Clearcutting as a Silvicultural Option in Family Forests of Northeastern U S A - Chapter 1

Chapter 1 of this series explores the difficult decision making process when confronted with a severely degraded forest that nature's hand alone might never heal.

[@denislosieroutdoors]

From north of you in New Brunswick great explanation on clear cutting, I own 350 acres of a mixed forest and know having to work with some bad forestry practices from the past owners thanks for sharing your views in this video... things for me to think about Denis

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Hi Denis, and thanks for the invitation to view your channel. I am envious of your backhoe attachment! And you have a beautiful spot on the lake. Be safe! Vince

[@bradpj53]

Can't wait for the next video!

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

I have already shot much of the footage for two follow-up videos. Trouble is that I seldom have the free time to do all the editing until winter after I have completed that year's harvest. I hope that if you, like me, have a gut level aversion to clearcutting but own woodland that has been terribly degraded from past activities, that this video series will prompt you to consider clearcutting as an option in the process of establishing a better forest. Sometimes wiping the slate clean and starting over is as very good option. After you see the footage of some of the natural regeneration that I shot just this past week, I predict that you will have a hard time believing you are looking at the same flattened clearcut of less than a year and a half ago. Hope to hear from you again then! Vince

[@BusHuxley]

This is an incredibly well thought out video and plan. I really love how everything is shot in congress with your thorough explanations. I have learned an immense amount from your few videos and I find no more captivating content on youtube. I am managing a small woodlot (very small) down in western Maine and building a house from the trees I am thinning and milling. I have a channel you might be interested in. Similar setup for tractor logging, just 2wd on my end. Thanks for making these videos. I look forward to the next one.

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Hi Bus. I gain great satisfaction discovering that the planning and effort that goes into my few videos makes a difference to other small woodlot owners. I will definitely take a look at your channel and look forward to meeting you some day. Be safe! Vince

[@northerncaptain855]

Thank you! Excellent description and explanation of the your well thought out management plan. My wife and I own nearly 200 acres of Central Maine mixed growth forest. I can see that I clearly a need to thin out the fir that are more and more breaking off in wind storms, hopefully allowing for a better overall productive and healthy forest.

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Thank you! I made this video for woodlot owners like you who, like myself, are faced with the hard choices inherent in improving forests degraded by poor management practices in the past. I wish you great success and would love to meet you someday! Be safe in the woods! Vince

[@carlandrews5810]

Reminds me of our place :( Enjoying the videos.

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Hi Carl. Please tell me and other viewers more. Where is your woodlot? Was it in such pitifully degraded condition? What have you done to improve it? Had you already chosen the path that I chose, a different path, or has this video series helped you formulate a new plan of action? Vince

[@carlandrews5810]

Watching the whole series today. Hope you mention were you get your seedlings for planting. Great video!

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Hi Carl. My seedlings came from Irving Woodlands' forest tree nursery in New Brunswick, Canada. Their seedlings are top quality! However, the nursery is not in the business of selling seedlings. They grow them for Irving's many thousand acre annual planting program on their own forestland. However, I worked an agreement with Andrew, the Irving forester featured in my Chapter 1 video, to provide technical assistance and seedling purchase as part of my restoration process of which the harvest was only the first step. Thank you for your interest. Vince

[@pat7099]

Well done. I would only mention that the boundaries of your cuts should be square or circular to reduce edge for the benefit of wildlife and vegetative diversity.

