Spring is on the horizon! Before the rains clear and the wildflowers pop, take advantage of time spent indoors to do some forest management planning for the upcoming dry season. Are you looking to hire a consulting forester to complete a timber cruise or administer a harvest on your land this summer? (check out page 4) Maybe you’re considering venturing into the world of Christmas tree farming. Converting to Christmas trees requires a lot of planning, so be sure to read the article on page 6. We’ve got some good news in store about log prices, get the scoop on trends on page 8!

Of course, we should appreciate the season we are in, so take advantage of all the wonderful classes and workshops coming up in Douglas and Lane Counties while it’s still soggy outside. From Tree School to Rural Living Day to Fire Preparedness, we’ve got you covered so you’re ready for anything that comes your way in 2020 and beyond.

May your spring be productive and your forest healthy!

Alicia & Lauren Douglas & Lane County Extension Foresters

Oregon State University Extension Service prohibits discrimination in all its programs, services, activities, and materials on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity (including gender expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, familial/parental status, income derived from a public assistance program, political beliefs, genetic information, veteran’s status, reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) This publication will be available in an accessible alternative format upon request. Please contact Holly Burton at (541) 672-4461.

PAGE 2 Upcoming Events.

PAGE 3 Tree School Lane & Land Stewards Course

PAGE 4 Choosing the Right Service Provider: Consulting Forester

PAGE 5 Starker Lecture Series

PAGE 6 So you want to grow Christmas trees? What you need to know before you plant.

PAGE 8We’ve got a good feeling: Logs & Non-timber Forest Products - Prices & Trends

PAGE 9Congratulations Douglas County 2019 Master Woodland Manager Graduates!

Douglas County Master Woodland Managers inspecting a downed tree for bark beetles and

wood borers. Photo by Alicia Christiansen, OSU Extension.

Feb. 15 MAINTAINING A HEALTHY FOREST IN AN UNCERTAIN CLIMATE. 9am-4pm. Tiller USFS Ranger Station, Riverside Conference Room, Tiller (Douglas Co.). $15/person or $20/couple. Limited scholarships available. Discover practical, cost-effective approaches to strengthen your forest’s resilience to wildfire, bugs, & drought. Knowing the risks & taking action to mitigate these impacts on your forestland can save you money in the long run, while improving the health of your forest. This workshop is for forestland owners of all sizes & management objectives. Call (541) 672-4461 or visit beav.es/ZdF to register by 2/10!

Feb. 18 LANDSCAPING TO REDUCE YOUR HOMES RISK TO WILDFIRE. Hosted by Lane Co. OSU Master Gardeners. 7-8 p.m. OSU Extension office, Eugene. Free. No registration required. Learn to give your home & property the very best chance against wildfire. Participants will go home with ideas to reduce fire risk on their own properties & a better eye for spotting areas that need work. Focus will be on the home itself & landscaping strategies within the first 200 feet.

Feb. 22 OREGON LOGGING CONFERENCE FAMILY DAY. 9am-2pm. Lane County Fair Grounds. Free. No registration required. Visit the OSU Extension booth & other organizations offering educational activities such as paper-making, wildlife exhibits, build your own bird feeder, cross-cut saw demonstration, wildfire safety demonstration, tree aging, free seedlings, logging equipment, & more! https://oregonloggingconference.com/events-education/family-day/

Mar. 5 LAND STEWARDS HYBRID SHORT COURSE. 6-9pm. OSU Extension office, Eugene. Runs March 5 – May 15. Topics: manage your woodlands for healthy trees/fire, stream ecology, pasture/soil health, wildlife habitat, stewardship planning, & more! See page 3 for more details & registration information.

