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Page 2

VOL. 19, No.1

New York Forest Owner

THENEW YORK FOREST OWNERS

ASSOCIATION

IN THIS ISSUE

P. 2 New Members; Officers; frontcover.

P. 3 View from the President'sChair: Urban Forestry, Editor.

Forest Management, TreePlanting: Robert L. Demeree.

Urban Foresters' Notebook, G.Hopkins Stauffer - ESF Publi-cations You Should KnowAbout

P. 4

P. 5

Additional Members for Direc-tory

P. 7 Shortcourses & Conferences inContinuing Education by ESF

P. 6

P. 8-9 U. S. Wood Resources-Evaluation of, by Jeri LynnSmith

P. 10 Tax Credit; Tree Plantingcont'd, Deer Repellent Avail-able, Nature's Prayer

P. 11 Seasoning Firewood, by Ed.Lang

P. 12 Ask a Forester; Directors Meet

FRONT COVERCourtesy of Director Bob Edmonds

and the Gutchess Lumber Compamr

WELCOMEOUR NEW MEMBERS

PAUL H. ALLENRD#2, Box 211Peru, NY 12972

CARL ANDREASENBox 130 B, Penn. Ave.Appalachia, NY 13732

LOUIS BONNETT4th Lake

Old Forge, NY 13470

ROYAL M. DUNNRt.#I, Box 262

Vestal, NY 13850

TOM FENTON340 Rock Beach Rd.Rochester, NY 14617

LOUIS MOGAVEKORt.#1

Gowanda, NY 14070

CALVIN BOB SEINLowtans, NY 14091

PETER J.R. TRAPP50 Riverside Dr.

New York, NY 10024

SANFORD VREELAND1707 Rush Henriella

Town Line Rd.Rush, NY 14543

E.T. WENTWORTH, JR.19 Park Forest Dr.Pittsford, NY 14534

Published by theNEW YORK FOREST OWNERS

Association

EditorEvelyn A. Stock

57561ke Dixon Rd.Camillus, NY 13031

PresidentHoward O. Ward240 Owego St.

Candor, NY 13743

First Vice PresidentRobert L. Edmonds

R#3, Box 99Marathon, NY 13803

Second Vice PresidentProf. Robert R. MorrowDept. Natural Resources

Fernow Hall, Cornell Univ.Ithaca, NY 14853

Recording SecretaryLewis DuMond9 Grand St.

Cobleskill, NY 12043

TreasurerEmiel Palmer

5822 S. Salina St.Syracuse, NY 13205

Membership SecretaryHelen Varian204 Varian Rd.

Peekskill, NY 10566

A TREEUpon whose bosom snow has lain,

Who intimately lives with rain.But poems are made by fools like me,

And only God can make a tree.

New York Forest Owner Page 3

AN APOLOGY FOR A WHISTLETo those of you who attended the

Luncheon at Greek Peak during our an-nual fall meeting on October 11, 1980, Iapologize for your painful eardrums.Without apology I state that my thumb-finger whistle is the sheerest, most im-mediate conversation stopper I knowof.

The history of that whistle may be ofinterest to you. When I was 12 yearsold, my best friend was the son of thelocal Baptist church minister. Rev.Blackmer had arranged to take severalof us 12 year olds to a camp at EatonReservoir for a summer week and I wasincluded. It was a wonderful experiencefor me and I remember with vivid detailmany of the things I did and learned.

The "Whistle" I learned afterwardbecause of an occurrence on leavingcamp. We were behind a very slowmoving car which Reverend Blackmerwanted to pass. However, his car horndidn't work. He told us boys to coverour ears and then he blasted his twofinger whistle. We passed the car. I wasso impressed that I determined to learnto do it and practiced until I could.

Again, I apologize for any "shattered"eardrums, but I gloat in that whistle'spower to bring almost immediate silenceon any crowd.

The View From thePresident's Chair

HOW DO YOU VOTE?This statement will appear after the

November 1980 elections, but it is anexpression of policy which may be call-ed into effect in future political elections.

On the way. home from the annualfall meeting of the NYFOA in Cortlandon October 11, 1980 I had as apassenger, Mrs. Margaret Rumsey, asoon to be member of the Association.She asked me what political party Ibelonged to and why.

My response was that I had beenRepublican for years because ofheritage and upbringing, but, in recentyears I had realized the importance ofthe Free Enterprise system and the ero-sion 9f that system by the DemocraticParty by their Socialistic laws andregulations. Consequently, I intendedto vote for the Republican Party as con-firmation of my belief in the innateabilities of the private citizen to choosethe right course for both private actionand the government of this country ofours.

Howard O. WardPresident, NYFOA

URBAN FORESTRYPublic Tree Programs in the UnitedStates: The number of street trees hasbeen estimated at 57 million. About900,000 are planted every year in citiesacross the country. Many forest ownersin the New York Forest OwnersAssociation live in towns and cities andwould be excellent choices as membersof citizens councils on street tree plan-ning. With this in mind you will find anarticle on urban forestry in this issue.. If you would be interested in havingan article on urban forestry in each issueplease let me know. I have excellentsources and a great deal of informationon the subject. _ The Editor

Page 4 New York Forest Owner

Forest Management

Current Events

Tree PlantingThis is an appropriate time to discuss

tree planting. Literally millions andmillions of trees have been planted inNew York State over the years, begin-ning in the late 1920's with peaks thatcame during the CCC years, post-World War II, and the Soil Bank years.Many species have been tried in NewYork, and trees have been planted formany different reasons. At present thetrees available for planting from mostsources are reasonably suited to ourNew York sites, and the objectives fortree planting have been clarified.

While originally tree planting wasprobably done as a reclamation projectfor the prevention of erosion andrestoration of soil, most tree planting isnow done for the following reasons:

Timber Production - Many peoplestill plant trees with a long-term view oflumber production even though theyknow it may be as much as fifty yearsbefore any timber products are trulyavailable.

