"Timber!" At Wild Rose Farm

Wild Rose Farm - Logging Started Day One

After doing some research this fall, we found that a portion of our wooded acreage was ready for a selective timber harvest. Over the years, Mr. WRF had seen some nice timber harvest work done on land where he frequently hunts. We got in touch with Tom Anundson, their consulting forester, and had him do a survey of our timber and put a select area out for competitive bids. The winning bidder has 15 months to take the timber off and they also follow best practices which don't allow work in the late winter/spring mud season.  They got started last week and put down 2 tri-axle dump loads of heavy stone for the short access road and log landing.

Trees To Harvest Marked With Blue Paint

A sustainable harvest overseen by a forester ensures that trees remain for future harvest in 10-15 years and on.  If you enlarge the picture above, you can see that the left, center, & right trees are not marked. They will put on healthy growth once the canopy around them is opened up. If you sell timber and the logger marks all trees greater than "x" diameter, it's called "high grading" and that may not be what you want for your woods.  I'm amazed at the size of many of the trees left behind for a future harvest.

First Log Trucks Leaving Wild Rose Farm

We looked around the log landing and then walked along an old timber road that isn't being used this time. As we walked, we spotted some cattle hoof prints where there shouldn't be cattle hoof prints! What was this?  We found out early this week that a group of cattle had escaped from a farm several miles away and had been roaming around in the woods. Apparently, during the night last week, one of them was hit on US Route 30 in front of our place near where you see the trucks above! Somehow we missed the excitement - can't believe the hounds weren't barking up a storm - and the police had to put down the steer.

View From Old Logging Road

We Saw Hoof Prints On Old Logging Road!