Mar. 7 RURAL LIVING DAY. 9am-3pm. Junction City High School, Junction City. Cost: $20/adult. Youth/free. If you live in the country or are considering a move, you won’t want to miss this event. Workshops throughout the day offer something for everyone. Classes on: compost, water rights/well water management, wild mushrooming, small engine maintenance, wildlife management/habitat creation, sausage making, & more! There will also be a youth track for ages 9+. To register, contact Teagan Moran at (541) 713-5011 or visit https://extension.oregonstate.edu/smallfarms/events/rural-living-day-2020

Mar. 13 MAINTAINING A HEALTHY FOREST IN AN UNCERTAIN CLIMATE. 9am-4pm. Douglas County Extension office – upstairs annex. $15/person or $20/couple. Limited scholarships available. Discover practical, cost-effective approaches to strengthen your forest’s resilience to wildfire, bugs, & drought. Knowing the risks & taking action to mitigate these impacts on your forestland can save you money in the long run, while improving the health of your forest. This workshop is for forestland owners of all sizes & management objectives. Register by Mar. 9th. Call (541) 672- 4461 or visit beav.es/ZdF to register!

Mar. 24 MINIMIZING DOUGLAS-FIR BEETLE WITH MCH. 9am-12pm. Penn Rd, Walton. Free. Co-hosted by Lane County Small Woodlands Association. The recent weather has caused a lot of Douglas-fir die off, blowdown, & breakage. Stressed Douglas-fir trees over 10 inches are susceptible to Douglas-fir beetle. This workshop will discuss using MCH to minimize your risk to Douglas-fir beetle outbreaks & will show you how to set up an MCH treatment. To register, visit https://beav.es/4Z5 or call 541-344-5859.

April 1-3 DOUGLAS COUNTY SCHOOL FORESTRY TOUR. 9am-2pm. Glide Educational Forest (Glide). Free. All Douglas County 5th graders welcome! Contact Douglas County Extension for more information or to volunteer, contact Alicia at (541) 672-4461 or alicia.christiansen@oregonstate.edu

April 4 TREE SCHOOL LANE. 8am-5pm. Pleasant Hill High School, Pleasant Hill (Lane Co.). Pick up to 4 classes to attend during this 1-day mini college. Over 25 classes offered! Learn from experts about topics related to forestry & natural resources. Continuing education credits have been applied for through ISA, SAF, & AOL. Registration opens & catalogs will be mailed on 2/19. See page 3 for class list, details, & registration info.

April 14 FIRE PREVENTION WORKSHOP. 5:30-7:30pm. Douglas County Extension office – upstairs annex. Free. Pizza & root beer floats for $5 at the door. Co-hosted by Douglas County Small Woodlands Association. Topics include preparing your home for wildfire, the cost of wildfire, your responsibility if a fire is on your land, Firewise communities, Community Wildfire Plan update, and predictions for the 2020 fire season. Registration opens Feb. 17th. Visit beav.es/ZdF for more information & to register, or call (541) 672-4461.

April 21-23 PNW AGROFORESTRY WORKSHOP. Presentations on agroforestry practices (windbreaks, forest farming, riparian buffers, silvopasture, & more!), USDA programs, field trip to local agroforestry projects, and an optional NRCS Technical Service Provider training. More information & registration coming soon. Visit http://pnwagro.forestry.oregonstate.edu/eugene-workshop-2020 for more information.

2

3

Do you own or manage a small woodlot in Oregon? Are you thinking about acquiring property? Are you a land manager, logger, arborist, or simply a natural resource enthusiast? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions then Tree School is for you!

Tree School Lane is a one day mini-college for forestry and natural resource education. It is the premier opportunity to learn from forestry and natural resource experts and professionals on a wide variety of topics. Over the course of the day, 29 classes will be offered, and participants have the opportunity to attend up to four. If you’re a woodland enthusiast, then you won’t want to miss Tree School Lane!

Early RegistrationFeb. 19th – Mar. 14th

$60/person

Late RegistrationMarch 14th – 29th

$80/person

*Registration ends 3/29. No walk-in registrations will be accepted*

Saturday, April 4, 20209am – 5pmPleasant Hill High School(84455 N Enterprise Rd, Pleasant Hill, OR 97455)

➢ Reforestation Basics➢ Tree Species

Migration➢ Forest Diseases➢ Forest Insects ➢ Forests as Habitat➢ Ponderosa Pine

Management➢ Fire Ecology and Fuels

Reduction➢ Forest Income Taxes

➢ Oregon Forest Protection Laws

➢ Safe and Effective Chainsaw Use

➢ Woodland Management➢ Oregon’s Wild Bees➢ Red Alder Management➢ Protecting Yourself with

