The New York

FOREST OWNERA publication of the New York Forest Owners Association

September/October 1995

OUR REGROWN FORESTS----- - ~~~J

THE NEW YORK

FOREST OWNERVOL. 33, NO.5

OFFICERS & DIRECTORS

Bill Minerd, President

1123 Cold Springs RoadLiverpool, NY 13088; (315) 451-3712

Peter Levatich, Vice President

158 Bailor RoadBrooktondale, NY 14817; (607) 539-7049

Robert M. Sand, Recording Secretary

300 Church StreetOdessa, NY 14869-9703; (607) 594-2130

Clara Minerd, Treasurer

1123 Cold Springs RoadLiverpool, NY 13088; (315)451-3712

Deborah Gill, Administrative Secretary

P.O. Box 180Fairport, NY 14450; (716) 377-6060

1996Albert Brown, Stow; (716) 763-9067

Verner Hudson, Elbridge; (315) 689-3314Peter Levatich,Brooktondale; (607) 539-7049

Don Wagner, Utica; (315) 733-7391

1997

JOhn T. Hastings, Queensbury; (518) 798-0248Charles Mowatt, Savona; (607) 583-7006

Norman Richards, Syracuse; (315) 472-3696

Elizabeth Wagner, Utica; (315) 733-7391

1998

Jill Cornell.Johnsonville; (518) 753-4336

Elizabeth Densmore, Machias; (716) 942-6600

Robert Sand, Odessa; (607) 594-2130

Bob Sykes, Elbridge; (315) 673-3691

AFFILIATE REPRESENT ATIVESDick Mark, THRIFT; (315) 623-9476

Donna Rogier, Catskill Forest Assoc.; (914) 586-3054

CHAPTER REPRESENTATIVESMark & Joann Kurtis, Allegheny Foothills; (716)945-6012

Tom Hewitt, Cayuga; (315) 497-1266

Barry Cornell, Capital District; (518) 797-3623

Bob Sykes, Central New York; (315) 673-3691

Jeff Wiegert, Lower Hudson; (914) 831-3109Bob Howard, Northern Adirondack West; (315)262-2692

Herb Boyce, NorthernAdirondack East; (518) 946-7040

Donald Fraser, Niagara Frontier; (716) 773-7011

Ernst Spencer, SE Adirondack; (518) 792-1726

Larry Lepak, Southern Tier; (607) 656-8504

Don Schaufler, Tioga, (607) 589-6095

Eileen VanWie, Western Finger Lakes; (716) 367-2849

All rights reserved. Contents may not be reproduced with-

out prior written permission from the publisher. NYFOA

does not necessarily support or approve procedures, prod-

ucts, or opinions presented by authors or advertisers.

COVER: 95 year old, 28 inch red oakin regrown pasture in Catskills.

2 NY FOREST OWNER

FOREST OWNERA publication of the New York Forest Owners Association

Editorial Committee: Betty Densmore, Alan Knight, Jim Minor, Bob Sand,and Eileen VanWie.

Materials submitted for publication should be addressed to: R. Fox, Editor, R.D. #3, Box88, Moravia, New York 13118. Articles, artwork and photos are invited and are normallyreturned after use. The deadline for submission for Nov/Dec is Oct 1.Please address all membership fees and change of address requests to P.O. Box180, Fairport, N.Y. 14450. Cost of individual membership subscription is $20.

Regrown Forests

Towards the Taxes. (see page 4)

Table of ContentsPresident's Message, Bill Minerd 3Useful Ecological Concepts, Norman Richards.. 4Does Your Forest Land Have Roots?, Peter Levatich 8The Kindly Beech, Henry Kernan 10Chapter/Affiliates 12Letters ..••...........••..........•.....................•..............................................13Timber Contracts, David Colligan 14Guest Editorial - Let it Rot, Eric Johnson 17.NYFOA FALL MEETING ••.......•...........•.......•......................................18Return of Larch Casebearer, Douglas Allen 20A Cure For Count Dracula, Jane Sorensen Lord 22

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PRESIDENT'S MESSAGEBy Bill Minerd

If ever the word optimist can be moreappropriately applied, it is to describe aperson who plants a tree or cares for forestlands. This is a person who has a positiveplan for the future, the results of which maynever be realized in his or her lifetime. Thecontinuity of a management plan is en-hanced when successive generations ofowners perpetuate the values and objectivesof the previous stewards. This is most evi-dent in tree farms and forest lands that areowned by families. Many of us have vis-ited or seen slides of forest lands owned bythe Childses, Levatichs, Hamiltons, andHudsons. When visiting these properties,the years invested in caring for these landsis most evident. You will see beautifulstands of crop trees, ponds, trails and im-proved wildlife habitat. You will also de-velop a sense of history and tradition fromthese families and share their visions of thefuture, a future that they witness throughtheir children's eyes.

My wife, Clara, will represent the thirdgeneration at the Gurnee Woods inElbridge, NY. She can look back to hergrandfather, Ross Cady who first purchasedthe land in the 1930's, and to her motherand father who were the next stewards. Witha 50 year family history behind her, she canlook to the future, to her time to continuethe family tradition. My salute to these fami-lies, and I am sure many others in ourNYFOA family. The photo of Vern andMarj Hudson and Clara and me, representthe second and third generations at the 280acre Gurnee Woods in Elbridge.

I hope by now chapter members through-out the state have received their raffle tick-ets for the NYFOA quilt. As you are aware,this is the first membership-wide fund rais-ing activity that we have attempted. BettyWagner has graciously donated her time andmoney to produce a true work of art. It washer desire that this raffle would raise about$6000 plus dollars that would be used todefray the major costs in applying for501(c)3 charitable not-for-profit status forour organization. If this can be achieved,little if any of our membership dues moneywill be required to attain this goal. A smallinvestment by each of us today will yield amany fold return in the future. It is my fer-vent hope that our goal will be achieved

NY FOREST OWNER

Clara & Bill Minerd (1), Marge & Vern Hudson.

The quilt, "Adirondack Beauty"

and Betty Wagner will not be disappointedin the effort we put into this project.

A few days after the June Board of Di-rectors meeting, I received a call from amember (who wishes to remain anonymous)who donated $375 to be used as prizemoney for the chapter or affiliate that sellsthe most raffle tickets. Prize money will beawarded as follows:

First Prize: $250(must sell 500 or more tickets)

Second Prize: $100Third Prize: $ 50Fourth Prize: $ 25What an incentive to raise some funds

for your Chapter or Affiliate! Moreover,what an opportunity for all members ofNYFOA to work toward a collective goal.

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USEFUL ECOLOGICAL CONCEPTSFOR OUR REGROWN FORESTS

By Norman RichardsEcology, as the study of inter-relation-

ships of organisms and their environment,is a long-standing "folk" activity. The earlyhunter who learned that certain animalswere in particular habitats at certain timesof the year, and the New York forest ownerwondering why there is cherry regenerationin one area of a woodlot but not in anotherarea, are both students of "folk ecology" --learning about interactions by observingtheir workings around us.

Formal scientific study under the nameof ecology began in the 1800's and has ac-celerated through this century along withmost other scientific endeavor. As a studentof both formal science and folk ecology, Ithink the basic mental process is similar.Interactions of organisms and their environ-ment typically are multi-factor, multi-path-way processes that are beyond are full un-derstanding. Ecological study is less aboutlearning facts than it is developing tenta-tive ideas or concepts that we can test byfurther observations. When new observa-tions don't fit our concepts we need to re-vise them. So whether folk study or formalscience, ecology should be concerned withlearning to use increasingly complex infor-mation and ideas about organism/environ-ment interactions.

Ecology is always from a human view,and its concepts are shaped by what theviewer sees and believes. The differing eco-logical concepts arise from the diversity ofviewers' experiences and beliefs. However,we must keep ecological study as objectiveas we can, and then introduce our values,what we believe in, when we debate actionsto be taken.

In recent decades, ecology as continu-ing study toward understanding more com-plex interactions has been overshadowedby a popularized ecology as advocacy ofideas people believe in and want to pro-mote politically. Ecological concepts pro-moted broadly as tenets are necessarily gen-eral, and tend to be simplistic as they po-larize towards various mind-sets; such as,use vs. preservation, maintaining conscioushuman involvement in ecological processesvs. reducing it. When ecological conceptsbecome political as the basis for officialgroup positions, they lose their values for

4 NY FOREST OWNER

continuing study and learning.The premise of this article is that our re-

grown forests are a valuable laboratory forboth folk ecologists and scientists to criti-cally examine ecological concepts that havebecome tenets polarizing peoples' viewsabout forests. Our forest which has regrownrepeatedly in different forms in differenttimes and places reflecting a variety of in-teracting elements, emphasizes the need foruseful ecological concepts to be dynamicand continuously challenging our under-standing. As such, they are unlikely to pro-vide easy answers to support whatever areour favored beliefs about nature and our re-lationships to it.

Balance Of Nature?Probably one of the most value-loaded,

and therefore troublesome, popular ecologi-cal tenets is that of "balance of nature" inits various forms. While this is widely at-tractive as a human value, there is muchevidence that natural balances are quitefleeting and that many levels of imbalancesor "disequilibria" create the dynamics of theworld; whether impacting birth, growth anddeath of individuals or populations, devel-opment and changes in communities, orchanges in their physical or chemical envi-ronments.

When ecological conceptsbecome political as thebasis for official group

positions, they lose theirvalues for continuing study

and learning.Assuming that FOREST OWNER read-

ers are familiar to varying degrees with theregrown forests of New York, I will reviewthem here as a history of "disequilibriumdynamics". We will pass quickly over glo-bally imbalanced stress that raise mountainsand the weather that erodes them into sink-ing seas to form sedimentary rocks that riseand repeat the processes somewhat differ-ently each time; or the stresses that chang-ing climates have produced on the devel-opment and losses of the diversity of plantand animal populations over many millen-nia. Instead we will focus on quite recent

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time since the last glaciation receded frommost of New York about 12,000 years agoleaving a landscape of largely barren soilparent material and devoid of plant and ani-mal life. Nearly all our so-called "native"plants and animals were "reintroduced"within this recent post-glacial period. How-ever, conditions were also different, espe-cially drier, in lower latitudes during gla-cial periods, population diversity sufferedthere also. This left a poorer biota to selec-tively repopulate post-glacial areas.

