towards Little Moose Mountain),at an initial cost of some $3 million.

This has caused some of us to scratch ourheads and ask, "why here; why now?" Afew weeks ago I attended a meeting featur-ing the commissioner of the New York

******

ThoringtonForestry Service

16 Years ExperienceNew LowRates in EffectPLUS 10% DiscountFor NYFOA Members

1025 Skyhigh Rd.• Tully. NY 13159315-696-8002

NY FOREST OWNER

State Department of Environmental Con-servation, Thomas Jorling. Somebodyasked him why the state has fallen behindits targeted annual timber harvest on man-aged state forestlands, and why it is con-templating further budget cuts that wouldresult in even less forestry activity on stateland. Wouldn't silviculturally sound tim-ber harvests and sales generate badlyneeded income for the state coffers, theyasked? Indeed it would, the commissionersaid. The trouble, he noted (and I'm para-phrasing here), is that to make money youhave to spend money up front, in the formof a bigger budget for hiring more forestersto mark the timber and manage the sales.Increasing budgets is a political impossi-

. bility in today' sworld, he explained, whichis why the state won't be able to generatetimber income until such time as it doesn'treally need it. The commissioner said itmade no sense to him either, but that therewas nothing he could do about it. Contactyour elected representatives and lobby fora bigger DEC budget, he advised.

Iwish Ihad asked Commissioner Jorlinghow many foresters he could hire for $3million, and whether he figured the re-introduction of moose populations wouldcreate more jobs in the long run than moreaggressive management of state forests.But Ididn't.

Instead I got into a conversation with afriend about the Spruce Grouse, which isan endangered species in New York State,though not in other places. The state hasundertaken what I assume is an expensivestudy of whether Spruce Grouse popula-tions should be increased, and if so, how togo about it. "Would that include creatingmore favorable habitat?" I asked. He saidit certainly would. "Clearcutting and siteconversion?" Could be.

JOHN GIFFORD 716/664-5604 (8)Broker 716/487 -9709 (R)

Vice President - Real Estate

Crown Building. 100 E. Second StreetJomestown. NY 14701

17

On the drive home I kept an eye open forwayward moose on the highway, whilepondering the implications of restoringnative species to the Adirondack Park-roughly half of which for the past 100yearshas been designated as "forever wild" for-est preserve, meaning that no trees can becut or forests otherwise managed. How doyou create a historically valid habitatoutofmixed hardwood stands that grew up afterthe native softwood species were burnedand/or clearcut and then the ground underthem locked up forever?

This prospect must create a real moraland ethical dilemma for anyone who be-lieves that while it's wrong to cut trees onthe one hand, it's right to restore the land-scape to its original, biologically pristinecondition, on the other.Ithink it' s wrong, as Isaid a few months

ago on this page, to cynically use endan-gered species as pawns in the battle forcontrol over the nation's forestland. Still, Ithink it would be interesting to find anendangered species whose existence re-quired some form of responsible forestmanagement, and demand that it be giventhe same consideration as others, such asthe northern spotted owl out West or thered-cockaded woodpecker down South.

If we want to test the sincerity of thosewho promote biological diversity and "for-ever wild" philosophies in the same breath,then perhaps we ought to ask them to lookat a place where the two appear to be inconflict-the Adirondack Park.

Eric Johnson is the editor of the NorthernLogger and Timber Processor a monthlypublication of the Northeastern Loggers'Association. This was Eric's editorial forDecember '92.

Pete's PaintExtremely durable, highly visible tree marking paint

Avaiable •• lead free blue and leaded <:range and yellow.(Leed h. prI< is Mlilabl. t> oonsu"" /orosi••.•orly)

Competitively priced, Locally producedI can reil yru: cans to ~ recycle and ~ !he environment.

This pail! can be slipped UPS

at no hazardous material surcharge.

A to Z Forestry2523 Carson Rd .• Cortland, NY 13045

PHONE/FAX 607/849-6045


MARKETING CHRISTMAS TREES YEAR-ROUNDby David W. Taber

Christmas tree growers may havefelt an economic squeeze the lasttwo years. An overabundance of

real Christmas trees was available to buy-ers in many market areas. Too, many con-sumers were enticed to buy their Christmastrees by mail.

Also, artificial Christmas trees, from 8inches to 8 feet tall, are now available in avariety of fake species. They range in pricefrom less than $10 to more than $200. Theycan be used for more than one year and theydon't shed needles--features that someconsumers like.

Throughoutthe 1980s two to three timesas many trees were planted for Christmastrees than were being harvested. It is likely,therefore, that supply and demand couldhave a strong influence on reducing pricesfor cut Christmas trees. In addition, somegrowers, fearful their trees will becomepermanent forests, may have chosen to sellat lower than previously-planned prices.

Alternatives for Christmas tree grow-ers, relative to marketing the trees theygrow, can be profit and pleasure, depend-

ing on their personal situation and prefer-ences. Viable options for some growersinclude:

* Sell by choose and cut.* Sell some trees in pots in the spring

and fall for landscaping, and after Thanks-giving Day, for Christmas tree plants orplan table Christmas trees.