Contracts➢ Your Trees, Your Lumber,

Your House

➢ Alternative Forest Management

➢ Native Shrub ID➢ Business Practices for

Forest Landowners➢ How Wood Works ➢ Tree Growth

Modeling➢ Spacing and Thinning

in Young Stands

➢ Native Tree ID➢ Wells and Septic Tanks➢ Succession Planning➢ Useful Machines in

the Woods➢ Tips for a Successful

Harvest ➢ Basic Forest Inventory➢ Forest Mushrooms➢ Portable Sawmilling➢ Fish Habitat

Register online at: https://beav.es/TreeSchoolLaneCall the Lane Extension office with questions, to receive a class catalog, or to register over the phone: (541) 344-5859

Are you an owner of a woodland, small farm, or other rural land? Learn how to manage your property’s natural resources more effectively with this new offering from the Land Steward program. This course features a blend of online, classroom, and field instruction and is well-suited for busy adults who enjoy online learning but also want to see stewardship in action! Included are one classroom session in Eugene, two dynamic field sessions on Saturdays, and nine self-paced, online lessons. Topics include wildfire risk reduction, woodland management, encouraging and controlling wildlife, stream/riparian ecology, pasture management, growing healthy soils, small acreage infrastructure, stewardship planning, and much more.

https://beav.es/44g

Questions? Contact Carrie Mack at (541) 344-5859

specific needs. The questions below are not the only questions you could ask and should not replace trusted

relationships or “gut feelings.” These questions are meant to help you think through what to ask and what the

contractors’ responses mean.

What are your qualifications? Consulting foresters can come from many different backgrounds. Look for one

who has training and experience as a consultant and is familiar with the best forestry practices in your area.

Do you hold a professional certification? Consulting foresters are not required to hold professional

certifications in the state of Oregon. However, members of the Association of Consulting Foresters and Society

of American Foresters must meet requirements that are similar to certification. These credentials can help you

identify consultants who have met established professional standards.

What services do you provide? The consulting forester’s services depend on the individual’s training and

experience. The forester must be willing to work with you to find the needed expertise if the job exceeds their

knowledge or ability.

How will I be charged for your services? With any contracted service, the contractor should clearly describe

charging methods up front. Some services will be offered on a flat fee or bid for a defined scope of work, on a

commission or percentage of sales/income, or on an hourly or daily rate.

Will you do an initial consultation? Most consulting foresters will initially walk your property with you to

discuss your property’s needs. This meeting is an opportunity to ensure the consultant has the relevant

expertise and is someone with whom you want to work.

4

This article is condensed from a longer publication found here: https://catalog.extension.oregonstate.edu/em9241/html

By Tamara Cushing & Lauren Grand, OSU Forestry & Natural Resources Extension

Consulting foresters work for you to provide

forest management services, including the

development of management plans,

marking and administration of timber sales,

forest management recommendations and

many other services. A consulting forester

should serve landowners in the manner of a

fiduciary, putting the landowner’s interests

first and acting independently of forest

products firms and logging companies. As a

professional consultant, a consulting

forester should work with you to meet your

goals while adhering to all relevant

regulations.

To find the right consultant, ask candidates

questions about their approach to your

(Continued on page 5…)

Landowner meeting with a consultant. Photo by Lynn Ketchum, OSU EESC.

5

Continued from page 4 (Choosing the Right Service Provider: Consulting Forester)

Do you use a standard written contract? It is best to have a written contract that specifies the responsibilities of

both parties in the transaction. The agreement is legally binding and protects both parties from painful

misunderstandings and costly disputes.

Do you have the appropriate insurance coverage? Before you sign a contract, ask to see the forester’s certificates of

coverage. You want to ensure you are financially protected if something were to go wrong during the contracted

work.

Can I speak with some of your clients with similar property and goals? A consultant should be willing and able to

provide you with references; find out how these current and past clients feel about the forester.

