Green Horizons News for people who take their trees seriously Vol. 7, No. 2 Summer 2002 Missouri’s First Female Forest Consultant Given 2001 Forest Conservationist of the Year Award Skip Mourglia, consulting forester and owner of Heartland Forestry, was the recipient of the 2001 Forest Conservationist of the Year award, presented by the Missouri Conservation Federation at its annual convention in Springfield, Missouri on April 5. This is a singular honor, awarded to the individual who has accomplished the most in forest conservation over the past year. A resident of Monett, in southwest Missouri, Skip is one of the busiest consulting foresters in the state. Her professional time is divided between both rural woodland management and urban residential tree services. When she isn’t managing timberlands, marketing timber sales or preparing tree damage appraisals, she is designing and planting treescapes and managing urban trees for optimum health. Known in her neck of the woods as "the Tree Lady," Skip is a Certified Arborist and spends the growing season tending tree plantings for corporate clients like Bass Pro Shops and Silver Dollar City as well as numerous local homeowners. Skip graduated from Southern Illinois University in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science in Forest Resource Management. She moved to Missouri in 1982 when awarded a contract to inventory forestlands on the Mark Twain National Forest. By the time her inventory contracts ended in 1988 she had walked over 130,000 acres of the Mark Twain National Forest and all of Peck Ranch Conservation Area in Carter County. In 1997, the Missouri Forest Products Association asked Skip to design the Forest Management and Best Management Practices training for loggers in their Professional Harvester Training Program. She trained loggers in many locations throughout the state and feels this assignment was her largest contribution to improving forest conditions throughout the state. Skip is currently assisting the Science Horizons project in southwest Missouri, designed to encourage 6th-8th grade girls to consider science careers. Whenever possible, she volunteers with the local schools to engage students in tree planting and maintenance projects. She and her husband, Rex, have three children: Caleb, 14, Rachael, 12, and Marc, 11. Help Ensure Tree Survival and Maximize Growth Potential Dusty Walter Center for Agroforestry In most parts of the Mid-West, this is the time of year that the heat is on and the good Lord’s irrigation is shut-off. This combination can spell trouble for trees, especially those newly- planted. Yet, there are ways to help ensure that trees live through droughty periods. This same management will also help maximize the growth potential of a given tree on given site. Maximized growth means trees will be taller, have fuller crowns, and better diameters. The management I am referring to the control of competition from nearby vegetation. There are many methods for controlling competition from "weeds" And let me be up front, I use the term weed broadly to also include most grasses. Grasses, especially those like tall fescue that form sods are, in many cases, the most competitive of weed types. What is not included in my definition of weeds is all legumes. Some legumes can in fact be beneficial to tree growth in that they "fix" nitrogen from the air as well as incorporate it into the soil where it becomes available to the trees while competing minimally with trees for water. The methods for controlling competition are many. Whatever method you choose, its application can be facilitated by proper spacing (as defined by the equipment used) of the managed trees. Included in the list of weed control options are cultivation (often termed mechanical), mulches (including weed barrier fabrics) and the use of chemicals. Mowing is not good weed control! Although mowing controls competition above the ground for light, weeds are still in competition for the available water and nutrients on a site. Moreover, with both cultivation and mowing you run the risk of hitting a tree and creating a wound that is likely to reduce the tree’s value if harvested for timber. While economics might not be the overriding concern of all landowners, a healthy tree that maximizes it’s growth potential on a site will better meet any and all objectives, whether conservation, aesthetic or timber production. So, regardless of your reason for managing trees, why not strive to produce the best. That said, let’s take a brief look at the individual methods of weed control. Mechanical Cultivation can be effective in controlling vegetation. Equipment such as a disc, rototiller and hoe can be used individually or in combination. Cultivation should begin in the spring and should be done as necessary to control weeds as they reach about 6 inches in height. You will probably need to cultivate anywhere from 3-6 times a growing season. To avoid damage to seedlings and trees, you should keep disc, rototiller and other mechanical methods of control at least 6-9 inches from your trees and till no deeper than 4 inches to avoid damage to root systems. While this is preferable to no weed control, to really be effective will require supplemental hand cultivation (or herbicide, or mulching) adjacent to individual trees or seedlings. Mulching Mulch can effectively reduce or eliminate weed competition close to the tree, conserve moisture and, in