Forest Health

See the Forest and the Trees!

“If it is red – it is dead!” said Roy Mask, Entomologist with Gunnison USDA Forest Service at the recent Forest Health Workshop held at Wilkinson Public Library.  As a follow-up, TNCC with Mountain Village Forester Dave Bangert and Colorado State University Extension has scheduled a Tree Tours for local residents to get a “hands-on” and “arms around” our trees and various forest health issues. 

Forest Health Tree Tours Scheduled!

WHAT: See the Forest AND the Trees! Visit two Aspen SAD (Sudden Aspen Decline) forests with different outcomes.

WHEN: Wednesday, September 2, 10:00a.m.

WHERE: Horsefly Mesa and Log Hill, Ridgway.

MEET: Brown Ranch, Hwy 62 and X48 Road.
CARPOOL: Colleen Trout, 728-1340 or admin.tncc@gmail.com or Yvette Henson, 970/327-4393, Yvette.Henson@colostate.edu
GUIDE: Jodi Rist - Colorado State Forester.

WHAT: Walk along Jurassic Trail and observe this summer's spruce bud worm outbreak, along with bark beetle and SAD (Sudden Aspen Decline) impacts on our forest along Coonskin Ridge.

WHEN: Thursday, September 3, 1 - 3a.m.

WHERE: Mountain Village Jurassic Trail.

MEET: 1:00p.m. at the top of Boomerang Trail and Jurassic Trail in Mountain Village.
CARPOOL: Colleen Trout, 728-1340 or admin.tncc@gmail.com or Yvette Henson, 970/327-4393, Yvette.Henson@colostate.edu
GUIDE: Dave Bangert, Mountain Village Forester and Recreation Supervisor.

PAST HIKES

WHAT: See the Forest AND the Trees! Burn Canyon Tree Tour - come see the restoration of a major forest fire and IPs beetle impacts on our forests.

WHEN: Tuesday, July 28th, 10:00a.m.

WHERE: Norwood.

MEET: At USFS in Norwood, Norwood Ranger Station.
CARPOOL: Colleen Trout, 728-1340 or admin.tncc@gmail.com or Yvette Henson, 970/327-4393, Yvette.Henson@colostate.edu
GUIDE: Tim Garvey, Silivicuturist, USDA Forest Service.

It can be difficult to determine what is wrong with a sick tree if you have an experienced eye. Impacts from bark beetles, spruce bud worm and Sudden Aspen Decline (SADS), or Magnesium Chloride can be confusing and complicated.  Dead trees can be a safety issue for homeowners and complicate fire protection as outlined in the recently adopted San Miguel County Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP).  The tree tours will help participants recognize some of these forest health issues.

We hope this will inspire on-going dialogue about our forests –and the trees in our neighborhood. If you have someone you would like to recommend for future workshops, topics or tours please let us know.

There is no charge to attend.

From Black to Green … Reforesting Burn Canyon

Narrative Description: The Burn Canyon area was a vibrant community of trees, shrubs, forbs, and wildlife with the ponderosa pine reigning supreme in this forest community.  That was until a lightning bolt in the early afternoon of July 9, 2002 changed it all.  By the time the fire was officially declared out, over 30,000 acres evolved into a charred landscape.  The flames, making no distinction between boundaries, passed through Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and private lands.  In all, 10,397 acres of the Norwood Ranger District, 11,445 acres of BLM, and 6,976 acres of private lands were burned.  Revegetation activities on the Norwood District began shortly after the fire.  The Forest Service also moved forward with planning and implementing two salvage timber sales.  In the Burn Canyon and Bucktail Salvage and Reforestation Environmental Assessment, the Forest Service stated its intention to “accelerate the ecological restoration of the burned areas” by planting ponderosa pine seedlings in all of the salvage sale units. Additionally, up to 2,116 acres of unharvested burned Forest Service lands would be planted with ponderosa pine seedlings.  Local ponderosa pine seed, collected prior to and in 2003, was used to grow seedlings at Forest Service nurseries in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho and Bessey, Nebraska.  In the Black and Decker Salvage Sales, the timber sale purchasers were required to cut and leave dead trees which were smaller than those designated for removal.  The intention was to use these down trees to create microsites favorable for the survival and growth of the planted ponderosa pine seedlings.  After being felled, the trees were placed in an east-west direction.  The seedlings would then be planted on the north side of the logs where shade and moisture prevails.