*Have trees dug, balled and burlapped,and sold for landscaping, by wholesale,

retail, and/or landscaping businesses.* Cut tops out of trees for marketing as

shorter trees or table top trees and sellbranches from stumps for roping, decora-tive boughs, and wreaths.

*Market seedlings, transplants, or smalltrees for Arbor Day, celebrated on the lastFriday in April.

Successful marketing includes know-ing one's production costs, marketing costs(which include advertising and sellingcosts), and expected profit, as a basis forestablishing profitable selling prices.

Article 14 of the New York StateDepartment of Agriculture and Mar-kets Law requires that each grower ofpotted, or balled and burlapped ever-greens (for sale) shall register as a"nurseryman; provided, however, thatthe word 'nurseryman,' shall not in-clude persons engaged in the part-time production of plant products notsold in the regular channels of busi-ness." See Circular 917 of the NewYork State Department of Agricul-ture and Markets.

~1'l][)~]j[18:1'l••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••In July the "Christmas tree" discarded

by the side of a highway in Syracuse was anevergreen shrub or small tree (with persis-tent leaves), but not a coniferous tree.

Its leaves were deep green or blue-greenand leathery. The leaves were small (alittle larger than a quarter), oblong withtapering ends, and had easily seen spiny-toothed leaf-margins.

Bright red persistent and mature berry-like fruits (drupes) clung to the maze ofinterwoven stems among the leaves on the3 foot-tall Christmas tree-shaped plant.

When I stopped by the roadside andlooked at it closely Isaw what it really was:

NY FOREST OWNER

holly. Although I was unaware of it, somespecies of holly do grow in New York.

Blue holly, a hybrid species (scientificname: Ilex x meserveae) with leaves simi-lar to the English holly (I. aquifoZium)grows in winter hardiness zones 5 to 9 andcan be grown in New York, according toRobertG.MowerofCornell'sDepartmentof Floriculture and Ornamental Horticul-ture.

He noted that this plant usually growsbest in acid soil of a pH less than 7.0(maybe 6.0 to 7.0). Mower also explainedthat the cultivars of Ilex x meserveae arecommonly sold by the_names Hex 'Blue

18

Boy,' 'Blue Girl,' 'Blue Maid,' 'BluePrin-cess,' and 'Blue Stallion.' They are eithermale or female plants. Both are needed ina planting for the female plants to producethe persistent "berries" which become bril-liant red in about September.

The Ilex x meserveae will grow in areasof sun to shade, and will reach 6-8 ft. highand 6-8 ft. wide, but it can be pruned to alower size.

You may be interested in growing thisplant for profit as a holiday season orna-mental (similar to a Christmas tree) in anorchard to harvest its decorative boughs orin a plantation to sell as landscaping stock.

JANUARY/FEBRUARY1~

The White House TreeBy Dick O'Donnell

ithout a doubt, Teddy Roosevelt

Wwas America's most colorfulpresident. Among other things,

the 26th chief executive was a big gamehunter, an explorer, and an author andeditor. He was a war hero too. During theSpanish-American War, he led the famousRough Riders in their legendary charge upSan Juan Hill.

He was also a man of peace. In 1905,Roosevelt was awarded the Nobel PeacePrize for his part in ending the war betweenRussia and Japan.

Most of all, TeddyRooseveltwasamanof his word. He was a politician who did hislevel best to keep his promises to thevoters.

When he was campaigning for reelec-tion in 1905, Roosevelt told the voters: "Ipledge to do everything I can to save ournation' s forests. Greedy men are destroyingthem to make money."

In November of that year, Rooseveltwas returned to office by the voters. Hewas re-elected by a healthy margin- twomillion votes more than his opponent.

Nowadays, a two million vote victorymay not seem like much in a presidentialelection. But it must be remembered, backthen, the population was much smaller,and the female half of the nation did nothave the right to vote. So, all things consid-ered, those two million votes amounted toa landslide victory for Roosevelt.

As soon as the votes had been counted,the President invited the White Housepress corps to his office.

He informed the press: "We are notgoing to have a Christmas tree at the WhiteHouse this year."

"Why not, Mr. President?" inquiredone of the surprised reporters.

Said Roosevelt: "I made a campaignpromise, and I'm going to keep it. I'mgoing to do all in my power to save thenation's forests."

Another reporter asked: "How will nothaving a Christmas tree at the White Housesave the forests, Mr. President? After all,it's only one tree."

"Other Americans will follow my ex-ample," President Roosevelt pointed out.

NY FOREST OWNER

Gifford Pinchot

"And that way , thousands and thousands ofpine trees will not be chopped down. Treesbelong in the forests, and notin the homes."

Word of Roosevelt's decision spreadacross the nation. To be frank about it,most Americans were shocked by the news.All things considered, Roosevelt probablylost that two million vote majority thatswept him into office when he bannedChristmas trees at the White House.

Two young Americans who happenedto live at theWhite House were also alarmedby the President's ruling. They were Archieand Quentin, the President's young sons.

