Low Impact Forestry
What is the Low-Impact Forestry Program?
Workshops and Events
The Low-Impact Forestry program hosts seminars and workshops for all skill levels and interests. For a complete listing of upcoming LIF events and registration information please visit the LIF Workshops page.
Commercial Logging
If you are interested in purchasing FSC certified, kiln-dried shiplap pine boards of varying widths and lengths harvested by LIF crews please contact Jason Tessier, MOFGA’s Facilities Coordinator, to learn more.
Read more about Low-Impact Forestry
Don’t Kill All the Japanese Knotweed!
Japanese knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum) has the unfortunate reputation of “invasive species” which means that there has been a concerted effort to eliminate it. In the process, we may be losing a valuable source of medicine. Not only that but Japanese knotweed has been a food source for both human and animal foragers alike, and its
Forest Stewardship: It’s More Than Cutting Trees
By Noah Gleason-Hart Logging is our most dramatic opportunity to create change, either destructive or restorative in our woodlots, so we focus much of our low-impact forestry work on promoting careful harvest practices. However, commercial logging is a relatively infrequent event on a given property, perhaps every 10 to 15 years. A landowner may see
Managing a Maine Woodland to Maximize Carbon Sequestration
By Denny Gallaudet – March 2020 I have the good fortune to be the owner of a 25 acre woodland in Southern Maine. Abandoned as a pasture in the late 1930’s, it is now a flourishing and well stocked forest of the oak-pine variety. In 2016 I conducted a timber inventory and found that carbon
American Beech
A beech tree severely affected by beech bark disease. Postharvest view of a gap created during winter 2020 firewood cutting. Slash has been cut small and will decompose over the next few years; think of it as fertilizer for the next generation of trees. First flush of shiitake mushrooms on beech logs after a spring rain
Cost of Carelessness in the Woodlot
Heavy damage done to a red oak during harvest (conducted by a different owner). The entire butt log is ruined, and decay likely extends higher than shown here. 1988 Tree Farmer C5D – a mid-sized cable skidder The pine tree discussed here, eight months after being damaged. By Noah Gleason-Hart Photos by the author Low-impact forestry’s guiding
Adapting Your Woodlot to a Changing Climate Assisted Migration
Current climate change projections predict that Maine will become increasingly hospitable to red oak. English photo Red oak acorns. English photo By Noah Gleason-Hart As Hannah Murray outlined in her winter 2018 article in The MOF&G, with foresight, planning and commitment, our forests have a large role to play in mitigating the effects of climate
To Cut or Not to Cut Is That the Question
Large diameter cavity trees provide bird habitat, enhancing the overall value of a forest. English photo By Noah Gleason-Hart When the topic of forestry or land management comes up, the first question people often ask is, “Should I my cut my woodlot?” or, “Is my land due for a harvest?” It’s a daunting question with huge implications.
Crop Tree Management Managing for Value Not Volume
A red oak crop tree with double flagging surrounded by competing red maple, oak lacking quality and diseased beech (not pictured) marked to be cut. Crown view of the same red oak crop tree. Note the crown competition and lack of available growing space. “The crop tree crown in the center of this illustration has been
10 Q & As About Emerald Ash Borer
Emerald ash borer shown on a penny for size comparison. Photo by Howard Russell, Michigan State University, Bugwood.org, from https://www.invasive.org/browse/detail.cfm?imgnum=1241011. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License Flecked bark resulting from woodpecker feeding on emerald ash borers. Photo by Kenneth R. Law, USDA APHIS PPQ, Bugwood.org, from https://www.invasive.org/browse/detail.cfm?imgnum=5471784. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution
Agroforestry With Plants of the Eastern Deciduous Forest
A blight-resistant American chestnut tree growing at MOFGA’s Common Ground Education Center. Butternuts shown in the Exhibition Hall of the Common Ground Country Fair by Claudette Nadeau. Aronia melanocarpa growing at MOFGA’s Common Ground Education Center. Permaculture with a native twist By Heather McCargo Agroforestry is the practice of adding trees and shrubs to
The Maine Forest and the Perfect Storm
When forests are left to grow, they continue to sequester carbon. English photo By Peter Hagerty When my wife and I moved to Maine in 1974, I went into the woods logging with a team of horses named Barney and Nick. Since that first winter we have always had big horses on our farm. In
Not Out of the Woods Just Yet
The author in an old growth forest in Montville with a big (carbon-rich!) tree. Photo by Nelson Sánchez Oyarzo Resources About Carbon Offsets “The Nature Conservancy Makes a Bet on Carbon,” by Forests for Maine’s Future, Aug. 23, 2018 “A Landowner’s Guide to Carbon Offsets,” by EcoTrust “Vermont Forest Carbon: A Market Opportunity for Forestland