Where to look for a consulting forester. The list of individuals and firms who can provide service as a consulting

forester is constantly changing. However, places where you can look to find a list of potential consulting foresters

include:

• Association of Consulting Foresters: www.acf-foresters.org/• Society of American Foresters: www.eforester.org/Main/Certification/Why_Hire_a_Certified_Professional.aspx• Ask other landowners for names of consulting foresters they work with and trust.• Ask your Extension or Stewardship forester.

Attend free lectures in person (OSU Campus, Corvallis) or watch live online. No registration required. For more information, visit: https://www.forestry.oregonstate.edu/starker-lectures

Feb. 27 Film: Taking Root, the vision of Wangari Matthai. 6pm. Whiteside Theater, Corvallis. Taking Root tells the story of the Green Belt Movement of Kenya & its founder Wangari Maathai, the first environmentalist & first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize. The film will be followed by a panel discussion.

Mar 16. The Ecology of Moss. 5p.m. CH2M Hill Alumni Center Ballroom, OSU Campus, Corvallis. Free child care available. Dr. Kimmerer is a plant ecologist whose research interests include the role of traditional ecological knowledge in ecological restoration & the ecology of mosses. Her book, Gathering Moss, incorporates both traditional indigenous knowledge & scientific perspectives, & was awarded the prestigious John Burroughs Medal for Nature Writing in 2005.

April 8 Pyrocultural Forestry: Connecting People and Nature Through Fire. 5p.m. PFSC 117, OSU Campus, Corvallis. Free child care available. Speaker: Amanda Rau, Burn Boss & Fire Manager, The Nature Conservancy. Cultural use of fire has long influenced natural landscapes throughout the world, providing humans with important resources & connecting them with nature, in addition to moderating wildfire risk. In many places, such as the Willamette Valley, pre-contact biodiversity of prairies, savannas, & woodlands wholly depended upon frequent indigenous burning as often as every year. The burning practices of the indigenous peoples of southern Oregon & northern California met natural ignitions to maintain some of the most resilient & biodiverse forests in North America. Forests & rangelands alike have long been shaped by the coalescence of natural ignitions & indigenous burning practices.

April 29 The Road Less Traveled: How women in forestry can save the world. 5p.m. PFSC 117, OSU Campus, Corvallis. Free child care available. Speaker: Edie Sonne Hall, Founder & Principal, Three Trees Consulting. Hall will weave together a series of personal stories & lessons learned that demonstrate the importance of women having courage, confidence, collaboration, & compassion to harness the power of trees to create a world with global population living well within the limits of the planet.

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This article is condensed from information found in the comprehensive publication Growing Christmas Trees in the Pacific Northwest (PNW 6). To download, visit: https://catalog.extension.oregonstate.edu/pnw6

By Alicia Christiansen, OSU Extension Forestry & Natural Resources, Douglas County

Growing Christmas trees can be a fun

addition to your property. While most

people visit a Christmas tree farm once

a year, you could live on one year

round! It can be a wonderful business

and lifestyle, but you need to have

sustained motivation and an

understanding of the growing process

in order to succeed. So what do you

need to know before you start planting

Christmas tree seedlings? Read on to

find out.

Time commitment

Growing Christmas trees is labor

intensive. Depending on the scale, it

can be more like adding a second jobChristmas tree farm. Photo by Betsy Hartley, OSU EESC.

than adding a hobby. As a rough rule, on a small plantation some kind of work needs to be done about every 3

months. On a young 4-acre field, plan on spending a full 2 days every 3 months. As the trees grow, the time

commitment increases because larger trees require more culturing and maintenance. For example, shearing 300

mature trees can be a full day’s effort.

Evaluating your site

The most common reasons Christmas tree plantations fail is that the land is poorly suited for the tree species

planted. It is important to carefully evaluate and prepare the land, otherwise you will compromise tree quality

and likely reduce future profits. Good Christmas tree sites share these characteristics:

• Open to full sun. Shaded Christmas trees will perform poorly.

• Adequate rain. Unless they are irrigated, trees need 25” or more of rainfall per year (on most soils).