Christmas Trees - Considerableamounts of trees are planted today forthe Christmas tree market; however,how many of these are actually sold asChristmas trees remains highlyspeculative.

Wildlife - Many landowners plantsmall groups of trees to enhance wildlifehabitat on their properties.

Aesthetics - More than a few land-owners plant trees, particularlyevergreens, just to look at, for theirbeauty alone.

Windbreaks Some trees areplanted near houses or other buildingsto shelter these buildings from the wind.Interest in this practice has renewed asenergy prices have skyrocketed.

For many, many years, as a profes-sional forester, I counseled people thatit is probably better to take care of treesthey already had rather than plant a lotmore. This was in the pre-firewood daysand cut nowhere equaled the growth. Itis now becoming readily apparent thatowners of hardwood stands may be ableto profitably culture their smallerdiameter hardwood stands throughharvest use and sale of firewood. In-

By Robert Demaree

deed, the fuelwood market is so strongthat there may already be overcutting,and very soon softwood {conifers} willbe harvested for fuel.

For whatever the reasons, the in-crease and demands for fuelwood andalso for lumber have somehowstimulated tree planting activities.Whether landowners believe that plan-tation growth will be in demand forfuelwood or other uses in thereasonably short-term future {1O-25years} or just their interest in trees isleading them to plant is hard to say, butsales of tree seedlings are up, the de-mand is strong and seems to be gettingstronger.

If you as a forest landowner plan todo some planting, I would caution youto avoid the mistakes that are common.These are unclear, objectives and thewrong trees on the wrong site. First,pick your objective. Will you plant treesfor long-term timber production,Christmas tree production, or any ofthese listed above? These practices canbe mixed; i.e., some Christmas treescan be harvested as an early thinningfrom a stand destined for timber pro-duction, or possibly trees can be plantedclose to buildings and serve as wind-breaks throughout their long life or theymay be constantly harvested. If youhave land on which you want to planttrees, formulate your objectives prior toordering the trees.

Secondly, know your planting site.Please note that I did not say soil, as soiltype is only one of the qualities of theplanting site. A forest site is made up ofmany factors: soil type, aspect {whichdirection the land slopes}, rainfall,average temperature, soil depth, etc. Itis important to know one's site prior to

selecting tree species. Let me point outthat identical soil types with differentaspects may not be suitable to the sametree species because of large moisturedifferences. Available moisture is prob-ably the most important factor in selec-ting tree species. A general rule ofthumb is wet for spruce, dry for pines,and larches and firs somewhere in themiddle. If all this sounds complicated, itis. Remember you are planning a ven-ture which may occupy a given landarea for a century or more. Somecareful consideration should be given toplanting. In fact, if any substantialamount of trees are to be planted, Irecommend strongly that advice from aprofessional forester be sought.

As most of you know, trees areavailable from the New York StateNursery at Saratoga. Order blanks andinformation sheets may be obtainedfrom Regional Forester Offices, SoilConservation Service Offices,Agricultural Stabilization and Conserva-tion Service Offices, and Extension Of-fices in most counties. Along with trees,the State is also offering a certainamount of wildlife shrubs.

There are some 7 million treesavailable from the Saratoga Nursery thisyear. However, demand is strong andby the time you read this the mostpopular species, Douglas and BalsamFir, may be sold out. In recent years ourNursery has been completely sold outby planting time.

Trees are also available from manycommercial nurseries in New York andsurrounding states. Commercialnurseries also offer tree species notavailable from the State. The most com-mon of these species are Frasier Fir andBlue Spruce which are highly prized asornamental and Christmas tree species.However, the prices of trees from com-mercial nurseries are substantiallyhigher than trees at the State Nursery.There are no restrictions on seedlingspurchased from commercial nurserieswhereas New Yrok State requires thelandowner to sign an agreement thatthe trees not be dug and removed withthe roots on for the purpose of sellingthem for landscape use.

Cont'd. on Page 10

New York Forest Owner Page 5

The UrbanForesters' Notebook

Knowledge about urban forestry -the management of forests and relatedvegetation in and adjacent to cities andtowns - is growing continually. Re-searchers are learning more and moreabout the bio-physical and humanecology of cities, while practicing city ar-borists and foresters are accumulatingknowledge through their daily ex-perience. This increase in urban forestryinformation is expanding the range ofpossibilities for urban planners andmanagers to improve the quality of lifein our cities, towns and villages.

To help keep information moving tothose who need it, in 1978 the USDAForest Service, Northeastern Forest Ex-periment Station, produced anddistributed the Urban Foresters'Notebook, an effort to coordinate andsummarize current urban forestry infor-mation. The Notebook was conceivedof as an information channel - notmerely one more publication. Becausethe Notebook is to be an informationchannel, rather than a completedpublication, it is published in a loose-leafbinder to which supplements can be ad-ded easily. Four content areas guide theorganization of supplemental informa-tion:

Benefits Provided by Urban Treesand Stands

Culture and Protection of the UrbanForest

Management of the Urban ForestSystem

Interface with Landuse Planning.

The Forest Service, in cooperationwith the School of Forestry of the StateUniversity of New York College of En-vironmental Science and Forestry, willselect, package and distribute informa-tion coming out of urban forestryresearch and practice that seems to fillthe most serious needs of the field.

The Notebook's coordinating editor(located at the College) will work to en-sure that outgoing information matchesneeds. Scientists and practitioners willbe asked for summaries of research andfield findings. Practitioners and urbanplanners will be asked to evaluate theusefulness of Notebook information andto make suggestions about furtherresearch.

