Thursday, November 12, 2015

Road Construction by Mulching

Building a road from mulching is a new project we are trying to see how it will work.  In the future we will be adding gravel to the road in places where needed,  Where we are in Alabama most of our property is hilly.  Erosion can become a problem quickly because of the grade.  We purchased this piece of property to give us access to another public road so we don't have to ask permission to haul our wood out or what ever we might be doing on the north end of our property.  I marked the location of the road with the thought of log trucks using it and with the least amount of disturbance to the property.  A mulching machine cut the road through the forest and we will not have to worry about erosion for now with only a jeep, occasional tractor and sometimes a pickup traveling the road.  This road makes for a good hiking trail.  We are now installing a gate at the public road to control access to the property.

More pictures from the work.
This is through the mature pine stand.


Monday, November 9, 2015

Sharing With Others "Classroom in the Forest"

Tuesday and Wednesday of last week we hosted "Classroom in the Forest" on two overcast days with some drizzle on our property.  There were over 160 5th graders that got out and walked in the forest! Students from all over our county were represented in the visit.
This project is made available by the Alabama Treasure Forest Association. Funding comes from the automobile tag sales when purchasing a Treasure Forest tag for your vehicle in Alabama.  It pays for Porta-potties and busing the students to the property.

The day gets kicked off with getting to know the property and if rocks could talk.  

They go on a hike on one of our trails where they learn a little about tree identification and wildlife habitat. 
We have professionals, stakeholders, and other landowners talk to the students about what and why a forest is called a Treasure Forest. 
Even though we are a rural county and 92% forest land, so many of the boys and girls never have the opportunity or those that do, never take the time to get out into the forest.
The students have several other activities about the forest they complete during the day.
They ended their day on the property with lunch on the ground before having to return to school.

Friday, November 6, 2015

This Weeks Tree News

There was a good news article shared by Kathy Westra that puts together the American Forest Foundation, Friday-Week in Trees- Tree News from Around The World.  The article was taken from the Anniston Star.  The article is about the Longleaf Pine Trail being constructed in Calhoun County.

Here is the link: http://www.annistonstar.com/life/you-ll-never-believe-what-alabama-s-forests-used-to/article_1409d2b0-7f26-11e5-bd39-e37915eae27d.html?utm_source=WIT110615&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=WeekInTrees

Go to this link to see more tree news: https://www.forestfoundation.org/american-forest-foundation-blog