SilviCast

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S.5 Ep.2: Digging into the Wood Wide Web Feb 01, 2024

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As foresters we spend a great deal of time looking up, to evaluate forest composition, structure and growth. The story below ground is equally as interesting however, with complex interactions between soils, nutrients, water, roots, and a host of other flora and fauna. As they say in Vegas, what happens below ground, stays below ground! Everything here is more difficult to study. This is particularly true about a class of organisms critical to trees, mycorrhizal fungi. We know that mycorrhizal fungi play an important role in allowing trees to uptake more nutrients and water. But does it go further than that? There have been a huge number of popular media stories talking about this subject, but what is the current state of the science? And what do forester need to know about how these fungi impact tree growth, or how we impact mycorrhizal fungi through management? Join us on this episode of SilviCast as we explore this subject with Justine Karst, Associate Professor and mycologist with the University of Alberta, and Marty Kranabetter, Regional Soil Scientist with the British Columbia Ministry of Forests.

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S.5 Ep.1: Putting the Old in Old-Growth Jan 02, 2024

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No matter how you define it, old-growth forests are scarce as hen’s teeth in the eastern United States. More than 99% of our forests are second growth. While we can’t speed up time, we can speed up the development of old-growth characteristics through creative silviculture. Join us on this episode of SilviCast as we talk with Paul Catanzaro, Professor and State Extension Forester at the University of Massachusetts - Amherst, about a range of silvicultural techniques to restore old-growth characteristics.

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S.4 Ep.11: The Art of Silviculture Dec 12, 2023

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The official Society of American Foresters' definition of silviculture describes it as both an art and science. Are foresters both artists and scientists? What role does creativity play when developing a silvicultural prescription or setting up a timber sale? In forestry school we learn the foundational sciences of silvics, forest ecology, soils, wildlife, and water. And through experience and time spent in the forest we learn how to best apply that science to particular stands and site conditions. Join us on this season 4 finale of SilviCast as we talk with Marcella Windmuller-Campione, Associate Professor of Silviculture at the University of Minnesota, about keeping the creativity in silviculture and the importance of being a life-long learner.

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S.4 Ep.10: White Oak, Whiskey, and Wildlife Dec 06, 2023

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If you're a whiskey enthusiast, you are probably aware of a lesser-known federal law that requires all bourbon (an American whiskey) to be aged in a “charred new oak container." And those containers or casks are made almost exclusively from white oak (Quercus alba). But white oak has been popular long before the recent rise in whiskey-sipping Gen Xers! It is simply hard to overstate the importance of this tree species to forest products, wildlife habitat, and ecosystem services. In fact, stakeholders from across eastern North America have joined forces to promote the long-term sustainability of white oak forests through the White Oak Initiative. In this episode of SilviCast, we talk with one of the White Oak Initiative founders, Dr. Jeff Stringer, chair of the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources at the University of Kentucky, about this critical tree species and the efforts to sustain it.
To earn CEU/CFE credits, learn more, or interact with SilviCast, visit the SilviCast website.

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S.4 Ep.9: Vision of Chief Oshkosh Oct 01, 2023

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Good silviculture is about using the best available science, along with the experience and local knowledge we accumulate in the field. What if we practiced forestry in an area for not only one lifetime, but for generations upon generations. Imagine the knowledge-base we could draw from to guide our silviculture! Indigenous peoples have been managing forest vegetation for various purposes for generations, accumulating a great understanding of how forest ecosystems work, sometimes referred to as Traditional Ecological Knowledge. On this episode of SilviCast we explore this topic by looking at silviculture on the Menominee Forest. The Menominee Tribe has managed this 230,000-acre forest in north-central Wisconsin for 160 years and it is one of the first examples of sustained yield forestry in North America. Join us as we talk with are our long-time forestry partners on the Menominee Forest: Ron Waukau, Forest Manager; Tony Waupochick, Silviculturist; and Pat Gauthier, Harvest Prep Forester.
To earn CEU/CFE credits, learn more, or interact with SilviCast, visit the SilviCast website

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S.4 Ep.8: ICO ICO a Nae Sep 01, 2023

