Expert: Health of private woodlands doesn’t happen by accident
Emma Taylor, Kilgore, plays in her parents’ woodlands. Even a woodland of only a few acres – or less – requires management to minimize the risk of wildfire, pests and forest diseases. (Texas AgriLife Extension Service photo by Dr. Eric Taylor.)
Writer: Robert Burns, 903-834-6191, rd-burns@tamu.edu
OVERTON – Many people living in urban areas – Houston, Dallas and others — who own a little slice of woodland may think they don’t need to be concerned about managing for drought, wildfire, pests or forest diseases.
But healthy woodlands are no accident. They require work and planning, according to a forestry expert with the Texas AgriLife Extension Service.
“Whatever you call it, woodlands or forest, if you simply enjoy the beauty, wildlife, or recreational amenities, the health of the ecological system is important in order to resist drought, insects, disease, and even wildfire,” said Dr. Eric Taylor, AgriLife Extension forestry specialist, Overton. “And healthy woodlands require hands-on management from the landowner.”
To help property owners keep their woodlands healthy, Taylor and his associates are hosting a four-part seminar that can be attended in person or online.
The in-person course will be held at the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Overton, which is northeast of Tyler. Taylor encouraged all who can to attend the meeting at Overton because of the additional benefits gained from face-to-face meetings. For those who can’t make it in person, the course will be broadcast live as a webinar.
The recorded sessions will be made available online to registered participants.
Session dates will be Aug. 10, Sept. 14, Oct. 12, Nov. 9, which are the second Friday of each month. The sessions will last 1 – 5 p.m.
Registration for the course is $85, which may be paid online at the secure AgriLife Extension Conference Services site at https://agriliferegister.tamu.edu. Enter the keyword “woodland.”
Two relatively recent developments prompted him and his associate, Matt Bonham, to devise the course, Taylor said.
The first development was increased stress to woodlands from natural and/or man-made sources, Taylor said. Natural stressors include drought and extreme heat. Man-made stressors include invasive species, soil disturbances, air pollution and other stressors stemming from human activities.
All these stressors not only threaten the health of woodlands directly, but make them more susceptible to pests, plant diseases, drought, and wildfire.
“However, there is good news,” Taylor said. “These problems can be minimized or eliminated through the simple and purposeful act of sound woodland management.”
The four session titles are: A Healthy Woodland is No Accident; How Are My Woodlands in Danger? A deeper look at the threats and challenges facing today’s forests and woodlands; Recipe for Healthy Woods: A thorough look at strategies to promote ecosystem health and vigor; and Planning for Tomorrow, Today.
For those planning to attend via the webinar multicast, Taylor suggested they visit the configuration test site at http://go.ncsu.edu/configuration at least 24 hours in advance to test their accessibility.
For more information, contact Michele Sensing at 903-834-6191 or amsensing@ag.tamu.edu .
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