• Well drained. Absolutely no standing water is present. Different species will have different tolerances, but

well drained is best.

• Level or moderately sloping. Slopes need to be gentle enough that a tractor can safely work, unless you

plan on using hand crews and helicopters. Steep slopes can also interfere with straight tree form and crown

uniformity.

• Good soil pH. The soil pH should be between 5.1 and 6.5.

• Adequate soil nutrition. Both macro- and micronutrients are very important.

• Room for rooting. The deeper the soil the better, but you need at least 18 inches of well-drained soil.

• Good site preparation. Sites need to be cleared of stumps and competing brush. Experienced growers

often only plant after deep ripping, disking or plowing, and leveling. (Continued on page 7…)

7

Continued from page 6 (So you want to grow Christmas trees?)

• Adequate roads. All-weather roads are expensive but a key feature in any Christmas tree operation.

Harvest and other management operations require the ability to navigate your farm in wet weather.

• Suitable location. If you want to sell U-cut trees, your farm needs to be close to population centers, or it

needs to be so interesting that distant customers will want to drive a distance to cut a tree on your farm.

For wholesale operations, easily navigable roads are a must. This means no steep grades, tight curves, poor

road surfaces, or weight limits on bridges that may limit the use of large trucks/trailers. Also consider that

the more remote the farm is, it may be harder to find good contractors, interested buyers, or prevent

vandalism.

Marketing options & decisions

You have two Christmas tree marketing

options: on-farm U-cuts and sales for off-farm

distribution. Off-farm distribution can take

many forms: mail order, direct retailing, selling

to tree brokers, or contract sales through

established growers or wholesalers. The type of

marketing you choose will dictate some of your

planning and layout decisions.

For example, U-cut farms typically require more

all-weather roads, a wider mixture of tree

species and sizes, closer proximity to

customers, and growers (you) who don’t mindShearing Douglas-fir Christmas trees. Photo by Lynn Ketchum, OSU EESC.

dealing with vehicles, signs, customers, long “open for business” hours, and risk/liability issues with inviting the

public onto your farm.

For off-farm sales, you will need to consider the buyers range of needs. For example, you need to establish a

staging area for baling and loading trees, and build roads that can handle large trucks/trailers. It is also essential

to schedule labor and contractors well in advance of the harvest season. Also, buyers often require purchases of

larger quantities of trees.

Risks

As with any commodity, growing Christmas trees entails some risks that may be hard to control.

• Customer taste. This can vary by region and by year.

• Vandalism/theft. Good fences, alert neighbors, and secure entrances/exits help reduce theft problems.

• Shipping & quarantines. Introduced pests have affected tree sales. Some states and most foreign countries

have inspection requirements for some or all species.

• Market risk. Christmas tree markets seem to go through boom and bust cycles.

• Weather, pests, and fire. Early frosts and summer droughts are common problems that Christmas tree

farmers face. Disease, insects, and animal damage are potential problems through every rotation. Wildfire

can destroy plantations. And overly wet soils cause problems for many of the true fir species.

Growing Christmas trees can be a fun and lucrative business venture. However, as with any new business

prospect, it is important to understand the requirements for entering into a market successfully. If you are

considering growing Christmas trees, visit https://catalog.extension.oregonstate.edu/pnw6 and read the entire

publication. This will help you be well on your way to Christmas tree farming success.

8

By Lauren Grand, OSU Extension Forestry & Natural Resources, Lane County

It is winter and we are on the heels of spring which means we’ve got a good feeling about log prices. Wet

weather means timber is less accessible and fewer logs make it out of the woods. As a result, prices tend to

increase. This year is par for the course. Prices are up or holding steady across the board from last quarter.

Douglas-fir prices are currently sitting around $725/mbf for 2mill, $675/mbf for 8-11 inch, and $625/mbf for

the 5-7 inchers at the small end for long logs. These numbers are looking better than where they were last

year. Rumors are buzzing that prices are likely to stay strong and possibly increase as we move into spring.

Maybe things are starting to normalize since the last three years have been so unpredictable.

