Forest Management Part 3 – Select thinning and tree harvest to improve the health of our forests.
Posted:10/23/2024
Black Hawk
Last months
article dove into Timber Stand Improvement (TSI) and the importance of these general
forest management practices to maintain a healthy, functioning ecosystem. Thinning/weeding is one of these practices in
a forest can be done through several different methods including a tree harvest
and crop tree release (CTR).
In October,
the Black Hawk County Conservation Board approved implementing a tree harvest
and thinning project as a part of the Black Hawk Park Developed Areas Plan. The
Wildlife Conservationist along with a private forester marked trees using
orange paint as part of this project. If
you have spent any time within the park recently I am sure you probably
wondered what the paint and numbers were for!
Thinning in a
forest using methods such as a tree harvest or crop tree release can help with
removing diseased or damaged trees in favor of healthy ones, removing weed
trees such as boxelder & locust in favor of hardwood species, and the removal
of old, overmature trees to create space for the next generation of
forest. Trees that have value as lumber are
sold through a competitive bidding process, creating the best value for that
tree and provide tax relief to the taxpayers of Black Hawk County.
Included
with this article is a map showing where the thinning and harvest will take
place this winter. A total of 175 trees
were marked for harvest which include species such as locust, oak, walnut, ash,
elm, hackberry, and silver maple.
Once the
harvest is complete, conservation staff will follow up with cleaning up of the
tops of the trees. This wood will be
used for firewood in our campgrounds or chipped to be used on our trail
systems. Staff will also implement Crop
Tree Release (CTR) on the desired young tree species such as oak, walnut, hard
maple, and coffee tree post-harvest to release them from competing species for
sunlight, moisture and soil nutrients.
Follow along
with the staff in the next Oak newsletters, as we dive more depth into post
harvest activities in Black Hawk Park including the implementation of CTR. As always, if you have any questions, please
contact the conservation headquarters at 319-433-7275.