To receive a free copy of the originalNotebook binder and all future sup-plements, write to the following ad-dress:

Ms. George Hopkins StaufferSUNY~CESF.School of ForestrySyracuse, NY 13210

To All!I Wish a Happy New Year

By Dan Hudon

Another year has passed us by andour Logging and Lumbering has suf-fered more rules and regulations. Peo-ple are worried about clear cutting theAdirondacks, Townships around thestate are trying to curb wood cutting.Someone, somewhere is always tryingto regulate. What we should have iseveryone, everywhere doing what theycan to educate proper forest landManagement!! Our forests are one ofour greatest assets, and despite whatanyone can come up with, Nature willprevail. Land that was considered overcut has come back better than ever.

Man, however, can help by promotingbetter ideas. All woodcutters could dotheir part. Deformed, weed and wolftrees give just as much heat as the niceclean trees that should be left for greatergrowth and profit later.

Trees are wonderful, however, theyare like any other crop, they should beHarvested! Common Sense and Con-servative Logging could benefit thelifestyle of all New Yorkers.

Educate your friends and neighbors..... Someday they may have to Voteon it.

Publications YouShould Know AboutThe following resources are

available from Cooperative Exten-sion, Dept. of Natural Resources,Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY 14853.

Economics of Timber Production-New York. R. R. Morrow. Mimeo.1965. 7 pp. Discussion of the invest-ment of time and money in timbermanagement and likely returns. Men-tions wood product trends and smallwoodlot management. Figures a bit out-dated but ideas still valid.

"European Forestry - Lessons forAmerica?" R. R. Morrow. Conserva-tion Circular 9(2). Spring 1971. 10 pp.Discusses forestry practices in Denmark,Germany, Norway, Sweden, and cen-tral Europe.

"Forest Planning in New York -Should We Be Involved?" F. E. Winch,Jr. Conservation Circular 9(1). Winter1970-71. 5 pp. Discusses developmentof standards for productive forestedlands in New York and the need forplanning to keep forest lands productiveto provide the needed supply of wood.

"Forest Management by Compart-ments." R. R. Morrow. ConservationCircular 14(3 & 4). Spring/Summer1976. 3 pp. Proposes dividing a forestinto units of similar characteristics tohelp organize plans and priorities, forease of management, for more diversi-ty, and for efficient production of forestproducts.Forestry, Economics, Society. R.

R. Morrow. Mimeo. 1970. 13 pp. Givesgeneral overview of forestry with a briefdescription of forest history and situa-tion in the U.S., value of forest prod-ucts, outdoor recreation, aesthetic logg-ing, and environmental forestry. Con-cludes with a discussion of agency aidfor private citizens.

"Some Forestry Priorities - NewYork State." R. R. Morrow. Conserva-tion Circular 7(4). Fall 1969. 4 pp.Brief description of poor condition offorests in New York, alternative forestrymethods such as thinning and plantingfor improvement, and owner objectivesfor woodlots.

"Wood and a Quality Environment."F. E. Winch, Jr. Conservation Circular9(2). 'Spring 1971. 3 pp. Discussespreservationist attitudes to lock up forparks land that is suitable for commer-cial timber production; also thelegitimate use of wood as a renewableresource.

Page 6 New York Forest Owner

Additions and Corrections to the November-DecemberDirectory Issue Membership ListAbuhl, Dr. & Mrs. John W.175 Schoolhouse Rd.Albany, N.Y. 12203

B & B Investment PartnershipDrawer TJamesville, N.Y. 13078

Ballard, Walter L.107 Woodland Rd.Attica, NY. 14011

Blakely, Mr. & Mrs. E.M.1181 Creek Rd.Attica, N.Y. 14011

Butts, Robert W.Bear Swamp Rd.Peru, N Y 12972

Campbell, Carleton, Jr.P.O. Box 242Cuba, NY. 14727

Frick, E.J.306 Cornwall Dr.Dewitt, N.Y. 13214

Gutchess, Keith4074 Highland Rd.Cortland, N.Y. 13045

Haasper, Mr. & Mrs. Carl31 Maridon LaneCommack. NY. 11725

Hancock, Clyde20 Loft Rd.Smithtown, N.Y. 11787

Howe, James E.10 Louis Ave.Saugerties, N.Y. 12477

Huse, DavidKarker Rd.Warnerville, NY. 12187

Kaulfuss, Mr. & Mrs. W.J.RD1, Box 299Gloversville, N.Y. 12078

Lang, EdwardTioga Co. Cooperative Ext.56 Main St.Owego, N.Y. 13827

Lawrence, Martin W.N. Catskill Occupational Ctr.P.O. Box D.Grand Gorge, N.Y. 12434

