An Ecological Approach to Forest Stewardship: Virtual Workshop Series
In this session...
- Setting future goals
- Helpful resources for developing your plan
- Measure the current health of your forest
- ‘In the field’ video – Inventory and measure your forest
- Bringing it full circle – An ecological approach to forest stewardship
This workshop series, led by Dutchess Land Conservancy Ecologist Julie Hart and Cary Institute Wildlife Biologist Mike Fargione, will explore the basics of forest ecology and stewardship. Participants will learn about the ecology and history of local forests, how to identify threats to forest health, and how to create a simple forest inventory – with a focus on using an ecological approach to set management goals.
Resources
Forest Health Assessment
Presentations
Part 1: Michael Fargione
Part 2: Julie Hart
Following list compiled by Julie Hart and Mike Fargione, 2021. Note this list is not exhaustive and may have overlooked other useful fact-based resources.
Online Mapping Utilities
Dutchess County Parcel Access (parcel information, wetlands, floodplains, topography)
Dutchess County Aerial Access (historical aerial photos from 1936 to the present)
Hudson Valley Natural Resource Mapper (wetlands, forests, streams, biodiversity)
USDA Web Soil Survey (soil maps, soil properties)
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
DEC info on Private Forest Management
Woods In Your Backyard
Woods In Your Backyard Downloadable Workbook
Information for Forest Landowners
Cornell’s Forest Connect (woodland information and resources)
Cornell’s Master Forest Owner Program
New York Forest Owners Association (information and resources)
New York Tree Farm Program (certification program for sustainable forestry)
The Nature Conservancy’s Report on Forest Regeneration in New York State
National Wild Turkey Federation’s property management resources
USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service
Northwest Natural Resource Group
My Woodlot (activities for forest landowners)
NYC Watershed Agricultural Council (resources, incentives for landowners in NYC watershed)
Inventory and Assessment
Assessing Vegetation Impacts from Deer
Basic Forest Inventory Techniques for Family Forest Owners (Manual from Pacific Northwest)
Conducting a Simple Timber Inventory (University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture)
Habitat Assessment Guide for Pollinators in Yards, Gardens, and Parks (The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation)
Keep Forests Healthy: A Tool to Assess Forest Resilience, Health, and Productivity (The Nature Conservancy)
Invasive Species Management
Lower Hudson Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management (LHPRISM)
LHPRISM’s Resource page (resources on identification and management)
Best Management Practices for Priority Invasive Plants in the Lower Hudson Valley
USDA’s Invasive Species Information Center
Invasipedia (species information and management recommendations)
White-tailed Deer Management
Management Plan for White-tailed Deer in New York State 2021-2030 (Draft 11/2020)
https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/deerplandraft1120.pdf
Community Deer Management Guide
https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/commdeermgmtguide.pdf
Deer and Ecosystem Health
https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/forestimpactshandout.pdf
Deer Management Assistance Program (site-specific deer harvest permits for landowners)
https://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/33973.html
Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management (Research-based Wildlife Damage Management Information)
Phone Apps
iNaturalist (tool to identify plants and animals)
Seek by iNaturalist (simpler-to-use tool from iNaturalist)
https://www.inaturalist.org/pages/seek_app
LeafSnap
About My Woods (tool developed by the North East State Foresters Association)
http://www.nefainfo.org/aboutmywoods.html
Bird Identification
https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/
Books
Trees and Forests
The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben
Reading the Forested Landscape by Tom Wessels
Forest Forensics: A Field Guide to Reading the Forested Landscape by Tom Wessels
The History of The Land
Native New Yorkers: The Legacy of the Algonquin People of New York by Evan Pritchard
Sermons in Stone: The Stone Walls of New England and New York by Susan Allport
Stone by Stone by Robert Thorson
1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C. Mann
Conservation and Nature
A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold (also visit the Leopold Foundation https://www.aldoleopold.org/)
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter by Ben Goldfarb
Forests Adrift: Currents Shaping the Future of Northeastern Trees by Charles D. Canham
Nature Wars by Jim Sterba
The Forest Unseen: A Year’s Watch in Nature by David George Haskell
Stewardship
Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants by Doug Tallamy
Landowners Guide to Wildlife Habitat: Forest Management for the New England Region by Richard. M. DeGraaf, Mariko Yamasaki, William B. Leak and Anna M. Lester
Nature's Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation that Starts in Your Yard by Doug Tallamy
Rambunctious Garden: Saving Nature in a Post-Wild World by Emma Marris
The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden by Doug Tallamy
Tree and Shrub Identification
Trees of North America by Frank Brockman
National Audubon Society Field Guide to Trees (Eastern Region) by Elbert L. Little
Identifying Trees by Michael D. Williams
New York State Trees and Wildflowers (folding pocket guide) by James Kavanagh
Sibley’s Common Trees of Trails and Forests of the Northeast and Upper Midwest by David Allen Sibley
Peterson Field Guide to Eastern Trees by Roger Tory Peterson
The Sibley Guide to Trees by David Allen Sibley
Bark: A Field Guide to Trees of the Northeast by Michael Wojtech