some cases, increase organic matter in the soil. In addition to the more traditional mulches like sawdust, wood chips, bark, shredded newspaper or aged silage, weed barrier fabrics can provide excellent weed control. Prior to applying a mulch treatment, soil should be weedfree. This again underlines the point that planning prior to planting goes a long way towards making easier the application of your selected weed control method. Mulches should be 4 inches deep and extend out from the seedling in a 2 to 4-foot diameter circle. When seedlings are small, the area of weed control can also be small, but as the seedling begins to grow, it will benefit from more extensive areas of weed control. As previously stated, weed barrier fabric is an alternative to the more traditional mulches. There are a number of different types of material used in making these fabrics. You should choose one that is permeable to air and water, yet not to sunlight. Typically, you will need to eliminate the existing vegetation and install the weed barrier prior to planting. The weed fabric, normally sold in rolls, is used to cover predesignated planting rows. An exception to this is a weed mat that is typically 4 feet square and has a cut from one side into the center to allow placement around existing trees. Finally, there has been research on the use of certain plants, in particular legumes, for use as "living mulches". Because living mulches provide ground cover, they can be extremely beneficial where erosion concerns exist. The ground cover they provide can also serve to limit the loss of soil moisture when compared to alternative control methods that may leave soil exposed to direct solar radiation. Legumes such as common hairy vetch, common white clover, red clover, and birdsfoot trefoil, have been shown to result in tree growth comparable to that observed where little or no vegetation exists. It is desirable that a living mulch have dense foliage, exhibit prostrate growing habits and be of a cool-season variety. Other points to consider are, that the plant is good at suppressing the growth of undesirable weeds, it is shade tolerant, contributes nitrogen to the soil, is easy to establish, persists relatively well and competes minimally with the trees. Chemical When applied according to label instructions and under the appropriate conditions (weather, time of year, etc.), herbicides can be a safe and effective means of controlling competition from weeds. Application can be made with handheld sprayers, backpack sprayers, or tractor mounted boom sprayers. Granular formulations can be applied using mechanical or handoperated spreaders. Whatever the form, when applying herbicide keep your equipment calibrated properly and follow label directions. Label directions will include information on application rate and methods, vegetation controlled and whether the chemical is compatible with the trees you have planted. Primarily, there are two types of herbicides that exist -- preemergent, applied to the soil before weeds emerge, and post- emergent, applied directly to foliage of growing weeds. When applied to the soil, pre-emergent herbicides stop seed germination or development. Foliar applied herbicides applied after weeds have emerged work in a number of different ways. There are also herbicides that have both soil and foliar active compounds that will eliminate weeds. In many cases a combination of pre- and post- emergent herbicides are necessary for effective, lasting control of weedy competition. Always read and follow label directions to be sure of each chemicals compatibility for mixing. And, when in doubt, contact the manufacturers representative for recommendations. Considerations in deciding which herbicide is appropriate will include: 1. tree species 2. weeds to be controlled 3. soil types and site conditions 4. method of hebicide application 5. the age of your trees Conclusion Proper management of competition from weeds will prove to be significant in helping achieve your goals for establishing and growing trees. Understanding the benefits of weed control leads to the next step, deciding which method is right for you and the trees you manage. Hopefully, this article will help get you started in making the decision to control competition from weeds. Remember, before you spend money on other cultural treatments, invest first in weed control! For additional information on cover crops please refer to http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/PDF/covercrop.pdf To assist in determining the proper selection of herbicide(s) to meet your needs the following web sites contain valuable cross reference information and should be consulted. (1) http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/forst2/mf656.pdf (2) http://forest.wisc.edu/extension/publications/76.pdf If you would like additional information on weed control or design of a tree planting please contact: Dusty Walter, UMCA Technical Training Specialist at (573) 884-7991 New Advice Column to Begin Next Issue Green Horizons is pleased to announce that starting with our October issue we will be adding an "Ask the Expert" column to allow our readers to pose questions that they would like answered by knowledgeable professionals. Please send any questions you would like answered to: Christa Jennette 203 ABNR University of Missouri Columbia, Mo. 65211 Or e-mail them to: JennetteC@Missouri.edu Questions may be combined with