The Loggers are here!
It has been 25 years since we logged our property. It is time to harvest what we have managed for the last couple decades.
Half of our property is woods and very natural or perhaps I should say “wild”. We take walks through the woods or pick our way about on our ATVs to get around. Our woods are full of deer, turkeys, grouse, coyotes, and many other animals. You connect with nature because everything is untouched.
We were told to “manage” these woods every twenty to twenty-five years. That means you have to take trees out to make room for the young ones. It has been now about 25 years.
It has been 25 years since we logged our property. It is time to harvest what we have managed for the last couple decades.
Half of our property is woods and very natural or perhaps I should say “wild”. We take walks through the woods or pick our way about on our ATVs to get around. Our woods are full of deer, turkeys, grouse, coyotes, and many other animals. You connect with nature because everything is untouched.
We were told to “manage” these woods every twenty to twenty-five years. That means you have to take trees out to make room for the young ones. It has been now about 25 years.
One day when I discovered lilac-colored boxes hanging up high in trees in our area, I found out that the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) wanted to find out whether the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) had arrived in our county. This caught our attention!
The Emerald Ash Borer is an invasive species of beetle, a native of Asia. It probably arrived in the United States on solid wood packing material carried in cargo ships or airplanes.
It was first discovered near Detroit in 2002. The EAB attacks our ash trees.
It was first discovered near Detroit in 2002. The EAB attacks our ash trees.
he adult beetles nibble on ash foliage but cause little damage. The larvae however feed on the inner bark of ash trees, disrupting the tree’s ability to transport water and nutrients. The trees starve to death. The problem is that you do not see it until the tree just falls down. For us, since our woods have a large percentage of ashes, this news was awful!
Since its arrival in Detroit, the EAB has spread to the upper peninsula of Michigan, south to Louisiana, west to Colorado, and east to Massachusetts. In urban areas, trees are often removed once an infestation is found to reduce EAB population densities and further spread. Trees can be harvested for firewood, but quarantines may apply, especially in areas where the material could be infested.
We had a look at our “mature” woods and found plenty of ashes. Of course we were not sure whether they were still healthy or on the verge of failing. The professional loggers we hired told us, that our ashes might be still okay but it was time to “harvest” them before it is too late. The DEC concurred.
And so the logging adventure began! It involved bringing in millions of dollars in huge equipment, cutting ‘roads’ through out the property, preserving stream beds, ancient trees, old foundations and history. Some of our harvest will be turned into firewood, but most will become furniture, tool handles and baseball bats. It was quite an adventure! Please watch the web page for a series about our project.
We had a look at our “mature” woods and found plenty of ashes. Of course we were not sure whether they were still healthy or on the verge of failing. The professional loggers we hired told us, that our ashes might be still okay but it was time to “harvest” them before it is too late. The DEC concurred.
And so the logging adventure began! It involved bringing in millions of dollars in huge equipment, cutting ‘roads’ through out the property, preserving stream beds, ancient trees, old foundations and history. Some of our harvest will be turned into firewood, but most will become furniture, tool handles and baseball bats. It was quite an adventure! Please watch the web page for a series about our project.
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