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Pat, Thank you for your comment, especially because it prompted me to review what I thought I knew about the generalized prescription you refer to that calls for attempts to minimize edge. It also prompted me to do a bit more research including tapping the brain of a friend who recently retired after a long career as a wildlife biologist for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. For nearly thirty years of his career he was assigned to Maine's Bureau of Public Lands to advise its foresters on wildlife issues that needed to be considered in their forest management plans and activities. So here we go! The purpose behind that general prescription to reduce edge is to protect habitat of inner forest wildlife species and applies not to harvest block edges but to edges of remnant patches of forest that would be approaching too small a size to offer inner forest habitat opportunity. A reference that I frequently consult, "Biodiversity in the Forests of Maine - Guidelines for Forest Management," addresses the issue well beginning on page 107, provides very illustrative drawings on page 108, and on page 109 provides a very clear illustration of how the shape of a reduced in size patch of forest correlates with amount of edge and affects the amount of inner or deep forest habitat. You obviously are well versed in this concept. I mention it here for the benefit of other viewers interested in the topic. We are very fortunate in that our 213-acre (84 hectares) woodlot in Northern Maine adjoins to its east and south more than 200,000 acres (almost 80,000 hectares) of forest uninterrupted by farms, villages, or homes. If not for bodies of water and infrequently traveled gravel access roads, that vast forest landscape would truly be uninterrupted and offers vast areas of inner forest habitat. By virtue of its former agricultural history, our property offers the first edge habit to that large expanse of forest. Over the past 44 years we have deliberately sought to not only preserve but enhance our edge effect to the very clear benefit of several forest wildlife species that thrive on edge habitat whose vegetation differs considerably from that within a closed canopy forest. This edge expands both wildlife and vegetation diversity, not restricts it. If, on the other hand, our forestland had fit the description of "perforation" or "segregation" illustrated on page 108, Figure 14 of "Biodiversity in the Forests of Maine" we would have sought afforestation of former agricultural fields in such a way as to decrease edge and increase inner forest habitat. In such a scenario the balance would have tipped in the opposite direction. Does all this make sense and clarify the confusion? If not, or if you have any other wildlife related questions or comments, please voice them and I will ask my wildlife biologist friend to reply. I'm only so good as a middle man. Thank you very, very much for your comment. It led me, and no doubt other viewers, to a better understanding of this concept. Vince

[@marksparkplug7758]

Very nice video on the beginnings of bringing back to a healthy forest Vincent, I'm still working on my woodlot which you and I know that is life long. I had a bad wind storm that took down at least 30 cords of Sugar Maple, and a few Aspen, most of the Ash have been cleaned up. Thanks for sharing your forest and great to see you and Kathy are doing well.

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Hi, Mark. It's good to hear from you, and you are so right. The effort is life long but a very satisfying labor of love. Keep it up and, above all, be safe. Vince

[@sebastienweisser4839]

A new video from you definitely makes my day! Thanks again for an amazing tutorial as always!

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Thank you, and I wish you no days in the Yukon colder than -40 for the remainder of the winter! Vince

[@Windsor1492]

Watching this from Norway. Very inspiring to see how you mange and care about your forest!

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Thank you for your comment. I was inspired as a young man nearly fifty years by the superb forest management and care I witnessed in Europe, especially in Germany and Sweden but also in Austria, Switzerland, and Norway. So, I thank you and your predecessors for leading the world in such forestry practices. Vince

[@michelfrechette3430]

From Lévis, Québec, thanks a lot for your great videos! You deserve your name Vincent le professeur, you are such a good communicator and a great teacher, I have learned so much from you !!!!! Hope to see you soon !

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Michel, merci beaucoup, et je me réjouis également de vous rencontrer un jour. Soyez en sécurité dans les bois! Vince

[@michelfrechette3430]

Bombadil Tree Farms WoW vous parlez français !

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Non, Michel, ne sois pas impressionné. Je suis désolé de dire que même si j'ai travaillé pendant plusieurs années avec des bûcherons canadiens-français qui m'ont donné le surnom de «professeur», je n'ai jamais appris plus que quelques phrases simples en français. J'ai cependant beaucoup de chance d'avoir "Google Translate" pour ne pas paraître aussi ignorant. Merci une fois de plus. Vince

[@richardzacholl2152]

Just want to say thank you for the informative videos. I cut wood to heat our home and because of your videos, have come to understand that I have a lot to learn about becoming a better steward of my 4 acre wood lot. My respect Sir.

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Thank you, Richard. I make my videos for other woodlot owners, like you, who share a similar stewardship ethic and are personally involved in the boots on the ground effort. Hearing from them with comments like yours really makes my day! With a 4-acre woodlot, you should be able to manage it very intensively and accomplish some wonderful things in addition to heating your home from a carbon neutral fuel source. A person doesn't need to own a thousand acres to make a difference. My best wishes and be safe in the woods! Vince

[@kevinmccarthy6862]

HI Vince, I really miss seeing more videos and learing from you. I am a new land owner of over 300 acres in the United State in the State of Oregon. Will you be back on with more videos soon, I look forward to them.