There is also much evidence that re-growth of forest in New York has not beena smooth progression since the glaciers.Over the last 10,000 years, there have beena few significant warm, dry periods thatfavored pine and oaks, and probably in-creased fire, and a few "little ice ages" fa-voring revival of spruce and other borealplants. A current apparent warming trendafter the last cold period in the 1800's con-founds testing of theories of culturally-in-duced global warming.

Human activity entering the region soonafter glaciers left, may have contributed toextinction of some animals, and probablyincreased fire effects in the landscape.Later"Native American" immigrants intro-duced some new plant species and prob-ably also impacted animal populations intheir agriculture and agro-forestry activities.Obviously the most massive landscapechange since post-glacial forest regrowthcame to New York in the last few centurieswith European-form agriculture and urbansettlement. Most arable land was clearedfor farming, many wetlands drained, andrough and steep lands left in woodlots se-lectively cut for fuel and timber and oftengrazed. Mountainous areas were cutover formarketable timber; in many places followedby wildfire. it is important to remember thatwhile the forests provided valuable prod-ucts, they also stood in the way of"progress" in the 18th and early 19th cen-turies in New York. The 1855 New YorkCensus of Agriculture listed all remainingwoods and wetlands as "unimproved" land.

Thanks to remaining woods areas, weapparently lost no tree species from NewYork directly due to agricultural expansion,although some trees were locally depleted,especially conifers in our predominantly

SEP/OCT 1995

hardwood forests. But a few important spe-cies such as our chestnut have been nearlywiped out by introduced diseases or insects.Some "native" shrubs and herbaceous spe-cies of rare habitats have been lost or en-dangered, while the ranges of more specieswere reduced by agricultural impacts. Buta great many more plant species have natu-ralized after deliberate or accidental intro-ductions.

On the whole, our modest post-glacialplant diversity has been significantly en-riched over time if all times and means ofintroduction and naturalization are counted.However, forest animal populations suf-fered more, apparently due to greater sen-sitivity to habitat changes as well as greaterpopulation depletion directly by people.

As is widely known, with intensifyingagriculture on the better lands, and manu-facture and service work largely replacingagrarian livelihoods, farming ceased onmost poorer lands; the changes allowed treecover to return variably in response to lo-cal seed sources and land conditions. Re-moval of pasturing and replacement ofwood fuel by fossil and other energy sourcesallowed more regrowth in remaining wood-lands. Coincident with this were develop-ing conservation concerns that closed someforests to further harvests, made concertedefforts to control forest fires, passed gamelaws that helped revive some depleted ani-mal populations, and promoted planting oftrees to accelerate reforestation of open ar-eas.

The regrown forests of New York haveattracted increased markets - for hardwoodpulp and other products from plentiful sup-plies of young timber, and for valuable saw-timber from trees growing to larger sizes-in an international resource context in whichchanging timber and petroleum supplies anddemand elsewhere in the world shift pres-sures on our forests. Meanwhile the regrownforests continue to be hit sporadically bywindstorms and insect and disease epidem-ics, and tree regeneration often is reducedby revived animal populations.

Overall, the fragmented remainingwoods have been reconsolidated to morecontinuous forest cover over most of thestate. In some areas, recreational pressureshave intensified and regrown forests arebeing parceled into tree covered buildinglots that otherwise have lost qualities ofmore extensi ve forests. In the range betweenthe consolidations and subdivisions is agreat diversity of forest owners engaged intheir varied management objectives.

NY FOREST OWNER

Regrown forest in the Adirondacks: Cut over and burned, returned to aspen and birch.Cut but not burned, returned to spruce andfir.

The many natural and culturaldisequilibrium processes continuing to im-pact our regrown forests are not random,and are affected by geologic and topo-graphic landscape variation that shapedprevious natural diversity patterns. If allsources of imbalances are considered, ourregrown forests may well have more land-scape-scale diversity and complex dynam-ics than at any previously known time.

Disequilibrium Concepts: HomeorhesisThis brief review of dynamic aspects of

our regrown forests doesn't leave much sup-port for "balance of nature" concepts. In-stead, it suggests that concepts that embracedisequilibria at various scales are more use-ful overall, within which balances that maybe treasured human values can be identi-fied as relatively temporary conditions. Thelong-popular concept of communities orother organism groups responding to dis-turbances by recovering toward their pre-disturbance state in a dynamic equilibriumor homeostasis is only rarely observed. Amore generally observable concept, as sug-gested by our regrown forests, is that re-covery after disturbance is toward pathwaysor "currents" of larger scale recovery orchange - homeorhesis; consequently, the re-covery state is likely to be different fromthe pre-disturbance state. For example, re-sponses to partial cutting of a forest standcan be affected by ongoing responses toprevious disturbances, and by changing suc-cessional processes reflecting longer termchanges in genetic pools, soil conditions orclimate constraints. From this view, "bal-ance" is an unusual observance for timeperiods and places where large scale cur-rents appear relatively flat.

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The more dynamic concept ofhomeorhesis challenges technical definitionof popular ecology terms such as "stabil-ity", "sustainability", "ecosystem integrityor health" now in political arenas. As theseterms depend on particular time and spaceperspectives for their definition, they areall based on peoples' values rather than onconcrete biological definition. Because eco-logical study and discussion is from verypartial human views, we always must de-fine our ecological concerns in three dimen-sions: What groups of organisms are beingstudied or discussed, over what space rangeand what time span?

Homeostasisvs.

Homeorhesis?

I·

IIPopulations, Communities,And Ecosystems

Three general groupings of organismsare commonly used in ecological study:populations, communities, and ecosystems.As these groupings often are confused inpopular ecology, it seems useful to brieflydistinguish them here. A population is anygrouping of genetically similar organismsidentified on the basis of our concerns.'Species' is the most common grouping forwhich we characterize ecological informa-tion; such as, site requirements of tree spe-cies or habitat preferences of animal spe-cies. But individuals in a species vary overtime and their spatial range, so there is in-creasing interest in finer genetic groupings,both in natural variation and in "biotech-nology".

Communities are functionally relatedgroupings of organisms that are similar

SEP/OCT 1995 • 5

enough to be described by similar means,but not necessarily closely related geneti-cally. For example, we can describe a mixedspecies tree community in aN orthem Hard-wood forest in terms of seedling-overstoryrelationships, and also the bird communitythere. But birds and trees are too differentto be included in one community; so it ismore useful to describe the bird commu-nity in its own terms and then inter-relatethe bird and tree communities.

An ecosystem is a grouping of organ-isms in populations or communities alongwith their significant living and non-livingenvironmental elements within space andtime frames defined by the concerns athand. Ecosystem units are most useful forconsidering interactions of organism groupswith their environment; for example, anorthern hardwood tree stand respondingto a heavy windstorm, to fertilization, or tochanged deer hunting regulations, over afew years or several decades. As with popu-lations and communities, ecosystems al-ways must be defined in terms of space andtime frames and the groups of organismsconsidered to the concerns at hand. With-out such definition, reference to THE eco-system makes no sense.

A very useful concept is that of nestedecosystems to examine complex, multi-scale questions. For example, a resourcemanagement question may require under-standing of a tree seedling micro-environ-ment within forest stands, stand composi-tion and structure interactions within forestproperties, and property management inter-actions in a landscape or region. This ismost usefully examined as at least threedifferent ecosystem units or models, eachdefined to address one level of the ques-tion, and each feeding information to theother levels in seeking a solution to the over-a11question. The larger scale ecosystemunits examine broader questions, but are notnecessarily any more comprehensive or"holistic" than the smaller scale units ex-amining finer detail questions. This is acommon confusion in now politically popu-lar "ecosystem management" concepts, butfurther discussion of this must be left toanother time.

"Incorporation"A valuable ecological concept relating

to space and time scales of communities orecosystems is that of "incorporation" ofsmall scale disruptions or "disasters" intolarger scale "normal dynamics". For ex-ample, the July 15, '95 windstorm hitting

6 NY FOREST OWNER

Scotch pine about 80 years old in Wawbeek Plantations in the Adirondacks. *

parts of the Adirondacks caused the mostforest stand destruction in some areas sincethe 1950 blowdown. This was a disasterwith several years potential impacts forsome individual stand owners. But at thescale of the Forest Preserve it was valuablein diversifying regrown forest cover by cre-ating new forest gaps, windthrow mounds,and broken snags and downed wood char-acteristic of old growth forests.

Some implications of incorporation arethat long-term "stability" or "sustainability"may be very uncertain at small scales suchas forest stands, but much more easily main-tained at larger scales such as landscapesor regions. A corollary is that a particularlandscape or regional pattern may resultfrom various factors and processes atsmaller scales; so a desired large scale pat-tern is unlikely to be achieved by miniatur-izing the pattern at smaller scales - a lessonfor top-down regional planning. For ex-ample, landscape level forest diversitywould not be achieved by smaller scale di-versity in every forest stand, but rather bydifferent things occurring among foreststands and properties.

Analytic And Synthetic EcologyFinally, I want to tie back with our re-

grown forests by examining two commonapproaches to ecological study from theperspective of disequilibrium concepts.

A. The traditional scientific approach toecology has been "analytic" in the sense ofmenta11y breaking down complex commu-nities or ecosystems to try to understand in-teractions among simpler parts. Historically,this has focused on "relatively undisturbed"or "late stage" communities identified asmodels against which relationships in moredisturbed communities can be compared.However, people's values can readily comein to view "relatively undisturbed" commu-nities as "ideals" against which other com-munities are judged as to their desirabilityor integrity .. From the review of our re-grown forests, it is evident that the ques-tion of what "relatively undisturbed" modelto choose among the many levels of"disequilibrium dynamics" over time andspace is a problem and depends more onone's viewpoint than any inherent scientificcriteria.