McNeely, JohnRt. 1, Box 205Falls Village, Conn. 06031

Marcheterre, Frank Jr.2142 Willowdale Rd.Skaneateles, N.Y. 13152

Merrill, Robert H.442 Waverly SI.Waverly, N.Y. 14892

Meserand, Edythe J.Windy Hill FarmRD1, Box 332Esperance, N.Y. 12066

Mizer, Edwin H.460 York CourtYorktown Heights, N.Y.10598

Moore, R.A., Forester193 Owego St., Rt. 2Candor, NY. 13743

Pank, C.J.Ceres FarmSprakers, N.Y. 12166

O'Shea, Peter V. Jr.148-37 Sixty First Rd.Flushing, N.Y. 11367

Peek, James1541 Elm St. Ext.R. 2, Groton, N.Y. 13073

Pfarner, Mr. & Mrs. EarlAllen Rd.Chaffee, NY. 14030

Rastley, GeorgeLaFargeville, N.Y. 13656

Rumsey, Margie110 E. Buttermilk Falls Rd.Ithaca, NY. 14850

Ryan, Robert B.Bobarene FarmP.O. Box 159Wampsville, N.Y. 13163

Sanford, William219 Kensington Rd.Syracuse, N.Y. 13210

Scheg, Bernard2610 Kendall Rd.Holley, N.Y. 14470

Schmelzer, George L. Fam.River Rd.Calverton, N.Y. 11933

Schmitt, Carl J.11i Ruskin Rd.EggertSVille,N.Y. 14226

Schnable, Edward J.Echo Lake, R# 3Boonville, N.Y. 13309

Schneider, William M. Jr.R. 1, 1463 Stump Rd.Elbridge, N.Y. 13060

Schuchardt, Walter20 Webster Rd.Spencerport, N.Y. 14559

Schuerch, Mr. & Mrs. Conrad125 Concord Rd.Syracuse, N.Y. 13210

Schulz, Arthur R.28 Barnwell LaneStony Brook, N.Y. 11790

Schumann, OttoP.O. Box 205Davenport, N.Y. 13750

Scott, CharlesR. 1, Box 282Locke, N.Y. 13092Seaman, Russell L.1402 Brigham Rd.Chapel Hill, N.C. 27514

Seibert, Laurence H.30 Vista Dr.Little Silver, N.J. 07739Shearer, Thomas D.P.O. Box 123Northville, N.Y. 12134Shepherd, Robert M. Fam.5825 Redman Rd.Brockport, N.Y. 14420Shera, Dr. Robert W.14 Ridgecrest NorthScarsdale, N.Y. 10583

Sherman, Ross35 James St.Dryden, N.Y. 13053

Shillington, A. Elaine67 Liberty st.Spencer, N.Y. 14883

Smith, Seymour & ConnieR. 2, Co. Rt. 4Central Square, N.Y. 13036Sonne, Christian R. Fam.West Lake Rd.Tuxedo Park, N.Y. 10987

Spargo, Thomas J.315 State St.Albany, NY. 12210Spencer, Mr. & Mrs. Maynard5932 Dog Hollow Rd.Cuyler, N.Y. 13050Spiesz, C.P.108 Burroughs Dr.Buffalo, NY. 14226Spitko, John E. & Jane A., Jr.1635 Fort Washington Ave.Maple Glen, Pa. 19002Sprague, Charles M.Malta Mobile AcresTV6,RD3Ballston Spa, N.Y. 12020

St. Louis, VernonForestry ConsultantR# 1 Hermon, N.Y. 13652

Stahler, Dr. & Mrs. ChristopherBethlehem Terrace Apts., F159Blessing Rd.Slingerlands, N.Y. 12159

Stanton, Earl G.Inkwell Printing Service Inc.1220 Hertel Ave.Buffalo, N.Y. 14216

Starbuck, Mr. & Mrs. Samuel L.Shirley, Dean & Mrs. Hardy L. R# 1, Box 54114 Centennial Dr. Chestertown, N.Y. 12817Syracuse, N.Y. 13207

Shults, Ted115 E. Sixty First St.New York, N.Y. 10021

Silsbee, Mr. & Mrs. D.L.RD3, Box 204Owego, N.Y. 13827

Silverstein, Harry, Fam.15 Parsonage Hill Rd.Short Hills, N.J. 07078

Simeone, Dr. JohnSUNY ColI. Env. Sci. & Fsty.Syracuse, N.Y. 13210

Sipple, Lloyd H.RD2 Bainbridge, N.Y. 13733

Smith, Harvey H.Bluefield Rd. R# 1Auburn, N.Y. 13021

Smith, Michael J.5 Barney St.Andover, N.Y. 14806

Smith, Russell M.Box 20, Swale Rd.Cameron, N.Y. 14819

Stephenson, Joseph R.70 Third St.Camden, NY. 13316

Stock, Mr. JamesP.O. Box 83Camillus, N.Y. 13031

Thomason, C.O.15 Park Ave.Whitehall, N.Y. 12887

Toplisky, Val & Pam363 Cranbury, Rd. A No.4E. Brunswick, N.J. 08816

Watson, Robert S.RD1, Box 166Camden, N.Y. 13316

White, Harold M.RD1, Box 389Marathon, N.Y. 13803

Whiteway, EthelRD1, Box 57ACoxsackie, N.Y. 12051

Wiedemann, Carl P.1342 Dean St.Schenectady, N.Y. 12309

New York Forest Owner

HAND TOOLS: THE AXE

Page 7

From"Handbook for Eastern Timber Harvesting"

USDA Forest Service, Broomall, Pa.Many felling and bucking crews now

go into the woods without that once all-important tool of the woodcutter: theaxe. Its absence is a testimonial to theutility and the versatility of the modernpower chain saw, used not only forstraight felling and bucking cuts, but alsofor limbing and topping, for making theslanting part of the undercut, and evenfor cutting the bigger brush and saplingswhich impede the progress and en-danger the safety of the woodcutter.

Nevertheless a light single bit axe isstill a highly useful tool for felling andbucking. Such an axe, with a 2lj2 to 3pound head and a 24-inch handle canbe readily carried in a sheath at the backof the chainsaw operator's belt. If theblade is kept sharp, the axe is a usefultool in cutting small brush and limbs thatinterfere with the job. It is safer to use anaxe rather than a saw to clear suchobstacles, and is certainly safer thanneglecting this job altogether. The pollof the axe can be used to drive plastic,alloy, or wooden wedges to keep thesaw from being pinched in the cut, andto start the tree falling in the desireddirection. The blade can chop out a sawthat gets stuck in the cut.