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Hi Kevin, I just wrote a rather lengthy reply to the comment you offered to my Tractor Logging tutorial trilogy. I do caution with applying what I teach to your very different forest types and conditions of the Pacific Northwest. Some fit well, some so-so, and some not at all. Oregon's Cooperative Extension Service is well known for providing a plethora of valuable educational information to assist private small woodland owners. There is a good chance you have already accessed much of it. If not, I encourage you to do so. Be a safe, knowledgeable, and loving steward of your forest and please keep me posted with your progress. Vince

[@marcuszuech8226]

I'm so glad to see you back! Just started watching, but I hope you discuss recovery and improvement of the clearcut land in a later video, since that's the position I am in right now.

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Thank you, Marcus. Yes, that is what I plan. In fact, I plan to produce yearly follow-up videos for as long as I am alive discussing and showing the recovery. I have already cornered a retired wildlife biologist with nearly half a century of knowledge and experience. My hope is that he will join me this coming summer or fall to discuss wildlife considerations to take into account in establishing the next forest.

[@marcuszuech8226]

@@bombadiltreefarms314 Sounds great, I look forward to those updates. We did our clear to create some pasture, but I really benefited from your tractor logging series. Glad to watch anything you have to say about forrestry.

[@ericlee204]

Mr professor as always your video is so informative. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Eric, thanks for your comment. However, my credentials fall light-years short of being a professor. "Le professeur" is a nickname given to me more than forty years ago by fellow lumberjacks from French Canada. It translates to "the teacher," a respectable title but nowhere near that of a professor. Thanks again! Vince

[@JohnWhite-si4xc]

I always find your video's very helpful thank you

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

John, I thank you and am very happy that you find my videos helpful. Be safe in the woods! Vince

[@stevengonyaw1617]

If you don't thin your forest out, mother nature will

[@VicsYard]

Wow awesome!

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Thank you, Victor, and I'm glad that you found the video valuable. Vince

[@adammoggysawmilling5164]

Any new videos soon???

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

I have two follow-up videos on the clearcut in the works that I hope to complete and post on KZbin before the end of February. All the footage was shot months ago. I just need to edit the tangle into coherent videos. I also have a couple on different topics that require less editing work that I might attack first. If you don't see them by the end of February, please give me a nudge! Vince

[@chestersajkowicz1076]

Wonderful show, just wondering how long before the replant and what roll does the old tops play in that future forest?

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Thanks, Chester. Although I finally finished this video a few days ago, the harvest was completed about this time last winter. This past October I established a trail system throughout the clearcuts to allow me access for site preparation that I plan to begin this summer and fall followed by tree planting in 2011 and 2012. I'll leave you in suspense about the important role of the tops and other logging slash. I plan to discuss that in detail in Chapter 2 that I hope to post on KZbin by this time next year. Vince

[@chestersajkowicz1076]

Bombadil Tree Farms thanks I guess I will have to wait. I do enjoy the all the the posts thus far.

[@silverleapers]

Trees never grow well without their required mushrooms. A healthy forest is more than trees. Clearcuts and mushrooms/healthy forest soils; do not mix.

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Thank you for your insightful comment. How true except for the very incorrect assumption that clearcutting always results in an impaired or sterile soil microbial environment. It certainly can and often does, but it is not the clearcutting so much as the quality, quantity, and distribution of coarse and fine woody material removed versus left behind along with surviving root systems and their associated micorhhizal symbionts. In a follow-up video that I hope to film this summer and fall featuring a wildlife biologist and forester who specializes in silviculture, we will explore how the type clearcuts performed in this chapter 1 video contribute to improving, not exhausting, the forest soil microbial milieu and that that microbial life will grow and develop hand-in-hand with the new forest. They will interact with and benefit each other from the cradle. The seedlings of this new forest will not be infants thrown into a desert but nurtured in an enriching cradle. Believe me, I share your concern very deeply. Almost fifty years of my life has been devoted to the forest, and I did not embark upon these clearcuts half-cocked. Much thought, research, and discussion went into the planning in order to mitigate the same concerns that I share with you and that others, such as Peter Wohlleben and Suzanne Simard, have so brilliantly explored. Please keep in mind that clearcutting is not a activity that comes in a single, simple size or flavor. It appears in many variations including the type that can too often result in the scenario that you describe and that both you and I object to. I hope that you will check-in and view my follow-up video. I hope to have it posted no later than next winter. Thanks again, and I hope that we will meet again then! Vince