Looking more broadly, I see all forestsof the world as "regrown forests" to vary-ing degrees, and therefore value-based iden-tification of "relatively undisturbed" forestmodels is a source of conflict in many po-larized controversies such as currently in

*An experiment about 1908-10 by B.E. Fe rno w, Director of the Cornell School of For-estry. Clearing the cutover stands, burning the slash, and planting conifers upset the nearbySaranac property owners. The owners traveled to Albany where they were successful interminating the forestry budget. As a result the New York State College of Forestry atSyracuse University (now SUNYIESF) was established.

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the Pacific Northwest and in many tropicalforest areas. For objective evaluation offorests for comparative purposes, it is moreuseful to try to identify the various levelsof disturbance significantly impacting theforest, than to simplistically consider "rela-tively undisturbed" situations.

B. A more pragmatic approach to eco-logical study can be termed "synthetic" inthe sense of testing and expanding our eco-logical understanding by trying to synthe-size communities or ecosystems that de-velop and function as we expect. This has along practical history in conservation, es-pecially in tree planting, and is now gain-ing more stature as a scientific approachunder the name of "restoration ecology".Although politically attractive, "restora-tion" is poor as a technical term. As sug-gested in the concept of homeorhesis, wecan seldom truly restore any past popula-tion, community, or ecosystem in a dynamicworld. Because of changing gene pools,long and short term environmental trends,and cultural contexts, the best we can domay be to try to imitate previous featureswe value.

An implied premise of synthetic ecol-ogy is that constructing an organism/envi-ronment system that works suggests that weunderstand how it works. The problem asshown by our regrown forests is that vari-ous natural potentials for recovery or otherchanges in biotic systems make it difficultto determine if our actions were in fact re-sponsible for a desired result. So, .we canlearn something from failures in syntheticecology, but little from successes.

Perhaps a more serious problem is thatour models for success in synthetic ecol-ogy efforts may tend to be too simplisticand also politically influenced, contribut-ing to polarization of action-oriented "res-toration" and "resource management"against "protection" and "preservation" in-terests. The problem of simplified goals forsynthetic ecology can be illustrated in twocommon regrowth situations in our forests;(1) planting open fields and (2) improvingresidual woodlots.

(1) In re-establishing forest by plantingan old field, the easiest and fastest goal toachieve is closed, even-aged tree cover,especially if we use an easy-to-establish co-nifer species suited to the old field condi-tions. Natural establishment of subordinatestrata of younger trees is slower and moredifficult; dependent on available seedsources, opening the tree canopy by thin-ning, and freedom from destructive fauna.

NY FOREST OWNER

"Regrown beaver population" meets regrown forest in the Adirondacks.

Even slower and less easily managed is the snags and deadwood, forest shrubs, herbs,establishment of forest shrubs and herb a- soil horizons, and wind throw mounds andceous plants for a variety of forest fauna. hollows maintained through its long forestWhile a forest litter will begin to form in a history- even if it was heavily cut and per-few decades, it will take several more de- haps grazed sometime in the past. It maycades for the old field plow-layer to change even have a scattering of high value timberto a forest horizon. It may be more than a trees if enough time has passed since lastcentury before old-growth stand features exploitation.such as large old trees, multiple age classes, The usual goal of timber stand improve-and large dead snags and downed logs de- ment is to develop a greater proportion ofvelop, although we can accelerate these by high value timber trees; perhaps highertreatments imitating natural disturbances. numbers than is likely in "real old-growth"

But I think the hallmark of a mature for- forests' if they can be found in the region.est ecosystem in New York, especially on To help achieve this, "undesirable" speciesrelatively shallow or poorer drained soils, may be removed, poor large trees may beis the development of windthrow mounds salvaged to short-circuit large snags andand hollows forming diverse micro-envi- downed logs, and salvage of largeronments on the forest floor. This requires windthrown trees may reduce renewal of

mounds and hollows as many cut stumpsfall back into place.

.Although I may disagree with the politi-cal motives, I must admit that some preser-vation group claims that "tree farms are notforests" may have validity in some cases.As suggested earlier, dynamic ecologicalconcepts addressing the "imbalances ofnature" can be quite challenging and do notprovide easy answers for managing our re-grown forests.

large trees and many wind throw events, sois likely to be beyond a human time scaleunless the stand is"blessed" with a devas-tating windthrow event in the planter's oldage. The planter does not "establish" a for-est, but only initiates its development. Evenwith continuing intensive management, themanager's synthesizing efforts are likely tobe strongly controlled by natural develop-ment processes.

(2) On the other hand, a typical oldwoodlot in New York would cause most for-esters to urge stand "improvement", andthere may be government subsidies avail-able for the owner to carry these out. But interms of "late-stage" forest qualities thatmay have various non-timber values, thewoodlot is likely to be far ahead of theplanted field in terms of multiple age classesin diverse species, large old trees, large

Norman Richards is a Professor of Forestryat SUNY College of Environmental Scienceand Forestry where he has taught a gradu-ate course in "application of ecologicalconcepts" since 1969. As noted in previ-ous FOREST OWNER articles, he hasowned a tree farm in the Catskills for manyyears.

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Does Your Forest Land Have Roots?By Peter S. Levatich

Of course it does, several kinds of roots.There are tree roots. They seek out water,absorb and transport nutrients and hold foodin storage during winter. There are flowerroots and grass roots and spruce roots forstitching birch bark into canoe skins, smallroots and big roots. There is ginseng ..., thelist goes on. But the roots of your forestland that I wish to call your attention to arethe figurative roots, like your roots andmine, which tell part of the story of how weeach got to where we are.

Ever since I acquired my forest land Ipuzzled over the old things now coveredby the forest canopy. Stone heaps, the fenceremnants, the edges of what used to beplowed land, the water holes laid out withfield stone edges, shallow ditches runningten feet on center from nowhere to nowhere.I wondered: Why were these things createdand when? What kind of effort had goneinto it and with the help of what tools? Whatwas he or she like who cared to do so andwhat kind of life could it have been? Whatare the roots of my land and what is its his-tory?

So I went to the county courthouse dur-ing a lunch break some years ago. Thecounty clerk keeps public records which wemay inspect free of charge. They showedme the index books listing land transactions:"Grantors" and "Grantees" neatly tabulatedfor each year. On other shelves were thecopies of all deeds with a numbering sys-tem easy to navigate. I was hooked right

then and there, and spent many lunch hoursfascinated and taking notes. Eventually Itraced the ownership of my forest land backto the year our county was formed.

Maybe your wood lot was in yourancestor's possession since the time of theSix Nations, mine surely was not. Startingin 1816, halves of two larger ownershipscovered my parcel. In 1834 Eleazer Carter"and Belinda, his wife" owned it with an-other 187 acres and sold the entire spreadto their son seven years later. He lived hereand divided the land in three different ar-eas and sold everything by 1867. My par-cel was then enlarged from the east in 1883.The average ownership duration in the 180years I traced is 7 112 years perowner ...Restless people they were!

No mention of forests can be found inthe deeds. Only occasionally is a tree men-tioned at a corner location. In this regard Iexpect that your forest land history may be

, similar. Soon after my records start, mostof the original forest cover was gone. Thenagain your land history may contain refer-ences to the remnant forest cover becausesmall woodlots were retained on steepslopes. It would be historically significantto find more data. Look for it when you doyour deed searches.

As you look for the roots of your forestland, you will find interesting things. Youwill see how the legal descriptions change.Mine are all business in the earliest deeds,slowly beginning to wish and later warrantin elaborate language the new owner happy,

unlimited use of his new, wonderful pos-session. The social equality of female co-owners gets increasingly recognized. The"Belinda, his wife" of 1834 becomes an ac-knowledged equal when "Charles Cantineand Catherine Can tine" buy the land in1874. There is even a unique episode Ifound in the goings on next door to the eastwhere Elijah Winchell leases his land to hisson for care and support which the sonagrees to provide during Elijah's remain-ing years. It is a detailed contract filed inthe County records: Elijah wanted to makesure! It is not unlike our custom today - toget paid for our tree crop before it is cut; tomake sure!

History leaves its mark on all of us andon our trees as well. Each tree carries withinit the record of its life history. The goodtimes and the bad are recorded in the an-nual rings. When an old tree goes down, Istudy the cut after a moment of silence.Most of the time the annual rings are farapart near the center because these werereforesting trees which started out in aban-doned fields and pastures with plenty oflight for rapid growth. Later the rings nar-row indicating when the forest canopyclosed in. Sometimes there are bands ofwider or narrower rings. The wider bandsmay be due to increased light received per-haps because a neighbor tree died. Nar-rower ring bands may indicate drought, in-sect or pathogen attacks which slowed thegrowth. The number of rings tell me the ageof the tree, of course, and so I can find out

V//(,i i! lu:t..<:.-, if ( (v-t~(/ =: !~~.{ 0<~l'<-·:u:(·?.£:/' /~../,.~.~~;(l~1f <l!c.-t~/j; .: ~.:~('<" 'u c (/.;- r.cc »: " /) / 'j,' J),/: /' ./:lcY ../.''11 ',I / ce r« /,L,<-' ,,....,,,_.<..<-(; /T-"J'l It. "/'t'r er « c';c. tL/t·,··, , .:/_._, '. /1:1 I. .._ / _. '. .~/ . " ~~' • ~ L~ / ra.« .JII,~tlc..<'li-t $-,,""---<-- ~t'r:l'f,? ....(!,f •..c.c "·'/~·(. ~«'-C../ (;;i..<::.'.c ..«~C ..:.;,(:/,~ I" ,1"/';<~.,{~cL ,t/-..'I:«(. ,-.//'~t!:I, Jf" ct: (: / .: / ,/./. " . ./ -; /. ./" / • " ' ~'." ·C'.L'.rr·, .l·C~[.<._. f- '~<.z"·I('.\.[~c.. I~"'·C(.... M ;,:t./.t ..·;,? .vb _,!:' /,/ ..- II

' ...he will ~~~~~~i~ s~~~;t~ ~'i;1~~:e'c;r~ of~he ~aid Elii~h Winch~II,'in ; good ~n; comfolt:b~: m::- G:~~•..,1er during his life time (the said Elijah Winchell's), The said Elijah Winchell to reside in the family + 'l-1'QISJ

nousehold of the said John J. Winchell as long as they shall agree + when they no longer can agree then ,'L ~

the said John J. Winchell shall maintain, support and take care of the said Elijah. Winchell at some other ~.~

good, comfortable + reasonable place ...And it is un.derstood .. .that thewo:ds maintain support + and ~ake J,v. ,~care of shall include + mean necessary food, wearing apparel + care In times of Sickness as well as In , .,.:cC~

, '~'./ (it L. .r..".·2 (f r r c ,,«-/ I<I (';o...L, l£,.(.-/ZP'- /-I-~.c. ~; J 5. . /. '--. '? //'

h Ith ,,1 ." -'- '/ ~ a: t . r-: //'-Z.L·r.<.-<.~ /:1'7"4f.<-<>.nea... . (},., r ,: I ,-,.9'-. :/ ../ / . ''. (c..~'_G.<-J -:.r(Cct--<- - l~l..-C-<HL& «.e-« -Ci~C('r.. -rt «. ~c7' ~ ~ c//.. 00 .'

