Forest Stewardship

Introduction and Orientation

Forest stewardship is about taking care of your forest, long-term.  The practice of stewardship begins with understanding two important things; forest owners and their woodlands.  Every forest owner holds compelling interests or values for owning land and forest.  What are your values?  "Values and Forests" and "Determining Values & Goals For Your Forest Land" will help you sort out what is important to you about owning land and taking care of your forest.

Like forest owners, no two woodlands are alike.  The character of each forest ownership is unique in its mix of forest types, habitats, soil and water features, wildlife niches, plants and wildflowers, and other environmental features.  What is the character of your particular forest?  What are the unique features and the diversity of features that are contained within your woodland?

Once you understand your values about forest ownership, and link this with your understanding about the character of your woodlands, this marks the first step towards taking a planned approach to taking care of your forest.  Consider this....

"There is no such thing as right or wrong forest owner values and goals. Your values and goals affect everything you do with a piece of land. Some honest personal reflection is a necessary first step to successful woodland management"

                                                     -James Fazio: The Woodland Steward

Some Practical Suggestions:

1. Know yourself, your compelling interests, your values, goals and vision for your forest.
2. Learn all you can about your forest: the soils, waters, plants, trees, wildlife, topography, climate....and discover how things grow and change in your forest over time.
3. Make a map of what you know, what you don't know, and what you need to know about your forest.  Then make a plan for gathering additional information.  Who can help you with this?
4. Tap into the wealth of information, organizations, and services available to you to help you draft a forest stewardship plan that supports your particular values and interests.
5. Keep records of your forest planning ideas and activities.   A forest journal is a great way to keep track of your ideas and efforts in taking care of your forest.
6. If you get stuck, are baffled or don't know what to do, don't decide or act blindly in haste.  Ask for help with taking care of your forest!
7. Think about this scenario:  It takes 5 to 10 minutes to fell a tree in your forest.  It may have taken that tree anywhere from 60 to 250 years, depending upon the species, to grow from seedling to maturity.  There may be many reasons for cutting or leaving a tree in a forest.   It is your values and plans that influence these decisions and actions in your forest.
8. Develop a Plan.  Okay, click back to the homepage and browse through the articles and online publications that are available to help you develop a plan for taking care of your forest.

Return to Taking Care of Your Forest Home Page

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Last Modified: 01/11/08
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