[@silverleapers]

@@bombadiltreefarms314 here is your test. Why did some of your trees become "runts" while others, a few feet away, 10" diameter trees? What species of fungus are on your healthy shaded seedlings connected to mature trees via the wood wide web vs the ones in your clearcuts devoid of such connections? How far can a seedling be from a forest before it is disconnected from it via the wood wide web (30 feet?!) by the cooking sun? These are critical questions that I am suggesting you have missed. Most silvi "culturalists" can not name 10 mushroom species that each of their seedlings demand for proper growth in a given habitat. What I would suggest you need is a forest ecologist that understands what keeps your trees alive and healthy. Clearcutting is not the way to develop a healthy forest, ever. If you "fed/nurtured" your desired spruce forest using the fir (the main fungi latch on to both species) and strip cutting you would have been far better off. Instead, you have created a desert that may never develop the soil biome it needs. If I am wrong. Do some ITS sequencing for fungi on the roots ($10 each sample) of the seedlings you planted in your clearcuts vs the ones near any residual forest and edges at year 2, year 5, year 10. ;-) I know what the results will be and suggest you are in for a chlorotic shock. Any very skilled mushroom forager picking 100 species will tell you pristine never cut old growth and 60+ year old clearcut regen have a very different mushroom assemblage (guess which gets sick easier?). Some never ever recover...as far as we know. What will you be inoculating your seedlings with? Where will the fungal mycelium come from? Which species should you use? flic.kr/p/QgZ9PU

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Please excuse my delayed response. I only noticed your comment today. The reason for the runts in my Norway spruce plantation is a mixture of genes, seedling vigor and root mass at the time of planting, micro-site characteristics such as a large boulder or bedrock preventing root penetration, and the subsequent loss in the race for the sky. Once that race is lost, the runt has no choice but to remain a runt. You bring up many issues that would involve summarizing volumes of quality research and writings to begin to address and clearly exceed what I could possibly summarize here. One thing is very clear, however, and I do not know how to express it without sounding adversarial. So please excuse me when I point out that you clearly suffer from a litany of rigid misconceptions and downright fallacies, ones that could be very readily altered by carefully observing nature and objectively appraising those observations. You also have concluded that I am uneducated in the issues that you very obviously poorly understand but whose terminology you freely toss around in a very reckless and even less convincing manner. You have also concluded that the vast array of resources that I have sought out and critically examined over several decades, including information from subject matter specialists, including more than one with extensive forest ecology training, can be easily discounted as marginally informed if not completely ignorant. Imposing one's romanticized ideas and zealotry upon nature is not only counterproductive but fails to respect nature. Reliable information is readily available, but useless if always met with denial if it disagrees with one's preconceived prejudices. I earnestly invite you to view the series of follow-up videos that I plan to produce so long as I remain alive and healthy enough to do so, and hope that you will be willing to view them objectively. What you will immediately recognize is your irrefutable error of referring to the site as a desert. It abounds with life. Vince

[@viorelscrob6391]

Is your forest?

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

Yes. We personally own this forest. Did that answer your question? Vince

[@viorelscrob6391]

@@bombadiltreefarms314 i have a forest too .

[@viorelscrob6391]

@@bombadiltreefarms314 here it does not allow us to cut just a little.

[@bombadiltreefarms314]

@@viorelscrob6391 Where is your forest? How large? What are your management goals? Do have any photos or videos on KZbin? Vince

[@viorelscrob6391]

@@bombadiltreefarms314 i am from ROMANIA i don't have a pictures now. But i can send you a pictures on mess tomorrow.