I :.l.:!..':( ct';;,,,,;'. '7f t.)&:..' ~;~/t-. /J)). .~: ' c.;, / /-,0:1. /' /,,-f ~/' /~Q ~~

:1), I j" ,. .. r'" / -:/-c>....f,. /./ It •.<!.·/~c:-c· :V,t'J, ", , '" >/-" •. rl, ~/);, J./ /~;"~-r_ II /'/ ",;/-. / / r:" ,

/"'-r" •... ,'/ /. 1'~.- .• / .•.•. // "I' A' !II

8 NY FOREST OWNER NYFOA - 1-800-836-3566 - INFO SEP/OCT 1995

TYPICAL LATE, SLOW GROWTH

HURRICANE AGNES

WHEN I WAS BORN

TYPICAL EARLY, RAPID GROWTH

B AND OF NARROWER SP ACED RINGS: SLOW GROWTH

BAND OF WIDER SPACED RINGS: PERIOD OF RAPID GROWTH

CUT THROUGH A 100 YEAR OLD TREE WITH EVERY OTHER RI NG SHOWN

when these events took place. Has my TSI(Timber Stand Improvement) of 18 yearsago helped this tree to grow faster? Werethere periods of stress effecting the entireforest and where was I then? There are noclear answers, only tantalizing hints of thelife of these inhabitants of the land who tendto outlive not only our ownership tenure butmany things we have long forgotten.

You keep a diary of what you do in yourforest, right? You write about what you havedone, why, and how it turned out. You dothat because otherwise you may forget in afew years. You accumulate a fine record bykeeping a forest diary; not only for your-self, but for your successors in stewardship.How else will the next owner know whatyou have done and why? There is a goodchance he or she will read your diary, orsomeone in the family will, and then theywill look at the management plan you haveattached and they will feel somewhat curi-ous and a little guilty and they will start tothink about how they might continue thisthing that you have started, for their owngoals, of course. In the end their goals maynot be all that different as far as the forestis concerned.

NY FOREST OWNER

Have fun discovering the roots of yourland. Document the present to form a con-tinuity for those who follow as stewards ofthe forest. Roots go a long way. In both di-rections.

Peter, NYFOA \lice President, representa-tive for Tompkins County to the NYSDECRegion 7 Forest Practice Board, and aMaster Forest Owner, is a frequent con-tributor to the NY FOREST OWNER.

Eastern Grey Squirrel

NYFOA -1-800-836-3566 -INFO

Bruce E.Robinson,

Inc.FORESTRY

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FOUNTAIN FORESTRY, INC.21 Cliff Avenue, P.O. Box 1002

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SEP/OCT 1995 • 9

THE KINDLY BEECH TREEA LEGEND OF THE CHIANTI HILLS

By Henry S. KernanNine centuries ago the turmoil of bar-

baric invasions was at last quieting downover northern Italy. Along routes of travelclusters of trade and crafts were appearingand growing. One of them was in Tuscanyat a crossing of the Arno river where oneday would evolve over time the present-daycity of Florence, now soaked in history andart. A few inhabitants of nearby Fiesole andother hill fortresses had dared move to apoint on the river convenient for a bridge.They kept the bridge in repair; they fendedoff bandits; and they exacted tolls frommerchants, travelers, and pilgrims.

Those vigorous, hot-blooded Tuscanswere a quarrelsome lot. Civil disorders andfamily feuding were endemic. Personalcodes of honor and vengeance took theplace of law, courts, and officers of thepeace. Family quarrels that endure for cen-turies were fought out in bloody and bittercombat.

Among the swashbuckling buckoes ofFlorence's turbulent citizenry was oneGiovanni Gualberto (John Brightdale). Hisfamily was among those that passed fornoble, with roots in the land-owning moun-tain lords that for centuries had terrorizedthe countryside. He must already have hadseveral killings to his credit, or discredit,andmay have had an inkling of the futility ofpersonal vengeance. Nevertheless he was aman of his time and place, with sword, skill,and a code of conduct that allowed, evendemanded violence.

One Easter Sunday morning he chancedto meet an unarmed enemy face-to-face onthe Arno bridge. He drew his sword tostrike. In a gesture of helpless despair, theenemy fell to his knees with arms thrownout in the shape of a cross.

That powerful symbol saved his life thatEaster morning and kept GiovanniGualberto from an act of pointless violence.He lowered his sword, spared, and em-braced his enemy. However, the socialstructure of Florence at the time had noplace for reformed and merciful buckoes.The anger and sneers of his kinsmen at hav-ing allowed an enemy to escape made himan outcast and an object of ridicule. Withina year he left Florence to find a life free of

10 NY FOREST OWNER

vengeance and hate.The time of year was near the solstice of

winter, perhaps Christmas Eve. He traveledalone, on foot, further and further into theChianti hill country, up the steep heavilywooded valley of Vallombrosa. Darknessand snow came together. The rough, steepground, the cold and the wind exhaustedhim more and more as he staggered forward

and at last collapsed under a beech tree.Christmas morning he awoke in a hut of

branches entwined to protect him from thesnow and cold. The kindly beech tree hadsaved his life.

Giovanni Gualberto was lost to the civicdisorders and bloody feuds of Florence;from then on he kept to his sylvan retreat.At first he was alone. Before long, he was

~:' -~~.-'-=-==-~::..-:-.-e: - -' --_ . -

NYFOA -1-800-836-3566 -INFO SEP/OCT 1995

joined by others for whom a steady, quietlife within the forest had more attractionsthan the feuds and disorders of the day. SanGiovanni endured the hardships ofVallombrosa with abilities that a modembackpacker would envy. In times hedoubled loaves bread. He caught where nofish were known to exist. With the powerof his angry eye, he subdued and drove offunruly bears, wolves, and boar. He had away with evil spirits and minor devils,thought of at the time as forms of undesir-able wildlife.

Most notable of all, San Giovanni andhis companions learned to live with and inthe forest when other monastic orders wereclearing western Europe of forests. Amongthe vineyards and stony, bushy pastures, theforest of Vallombrosa remains, a forest ofmajestic beech and fir. A research station,an arboretum and a school of forestry arethere and remind the visitor of San Giovanni

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Gualberto, the patron saint of Italian for-esters.

He is also the patron ofItaIian truck driv-ers. The wise ones put his medallion on theirdashboards. Symbols of traffic control sur-round his grave and thoughtful face. Driv-ers thus know what traffic rules they arebreaking and whom to ask for protectionagainst whatever evil spirits haunt Italianhighways in the form of traffic cops.

Henry Kernan is a consulting forester inWorld Forestry, a Master Forest Owner,and a frequent contributor to THE FOR-EST OWNER.

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SEP/OCT 1995 • 11

CHAPTER! AFFILIATESCAPITAL DISTRICT

Our chapter is sponsoring a trip to theWJ Co wee Mill in Berlin, RensselaerCounty October 20 at 1PM.

This event offers a unique opportunityto see a very special wood products opera-tion. Cowee's has a log yard and a concen-tration yard as well as production processeswhich produce turnings for furniture, toys,and crafts; and they also make floral picksand stakes. Visitors will be able to see themills at work, and virtually see the processfrom logs to shipping. The company gen-erates its own power in a co-generationagreement with NYSEG, and has just pur-chased a grinder that will enable them togenerate power 24 hours a day.

The Cowee Forester will briefly describemanagement of the company's 28,000 acresof forest in New York, Vermont, and Mas-sachusetts.

For directions contact Jill Cornell at 5181753-4336.

CAYUGA

H.M. C. Debarker at Millier's Mill

June 17 the chapter invited members ofthe Tioga and Central New York Chaptersto attend a picnic/workshop meeting atmember Bill Millier's saw mill. DEC Re-gion 7 Forester Steve Davison did a shortdemonstration of grading and scaling logsfor the 40 in attendance. The group thentoured the facilities while Bill's crew sawedthe scaled logs. Bill's band saw produced aconsiderable over run as measured by theDoyle scale. American Chestnut and RedOak seedlings were provided as door prizes.

12 NY FOREST OWNER

DEC FORESTER RON CADIEUX HONOREDSenior Forester of the NYS DEC was

selected to receive the 1995 OutstandingService to Forest Industry Award by theNortheastern Loggers Association. Ron hasreceived the Gold Hat Award for certifyingover 100 Tree Farms and was theOustanding Tree Farm Inspector in 1992and Outstanding Tree Farm Chair in 1993.Ron is also an active member in the SACChapter. (Reprinted from SAC Newsletter,June '95)

Ron Cadieux - 1992 (right)

ALL SUMMERLONG

I SEARCHEDBy Dorothy Darling

All summer long I searched

for the keeper of the winds

I searched across the hot fields

as slow, solemn clouds moved

above the far horizon;

I searched the grassy meadows,

browning in the long day heat;

I searched on the high hill

but all lay languid and still;

I searched the sun-drenched valleys,

though not a twig was astir.

But one morning I felt a fair breeze,

a rising flow of soft, cool air

that quickened my lagging step

and spread a briskness everywhere;

autumn had entered in and at last

my search was at its end=-

the keeper of the winds was at his task

and the cool earth began to sing again!

