I have had the pleasure of working in forests on a wide variety of soil types. The ones I have the most experience on are the clay-loam at the family farm and the sand that makes up our home soil. What I have learned is that you can’t ignore what is under your feet when […]
Blog
Strategies for controlling invasive plants
I, and the rest of our clan, spend as much time as we can in our woods. Our time is split among harvesting trees and other forest products from the woods, having a good time, and keeping an eye on trees and property boundaries. Every time we are in the woods we watch for changes […]
Now is the time to plan for the future
I recently I took down the 2017 calendar, and hung up the 2018. It’s actually a really beautiful calendar of Wisconsin natural features. Along with those calendars came some work planning for the year. Funny enough, it turns out that my blog topic for the month is on management plans. The timing for this topic […]
Improving your trees through pruning
Winter is the time when our family enjoys the warmth from the firewood we have gathered, and prune the branches on the trees we planted. This is the best time to prune because the trees are dormant, and the insects, diseases and fungi that would normally infect open wounds in trees (like those created when […]
What to expect when you contact a forester
The last couple of weeks, we’ve been teaching our Learn About Your Land classes for landowners in the southeast part of the state. Most of these landowners enjoy their woods, but haven’t thought about it from a management perspective. For some this is a family property they visited as a kid, or land where they […]
If you don’t know where you’re going, you might end up somewhere else
Setting clear goals and priorities can help create a game-plan for climate changeBy: Stephen Handler Changes Ahead As a forest landowner, you might be hearing more about the predictions for climate change in Wisconsin. Temperatures will likely continue to rise, especially in winter. Over the 21st century, winters will likely bring less ice cover and […]
Choosing the right trees and shrubs to plant to attract wildlife
A landowner approached me looking for some advice as to which trees and shrubs to plant to bring more wildlife into her property. Before I could give her a list to procure, I needed to know a bit more about what she is looking to attract and what the conditions are like on their property. […]
Pesky pests
Have you been out in the woods lately? If so, you are lucky the mosquitoes and flies haven’t carried you away. With all the rain we’ve had this year, we have breeding grounds everywhere. On top of that, there was news this past week of both a bird testing positive with West Nile in Marathon […]
Ode to a leaf
I am often amazed by leaves and their varied looks and feels; how they work; the role they play in the overall health of the plants, insects, fungi, and animals in our forests; and their ability to move us without even trying. Their texture ranges across the spectrum from the roughness of elms to the […]