Green Horizons

Sustainable forest management is possible only through a collaboration of landowners, foresters, loggers, and mill operators. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and the Eastern Ozarks Forestry Council (EOFC) are jointly sponsoring a trial at the Coldwater Conservation Area near Greenville, Mo. (northern Wayne County) to identify which conventional or mechanical technologies can increase the profitability of thinning young and old Ozark hardwood stands, particularly mechanized thinning. Equipment used in the trial was demonstrated recently at an Oct. 30th landowner workshop.

"Thinning is expected to improve forest health and productivity, create new employment and marketing opportunities, and a more mechanized approach should increase operator safety," said Pete Becker, Eastern Ozarks Forestry Council (EOFC) research coordinator. "The proitability and environmental impacts of mechanized thinning are also being evaluated though this study."

The Barda QC 1400 feller buncher, designed by DAVCO Manufacturing, features a multi-tree cutting layout that decreases cycle times compared to single tree cutting systems.

In addition to mechanical thinning, operators demonstrated wheeled and tracked harvesters and grapple skidders, a feller buncher, a forwarder and a portable sawmill at a workshop on Oct. 30th at the Coldwater Conservation Area. The workshop was well-attended by land-owners, foresters, loggers, land managers and mill operators seeking to learn more about proitable forest management.

Attendees at the workshop viewed stands harvested by the equipment to see its impact on soil and trees, and foresters explained how trees were selected for removal or retention as crop trees (see related article below).

During the implementation phase of the MDC / EOFC study, each type of logging technology was performed on three 4-acre replicate plots. Criteria evaluated included productivity, costs, damage to residual trees, soil disturbance and soil compaction. Findings compiled from the mechanized thinning trial and field study will be presented in the spring 2005 issue of Green Horizons.

A Better Way To Thin

According to MDC Resource Forester Jason Jensen, tree size is often mistakenly equated with age, but in Ozark forests polesized oaks are typically just as old as the largest trees. Some people think that removing large trees will release the "young poles," but these often fail to show a growth response.

A Baker 3667 portable band saw was demonstrated at the workshop.

Unfortunately, the smaller, inferior trees are often the ones left to provide the next crop. Harvesting under this type of system is referred to as high grading. Many forestry professionals believe that this is an unsustainable system.

"How many ranchers sell off their most productive animals and rebuild their herd from the leftovers?" asks Cape County Extension Agronomist Gerald Bryan. "It doesn’t make any better sense to do this with trees."

Jensen notes that smaller trees are often the same age as the larger trees but are smaller in diameter due to the position of their crown. Harvesting these small trees salvages trees that would either die or never grow into a valuable crop tree.

"Removing some crowded trees frees those left to expand their crowns and increase both wood and acorn production. Deer, turkey, and other wildlife like those acorns," says Jensen.

Jensen believes that this type of thinning will improve forest health and productivity, and create new employment and marketing opportunities.

"A more mechanized approach should also increase operator safety," adds Jensen.