NYFOA -1-800-836-3566 - INFO

HONORROLL

The following members and/or groupswere successful in recruiting new membersto the New York Forest Owners Associa-tion over the past year (July '94-'95):

2 or moreJim CheesemanJil & Barry CornellErwin & Polly FullertonGregg MackeyPeter MarcheseCharlie & Marion MowattPeter LevatichDon O'SheaJohn RidingsTHRIFTJeff Wiegert

5 or moreRon CadieuxDEC OfficesDick FoxMike GreasonJohn HastingsBilly Morris

8 or moreDale SchaeferTree Farm Committee

70 or moreCatskill Forest Association

SEP/OCT 1995

II Letters, Letters, Letters, Letters II

BLOOMSI would like to teIl all, that once more

now in my 80th year, I have been privilegedto see the American Chestnut bloom, as theydid in my youth. With help from Dick Foxand poIlen from another American Chest-nut tree from Auburn (owned by HughBrazee), the goodly supply of burrs may bepoIlinated. I am living in hopes that my treewill bear fertile fruit that I may once moreharvest and be able to grow a tree there-from.

In my basement I have a couple of chest-nut boards that were sawed from trees whichgrew in my dooryard some 70 years ago,probably ancestors of the 7 trees now grow-ing there. - Lfee Signor, Moravia

WETLANDS---------I have just recently become a member

of the New York Forest Owners Associa-tion. I enjoy receiving the magazine andreading all of the interesting articles. Oneof the things I wish there was more of, iseducation about the vital role of wetlands.

Many people view wetlands as a nui-sance, an obstacle to development, a breed-ing place for disease and sickness, and ahostile environment that should be eradi-cated. They don't seem to realize the valueof what they are so eager to destroy.

For one thing wetlands function as anatural flood control system. When they lieadjacent to rivers, they catch and hold theexcess water resulting from heavy down-pours. This is what did not happen duringthe great Midwest Flood of 1993. Wetlandsalong the Mississippi River had beendrained and destroyed to make way for newdevelopment. When that area was inundatedwith all the rain, the water had no place togo.

Not only do wetlands serve as reservoirsfor excess water, they are also nurseries forall kinds of plant and animal life. Theseareas are usually characterized by a widevariety of vegetation. Grasses, sedges,shrubbery, and trees grow there; and thisvegetation, in turn, supports a host of fish,fowl, and other creatures.

Many shorebirds and waterfowl dependon these areas during their annual migra-tions or make their homes there. Wetlandsare the nurseries for a large population ofducks and geese as well as the spawningbeds for fish and other aquatics. Wetlands

NY FOREST OWNER

American Chestnut - Photo by Lfee Signor

provide food and shelter for others includ-ing beaver, muskrat, mink, and moose. Bear,deer, and raccoon also make use of wet-lands. Worldwide, -it is estimated that over200 kinds of fish and shellfish depend onwetlands during part or all of their life cycle.

These areas also act as natural filters forremoving pollutants and wastes from theirwatersheds and act as purifiers for the un-derground aquifers.

During the process of photosynthesis,green vegetation takes carbon dioxide fromthe air and gives off oxygen. Vegetation inwetlands has been found to be especiallyefficient at this.

Over the centuries many countries haverecognized the value of wetland manage-ment for the production of food. China andIndia are examples of countries raising vastamounts of rice in wetlands. For about halfthe world's population, rice is a staple ofthe diet.

More recently the U.S. and Canada havebeen raising rice and cranberries in bogsand wetlands

We have some wet areas on our prop-

erty and a swamp is located across the roadfrom one of our parcels. We are also fortu-nate to have a small stream nearby wherebeaver make their homes. These are fasci-nating places. I wish I had more than a fewminutes at a time to watch what goes on inthese areas.-(Most of the material in this letter wasadapted from AWAKE,Jan 22,1994) EdnaBrown McGinnett, North East, PA.

WANTEDWithin the past month porcupine have

been chewing the stump root swells of hardmaple timber trees on my Onondaga Countywoodlot.

How can I rid my property from a verydamaging and serious problem?

Anyone who has faced this situation andsolved it, please share it by writing THENY FOREST OWNER, now.

Thank you - Bob Sand, OdessaP.S. I don't own a gun; but probably couldborrow one.

OOPSIn my article, What Size Your Saw Logs (NYFO, May/Jun '95, 20) incorrect numbers

were provided with the graphic.The correct numbers are:

Geometric volume: 16.7 BDFfDoyle Scale: 9.0 BDFf114" International: 11.0 BDFf

9.4 BDFf4.0BDFf5.5 BDFf

I am grateful to those who brought the errors to my attention and congratulate them forbeing thorough. - Peter Levatich, Brooktondale.

NYFOA -1-800-836-3566 -INFO SEP/OCT 1995 • 13

TIMBER CONTRACTSBy David J. Colligan

As a practicing attorney and a member ofthe New York Forest Owners Association,I have had many occasions to review tim-ber contracts. My advice to everyone is toput all essential agreements between your-self and the timber buyer in writing. Thisarticle will discuss some of the essential el-ements of a timber contract and some of theconsiderations when preparing or enteringinto a timber contract.

Everyone selling timber should have a tim-ber contract, even if the sale invol ves a smallvolume of sawlogs or a relatively smallamount of firewood cordage. Prior to pre-paring the contract, the timber seller shouldknow the following information:

A). The volume of wood product sold, ei-ther in stumpage sawlog volumes and!or firewood cords.

B). The boundaries of the property.C). The price being paid prior to signing

the contract.D). The highest price a willing buyer wiIJ

pay for the products being sold.

I must emphasize the highest price issue,as most clients approach me after signing acontract and ask me whether this is a "fairprice". Once the contract is signed, it is toolate to negotiate a "fair price" and, as seller,you are contractually obligated to seIJ to thebuyer at the price stated in the contract. Toprotect yourself against an unfair price, it ismy strongest recommendation that the tim-ber volumes you coIJected be put out forbid so that timber buyers competing againsteach other (the real professionals against thereal professionals) must determine whatprice they will pay knowing other biddersare entering bids on the timber.

Preparing a timber contract is a complexand specialized task. The average personwho owns timber will find it very difficultto draft a contract that meets their own speci-fications without a great deal of effort andlearning. Due to this, it is my advice thateveryone selling timber, especially for thefirst time, seek out the advice of an experi-enced professional to assist them. Eventhough I am an attorney, my first sugges-tion would be to retain the services of a for-ester to assist you in obtaining the informa-tion necessary to prepare a timber contract

14 NY FOREST OWNER

and that you aIJow the forester to bid thesale to various timber buyers. Foresters arealso very helpful in seeing that all of thecontract terms are enforced. A forester canscale the volume of wood to be sold. Theycan mark the actual trees to be cut withmarks at breast height (DBH) level and onthe stump so that after the trees are cut, theforester can check to see if they were partof the sale contract. Foresters can also 10-

Once the contract is signed,it is too late to negotiate a"fair price" and, as seller,

you are contractuallyobligated to sell to the

buyer at the pricestated in the contract.

cate property boundaries as they have ex-tensive training regarding boundary loca-tions. Foresters are very helpful in submit-ting the bids to timber buyers, even outsideyour area, who may be interested in the

Howmuchis it

worth?

wood products being sold.The NYSDEC has service foresters to

help landowners seIJ their wood products.Many times the DEC service foresters havea long waiting list of woodlot owners theymust meet with and they can give you a listof consulting foresters who work in yourarea to select from if you need immediateassistance. The consulting foresters helpyou obtain higher prices for your woodproducts and,therefore, often "pay for them-selves". If you choose not to hire a forester,it is stilI recommended that you submit yourtimber contract to an attorney knowledge-able in timber contracts for review. If youare not sure whether or not trees from yourwoodland should or could be sold at thistime, it would be advisable to request thata Master Forest Owner from your area visityour woodlot and answer the questions youhave regarding possible wood sales andland management. It's a free service and willhelp you make your decision. The NYFOA800 number will supply you with thename of a Master Forest Owner in youarea.

When looking at a timber contract that isprepared by a timber buyer, remember thatthe contract has been prepared to protectthe buyer only. Don't just fill in the blanks!

Buying or selling? Settling anMaking a gift Qfland? ,

For whatever reason, when you need to know the fair market value ofyour farm or country property, call Farm Credit, the most experienced agricul-

tural rural real estate appraisers in the Northeast.Appraisals are available for anyone involved in agriculture, and not just for

land and buildings, but for livestock, equipment and personal property, too.How much is your property worth? To find out, take the first step today. Call

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NYFOA -1-800-836-3566 -INFO SEP/OCT 1995

Rarely will you find a buyer's timber con-tract that contains even the oral promisesmade by the buyer when he was attemptingto purchase your wood products.

A well-drafted timber contract shouldcontain:

1. An objective description of the treesto be cut. It is best if the trees aremarked for cutting with paint marks atDBH and at the stump. However, if adiameter cut is utilized without mark-ing the tree, it is almost impossible tomeasure DBH after the tree has beenskidded out of the woods. Remember,too, that the diameter "swells" at thestump of most trees.

2. Price to be paid and payment terms.Full payment should be made beforethe timber is cut when possible. Try toavoid pricing based upon unspecifiedvolumes or mill receipts. Open priceterms encourage high grading and arethe most frequent source of complaintsfrom timber sellers.

3. There should be a penalty for cuttingunmarked or smaller trees or the wrongspecies of tree.

4. There should be an escrow held by theseller for the proper repair of the roads

with water bars and erosion controlfeatures at the end of the contract.

5. A time limit to complete the cut. Alluncut timber should revert to the seller.

6. Any special considerations, including:a) ground conditions; b) seasonal cut-ting restrictions; c) road use restric-tions; d) stream crossing permits; e)oral promises by the buyer.

7. An insurance clause requiring thebuyer to produce proof of the follow-ing insurances: a) workmen's compen-sation insurance; b) personal liabilityInsurance.

8. A requirement to leave all the skidroads clear of debris and all the topsskidded back onto your property fromthe neighbor's property.