Many old time axe patterns andweights are still available, while othershave become obsolete to be seen onlyin museums. Several standard patterns,popular in different areas, are shown inFigure II-I. The Hudson Bay type, (Fig.II-I) a favorite of sportsmen, may bemore widely available but is less sturdyand useful. The double bit axes, once

Cont'd. on Page 11

Figure 11-1. Patterns of single-bit axe heads.SINGLE BITS

MAINE JERSEY MICHIGAN

---'

~ i_____) l _

NEW ENGLAND YANKEE OR HUDSON BAYOR DAYTON PATTERN

CONNECTICUT

STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ENVIRONMENTALSCIENCE AND FORESTRYSyracuse, New York 13210

SHORTCOURSES AND CONFERENCES

January - June 1981

Jan. 9, 10SUNY-ESF

Feb. 2-4Arcade, NY

March 11-13Hotel Syracuse

March-MaySUNY-ESF

March-AprilTBA

AprilMetropolitan NY

April-MayTBA

AprilTB~

April 24-26May 1-3Provincetown,Mass.

April-MaySUNY-ESF

NYS CHRISTMAS TREE GROWERSASSOCIATION WINTER MEETINGCoordinator: Howard Miller

SHORTCOURSE IN LUMBER PRE-DRYINGCoordinator: Harry Burry

NEW YORK SECTION, SOCIETY OF AMERICANFORESTERS WINTER MEETINGCoordinator: Ralph Nyland

NEW DIMENSIONS IN ENVIRONMENTAL LAWCoordinator: Sidney Manes

STREAM CROSSINGS AND LOGGING ROADSWORKSHOPCoordinator: Jean Fisher

METROPOLITAN NEW YORK WOODWORKERSSEMINARCoordinator: Harry Burry

LOG SCALING AND GRADING WORKSHOPCoordinator: Harry Burry

ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION WORKSHOPCoordinator: Alan Hankin

WHALE WATCHING AND ECOLOGY FIELDSTUDY SHORTCOURSECoordinator: Alan Hankin

IDENTIFICATION OF SPRING WILDFLOWERSCoordinator: Josiah Lowe

May 18-25 YUCATAN FIELD STUDY SHORTCOURSEPuerto Morellos, Coordinator: Alan HankinMexico

Date-TBATBA

June 3-5Hotel Syracuse

FOREST RESOURCES OF NEW YORK STATEAS AN INDUSTRIAL RAW RESOURCECoordinator: Jean Fisher

38th ANNUAL SNOW CONFERENCECoordinator: Art Eschner

Mail to: Dean, School of Continuing EducationSUNY-ESFSyracuse, N.Y. 13210

Phone (315) 473-8755 (after Jan. 9, 1981, 470-6891)

Page 8 New York Forest Owner

u.s. Wood ResourcesStudy Evaluates U.S.Wood Resources

The potential for using wood as analternative fuel source is higher in theEastern and Southern United Statesthan anywhere else in the nation.

That conclusion is one of severalproducts of a three-month study recent-ly completed by researchers at ESF forthe Solar Energy Research Institute.The three components of the researchproject are aimed at evaluating existinginformation on wood availability inorder to determine its possible use as aboiler fuel for industrial plants in theU.S.

The final component of the study, aWood-For-Energy Feasibility StudyGuidebook, eventually will be used toaid the Economic Regulatory Ad-ministration (part of the Department ofEnergy's Federal Energy RegulatoryCommission) in its review of requestsfor exemptions to a 1978 law requiringmajor fuel-burning installations such aspower plants to consider alternatives topetroleum-based fuels and natural gasfor firing boilers.

"The study exactly fulfills ERA'sneeds," commented Robert Farley,senior biomass specialist for the SolarEnergy Research Institute. "Given aspecific location for an industrial plant, itallows you to calculate whether wood isavailable in sufficient quantity to fuel aboiler."

ESF's Institute of Environmental Pro-gram Affairs assembled a multi-disci-plinary team of researchers from threeof the College's Schools to participate inthe data collection and evaluation tasks."The importance of the wood energyfield has grown significantly within thepast five years," commented IEPA Ex-ecutive Director James W. Geis."Although a lot of work has been donein the field, there have not been anygood state-of-the-art summaries or syn-theses of the implications of the work.These are two important needs that thestudy completed by our researchers ad-dresses."

School of Landscape Architecturestaffers Richard C. Smardon, researchassociate, and Richard Hawks, assist-ant professor, along with graduate stu-dent Virginia Bouchard completed thefirst phase of the research study. Thetask included a literature search to iden-

ESF RESEARCHERS Paul Hopkins, left, and Richard McClimans, who coordi-nated the project and completed the Feasibility Study Guidebook, discuss thestudy's findings for the Eastern U.S. region.

tify all areas of forest biomass in theU.S. and a survey of agencies and in-dustries to further identify ownershippatterns of the forest land in an effort todetermine where current ownershipmay preclude or significantly diminishfurther expansion of the use of wood asan energy source.

The researchers then translated all ofthat data to 21 maps. The maps dividethe country into five regions roughlyparalleling U.S. Forest Service regionalboundaries: Eastern, Southern, Nor-thern and Rocky Mountain, Intermoun-tain and Southwestern, and PacificNorth- and Southwest. For each regiona series of overlays are provideddelineating areas of forest biomass(regardless of type), and ownership (in-cluding private land holdings, federalownership, state parks, and wildernessareas). Additionally, for the Eastern andSouthern regions, the researchers pro-vided information on forest densities bycounty.

"These maps," explained Smardon,"are meant as a broad-brush tool. If youknow the location of the proposedplant, you can check the map and beable to tell very quickly if a fuel supply ispotentially available. If wood appears tobe available, the maps will also tell youwhether the forest land is held inrestricted ownership."

The second phase of the researchproject was to identify, collect andorganize existing publications providing

information on the nature and types offorest biomass or waste wood for majorforested regions of the U.S. This task ofthe study project was completed byBrian L. Fisher and John E. Michel-akakis, graduate students, and Doug-las B. Monteith, senior research asso-ciate in the School of Forestry.