In the spring of 2004, the Norwood District started its reforestation commitment in Burn Canyon.  Approximately 153,700 one-year-old, container-grown ponderosa pine seedlings were planted by a contract planting crew over 424 acres of unharvested land.  Using “hoedads” the tree planters planted the seedlings at an 11 foot by 11 foot spacing.  To aid in the survival of the seedlings, the tree planters also installed tree shelters, plastic tubes twelve inches in height and about four inches in diameter over the seedlings.  The overall survival for the first year was 80%.  The following spring, only 178 acres of harvested land were planted.  An outbreak of Fusarium root disease at the nursery limited the supply of seedlings for 2005 to 60,900.  As in 2004, seedlings were planted with an 11 foot by 11 foot spacing and tree shelters were installed.  The tree planters also utilized the down logs, stumps, dead standing trees, and oak brush where it was available.  The overall survival for the first year was 66%. 

We started to notice areas that supported the best seedling survival.  The planting prescription evolved to include a requirement to plant seedlings only where down logs, stumps, dead standing trees and oak brush existed.  The seedlings would be planted with a nine foot by nine foot spacing within six inches of where these microsite protection materials existed.  This planting prescription was applied in 2006, 2007, and 2008.  Tree shelters were also installed in those years to give the seedlings an extra edge towards survival.  A table showing planting acreages, number of seedlings planted, and the current overall survival follows this report.  This year, we finished planting all the harvested units and returned to planting in the unharvested areas.  The planting prescription was adjusted to an 8 foot by 8 foot spacing where the microsite protection material existed.  We decided to forego the use of trees shelters this year and tighten the spacing to allow for seedling mortality.  In 2010, Norwood District will be planting exclusively in the unharvested areas.  Many of the standing dead trees that existed after the fire have fallen to the ground providing excellent microsite protection material.

The greening of the charred landscape of Burn Canyon has been gaining momentum these past few years.  Forbs, grasses, oak brush, and other shrubs are thriving.  Elk and deer herds are utilizing this area as are other wildlife.  And, now, a young forest is emerging from the ashes of the Burn Canyon fire.

Contact: Jim Tambling, Norwood RD, 970.327.4261

3rd Congressional District-Colorado

Year	Acres	# of Seedlings	Current Overall Survival
2004	424	153,700	59%
2005	178	60,900	54%
2006	370	135,300	80%
2007	390*	113,000	96%
2007	53**	24,800	96%
2008	469	158,000	77%
2009	602	153,000	?
Totals	2433	773,900	Burn Canyon
Totals	53	24,900	Bucktail
Totals	2486	798,700	Burn Canyon & Bucktail

*Burn Canyon portion of the 2007 planting contract

 ** Bucktail Burn portion of the 2007 planting contract

Total 2007 planting contract acreage is 443 acres & 137,800 seedlings planted.

Hear TNCC's Colleen Trout and Colorado State University Extension horticulturist Yvette Henson's interview on local forest health at ...

 

SCHEDULE

Bios for Presenters
May 8, 2009 Forest Health Education Workshop

Speakers and Panelists:

Roy Mask - Leader, Gunnison Service Center USDA Forest Service - Rocky Mountain Region Renewable Resources - Forest Health Protection

• 970/642-1133 rmask@fs.fed.us
• Roy Mask is a forest entomologist with the USDA Forest Service.  He is the leader of the Forest Health Service Center in Gunnison, Colorado, which together with its many cooperators, provides insect and disease expertise for federal, state and private forest lands throughout western and southern Colorado.

William Jacobi - Professor Colorado State University Bioagricultural Sciences and Pest Mgmt.

• 970/491-6927 William.Jacobi@ColoState.EDU
• Bill Jacobi is a Forest and Shade Tree Pathologist at Colorado State Univ. Dept of Bio-agricultural Sciences and Pest Management.  He teaches under graduate and graduate courses and coordinates a research program with graduate students who work on diverse questions including abiotic damages such as dust control salts, biotic agents such as white pine blister rust, and aspen diseases. 

Dave Bangert – Mountain Village Recreation Supervisor and Forest Consultant

• 970/369-8215 or 970-417-1789c dbangert@mtnvillage.org
• Dave Bangert works for the town of Mtn. Village as a Recreation Supervisor and Forest Consultant for homeowners and businesses.  He has a BS in Forestry from the University of Maine (1987).  He has worked for the USFS CFI Mid-Cycle Survey to determine spruce budworm affects on spruce and fir regeneration 1986; International Paper, Forest Inventory 1987-1988 and Boulder Tree Co., Arborist 1989-1991.  He is also a Professional Mountain Guide, 1992-Present

Jennifer Dinsmore - Chief Administrative Officer - San Miguel County Emergency Manager

• 970/728-9546 (direct), 970/728-1911 (24hrs) jenniferd@sanmiguelcounty.org
• Jennifer Dinsmore has worked at the San Miguel Sheriff's Office as Office Manager since 2001.  In 2005, she assumed a dual position as Emergency Management Coordinator and along with Office Manager.  She has been working on the development of a comprehensive SMC Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) and proud of the plan produced for SMC.  She has a BS in Geography from Sonoma State University (1997) and a MS in Geography from the University of Memphis (1999) and includes certification as a National Law Enforcement Park Ranger. She served as seasonal law enforcement officer on the west side of Rocky Mountain National Park for two summers.  She grew up in Kenai, Alaska and now lives near Norwood with her husband and two boys.  