The above list is just some of the contractterms that should appear in your final tim-ber contract. Many more terms can andshould be used with the timber contractdepending upon your personal circum-stances. Since it is a long time between pay-days when you are growing timber, it is wiseto seek help from professionals on the rareoccasions that you do sell timber so thatyou have the advice of a professional on

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your side when dealing with a professionaltimber buyer on the other side. Seekingadvice from professionals after the contractis signed, is too late. Protect yourself andyour valuable timber products from beingtaken advantage of and seek advice priorto signing any timber contracts. The costand expense of a poorly-drafted timber con-tract far outweigh the value of competentadvice prior to signing the contract.

David Colligan is a practicing attorneywith a Buffalo law firm and serves NYFOAas our legislative liaison.

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BOOKREVIEW

Black WalnutBy Bob Chenoweth

Bob Chenoweth who lives in Wayne,Pennsylvania has written nearly a defini-tive book on "The History, Use, and Unre-alized Potential of a Unique American Re-newable Resource". He has filled over 300pages in this labor of love with researcheson luglans nigra inspired in part by pio-neering ancestors to Chenoweth's homestate of Illinois. There are over 40 black-and-white photographs and eight pages offull-color photographs particularly well re-produced by the printer.

Clearly not meant to be definitive intechnical matters pertinent to dendrologyor silviculture, the book is a delight to readfor its forest owner values. Several sitesknown for black walnut growth are re-viewed and critically evaluated in terms ofmanagement of a very valuable hardwood.Notable is the review of Cox's Woods des-ignated as the Indiana Pioneer Mothers'Memorial Forest, an 88 acre virgin standnear Paoli, Indiana. In the zeal to preservethis stand without management there is astrong case to be made that such preserva-tion may very well seriously degrade thequality and irretrievably alter the composi-tion! In many such illustrative examplesBob Chenoweth expresses in an informa-tive and entertaining style a lifetime dedi-cation and love of every aspect of the tree,Black Walnut.

There are provided some favorite BlackWalnut recipes with their Black Walnutcookbook sources. Further Appendices givea 4-page Directory of organizations, prod-ucts, visual aids, and companies; and 5pages of Bibliography; there is an Index of12 pages.

The book may be purchased fromSagamore Publishing, Inc.; 302 West HillStreet, PO Box 647, Champaign, IL 61824-0647, (1-800-327-5557) for $28.95.

-R. Fox

Black Walnut

16 NY FOREST OWNER

-Anonymous

THE PRAYER OF THE TREEMan! I am the warmth of your home in the cold winter nightand the protective shade when summer's sun is strong.I am the framework of the roof to your house and the topto your table, the bed in which you sleep and the timberwith which you fashion your boats.I am the handle to your hoe and the door to your hut.I am the wood of your cradle and the boards of your coffin.I am the bread of kindness and the flower of beauty.

Hear my prayer: Destroy me not!

*Reproducedfrom back cover of the book, "Black Walnut" by Bob Chenoweth

NEW PRODUCTTimber Harvester, Manufacturer of por-

table band-saw mills, has begun shipmentsof their Board Return System. The device,called simply "Board Dragbacks", are at-tachable to any of their line of portablemills. "Most of our customers buy a mill tomake a living," explains Timber HarvesterPresident Paul Nelson. "They need to pro-duce as much saleable lumber as possible,without hiring extra people. TimberHarvester's niche in the market has beendeveloping products that allow a sawyer toset up and run a mill alone. This is a majorstep in that direction."

The system is as a row of heavy steel"fingers" mounted to the saw head, whichgrab the board immediately after it's cut andpull it back to the operator with the saw headreturn trip. Timber Harvester designed theirmill from the start to run non-stop with oneman - the saw head cuts semi-automatically

NYFOA -1-800-836-3566 - INFO

so the sawyer can tail the lumber while themill is sawing the next board. The BoardDrawbacks take the one-man-mill concepta step further. Since now the mill is tailingall his lumber automatically, the sawyer canuse the time that's freed up for stacking oredging. "Even if you're a hobbyist," saysNelson, "the Board Dragbacks allow youto do the same amount of production witha lot less effort."

TH reports that some sawyers have setup a portable edger directly behind the milloperator's station, where the lumberreturnsto, and sawed and edged simultaneously,non-stop, alone! They report huge gains intime saved and lumber produced.

Timber Harvester, Inc. has manufacturedportable band-saw mills in Waterloo, NYsince 1989; they can be reached at 800/343-2969.

SEP/OCT 1995

GUEST EDITORIAL:

LET IT ROTBy Eric Johnson

A powerful storm ripped through cen-tral New York early one morning in earlyJuly, knocking down trees and power lines- temporarily disrupting the fragile infra-structure up here in the Adirondack Park.Power lines were down, phone communi-cation was spotty and our one physical linkto the outside world - a two-lane state high-way- was blocked in various places by up-rooted and shattered trees. Tragically, sev-eral campers were killed when trees fell ontheir campsites.

Most people in the region had their ba-sic services back within a few days. Eventhe nonessential luxuries of life came backonline before long. As the parent of a teen-ager, for example, I knew the exact momentthe cable television feed was restored.

By the end of the first week, after lifehad more or less returned to normal, webegan to hear about large blowdowns allalong the path of the storm, Some of theseoccurred in "forever wild" parts of the Park,where all timber harvesting activity hasbeen banned for more than a hundred years,while other damage was sustained on pri-vately-owned woodlots both inside andoutside the Adirondack Park boundaries.

BIowdowns are nothing new in state-owned "forever wild" forests, where standsof timber way beyond their prime do whatcomes naturally, namely, grow old and weakand eventually blow over. Nobody everdoes much to clean up the mess, other thanclear the hiking and skiing trails when theybecome obstructed.

What sets the current devastation apartfrom business as usual is its large scale, andthe fact that public attention has been drawnto the issue because so much salvage isneeded on privately-owned property.

"While we're at it," some in the forestproducts industry have been saying to thestate, "why not let us salvage some of theblow-down on state land in the Park?

"No way, " say environmental groupswho claim to care about the future healthand viability of the Park. Loggers, they pre-dict, will tear up the woods and use the sal-vage of dead trees as an excuse to start cut-ting live timber. Plus, they point out,

NY FOREST OWNER

blowdowns are part of nature, and keepingmankind from tampering with the naturalorder is what "forever wild" is all about.

Oddly enough, I'm going to side withthe environmentalists on this one (in a way),by arguing that trying to salvage blown-down timber from "forever wild" areas is,in this case, a bad idea. Here's why:

* Let the unsalvaged timber serve an edu-cational purpose. If proponents of "foreverwild" think that letting nature take its courseis such a fine idea, then let the public seethe results of poor management; i.e., wasteand disease and other general ugliness.* Why should we set ourselves up/ora/all?No matter how nice a job any logger doeson a "forever wild" salvage operation,somebody will find fault with the job - realor imagined - and the industry as a wholewill suffer the negative public relations con-sequences.* Work where you're most needed and ap-preciated. There's plenty of salvage workto be done on private land - land owned bypeople who realize and appreciate its im-portance. Why should their property sufferfrom neglect and infestation while land thathas been intentionally mismanaged receivesall the care and attention?* No place to put it. The same goes formarketing. This stonn could not have comeat a worse time. Virtually all log and pulpmarkets in the region are oversupplied thissummer, with very little material movinganywhere. Much of the damaged timber issubject to stain and bugs, and will have tobe removed quickly - both to preserve itsvalue and prevent the spread of disease.Again why should the private landownersuffer at the expense of public resource mis-management?* Have some pride. Should the timber in-dustry content itself to pick up the crumbsfalling from the plate of environmental elit-ists? The real issue here is a state policy ofnot managing a big chunk of what could beproductive timberland. Participating in anapproved "salvage" operation might be per-ceived as some measure of approval for thewhole misguided enterprise.

I can understand loggers' frustration at

NYFOA ·1-800-836-3566 • INFO

seeing some very nice timber (in some casesbetter than could be had elsewhere) goingto waste as a matter of principle. But this isa matter of principle: Perhaps the best dem-onstration of the value of responsible for-est management will be to wait five years,and then ask people to compare two sites -one salvaged responsibly, and one "pre-served."

Reproduced/rom THE NORTHERN LOG-GER and Timber Processor, Aug, '95

PONDS UNLIMITEDINVITES yOU ....

to think of all of the benefits youcould enjoy from having a pond ora lake on your own property. Thisidea could become a reality if theright conditions prevail. From ourexperience it normally requiresfavorable watershed conditions,good site conditions, owner-commitment to stewardship forenhancement of forest land values,appropriate engineering planningand design, and good constructionpractices.

PONDS UNLIMITED CANEVALUATE the site of yourchoice. We can provide all of theengineering services needed toplan, design and oversee theconstruction of a darn to create ahandsome pond or lake on suitableproperty. You can get additionalinformation by calling 315/422-POND or sending a letter ofinquiry to:

PONDS UNLIMITED719 E. Genesee St.

Syracuse, NY 13210315/422-7663

FAXl476-3635

SEP/OCT 1995 • 17

THE 1995 NYFOA FALL MEETINGSeptember 30th and October 1st, 1995, Lakeville, NY

INTRODUCTION AND WELCOME TOTHE FINGER LAKES AREA

by Stanley Stek

Flying over the Finger Lakes gives you a perspective that thistruly is a special place. Driving through gives you a sense ofhow vast this area is. But, walking in the forest gives you asensational point of view.

With water quality being the main objective, it can be seenthat wildlife, recreation, and timber production are integratedwithin the well posted boundaries. This rugged terrainillustrates the need for public access to large holdings.Reaching the boat launches of two lakes via paved roads isideal. The watershed is divided into various stands in a varietyof stages.