Usually I don’t have much good to say about chips, but even the chip market is looking better than it

previously has. Compared to recent years, this winter was fairly mild. Maybe we’ve finely made it through all

that inventory from the ice, snow, and drought? Shop around for prices, I’m hearing a range from $30 - $50

per ton.

The Hem-fir sorts (spruce, hemlock, grand fir, and white fir) are almost $100 higher than what we reported

last quarter. The long logs are up to $475 per thousand in Eugene. Roseburg’s prices are slightly higher ranging

from $475 - $525.

Pine prices in the southwest are holding steady around $400/mbf. If you are selling pine, consider your

trucking distance. At these prices, if you have to move it too far, you may be losing money instead of making

it. For those of you in the Eugene area, there is now an outfit that buys pine locally, so call around before

trucking it down south.(Continued on page 9…)

9

Continued from page 8 (Logs & Non-timber Forest Products - Prices & Trends)

Typically, trends in the alder market follow Douglas-fir, but more recently things have been slowing down and

flattening out. Unfortunately, production in many mills has slowed down with lower demand for raw wood

furnishings in homes. Luckily, prices have stayed steady from last quarter. Alder prices range between $400

and $600/MBF for the 7” and up sorts. Prices increase as diameter increases.

Incense-cedar and redcedar prices are holding pretty steady with a slight increase from the last report.

Current values of incense-cedar in the south valley are running close to $650 for long logs. Incense-cedar in

Douglas County is usually purchased at slightly higher values, in the $750 range. Western redcedar prices are

having a little bit of a comeback and prices are up $100 from last quarter and are at $900/MBF for a long-log.

Short-log values decline by another $100-$200 depending on the length. Port Orford cedar prices are holding

steady in the $500 range.

Last but not least - non-timber forest products. Oregon grape and usnea lichen are still the prime species for

small woodland owners to harvest, and purchasers are gearing up to start buying these in the spring. Oregon

grape is $0.75/lb green and clean, while usnea lichen is $5.50/lb clean. Spring time is also when the floral

industry is looking to contract for floral greens to go in table and flowerpot displays. Floral green species that

are desired include salal, ferns, and beargrass. If you are interested in doing floral greens for Christmas and

Christmas trees, remember that your contracts should be drawn up by July, so start working on those

relationships now.

The remaining part of winter and the upcoming spring are shaping up to be great. Prices and trends for this

winter are higher than they were last year and feelings about the market are generally positive. The recent

past has seen Doug-fir values reach their peak in the spring, then take a precipitous decline to fairly stable

summer values as more sellers enter the market. As I look into my no-so-crystal ball, I expect prices will stay

strong for at least the immediate future as we march further into the wet season. Good luck and always

remember to get your purchase order before you cut!

By Alicia Christiansen, OSU Extension Forestry & Natural Resources Extension

In fall of 2019, 24 local landowners spent

15 weeks in an intensive master’s level

forest management course in Douglas

County. As the most recent cohort of OSU

Extension Master Woodland Managers

(MWM), these stellar folks will volunteer

their time to impact their local

communities in an assortment of ways. You

may see them hosting tours on their

properties, helping with an OSU Extension

class, serving their local small woodland

organization, working with youth, staffing a

booth at a community event, orparticipating in citizen science programs. They have the knowledge and access to resources to

help the greater woodland community, and have already started to make an impact!

If you are interested in the MWM training, contact your county Extension forester for more

information (see the back of this newsletter for contact information) or visit

http://extensionweb.forestry.oregonstate.edu/mwm

OSU Extension Service – Douglas County

1134 SE Douglas Avenue

PO Box 1165

Roseburg, OR 97470

(541) 672-4461

http://extension.oregonstate.edu/douglas/

OSU Extension Service – Lane County

996 Jefferson Street

Eugene, OR 97402

(541) 344-5859

https://extension.oregonstate.edu/lane

DOUGLAS COUNTY EXTENSION OFFICE

PO BOX 1165PHONE 672-4461

ROSEBURG, OR 97470

NON-PROFIT ORG.

U.S. POSTAGE

PAIDRoseburg, OR

Permit No. 12

Spring 2020 – Issue #6