"We've always had a tree," saidQuentin. "It just won't be Christmas with-out one this year."

However, Archie, the older of the two,had an idea. "Let's sneak a tree into ourroom," he said. "Father will never see it.He never comes into our room."

The two boys did just that. But nosooner had they decorated the tree thantheir father entered the bedroom lookingfor Archie to run an errand. Naturally, hewas more than slightly annoyed by what hefound. In fact, he was so annoyed, thePresident of the United States, right thenand there, gave his two sons a paddling.

"Get that tree out of the White House!"he ordered. "And don't let any of thenewspaper people see you carrying it out."

Normally, a presidential command isobeyed without question. Nevertheless,Archie and Quentin were determined to

1 9

keep their tree, if they could. Thus it wasthat Archie had another bright idea.

"Let's go see Mr. Pinchot," he said."What for?" his brother wanted t know."He's Father's chief advisor on how to

save the forests," said Archie slyly "Maybehe can think of something to help us out."

Later that same day, forestry expertGifford Pinchot visited the President in hisoffice.

"Mr. President," he said, "I think youshould allow the boys to keep their tree."

"It's a family matter, Gifford," re-sponded Roosevelt. "I can't have the boysdisobeying my orders. Besides, I've givenmy word to the voters. I've promised themI'd save the forest. You know that, Gifford.I can't go back on my word to them."

Pinchot, it should be noted, was awayon a trip when Roosevelt held his pressconference, and had not returned to Wash-ington until that morning.

"Mr. President," he said, "you won'tsave the forest by refusing to have a tree inthe White House. Crop rotation is the wayto save the woodlands."

"Crop rotation," said the puzzled Presi-dent. "What's that?"

"It is simply planting new trees to re-place the trees that have been choppeddown," clarified the expert. "That wayyou'll have a fresh crop of trees ready tochop every year."

President Roosevelt flashed one of hishappiest smiles. "Bully!" he exclained.

The next day, the press was summonedto Roosevelt's office again. The reporterswere told a system of crop rotation wouldbe established in the nation's forests im-mediately.

"I am also lifting the ban against Christ-mas trees at the White House," the Presi-dent added. "We're having one this year."

He flashed one of his famous toothysmiles. But it was a weak one.

Thanks to GiffordPinchot, the Rooseveltboys did have a Christmas tree in 1905.And there has been one on display at theWhite House during the holiday seasonever since.

From The Northern Lo~~er and TimberProcessarDecember 1988.


R.J. Fox, EditorRD#3,Box88Moravia, NY 13118(315) 497-1078

FOUNDED 1963

1j,)FLJOHN & HELEN MARCHANT45 CAMBRIDGE COURTFAIRPORT. NY 14450

LettersDear Editor,

Maybe I've missed it, but I don't re-member ever seeing anything much aboutJapanese Larch in your publication.

I've got thousands of beauties - theymust be good for somethin2.

It would be nice if you could have aqualified forester and marketer come upwith a short article.

Thank you,A. Feldmeir. Little Falls, NY

This request, which first appeared inthe last issue (NOVIDEC 92) of THE NYFOREST OWNER, has prompted your

editor to seek an answer from the NYSDEC Bureau of Land Use personnel:namely, Jim Peek, a Utilization andMarketing Forester from the DECRegion 7 Cortland Office. Jim gaveme a 'short, quick answer' which wasquick enough but not so short. Jim haspromised an article to address thequestion in aforthcoming issue.

Theforestry perspectives ofallDECservice foresters includes utilizationand marketing •.however, the specialrequirements of identification withthe relevant industry calls for a spe-cialist. Accordingly, the State of NewYorkD EC throug h the Bureau ofLandUse provides such specialists in eachregion.

NY FOREST OWNER 20

.)

9211

WOODLOTCALENDARJan. 12: CDC -7 PM, Hudson ValleyCom. College, Vandenburg Rd., Troy;"Growing Nuts", Karl Davies & JohnHerrington; Call (518) 872-1456.Jan. 14: STC - 7:30 PM, ExtensionBldg., Front St., Binghamton; "LocalProperty Tax Assessment".Jan. 16: AFC, NFC - 1 PM, HollandTown Hall; Pot-Luck Dinner; (716)322-7398 or (716) 557-2529.Jan. 20: WFL - 7:30 PM; ExtensionBldg., HighlandAve.,Rochester; "CashCropping Hybrid Chestnuts", BillWininger, 716-367-2849.Feb. 13, 14: CAY - CABIN FEVERFESTIVAL; Fillmore Glen State Parle,Moravia; (315) 497-1078.Feb.27:AFC-lOAM, WoodswalkatAllegany State Parle; (716) 557-2529.Feb. ( ): NAC "Hot" Logging Job;(315) 848-2136.

April 24: NYFOAANNUALSPRINGMEETING: MARSHALL HALL,SUNY ESF, SYRACUSE.


The New York Forest Owner - Volume 31 Number 1

Documents

Transcript of The New York Forest Owner - Volume 31 Number 1