This month’s Foresters Corner article will provide some
detail on the harvesting plan for the winter of 2020-21.
To start, this plan was begun in 2019 with a review of
the Canada Creek Ranch Forest and Wildlife Habitat
Management Plan and the Annual State of the Forest
Report. A harvest proposal was generated for the
Conservation Committee (CC). After a tour of the
proposed harvest area, some modifications and finally
approval by the Committee, the proposal, the plan was
presented to the Board of Directors (BOD) for review.
Once field preparations were complete and the timber
sale prospectus was prepared, an additional tour, this
year a combined CC, BOD and membership tour was
completed. The timber sale prospectus was approved
by the BOD and is currently advertised by Grossman
Forestry for bidding.
The winter of 2020-21 harvest is composed of five
harvest units in the northeast portion of the Ranch (see
map). Unit one is composed of a mix of 60 year old jack
pine and 60-80 year old northern pin oak. This stand
is scheduled for a regeneration harvest due to the age
and declining condition of the stands. Northern pin
oak and jack pine both are light loving species, that is,
they require full sunlight to successfully regenerate
seedlings that will grow into quality trees. No, scattered
oak trees will be left as they will be highly susceptible
to mortality from the two-lined chestnut borer. The
Ranch may need to plant trees to augment any natural
regeneration that occurs as a result of the harvest.
Unit two is a well-stocked unmanaged red oak stand
that will be thinned to promote additional growth on
the residual red oak trees. Most of the red oak harvests
on the Ranch have been thinnings to promote growth.
Future harvests will turn an eye towards promoting
new or existing regeneration.
Unit three is a forty five year old aspen stand that is
scheduled for a regeneration harvest. This harvest was
planned to provide a diverse age range of aspen in this
area of the Ranch. Once completed, there will be four
different age groups of aspen in the surrounding
landscape. Only scattered white oak trees will be left
in unit three to minimize the effect of shade on
regenerating aspen.
Unit four is a 70-80 year old northern pin oak stand
with a mix of aspen pockets and scattered red maple.
This stand is scheduled for regeneration harvest for
similar reasons as outlined in unit one. This stand
should regeneration naturally, (i.e. no planting
necessary) to a mix identical to the current stand
structure.
Foresters Corner
Unit five is a red oak stand that previously was
managed in 1997. The results of this harvest left
scattered trees and pockets of mature red oak with
aspen, red oak and maple regeneration. As time has
passed, this regeneration has grown and in now being
shaded out by the mature trees left from the past
harvest. These residual trees form the overstory, while
the seedlings and saplings that resulted from past
harvest are the understory. The harvest will remove
the mature overstory trees, allowing for the understory
trees to continue to grow into mature trees.
It is intended that the 2020-21 harvest will begin after
the 2020 elk season and be completed by summer of
2021. The results of the harvest will be monitored for
success over the coming years. Any issues (tree
planting, for example) will be addressed by Grossman
Forestry, and Canada Creek Ranch’s Management, the
CC or BOD. The proposal for the 2021-22 habitat
management plan is currently in development and will
be presented to the CC. Please be on the lookout for a
tour to be scheduled later this Summer or Fall.
Terry Manty, ACF & CF
Registered Forester #997
12