Forestry Forum Phone Calls

by Ron Gosnell

Question: How do you decide which excess trees to remove in a tree cutting operation? N.L.K.

Answer: I admire Japanese gardens. Even after my visits to famous gardens in Japan, however, I could not duplicate their effective serenity and beauty as much as I tried. I was missing something. Then unexpectedly, a Japanese gardener revealed to me some of the art and science principles involved to create contrast, culture plants, place water and stone features, and importantly for this answer, incorporate a pleasing human element.

People are part of our environment and capable of complementing nature. To cut living trees is very appropriate for our present circumstance. But, if you want your own property to provide pleasing natural beauty after cutting and removing excess trees, the operation will require application of both art and science.

First, one must understand the ecology of the forest vegetation on your property. Do your homework and learn about plant associations and site qualities of your land.

Our Community Wildfire Protection Plan can help you get started. Different vegetation types are mapped and described in the plan. The summary table, in the Vegetation is Fuel chapter, reveals inherent forest diversity by vegetation types. Locate your property on the plan’s vegetation maps to see what you may have, and then ground-truth that information.

In the vegetation chapter’s narrative, some things about how your specific trees regenerate and grow are explained. Also, you can learn how different plant associations will burn and with different fire intensity. This information will help you assess your wildfire risk. Tree cutting strategies are presented to make your vegetation’s condition more sustainable in an environment subject to fire.

Then you must decide: What is your purpose? What reasons compel you to take the beneficial steps to improve and protect your forest and property and what values do you wish to retain?

Once you understand your land and vegetation’s qualities, and the limitations and opportunities your forest presents, and after you have refined your goals, then you are ready to designate which excess trees should be cut and removed.

Here is one approach. I look at a stand of trees (a distinctive group) and picture what I think it could have looked like, had the vegetation grown subject to historical forces of nature. Old prior-to-settlement photographs of different vegetation types and forestry experience help make this mind’s-eye picture, an image of what might have been.

Usually, because most of our current forest has grown in an absence of occasional and irregular disturbance, I find that there are way too many trees now than what would be growing if the forest was in a sustainable condition. Or, I often decide, the forest is lacking a variety of succession stages that would exist, had there been wildness during its development.

I adjust this mental image of the ideal tree stand using guidance that the landowners provide for their goals and values. The project forest is addressed, stand by stand. I try to see (identify) only the trees that would remain to comprise each dissimilar stand after tree cutting is complete.

Then I designate all the rest of the trees, in every stand of the project, to be cut and removed.

Sometimes this may be cutting from below (removing the smallest trees). Sometimes it will be cutting from above (cropping some overstory). Maybe it will be cutting and removal of some trees in all the species, sizes and age classes. Usually, more trees are removed than are left.

Small clearings, or cutting all the trees in patches, may be best for desired results, such as to disrupt fuel continuity, to make a strategic fuel break, to enhance a view or to diversify ages for a large same-age tract of trees.

Perhaps trees must be left growing close together for wind stability, and patches of crowded trees that are retained can be protected from potential wildfire with adjacent tree-less clearings. Some crowded trees have value to give wildlife protective cover, to give people some privacy, and aesthetics.

For our community, seldom is a simple tree spacing guide the best thing for cut-tree selection decisions. We are not growing wood pulp for paper here. Maximizing sunlight for each individual leave-tree is not necessary. And, simply thinning trees is not enough.

Many times in my career, landowners said to me, "I once wanted to be a forester." With numerous community members taking positive forestry action to protect their property, I am encouraged that so many are doing just that.

Selectively cutting and removing excess trees provides many rewards and environmental benefits, for everyone. It’s best done skillfully, and in harmony with nature. After a couple growing seasons, you will have safer, pleasant, and more sustainable natural beauty. r.g.