Included in the bibliography aredocuments from the U.S. Forest Ser-vice, USDA extension agents, statedepartments of forestry, state energy of-

THE AIM of Brian Fisher, seated, andJohn Michelakakis, along with Doug-las Monteith was to structure as goodan information network as possible onwood-for-energy within the time con-straints of the study.

New York Forest Owner Page 9

flees, research organizations of theforest industry, and technical researchreports from colleges and universitiesacross the country. "It was ludicrous toassume we could come up witheverything that's been publicized onwood availability within given time con-straints," commented Fisher. "So wedid a quick-cut search on a nationallevel for the best sources of informationin order to structure a good informationnetwork on waste wood and forestbiomass."

The researchers computerized the in-formation for the roughly 500 publica-tions in the bibliography and analyzedeach for the degree and kind of infor-mation presented on biomass availabili-ty. The computerized system allows forinstantaneous retrieval of stored infor-mation, and as new informationbecomes available, the system can beeasily updated.

The published information isclassified in terms of geographicdistribution and according to the type ofwaste wood or forest biomass availabili-ty estimate each provides (direct, in-direct or tertiary). These latter threecategories are further subdivided ac-cording to whether the publication givesinformation on the total, the used, orthe unused portion of the resource.Finally, the reports are classified by thesource of waste wood or forest biomasseach addresses.

Richard McClimans, co-project di-rector and a senior research associate,and Paul F. Hopkins, assistant pro-fessor in the School of Environmentaland Resource Engineering, completedthe third and final task in the study. TheWood-For-Energy Feasibility StudyGuidebook outlines a step-by-step pro-cedure to be followed in order toevaluate the available wood biomasssupply as compared to boiler demand.

The procedure, explained Me-Climans, defines several basic steps inthe evaluation process and three levelsat which a final determination may bemade as to whether wood is a feasiblealternative energy source. Users of theguidebook are required to performseveral relatively simple calculations todetermine the amount of wood neededto fire the boiler and the maximumdistance the wood can be transported inorder to keep costs for the wood at leastequal to the cost of fueling the boilerwith natural gas or oil.

These and further calculations per-formed using information from the

minimizes conflicts with other wood-using industries. "All of us involved inthe study were, in the beginning, notgreat advocates of burning wood forenergy," commented McClimans."Through the course of the study, mostmaps and bibliographic documents willgive guidebook users a figure indicatingthe availability of wood on the basis of asupply-to-demand ratio. "For theEastern and Southern regions," saidMcClimans, "the ratio is usually quitefavorable for using wood, while in otherregions like the Intermountain andSouthwest, existing demand frequentlyexceeds supply. On the West Coast, forexample, the figures show the net an-nual utilization far exceeds the net an-nual biomass growth. There the forestsappear overutilized. In the South andEast, the forest growth is generally morethan current utilization."

The researchers, McClimans said,never recommend the use of wood asan alternative fuel unless supply ex-ceeds demand by more than a four-to-one ratio. This ratio insures an adequatesupply of wood fuel through the life ofthe boiler and, more importantly,of us have become more confidentabout wood's potential contributions.However, we all began with and con-tinue to hold to the strong belief that thebest use of wood should be to produceproducts of highest value to society."

This means, he explained, the firstuse of wood should be to support thriv-ing wood-using industries such as con-struction, furniture and other woodproducts, and paper industries. Thewood for energy they stress throughout

LEGENDo.~..,_. B "..•,M"'"o 74HOOJlOOEIfSITY • o·~o"DO;N~TY

.O"DfNs,n

the study would come from the unutiliz-ed portion of the net annual growth ofcommercial growing stock, logging orsawmill residues, or forest cull trees andthe like.

"The utility of this study will becomemore apparent in time as others beginlooking at the issues it addresses," saidFarley. "With some modification, thisstudy has the potential to provideguidelines to people in the planningprofessions. These are the people whowill worry about questions of supply anddemand - for example, if a lot of in-dustries in the area begin converting towood energy, will overutilization prob-lemsdevelop? Or, which areas can sup-port additional wood energy users?"

Possibility Thinker

Lord, as I am facing my mountainnever let me be a quitterGive me strength to keep on strivinguntil I climb over or find a passthrough or tunnel underneathAnd if everything else failsgive me the patience to simply stayand give me the power and perceptionto see the possibilitiesof turning my mountain into a Gold

Page 10

TAX CREDIT

New York Forest Owner

Dr. Gene GrayNational Extension ForesterSEA - Extension, Room 5925U.S.D.A., South BuildingWashington, D.C. 20250

Dear Gene:I have checked into the question of

the qualification of Christmas trees forthe amortization and tax credit provi-sions of Sections 194 and 48 of the In-ternal Revenue Code (PackwoodBill). Although the language of theseSections doesn't specifically excludeChristmas trees, the hearings recordsclearly indicate that Congress did not in-tend to include ornamental trees.

Christmas trees qualify as timberunder Sections 631 (a) and (b) forcapital gains purposes, and under Sec-tion 611 for purposes of determiningthe allowance for depletion. However,the definition states that "the term'timber' includes evergreen trees whichare more than 6 years old at the timesevered from the roots and are sold forornamental purposes."

Therefore, to qualify as timber theChristmas trees must be grown to besold for ornamental purposes, one ofthe exclusions specifically mentioned inthe hearings. Based on these factors Iconclude that Christmas trees do notqualify for the amortization and invest-ment tax credit available for timber.

If you have further questions on thismatter or other timber tax questionsplease feel free to call on me.

Yours truly,William L. Hoover, Ph.D.Assoc. Prof. Forest Econ. &Fin.Enrolled to practice before theInternal Revenue Service

Deer Repellent AvailableA Weyerhaeuser Company research-

er developed a deer repellent that isused on the tender seedlings of theirPonderosa pine, hemlock, and otherplantings around the country. Aderivative of rotten eggs, it is availableto the home forester as MGK Big GameRepellent. It is said to protect woodyplants 1-4 months. For information,write McLaughlin Gormley King Co.,8810 Tenth Ave. N., Minneapolis,Minn. 55427.

