Forest management
Forest management
Forest management is a simple term for a complex array of activities and experiences that allow landowners to meet specified goals and objectives while maintaining the productivity of their forestland.
Learn how to do a forest inventory, build a forest road, plant and care for forestland trees, thin a stand of trees, harvest timber and provide food, water and shelter for wildlife while protecting your trees from depredation.
Forest inventory
An inventory of current forest conditions is an important tool for management planning. Knowing what information you need before you begin will help you to tailor your inventory to the goals and objectives for the site.
Related resources
- Basic inventory techniques for family forest owners, PNW 630
- Land survey and mapping: an introduction for woodland owners, PNW 581
- Simple homemade forestry tools for resource inventories (WSU EM038E)
Forest roads
Road systems are one of the most important and costly parts of a forest operation. Carefully designing and maintaining forest roads provides access as well as protects water quality.
Related resources
- Managing woodland roads: a field guide, PNW 641
- Idaho forestry best management practices field guide: using BMPS to protect water quality, BUL 891
- Grass seeding forest roads, skid trails and landings in the inland northwest, PNW 628
Tree planting and care
Plant a tree, invest in the future; plant a lot of trees, invest in a future forest. No matter what size, careful planning and preparation will ensure your tree planting project is a success. Find out how forest seedlings are grown. Learn how to plan and prepare for a successful tree planting and care for your trees once they are planted.
Related resources
- Selecting, planting and caring for trees, shrubs and vines, BUL 860
- Trees for southwestern Idaho landscapes: selection and irrigation, BUL 884
- How to prune coniferous evergreen trees, BUL 644
- Pruning western white pine: a vital tool for species restoration, PNW 584
- Enhancing reforestation success in the Inland northwest, PNW 520
- U of I Center for Forest Nursery and Seedling Research
Thinning
The main objective of thinning is to remove the poorer quality trees, reallocating the light, water and nutrients of the site to the remaining trees. Thinning is an intermediate treatment that occurs between silvicultural systems.
Related resources
Timber harvesting
Harvesting and processing forest products can be as simple as using a saw to hand-cut a single tree or as complex as using helicopters to salvage thousands of acres of fire-killed forest. Learn more about planning a timber sale, salvage logging, choosing harvesting and processing systems and how to manage logging slash.
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