Spending some time with the trees will inform as well asinvigorate the visitor. Local residents take pride in livingamong this splendor and we invite everyone to share its glory.

~~~~rv

~""~-"'--~-~"".Ac.'''''''I&.

J.lt"S~ 8.,.8

DESCRIPTION OF PRESENTATIONSby Bruce Robinson

A visit to Hemlock and Canadice Lakes, water supply for theCity of Rochester, has many rewards. For the NYFOA'n it'offers a look at management of a large parcel of land governedby specific goals, The 7100 acres owned by the City ofRochester are managed for the assurance of high water quality.Lesser, but interrelated, goals include open space retention,maintenance of a healthy and varied forest, and wildlife habitatstabilization and enhancement.

Field excursions during the NYFOA Annual Meeting willexamine timber sales, TSI in older plantations, plantings withtree shelters, erosion mitigation, wetlands projects, and muchmore. Understanding how each relates to water quality shouldlead to interesting discussions. A slide program Saturdayevening will show areas unseen by most people. Some before-and-after shots of ongoing projects will provide specialinsight. Wildlife use, especially birds, will highlight theevening program.

Forester Bruce Robinson will be assisted by watershedconservationist Don Root in guiding discussions. All fieldtrips will be easy walks - unless, of course, the unruly crowdrequires discipline. Please join us!

Nl'

18 NY FOREST OWNER NYFOA - 1-800-836-3566 - INFO SEP/OCT 1995

1.. ········" · .. ············ .. ·~ .. ········ ··· .. · .. ······ _.. _ ~ ~ -.~ .........- ~.

[NYFOA - WESTERN FINGER LAKES September 30th & October l st, 1995I REGISTR.ATION FORM;.;;l~;il

i;

I[!!i

:i

~i Registration: $25.00 x.__ persons = _l

I__ ... _._._ .._ .... _._N.N .. ~.~:.~~.~~:~.:::~.::.:~:~ ..~~::~~::,,~.:~~~~~:~~~~:~:~. dinne~ & re~~:::tiO~~~ __ . ...._.._.._..~.~~~_

Fall meeting: September 30, 1995 and October 1, 1995, in Lakeville, NY, which is at the north end of Conesus Lake.The field trips will be on forested property around Canadice & Hemlock lakes, the only undeveloped lakes in the area.

Please complete and mail this form (or copy) before September 11, 1995, with your check payable to NYFOA to:Eileen Van Wie, 6017 County Rd #37, Springwater, NY 14560. For questions-call 716-367-2849, evenings.

Name: ~ ~ _

(For couples. please include both first names for name tags)

Address: . _

City/State/Zip: _

Phone#: _

AGENDASATURDA Y, September 30, 1995:

8:00 am to 9:30 am Registration and continental breakfast10:00 am to 12:30 pm Field trip including: • Before & after conifer thinning.

• Importance of forest litter to the watershed.• Ice storm damage & tree defense systems

12:30 pm to 1:15 pm1:15 pm to 4:30 pm

Box lunch at boat launch.Field trip- Combining: • A timber sale.

• Developing a hiking trail.• Forest aesthetics.

6:00 pm7:30 pm

DinnerSlide presentation by Bruce Robinson, Private Forestry Consultant.Drawing for door prizes & the beautiful quilt crafted by Master Quilter, Betty Wagner.

SUNDA Y, October 1. 1995:8:00 am Optional breakfast buffet available. $4.95 per person.

10:00 am to 12:00 pm Hike to look at wetlands project; some completed last year, and some under construction now.

ACCOMODATIONS1. J.J. Leasure Restaurant and Motor Inn, (headquarters) 716-346-2120

(Only 24 rooms available, and will be held until Friday, September Sth.):i. Conesus Lake Campground, 2202 East Lake Road, Conesus, NY 14435,716-346-54723. Southern Shores Campground, 2125 East Lake Road, Conesus, NY 14435,716-346-54824. Letchworth State Park, 716-493-26115. Bed & Breakfast at Bluestone on Conesus, 2387 East Lake Road, Conesus, NY 14435, 716-346-69296. Bed & Breakfast at Conesus Lake, 2388 East Lake Road, Conesus, NY 14435, 716-346-6526, 1-800-724-48417. Bed & Breakfast at Stefano'S Countryside, 3915 Pennimite Road, Livonia, NY 14435,716-346-63388. MacPhail House Bed & Breakfast, 5477 Lakevill Road, Geneseo, NY, 716-346-56009. Oak Valley Inn, 4235 Lakeville Road, Geneseo, NY, 716-243-5570

NY FOREST OWNER NYFOA - 1-800-836-3566 - INFO SEP/OCT 1995 • 19

Return of Larch CasebearerBy Douglas C. Allen

As I prowled the Adirondacks and north-ern reaches of the Green Mountains thisspring and early summer, I noticed for thefirst time in several years that larch foliageappeared "scorched" in many areas. Whenlarch needles turn brown in early summer,this is often a tell tale sign of an insectknown as larch case bearer. I thought itworthwhile to introduce forest owners tothe insect and its damage before someoneattributes the malady to acid rain!

Another ExoticThis moth was introduced from Europe

into Massachusetts during the mid-1880sand since then has spread throughout the

Fig. 1. Scorched orfrosted appearance of larch foliage mined by larch casebearer caterpillars.

range of larch in North America. It feedson both native and exotic species of Larix.

Fig. 2. Larch needle damagedby an early stage of larch case-bearer: A, leaf mine; B. egg.

rarely kills larch. It may, however, reduceheight and diameter growth by 90% or moreand cause branch mortality. The most sig-nificant impact in our region is aesthetic.People who travel through rural areas in thesummer find brown needles and sparse fo-liage unattractive (Fig. 1). Larch often oc-curs in small, nearly pure natural stands orin plantations, which tends to make thisdamage more obvious. Most of the dam-age occurs in spring when full grown cater-pillars emerge from hibernation and feedon the new foliage. Mined needles dropprematurely.

The DamageOutbreaks oflarch casebearer in the east-

ern United States early in this centurythrough the 1950s were more prolonged andsevere compared to episodes that have ap-peared during the past 30 years. Now out-breaks in our region are of shorter durationand more localized. Though eastern larch(tamarack) has limited commercial usepeople value this conifer because it servesas a source of food for wildlife, it adds di-versity to our landscape and its foliage isvery attractive in the fall.

Severe case bearer defoliation in the east

20 NY FOREST OWNER NYFOA -1-800·836·3566 - INFO

Fig. 3 Cluster of overwinter-ing cases on larch twig. Eachcase contains a caterpillar.

SEP/OCT 1995

Description and Life HistoryThe silvery to grayish adults are very

small, with a wingspan of only 5/16". Theyare active in early summer at which timefemales deposit tiny eggs singly on foliage.Upon emerging from the egg, each cater-pillar bores directly into the needle andspends its life as a leafminer (Fig. 2). Thenext time you pass a larch, take a look at itsfoliage to get an idea of just how small thisinsect must be in order to live within a larchneedle! Individual caterpillars mine severalneedles during the summer. Late in the sea-son, each one lines a hollowed piece ofneedle with silk and clips this section off toform a case, within which it lives. Becausethe caterpillar continues to grow, new casesare formed as needed to accommodate itslarger size.

As winter approaches, larvae move toouter branches and attach their cases to atwig. Overwintering cases are grayish-

brown, approximately 114" long and oftenoccur in clusters (Fig. 3). Caterpillars feedfor a while in early spring and then trans-form from caterpillar to moth (pupate)within their cases. Moths emerge from lateMay through June and the cycle is repeated.

Biological ControlThe principle reason that larch case-

bearer outbreaks are now less widespreadand of shorter duration is due largely to thecollective action of introduced parasites.The primary players in this biological con-trol are two wasp species which were in-troduced into Canada during the late 1930sand early 1940s. Indeed, this is a classicexample of the successful biological con-trol of a forest insect. The limited commer-cial value of eastern larch combined witheffective biological control in eastern NorthAmerica have eliminated the need forchemical control.

TO THE EDITOR: It seems to me that THE FOREST OWNER is getting too seriousthese days. Would this small facetia have a place as a filler in some issue, or does itlack sufficient dignity?

ALL ABOUT EVOLUTION ORWHY WE HAVE TO HAVE FORESTERS

By Robert A. HellmannOnce upon a time in the faraway land

of Pangaea there were lots of little tinygreen things in all the ponds and lakes,and every time the wind blew the little tinygreen things washed up on the muddyshores. Then some of them decided to staythere, and they grew into mosses and liv-erworts, and they thought themselvespretty fancy, and they called themselvesbryophytes. But the animals didn't thinkthey were fancy. and they laughed at themand caJIed them gametophytes. Then thebryophytes grew things over the tops ofthemselves and called them, sporophytes;but the sporophytes kept growing tallerand taJIer, and pretty soon they looked

down on the gametophytes andsaid,"We're more important than you;because we have more chromosomes."Then the sporophytes made flowers andput the gametophytes into them and madethem stay there. Then the sporophyteslaughed and sang and got aJI dressed upin fancy leaves and grew taller and talleruntil they grew into trees, and that's whywe have to have foresters today.Bob Hellmann is a former Director ofNYFOA, past Chairman NYSDEC Region8 Forest Practice Board, and ProfessorEmeritus of SUNY Brockport; and hemaintains his interest in EnvironmentalBiology.

TRANsmONIn July, Wes and Carol Suhr moved to

their new retirement home in the Southwest,

after they sold both their lovely home andoutstanding St. Lawrence County TreeFarm. They leave a host of friends and goodneighbors. Thus ends a long associationwith northern New York, the Adirondacks,the New York Ranger School at Wanakena,NAC forest owners, and NYFOA. Now

they return to an area they both enjoy andknow well; because they lived and worked

in the Southwest years ago when Wes waswith the U.S. Forest Service. They leave tobe closer to their family.

Forest owners in New York have indeedbeen fortunate to have had the benefit ofWes's outstanding leadership and expertise.His dedicated hands-on example of soundsilviculture and forest management are tobe emulated. Wes has served THE NYFOREST OWNER as the "Ask-A-Forester"Editor and in a similar capacity for both theWOODLAND STEWARD and the NAC

