Around the southeastern states ,I think it's called the pine bore beetle,are killing the pine trees in multi-acre patches.It's now in my area and my neighbors are clear cutting all their pines. A local logging co. has been offering cash for the trees .I'm sure it's very little, but my neighbors are doing it because the trees are already infected and they figure their dying any way.Some reasons for them letting the trees get cut is fear of forrest fires, we had some bad ones last year that were close enough that everyone was watering their houses and surrounding yards to keep the place moist so ambers wouldn't start a fire. Also, they don't want to be cutting up dead pines for the next 10 years .They asked me if I wanted it done, while the loggers were doing their place.The loggers are cutting by chain saw and pulling out the trees with chains and a bulldozer and trying to be careful not to harm or injure the hardwood trees or saplings.Money isn't the issue cause everyone here likes the privacy the trees provide plus the shade in summer and wind break in winter, besides the fact that they are paying very little for the trees.Has anyone had this done and would anyone know what negative affects this could have on the land. I had thought of letting the trees die and fall by themselves so they could rot and provide food for the hardwood trees as they slowly compost.This may not look pleasing to the eyes . Non are by my house so I'm not worriend about that.I just don't want my land to be damaged or look ugly.Any opinions will help me decide what to do.

-- SM Steve (Unreal@msn.com), July 03, 2002

Answers

Hmmm. I'm pondering the same dilemma. I have two seperate stands of white pine. One stand on the back of my place adjacent to the creek loses a couple trees a year to the "blight or bugs" that is slowly killing them. ( You can watch the "death" travel upwards from the base over time with the trunk changing color and texture). I have a considerable amount of deadwood in that area I haven't had time or opportunity to clear.

The other stand is much larger, probably about 6 or 7 acres of larger, more mature pines. I am now beginning to see a few trees die in that stand.

I am really reluctant to clear out "my" trees entirely. The wildlife uses those areas, and adjacent newer growth areas of trees and shrubs for shelter and foraging, and to see my huge "forest" disappear would break my heart.

So, what have I done? Nothing. Haven't known what to do. And there are always so many other things on the list to take care of yesterday.

I hope you keep posting as you gather info.

-- Granny Hen (cluckin along@cs.com), July 03, 2002.

if they are going to die anyways,, might as well get some cash from it. BUT ! ! ! ! !,, find out first,, if theya re going to really die. Call your extension office, and find out the facts. If the loggers only take the logs, then Id bet the bugs are left behind in the branches,, which means nothing is "saved" YOu could have the select cut, only the infected ones, and burn the branches.

-- Stan (sopal@net-pert.com), July 03, 2002.

Steve, one part of our farm ( 5ac) had been clearcut 1 yr before we bought it so they could put in a pasture. The first year it was UGLY but the owners did try to seed it with mixed results due to errosion. Now 3 yrs later we've let it reseed and reforest so it's looking really good. The seedlings are now trees, it's funny how fast they grow to about 18' then from what I'm told they'll slow down. The forest that was cut was a mixed forest and wasn't cut for a disease so mainly I'm saying that within 4 yrs from being cut it will grow back nicely. The people we bought if from can't figure out why we'd want 'all those trees'-sometimes it's not worth trying to explain:(

-- Kathy Aldridge (beckoningwinds@yahoo.com), July 03, 2002.

Stan ,I guess the pine beetles aren't in your area yet. They're gonna die it's just a matter of a year or 2. It's real obvious. My trees are holding out better than my nieghbors because of the runoff from cleaning out my goats pens are getting trapped around the base of the pine trees (steep sloped mountain land)and fertilizing them.But the bark gets this look and that's when you can tell they're infected. As far as asking questains about agriculture at our local county extension service office, those guys get real upset when you disturb them and wake them from their naps.They have 5 parking spaces that is for extension service customers only.And they are allows empty.I've been in there a few times for information on agriculture . They know less then I do.

-- SM Steve (Unreal@msn.com), July 04, 2002.

if they are going to die,, might as well get some cash from them. Here in Mich, guess we dont get teat bug.

-- Stan (sopal@net-pert.com), July 04, 2002.

Stan , I've heard the pine boring beetles hit the Oregon area about 15 years ago.There's a mountain called Clingmans Dome here in Tennessee that's 6000 ft high, and in 98' I drove up there and the old growth forrest was dead and lying on the floor composting,an irie sight . The new growth pines, I think they were fraiser fir, were about 15 feet tall then , and it looked like the forrest was regenerating itself with the new trees feeding off the composting old growth. Now the pine and fir trees are dieing here at the lower elevation, killing all the old growth forrest the Smokies were known for and when I visited family in Florida last year they were having the same problem with their pines. I was wondering how far north these buggers were traveling. I think they were imported from Germany in the 1940's, so they must handle the cold climates as well as the southern states.I'm gonna let them harvest the trees,I only have a 4 acre piece of land but a 2000 foot mountain behind my place that is mostly national forrest and some private land that is to steep to be lived on so it's empty.I'll collect some hardwood sapling that are growin to close to each other like maple , white and red oak this winter and replace the pines that are cut.

-- SM Steve (Unreal@msn.com), July 04, 2002.

Hi How r u? im fine u

-- Jeff Scorgie (jeffscorgie@hotmail.com), October 02, 2002.

I hate to see trees die......but i'm just looking for some info for an essay i have to write in a college essay.....do you have any reasons why clearcutting is good for anything...any info would be great.....mainly from some doctor of woodscience or something

lol......thanx

-- John Simmons (SlimmTrmpet@aol.com), December 01, 2002.

I don't know to much on loggin. But i've heard that in selective cutting , where they just take the biggest trees and leave the smaller ones to be harvested latter , is not as Earth friendly as lt had been thought by some.

A lot of trees in the same stran of trees are usually about the same age .So if they just harvest the biggest and healtiest trees , they are killing the trees that would most likely reproduce the biggest and healthiest tree offspring ( saplings ).The bigger trees are most likely more disease resistant also .

It would be akin to raising goats , and killing off the bucks that grew the fastest , are the biggest ,and have the most desirable traits to improve the heard ,while leaving the runts to breed for next years herd.

This selective cutting of the forrest is leaving behind all the weak inferior trees to reproduce.The quality of wood these days is not the best quality.Musical instuments that were made 2 hundred years ago , have tonal qualities that can't be attained in todays instuments because those nice sounding instuments were made when quailty wood from healthy forrest was more available and more common .

This selective breeding of weak inferior life forms are not resticted to the plant kingdom. This is being done with the deer population across the U.S. also . If the healthiest and biggest bucks are hunted off , the smaller runts will have been selected for breeding the future herd .

-- Jesus Bob (heavens@inn.com), December 02, 2002.

JOhn,, clear cutting DOES have benifets. WHat if you had a feild of all willows? not good for much, pretty and all, but if your trying to make money form the trees, not good. Need to clear cut it and plant in something with money value. SAme is true if you have some old pine growth,, and NONE of it has lumber value. Clearcut is also useful if the stand of trees has a dieses, and you need to keep it from spreading. For more info,, contact your COunty Extension Office,, most counties have them, and you can look them up in your phone book under your county name.

-- Stan (sopal@net-pert.com), December 02, 2002.