questions of a similar nature from others, in order to effectively cover some topics. Due to large numbers of questions, we may be unable to answer your question immediatly, but it will be kept on file. Newsletter deadlines Because your newsletter must be in the mail at least 30 days before the next organization meeting and another three weeks is needed to get it ready and through the printing process, the deadline for the next issue is: September 15, 2002 Send your newsletter material to: Christa Jennette, 203 Anheuser- Busch Natural Resources Bldg., Agroforestry Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, Mo. 65211. Phone (573) 882-9866. Your management tips, ideas, questions and experiences are most welcome! New Farm Bill Recognizes Old Concepts Larry D. Godsey Center for Agroforestry The passage of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, more commonly known as the Farm Bill, represents a dramatic shift in the stance of farm policy by acknowledging the fact that "stewardship" and "conservation" are not synonymous. Previous farm policy often emphasized "conservation," in terms of land or other natural resources being taken out of production and put into some land management practice that would preserve their integrity by banning their use. However, the new Farm Bill has finally acknowledged the concept of "stewardship," or the idea that land can be both conserved and productive at the same time. Agroforestry practices have become vital land management strategies to meet the goals of conservation and stewardship on private lands. Significant overhauls of existing conservation programs have given these programs new life. For example, the Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) has been given $5.6 billion in additional funding. In addition, EQIP has been streamlined, making these funds accessible to more landowners by doing away with the old priority areas and increasing the resource concerns for each state. Even more importantly, the new EQIP program will fund three specific agroforestry practices (alley cropping, riparian forest buffers, and windbreak/shelterbelts), and provide funds for forest stand improvement, tree/shrub establishment, tree/shrub pruning, and savanna restoration. A new program, called the Conservation Security Program (CSP), offers cost-share funds and land rental payments for landowners who want the flexibility of choosing their level of conservation involvement. The CSP is a three "tier" program that bases landowner payments on the level of conservation effort. Conservation practices for the CSP do not specifically identify agroforestry; however, certain agroforestry practices can be designed to meet the criteria for conservation practices listed in the program. For example, agroforestry practices can be designed that convert portions of cropland from soil-depleting uses to soil-conserving uses. Another new program called the Forest Land Enhancement Program (FLEP) specifically identifies enhancing the implementation of agroforestry practices as one of its program objectives. The FLEP program has replaced the Forestry Incentive Program (FIP) and the Stewardship Incentive Program (SIP). The FLEP program offers cost- share payments for the establishment of windbreaks/shelterbelts and riparian buffers. The program also emphasizes the establishment of practices for the purposes of carbon sequestration. For more information on these and other funding programs, contact your local USDA service center or the University of Missouri Center for Agroforestry (UMCA). The UMCA is in the process of publishing a complete guide to funding incentives for agroforestry. To receive a copy UMCA publications contact Christa Jennette at JennetteC@Missouri.edu or call 573-882-9866. Conference to Specialize on Marketing and Production of Specialty Forest Products The MU Center for Agroforestry is co-sponsoring an upcoming Specialty Forest Product Marketing and Production conference. The goal of the conference is to have the participants leave with a broadbased understanding of how to grow and market specialty crops, such as: forest mushrooms, seeds and cones, botanicals, woodland plant propagation, Christmas trees, florals, wild edibles, craft materials and handmade wooden furniture, woody agriculture pollen and pinestraw. Additional information about the conference can be obtained from the conference website listed in the calendar portion of Green Horizons. For those who do not have computer access, please contact Julie Rhoads for program information at: Julie Rhoads University of Missouri 203 ABNR Columbia, Mo. 65211 573-882-3234 rhoadsj@missouri.edu Calendar of upcoming events Oct. 25-26, 2002 Special Forest Products Production and Marketing Conference, "Exploring Markets for Food, Floral, Medicinal and Craft Products," to be held at the Drury Lodge and Convention Center in Cape Girardeau, Mo. For more information call Julie Rhoads at (573) 882- 3234; or e-mail her at: rhoadsj@missouri.edu Check it out on the web at: http://ilvirtualforest.nres.uiuc.edu/Conferences/SFP_Marketing_Conference.html September 19, 2002 The Karkhagne Club will hold their next meeting at State Fruit Experiment Station. There is also a meeting on October 24, 2002 at the Presley Center. For information, contact Karl Wolf at KarlR22@aol.com. Send event dates to: Christa Jennette 203 Anheuser-Busch Natural Resources Bldg. MU Center for Agroforestry Columbia, MO 65211