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Michigan Forests Inventory

Started by Ron Scott, May 04, 2017, 11:05:16 AM

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Ron Scott

RE:  MICHIGAN FORESTS 2014 – FIVE YEAR REPORT

As most of us know, the FIA cycle was annualized, with 20% of plots re-measured each year, with major reports each five years.  The most recent five year report is now available at the following URL.  There is a whole "toolbox" associated with the publication.  Resource Bulletin NRS-110.  154 pages.

https://www.nrs.fs.fed.us/pubs/53962  (13 mb)
~Ron

wolf nemeth

Hi Ron,
It's a bit off topic,  but  I am wondering if that huge white pine at Hartwick Pines  is still up and growing.  I worked up in Michigan , based   near Houghton Lake. I was  always in the woods, for 15 years, so I learned to love a lot that's Michigan
If you  don't know where you're going, you'll probably end up somewhere else!

Jeff

The Monarch. It is not. It was killed by kindness. They figure soil compaction from years of being hugged started it on it's decline. It's been gone for quite some time.  It lost 35 feet of its top in a storm in 1992 and finally succumbed to disease and bugs and more by 1996.  Most of the park now has board walkways around the old growth to protect the remaining trees.  In 2002 I was lucky enough to be part of a group to plant a tree in the park with a time capsule.  Here is a post from 15 years ago on that.

Quote from: Jeff on May 09, 2002, 05:53:48 PM
Many of you may remember that I was responsible for creating and running a contest for the 10, 11 and 12 grades for all of Michigan for the Tree of Hope project. We decided that first prize was going to be: A FUN FACT FILLED FORESTRY FIELD TRIP.

Well, Ada Takacs from the DNR and I had the responsibility for creating and Coordinating the trip which takes place May 15. We have been very busy over the last few weeks getting this thing put together and I thought that you might like to take a look at our itinerary, which still may change a little before now and Wednesday.

Tree of Hope
Sustainable Forestry Tours
May 15, 2002


On May 15th, 2 groups of kids who won tree of hope contests will be going on a forestry field trip. Ten 11th and12th graders from Shepherd, and Twentytwo 7th and 8th graders from Gladstone, and 9 adults will be visiting the following stops and events. Our Students will be traveling in style! The Gladstone group will be traveling on a tour bus from Westlund buses and the Shepherd group will be riding in a deluxe bus from Dream Keepers of Mt. Pleasant.

MFRA auto tour:(this is a link!) Gladstone will be doing the U.P. tour Shepherd the L.P. tour. DNR Foresters will be on board the buses to explain each site and will tie in the related stops that will be visited on the trip.

Weyerhaeuser: Strand board developing. Tour of entire process from pulp wood to product includes tour of computer and control rooms.

Active Modern timber harvest. On-site explanation of how harvests are conducted, what large equipment is used, etc. 

Hartwick Pines State Park: Explanation of the old growth pines, logging museum and visitor center. Students will be planting large white spruce (same species as Tree of Hope) at the park and including a time capsule with students' signatures and one other item selected by the classroom beforehand. Note: this is the only time we're aware of that students have been allowed to plant trees in a park and include a time capsule. Students will be able to take their children and grandchildren to the park in the future and point out the tree they planted. 

Grayling DNR:We will be eating pizza for lunch here. Staff will take students in groups of 5 and teach them basic forestry tool use and formulas to figure height, age, circumference, Tree I.D.,etc. 

Kirtland Warbler site: Students will visit an active Kirtland Warbler jack pine stand that has been managed specifically for the endangered bird. The Kirtland Warblers should have returned to Michigan by now, so we may be able to view and hear them. Note:  There are only two places in the WORLD that Kirtland Warblers are known to nest...the Bahamas during our winters and northern lower Michigan in the summer.   

Christmas Tree Farm in Topinabee: Tree farm that propagates Christmas trees from seed. Entire process from seed to bailing will be shown or described.

Trip Coordinators:            Foresters:
Ada Takacs                 Jack Pilon (Shepherd Bus)
Jeff Brokaw                           Tom Stone (Gladstone)



Handouts:

Teacher gets:

Eastern and Western Audubon Field Guides
      Poster sets (Life in the Forest and Smokey sets)

Every student, teacher, chaperone, forester, and bus driver if enough) gets:
Bag
Eastern Audubon Field Guide
Disposable camera and developing pouch (good for free developing of film)
Famous and Historic Tree certificate valued at $45 + catalog
MFRA auto tour pamphlet
U.P. auto tour pamphlet
B&B planting and right tree/right location flyers
Pencil
One ticket

Digital Camera Prizes:
3 digital cameras will be drawn for by ticket at the conclusion of the trip.
Each student will have one ticket in their packet.  Foresters can hand out additional tickets throughout the day at random.  Suggested reasons to hand out tickets: The student pays close attention to a speaker, asks questions, assists in cleanup or planting trees, answers trivia, etc.  The more tickets a student "earns," the better the chances that they will win the digital camera.  Everyone will have at least one chance to win because of the ticket in his or her bag.

A few of the Forester's Objectives
:) Keep the tour on schedule
:) Describe MFRA Auto Tours
:) Ask pertinent questions at the sites that the students may not know to ask
:) Distribute and give instructions for the handouts
:) Describe how to plant a B&B tree at Hartwick Pines State Park
:) Explain how to use the Audubon field guide

Talking points
:) Christmas tree industry facts at the farm
:) MFRA Tour (site #9 is Grayling area jobs; site #10 is Hartwick Pines; Will try to make any connections between auto tour and today's stops)
:) Famous and Historic Trees certificate: worth $45; planting zones; benefits of planting indigenous trees
:) Forestry Trivia questions
:) Time capsule:  Includes Tree of Hope tag (from official ornaments), Tree of Hope emblem sticker, page with signatures of students, and whatever the school wants to add.
Just call me the midget doctor.
Forestry Forum Founder and Chief Cook and Bottle Washer.

Commercial circle sawmill sawyer in a past life for 25yrs.
Ezekiel 22:30

wolf nemeth

Thanks, Jeff.    Sounds like you created a fun project.   
    Nearly all the  juveniles that I took out camping and canoeing  were urban kids, so  there was a lot for them to learn!  And lots of them actually liked the
experiences. We did a lot of swamp wading in central Michigan, and did many trips at Pigeon River (do you know  Green Timbers?)   and  places in the UP..  It was a minimum-impact camping philosophy, so the woods suffered little harm from us.....except for possible soil compaction.   Anyway, I learned to love Michigan.
If you  don't know where you're going, you'll probably end up somewhere else!

nativewolf

Thanks Ron.  Interesting to see the net growth figures, just like in the south the growth is, overall, pretty darn high and it appears that timber is being added. 
Liking Walnut

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