Newsletter. NYFOA membership has ben-efited from the many interesting articles hehas published.

We will miss you both as you have beenoutstanding members of NYFOA. Youleave a legacy of concerned forest owner-ship and accomplishment that many mayaspire to duplicate on their forest land.

Having enjoyed a long friendship withthe Suhrs, we wish them much good health

and happiness in their new home. One dayour paths again will cross. In the meantime,

let's keep in touch:

Wes & Carol SuhrRoute #4Box 65ASanta Fe, NM 87501

THE EDUCATION OF FOREST ECONOMICSThe following is adapted from a letter tothe Editor of CHEMICAL & ENGINEER-ING NEWS, 1/23/95, giving a variety ofsources for this short study on teachingmathematics:

* In 1960: A logger sells a truckload ofsawlogs for $100. His cost of production isfour-fifths of this price. What is his profit?

* In 1970: A logger seJIs a truckload ofsaw logs for $100. His cost of production isfour-fifths of this price, or $80. What is his

NY FOREST OWNER

profit?* In 1970 (new math): A logger ex-

changes a set S of sawlogs for a set M ofmoney. The cardinality of set M os 100, andeach element is worth $1.00. Make 100 dotsrepresenting the elements of the set M. Theset C of the costs of production contains 20fewer points than set M. Represent the setC as a subset of M, and answer the follow-ing question: What is the cardinality of theset P of profits?

NYFOA -1·800·836·3566 • INFO

* In 1980: A logger sells a truckload ofwood for $100. He paid $80, and he made$20. Your homework: underline the num-ber 20.

* In 1990 (outcome-based education):By cutting down beautiful forest trees, alogger makes $20. What do you think ofthis way of making a living? (Topic for classparticipation: How did the forest birds andsquirrels feel?)

SEP/OCT 1995 • 21

ACUREFORCOUNTDRACULABy Jane Sorensen Lord, Phd,OTR,ND

I handed the fresh picked flower to myoral surgeon.

"You asked what and how I used it aftersurgery." I pulled an ounce bottle with aneye dropper from my pocket and explained."I tilted my head towards the side of thesurgery, squirted about three full droppersaround the tooth, sloshed it a bit, and heldit there for about five minutes. Then I swal-lowed it. Just as the anesthesia began towear off, I took a pain pill, then anotherbefore I went to bed. When I woke up, therewas no swelling and no pain. I did the samething when you operated last year."

"Usually patients have pain and swell-ing for a few days after apical surgery. Whatis the name of this flower? I see it growingall over."

"Yarrow.""Yarrow. So, do you think the Indians

used it? Do you know the history?"Indians, I'm sure used it because it grows

everywhere and has broad uses. But the his-tory of this herb lies in the legends of Greekmythology.

Apollo, the God of Health taught Chiron,the centaur, the secrets and the methods ofthe healing arts. Chiron, in turn, taughtAchilles about yarrow. According to leg-end, in the midst of a battle, to help him re-mobilize his soldiers, Chiron showed Achil-les a plant that stopped bleeding and healedwounds made by iron.

Achillea millefolium carries his name.And it does stop bleeding; but if you getinjured by something iron, get a tetanusshot! On cuts and scrapes, yarrow worksvery fast. Be sure to clean out the injury

before using; because it will heal over dirtand cinders. Sometime ago while camping,I fell and scraped my knee; I used yarrowimmediately. Overnight the skin started toheal over the dirt and I had to re-scrape it.(YUK)

My husband, Gordon, and I use it fordental work that causes bleeding. It workson razor nicks and surgical scars. (My oralsurgeon was not the first of my doctors whohas seen yarrow's first aid and healing ef-fects !)

Yarrow is easy to grow by transplantingsmall plants in the early summer or betterby collecting seeds and planting them in thefall. Yarrow comes in red, yellow, andwhite. I have not seen the yellow and thered is more magenta, very beautiful. I haveread that the red is better for healing, I don'tknow. However, thanks to bees and hum-ming birds, my red yarrow has mixed it upwith the wild white plants and we now havepink!

Yarrow can be used fresh in a poulticeor as a tea. Drinking the tea, which doesnot taste great, is supposed to help you healfrom the inside, out. I've drunk it for a fewdays before intrusive measures and afteraccidents that break skin.

I extract it in food-quality oils (avocado,peanut, rape seed, apricot, etc.) to use forhealing. I add it to my summer skin oils;because it helps sun and wind burn. Sinceit is not my favorite smell, I usually add anessential perfume oil, like lemon verbenato overpower it.

I had a first time use for yarrow recently.I had been mucking near shore in a localpond collecting aquarium plants. After I got

LANDOWNERSMaples, Cherry & Red Oak are in strong demand, if you are interested in

selling some of your standing Timber consider ...• Each tree to be sold is marked according to YOUR specifications.• We send notices to reputable log producers & exporterso Sealed bid opening determines the highest bidder• Payment is made in advance to any harvest operation'" All harvest operations are supervised by our foresters~ We retain a security deposit until owner is completely satisfied.• Guaranteed to net YOU the highest price for your timber.

Write or Call For A Free PamphletRobert Synowiez - Professional Forestry Consultants

l~~~ ~ ~!n~PB~~lg,Qd~,gO'NY13827~ 607/687-0460

22 NY FOREST OWNER NYFOA -1-800-836-3566 -INFO

home, washed, and planted the aquaticweeds, I sat down to take my answeringmachine messages. I felt a wetness on myankle and looked down to see flowingblood! No pain. Washing revealed a smallleech. He let go when covered by a cottonball saturated with nail polish remover. Butthe bleeding didn't stop. So I saturated an-other cotton ball with yarrow oil and heldit with pressure for a few minutes. Thebleeding stopped.

The first time I got leeched, I couldn'tget the bleeding to stop. And then I read,that like the vampire bat, leeches inject ananesthetic as well as a blood anticoagulantto keep the wounds' owners unaware andto keep the wound open so they can lap upthe flowing blood.

M-m-m-m. Maybe I should write toTransylvania castle owners: plant more yar-row!

Dr. Jane is a regular contributor to the NYFOREST OWNER, promotes the use of wildplants in our culture, and serves as Com-munications Liaisonfor the NYS Tree FarmCommittee.

Achilleamillefolium

SEP/OCT 1995

.The MarketplaceATTENTION small woodlot owners/part time loggers - For FARM Iwinches and VALBY chippers, write Hewitt's Hill Haven, Locke, NY13092 or call (315) 497-1266 (Before 8AM or after 6PM).

MEADOWVIEW NURSERYQUALITY FIELDGROWN SEEDLINGS AND TRANSPLANTS forreforestation and establishing wildlife habitat.SPECIALIZING IN NUT TREE & WETLAND VARIETIES. P.O. Box241, Byron, NY 14422 (716) 548-2207 FAX (716) 548-9014

FOR SALE: 170 acres Allegany County; 80 acres pine and hardwoods;deer, turkey, grouse; call Henry Hansen, evenings (716) 334-3569; Goodproject for interested woodsman.

For Sale- A well-managed timberland tract in Ellenburg, NY consistingof 191 acres near Upper Chateauguy Lake. Asking $85,000. For moredetails contact Ben Hudson at Wagner Woodlands and Co., P.O. Box 128,Lyme, NH 03768 (603) 795-2165.

Christmas Tree Grower seeking wholesaler. 500 Scotch Pine in 1996.More coming. Spruces, Fraser Fir, Balsam Fir. Contact Black ForestProducts, 3824 Pembrooke Lane, Vestal, NY 13850.

ADVERTISINGRATES

Per Insert:

Display: $210 - perfull page or 30 col. in.;$7 per col. in.

Marketplace: $10minimum for 25 wordsor less, 10c each ad-ditional word.

Contact: R.J. Fox, EditorRD 3, Box 88,Moravia, NY13118Fax/Phone:

(315) 497-1078

Circulation 1950.

SPECIALIZING IN:

• Timber Sale Administration

• Timber Management Planning

• Timber & Timberland Appraisals

• Timber Taxation Planning

FORECON, INC.

JAMESTOWN, NY OFFICE100 East Second StreetJamestown, New York 14701(716) 664-5602(716) 664-6648 Facsimile

CORTLAND, NY OFFICE11 North Main StreetSuite 202Cortland, NY 13045(607) 753-3113(607) 753-9170 Facsimile

TIMBERLAND REALTY OFFICE100 East Second StreetJamestown, NY 14701(716) 664-5602(716) 664-6648 Facsimile

FOrestry - Recreation - Ecology - CONseNation

NY FOREST OWNER NYFOA ·1·800·836·3566 ·INFO SEP/OCT 1995' 23

.- -- -- ----------------------------------

R.J. Fox, EditorRD#3, Box 88Moravia, NY 13118FaxIPhone (315) 497-1078

-- VOSS Signs --Dcpt. NYF. Box 553. Manlius. N.Y. 13104

Ph. (3UJ) 882-&US(Mon.·Frt. 9-51

9511

NEW YORK FOREST OWNERS ASSOC.DEBBIE GILLPO BOX 180FAIRPQRT, NY 14450

HANDMADE QUILTBetty Wagner, quilt master, has donated

handmade "Adirondack Beauty" toNYFOA, a $1500 value. Proceeds for the1 dollar ticket to go to NYFOA Chapter/Affiliates.

Send money for raffle tickets to DebbieGill, Box 180, Fairport, NY 14450. She willassign suitable numbers to the stubs andhold for the drawing at the NYFOA FallMeeting.

NYFOA SPECIALSThe following promotional items especially designed for

NYFOA may be obtained from Deborah Gill, AdministrativeSecretary; PO Box 180, Fairport, NY 14450; (716) 377-6060or directly from and with support for your local chapter:

Shoulder Patches $2.00 50% Cotton T-Shirts $8.00Window Decals 0.50 100% Cotton T-Shirts 9.00Member Sign 2.00 Long-sleeved Shirts 13.00Pewter Lapel Pins 4.00 Sweatshirts 16.00

PLEASE PROVIDE SIZE & PHONE NO.

24 • NY FOREST OWNER NYFOA -1-800-836-3566 -INFO SEP/OCT 1995

Non-Profit Org.U.S. POSTAGE

PAIDMoravia, N.Y.

13118Permit No. 21

FOUNDED 1963

WOODLOTCALENDARSep 30: 2day NYFOA FALLMEETING Hemlock Lake;Eileen Van Wie; 716/367-2849(eve) See Page 18.

Oct 7: SAC; Woodswalk, JackLeadley's Woodlot; Specula-tor; 5181798-0248.

Oct 20: CDC; IPM; W JCowee Mill tour; Berlin; 518/753-4336

Coming Issues-NY Forest Owner

Forest SoilsBy Edwin White, SUNY/ESF

Corridor ManagementBy Larry Abrahamson, SUNY/ESF

Land As CollateralBy Rick Percoco, Farm Credit