IRS WILL ALLOW TAX CREDITAND AMORTIZATIONOF REFORESTATION

Landmark tax incentive provisions forreforestation were signed into law Oc-tober 14, 1980. HR 4310-7 provides a10 percent investment tax credit plusseven year amortization of up to$10,000 of capitalized reforestation ex-penditure incurred each year. Qualify-ing expenditures include costs of sitepreparation, seed or seedlings and laborand equipment used in planting incur-red after December 31, 1979. Toqualify, a property must be held for theproduction of commercial timber prod-ucts and be one acre or more in size.The tax incentive provided by this lawexcludes capitalized reforestation ex-penditures which are reimbursed understate or federal cost-share programs.Shelter belts and ornamental trees arenot included. As with any new legisla-tion, interpretations and examples mustbe developed. As we receive and/ordevelop additional information we willinform you. Check with competent taxauthorities if you had reforestation costsduring 1980. Consider the tax benefitsbefore you turn down an opportunity toreforest in 1981.

SOURCE: William T. Huxter, Jr.,Forest Resources Letter, Nov. 1980,Vol. 4, No.6, Raleigh, North Carolina27607.

Nature's Prayer"Our Heavenly Father, Creator of all

that is nature, we humbly come to Youin the midst of Nature's splendor, tothank You that as Americans we arefree to worship as we please, work aswe please, and move about as weplease to enjoy all that is Nature - itsMountains, its Hills, its Valleys, itsLakes, its Streams, and the living thingsthat dwell therein; we pray unto Youthat someday the World may be atPeace and all men be free to enjoyNature's abundance."

"We ask that we be guided to protectthis priceless heritage which we, inAmerica, are privileged to enjoy.Amen."

TREE PLANTINGCont'd. from Page 4

Another common mistake made bytree planters is not spacing their treesproperly. The traditional tree plantingspacing was the familiar 6' x 6' which re-quires 1200 trees per acre. While thisspacing may be all right for Christmastrees and very tolerant trees such asspruces, it causes early crown closureand greatly reduced diameter growth infast growing species such as pine' orlarch. An 8' x 8' spacing or even widermay be appropriate for these species.Remember that early thinnings in plan-tations are almost always noncommer-cial. The trees that have to be cut haveno market and such thinnings are a costto the owner. It is desirable to delaysuch thinnings as much as possible. Thismay change in the future by greatlystrengthened fuel markets which maybe expanded to include softwoods, butthis is pure speculation at this time.

Another problem encountered bytree planters is hardwood brush. Mostplanted conifer species will not competewith already established volunteer hard-woods. Planting sites should be relative-ly clear from brush. If the contemplatedplanting site is already brushy, it hasprobably already been planted byMother Nature and mayor may not beworth the effort to clear it for plantingconifers, Professional advice should besought. For the most part planting con-ifers in New York State is a conversionprocess, converting old agriculturalfields to forests. The conifers themselvesserve merely as a nurse crop. The even-tual occupants of the site will probablybe the common long-life hardwoodspecies. There are exceptions to thisand sites can mechanically be kept inconifers, but for the most part the nursecrop theory holds true.

Further sources of information fortree planting are available. Thebulletins, "Planting Forest Trees inRural New York," "Judging Land forForest Plantations in New York," and"Christmas Trees and Marketing,"are available from the Extension Ser-vice for a small charge and the Depart-ment of Environmental Conservationhas a tree planting bulletin available attheir offices. I hope this informationproves useful and good planting. (SeeNovember-December issue of ForestOwner for addresses).

Robert L. Demeree4 Northway DriveCortland, NY 13045

New York Forest Owner Page 11

SEASONING FIREWOODBy Edward E. Lang

To obtain maximum heat value fromyour firewood, proper seasoning is re-quired. During the combustion process,water present in the wood will absorbheat as it is converted to steam and, inthe case of green wood, up to 50% ofthe fuel value may be lost during this pro-cess.

Moisture value of wood varies consi-derably among species and ranges from45% in ash, based on weight, to 95% inelm. This makes ash the most preferredspecies if you must burn green wood. Fora more complete listing see Table 1.

Many factors affect the seasoning pro-cess and the rate at which moisture islost. You may decrease drying time byremoving the bark, splitting and cuttingwood into shorter lengths, and storingthe seasoned wood under cover. Whenyou fell trees that are in leaf, letting themlie for two weeks before cutting up will al-low the transpiration process to removeup to 50% of the moisture. Seasoningtime may be accelerated by stackingwood in a sunny location, and covering itwith clear polyethylene plastic. This re-sults in a greenhouse effect, allowingmoisture to escape around the plasticand holding the heat in.

The question often arises, "How longshould firewood be seasoned?" Assum-ing that your wood is under cover, woodseasoned 12 months will dry to 15-20%moisture content. The same wood driedin a heated house will dry to 5-10 %moisture in 12 months. To obtain 0%moisture, wood must be oven-dried,which is not very practical.

If we assume a 50% fuel value ingreen wood, then wood seasoned forthree months under cover will have 85 %fuel value; for 6 months, a 90% fuelvalue; for 9 months, a 95% fuel value;and for 12 months, 100% of obtainablefuel value. Notice that after 9 months ofseasoning, the law of diminishing returnscomes into play. With a solar dryer andthree months seasoning, you will obtainclose to maximum heat value from yourfirewood. Also remember that exposedwood will decay and thus lose fuel value.Covered wood will last many years.

To check moisture content, weighyour wood on a bathroom scale and re-cord the weight. Just spray paint thechosen pieces, and select them everymonth for reweighing. When they stoplosing weight, they are seasoned.