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They say if you want forest heterogeneity, just get a larger group of foresters to mark the stand. While it is true that not every forester marks the same, it is often challenging if we want to intentionally create spatial variability. Especially if we want to emulate spatial patterns that would be typical for a specific forest type and natural disturbance regime. The ICO method (which stands for individuals, clumps, and openings) is a stand-level tool developed in the western US to help foresters restore the patterns of individual trees, clumps, and openings commonly found in pine/mixed conifer forests shaped by frequent fire disturbance. Join us for a conversation with Dr. Sean Jeronimo, as we learn how this method is applied in the field and how it may be useful in a variety of forest types shaped by fire.
To earn CEU/CFE credits, learn more, or interact with SilviCast, visit the SilviCast website.

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S.4 Ep.7: The Cedar Club Aug 01, 2023

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Foresters love a challenge! And one such challenge in eastern Northern America has always been northern white-cedar (Thuja occidentalis). A both ecologically and commercially valuable tree species that can be slow-growing, tricky to regenerate, and highly susceptible to deer browse. Join us on this episode of SilviCast as we introduce you to the Cedar Club, a passionate group of forest practitioners and researchers who have been tackling the cedar management question for the pat 23 years. Explore the challenges and opportunities to sustainable management of northern white-cedar.
Featured "Cedar Club" Guests: Dr. Laura Kenefic, Research Forester and Team Leader, USFS, Northern Research Station; Jean-Claude Ruel, Emeritus Silviculture Professor, Laval University; Charles Tardif, Vice President Manufacturing, Maibec; Dr. Olivier Villemaire-Côté, Institut des Sciences de la Forêt Tempérée (ISFORT-UQO); and Victoria Hunter, Graduate Student, Michigan Technological University.
To earn CEU/CFE credits, learn more, or interact with SilviCast, visit the SilviCast website.

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S.4 Ep.6: Green Side Up Jul 01, 2023

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It seems that every young forester may have heard the old adage “green side up" tossed at us half-jokingly while learning to plant our first tree seedlings, almost as if to say "don't overthink this one kid." As experienced foresters we soon learn that achieving tree planting success is a whole lot more complicated. There are critical variables from stock type to site preparation to planting technique. If the world is going to get the trillion tree initiative right, all of these variables must be addressed. And there may be no group of professionals who know these variables better than forest nursery managers. Join us on this episode of SilviCast as we dig into the knowledge base of the Wisconsin DNR Reforestation Program staff.

Guests: Joe Vande Hey, Reforestation Team Leader and State Nursery Superintendent, Roger Bohringer, Assistant Manager for the Wilson State Nursery, and Jeremiah Auer, Regeneration Specialist
To earn CEU/CFE credits, learn more, or interact with SilviCast, visit the SilviCast website.

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S.4 Ep.5: The Seedling and the Flame Jun 01, 2023

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We all know that oak and fire go together like peanut butter and jelly. What we have been missing is the practical knowledge of where, when, and how to apply fire in oak ecosystems. There are few who have contributed more to this knowledge base than Dr. Patrick Brose from the US Forest Service's Northern Research Station. Dr. Brose's research has developed key silvicultural applications of fire to regenerate and sustain oak forests and woodlands. Join us on this episode of SilviCast as we talk with Dr. Brose about what he has learned over the past 25 years of studying oak and fire. Pull up a chair, you will not want to miss a word!
To earn CEU/CFE credits, learn more, or interact with SilviCast, visit the SilviCast website.

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S.4 Ep.4: How Now Brown Cow? May 01, 2023

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Foresters have been warning landowners for years about the potentially damaging impacts of cows in their woods. So it is not surprising that we raise an eyebrow when conversations start about intentionally integrating livestock and forests. In this episode of SilviCast we explore the management practice known as silvopasture, or the intentional integration of trees, forage, and livestock. Join us as we discuss what silvopasture is and is not, with Rich Straight, Technology Transfer Leader at the U.S. Forest Service’s National Agroforestry Center.
To earn CEU/CFE credits, learn more, or interact with SilviCast, visit the SilviCast website.

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