Art Goodtimes - San Miguel County (SMC) Commissioner

• 970/728-3844 commish3@sanmiguelcounty.org
• Art Goodtimes is a 4th term Green Party Commissioner from Norwood, has been deeply involved in forest issues. He serves in many capacities: Chair for the Colorado Counties’ Public Lands Steering Committee; Board member - National Association of Counties’ Western Interstate Region; Chair - NACo’s Gateway Communities subcommittee; Colorado Rep.  to NACO’s Public Lands Committee; Chair - Burn Canyon Salvage Timber Sale Monitoring Task Force;  Founded San Juan Fens Partnership-mitigation for Telluride Ski Area expansion under Dr. David Cooper.  He has been active with many groups:  Public Land Partnership winning awards from the Forest Service, Dept. of Interior and Ford Foundation’s 2007 model collaboration groups in US; San Miguel Basin Gunnison Sage Grouse Working Group;  BLM Resource Advisory Council for SW Colorado;  National Network of Forest Practitioners, Quivira Coalition, Western Colorado Congress, Colorado Environmental Coalition, Colorado Wild, Sinapu, Sheep Mountain Alliance, and the Sierra Club.

Yvette Henson- Director/Agent, Colorado State University Extension (CSU)

• 970/327-4393 Yvette.Henson@colostate.edu
• Yvette Henson is Director/Agent for Agriculture, Natural Resources and Horticulture for San Miguel Basin-CSU Extension.  She has a B.S. in Horticulture from Louisiana Tech University and M.S.  in Horticulture from CSU.  She is passionate about sustaining local agriculture and native ecosystems, and has expertise in mountain gardening, historic gardening, water-wise gardening and native plants, diagnostics, plant identification and entomology.  Born in San Miguel County, she currently lives in Norwood.

Jodi Rist - Montrose District Forester, Colorado State Forest Service

• 970/249-9051x132 jodi.rist@colostate.edu
• Jodi  Rist is the District Forester for the Montrose District of the Colorado State Forest Service located in Montrose.  She graduated with a BS in Forest Management from the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point in 2001.  She has provided technical service on forest management related issues to private landowners for over seven years in both New Mexico and Colorado.  She has conducted detailed plot sampling across the state for forest inventory and analysis purposes as a Forest Inventory and Analysis Forester and has experience applying silvicultural treatments to Midwestern hardwood and conifer forests from previous work experiences. 

Tyler Schultz – Certified Arborist , Arborist Services, Telluride, CO.

• 970/596-7231 telluridearborist@yahoo.com
• Tyler Schultz graduated from University of Wisconsin Stevens Point in 1997 with a BS in Geography.  His professional arboriculture career has taken him to Madison, WI., Portland, OR. and currently, work throughout the Telluride region, in CO.  Certified for seven years as an International Society of Arboriculture Certified Arborist, he has 11 years experience in Tree Care including six years locally.  He is a member of the Tree Care Industry Association and attends annual ISA regional and national conferences on Tree Care. He has been maintaining trees in Telluride – including Town Park since 2005, and for San Miguel County Parks since 2004. Currently, he lives with his family in Ophir, CO. and continues to run Arborist Services.

Judy Schutza - Norwood District Ranger   Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre, and Gunnison NF

• 970/327-4261, ext. 4342 jschutza@fs.fed.us
• Judy Schutza has 35 years with the US Forest Service.  A graduate from Stephen F. Austin State University and University of Montana with degrees in forestry; she has worked with the agency in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, California and Colorado as a forester, silviculturist, timber management officer and District Ranger.  She has been the District Ranger for Norwood  since 1994 and has lived in Norwood since 2003.
Facilitator

Colleen Trout – Education/Special Projects, The New Community Coalition (TNCC)

• 970/728-1340  or 970/708-2265 cell admin.tncc@gmail.com
• Colleen Trout has been involved with non-profit organizations and the ski industry for over 25 years in Colorado and Alaska.  Currently she is working with The New Community Coalition – this regions sustainability program and teaches skiing (winters) at Telluride Ski Area.  In her past life, she started and ran several non-profit organizations including Telluride Adaptive Sports Program; Tomboy House (now San Miguel Resource Center), Challenge Alaska, Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center and Stewardship Earth.  She has a BA from Alaska Pacific University in Human Resource Development and currently a Grad student working on a Masters.