Publications available at the TiogaCounty Cooperative Extension office:

Wood As A Fuel 25¢Tioga County Extension, 56 Main St.,Owego, N.Y. 13827

Improve Your Woodlot By CuttingFirewood Free

USDA Forest Service, Broomall, Pa.Burning Wood $1.00

NE 191, Cornell Distribution Center,7 Research Park, Ithaca, N.Y. 14850

The Warmth of Wood Fires $1.25IB 150, Cornell Distribution Center,7 Research Park, Ithaca, N.Y. 14850

TABLE 1Moisture content of heartwoodbased on weight of wood ovendry.

Apple 81 %Ash 45%Aspen 95%Basswood . . . . . 81 %Beech 55%Elm 95%Maple (Sugar) .. 65%Oak (Red) 80%Oak (White) 64%Spruce 34%Tamarack 49%

U.S.D.A. Forest Service

HAND TOOLS Cont'd.the overwhelming favorite of woodcut-ters in the North cannot be recommend-ed for the type of use discussed here.Attempting to drive even a plasticwedge with the flat face of such an axeis unsatisfactory and does the tool nogood. The double bit axe is less safe tocarry around or to park at the cuttingsite. Even if one blade is driven into astump or exposed root, the other is ex-posed and ready to cut anyone whostumbles on it or even brushes against it.

The axe blade should be kept sharpand properly tapered both for efficiencyand for safety. A dull axe is an unsafetool because it requires harder blowsthan a sharper one, and it is more apt toglance off the material being cut (Fig.II-2). The axe blade should preferably

Figure 11-2.-A dull axe is more dangerousthan a sharp one.

!

be sharpened on a wet, slowly movinggrindstone, moving it backward and for-ward as it grinds to give it a propershape and taper. The shape of a prop-erly ground edge can be determinedwith a gage (Fig. II-3).

Figure 11-3.-Gage for checking taper of axeblade.

An emery wheel should never beused to grind an axe blade since it is tooapt to heat and draw the temper fromthe edge. It is far better, when a grind-stone is not available, to sharpen with aflat file, although this is a slow andsomewhat tedious job.

After grinding and frequently duringuse the axe edge should be honed witha whetstone to remove any burrs, andto keep it razor sharp (Fig. II-4) .

The poll end of the single-bit axeshould never be used to drive a steelwedge. It is tempered too hard for suchuse. Steel splinters can break off and beprojected back toward the user withconsiderable force, easily putting out aneye.

WedgesSteel wedges should never be used in

a chainsaw cut. Even slight contact withthe running chain at the back of the barwill ruin the chain and possibly the baralso. Consequently only plastic, wood,or soft metal wedges should be used.Such a wedge should have a bluntleading edge at least Ij4 inch thick. Awedge so designed will instantly engagethe faces of the cut and thus keep theblade of the saw from being pinched oropen the cut to start the tree tipping inthe desired direction. Plastic wedges arenow on the market with one face groov-ed crosswise and the other groovedlengthwise (Fig. II-5). This grooving aidsin their insertion and, at the same time.guards against their popping out of thecut.

Figure 11-4.-Honlng axe blades.

Move axe back andforth while grinding /

/@

Page 12 New York Forest Owner

Evelyn A. StockEditor

5756 Ike Dixon Rd.Camillus, N.Y. 13031

Non profit org.bulk rate

U.S POSTAGEPAID

Camillus, N.Y.13031

Permit No. 57

ASK A FORESTERBy AI Roberts

Question: A logger has offered me$200 per thousand board feet for somecherry trees in my woods. Do you feelthis is a fair price?

Answer: On the surface this soundslike a very good offer. Incidently, cherryand oak are the only two species whoseprice has been holding up in a generallypoor timber market. However, let meanswer the question further by telling ofan experience I recently had. I was ask-ed by an owner to assess the value ofsome timber which had been cut overthe line on his property by a logger cut-ting on the adjoining property. For-tunately most of the trees that had beencut were still lying where they hadfallen, and most of them were cherry.The logger and both owners were there,so I asked the logger how much he waspaying the other owner for the timber.He said he was paying $200 per thou-sand for the cherry. I said this seemedfair, and that we would charge that forthe cherry trees cut over the line.

I proceeded to measure the lengthand diameter of the fallen trees in orderto get their volume and value. Wefinished up, and all walked back to theroad. As we did, the logger got measide and said that he really didn't thinkhe could afford to pay $200 per thou-sand for the trees as I had measuredthem. Thereby hangs the tale, and themoral of the story.

You see, I was measuring the entirelength of the tree, as long as it wasreasonably straight, up to a 10' top. Butthe logger was only taking out the primelogs and paying on their scale, leavingthe lower grade logs in the woods.

He could outbid other loggersbecause he was only taking the cream.A lower per thousand bidder might endup paying the owner more total dollarsbecause he took the entire tree and thuspaid for a larger volume of logs.

The best way to sell timber is on alump-sum bid basis for all the markedtrees.

JOKEThe lion was stalking through the

jungle looking for trouble. He grabbed apassing tiger and asked, "Who is theking of the jungle?"

"You are, 0 mighty lion," answeredthe tiger.

The lion then grabbed a bear and ask-ed, "Who is boss of the jungle?"

"You, 0 mighty lion," answered thebear.

Next the lion met an elephant andasked, "Who is boss of the jungle?" Theelephant grabbed him with his trunk,whirled him around and threw him upagainst a tree, leaving him bleeding andbroken. The lion got up feebly and said,"Just because you don't know theanswer is no reason for you to get sorough."

Board of Directors MeetChairman Howard Ward has called a

meeting of the Board of Directorsscheduled for 10:00 a.m. on January10, 1981, at the Cortland Departmentof Environmental Conservation Officelocated on Fisher Avenue.

Looking forward to seeing you.Sincerely,Robert L. Demeree