From the State Forester

Once again, another field season is nearly over as we move into fall and winter.  Reflecting back on this year, the first thing that comes to mind is, what a difference a little moisture makes!  After the record breaking fire season of 2012, we enjoyed a relatively light fire season over most of Wyoming.  The rest of the west didn’t fare so well.  Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Nevada, and Montana all had heavy fire activity, and in late June, Arizona suffered the worst wildland firefighter fatality incident in nearly 100 years, with 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots dying in a tragic burn over.

Mountain Pine Beetle activity appears to be on the decline in much of the state; however the beetle still appears to be expanding in the Black Hills.  The Legislature has supported efforts between the Wildlife Natural Resource Trust Fund, the Department of Agriculture, Weston and Crook Counties, Neiman Timber, Conservation Districts, the US Forest Service, and our office to treat areas of the Black Hills with direct control methods to slow the spread of the beetle.   Potential invasive species continue to be of concern across the country.  We have been working closely with several neighboring states and the US Forest Service on a “Don’t Move the Firewood” campaign.  Just recently, Emerald Ash Borer has been confirmed in the Boulder, CO area.

Rural landowner assistance, including forest management and plan development, fuels mitigation, and “sick tree” calls continue to be a big focus for the division.  With concerns over fire and bugs, our staff has stayed very busy.  Our community forestry program continues to flourish, with several new communities looking at obtaining Tree City status.  The Northern Rockies Tree School, a cooperative program of Montana DNR and ourselves, had over 160 attendees this year, and the demand for assistance in our community forests continues to grow.

With the reopening of the sawmill in Saratoga, coupled with improved lumber markets, we have seen increased interest in state land timber this year, allowing us to put a significant acreage under management.  This, along with our thinning program, is helping to ensure that our state forested trust lands are in good condition moving into the future.

We have also seen several changes in staff since the first of the year and have been able to attract some outstanding young people.  Overall, it has been an outstanding year for Wyoming State Forestry, and I believe that we are well positioned to meet what challenges face us in 2014.

Spring/Summer Calendar of Events

June

13-14    ICS-300: Intermediate Incident Command System for Expanding Incidents course: Pinedale, contact Jim Mitchell at jmitchell@subso.com

15    Wyoming Tree Farm Field Day: Moskee Land Corporation, near Sundance, 10:00-3:00, lunch and refreshments served. For more info contact Bill Kohlbrand or Dick Terry at 746-4261. Click here for more information.

18-19    Assessing Hazards in the Home Ignition Zone course: Jackson. Click here for more information 

July

30-31    North Platte River Russian olive and Cheatgrass Control Workshop/Tour: Douglas. Click here for more information.

September

20-21    Northern Rockies Tree School: Dillon, MT, for more information go to: www.dillontrees.org

26-27    ISA-RMC Annual Conference: Cheyenne, WY, for more information go to: http://www.isarmc.org/ or click here

27-28    ISA-RMC Tree Climbing Competition: Cheyenne, WY.  Follow the links for registration and sponsorship forms.

Tree Management Plans: Your Guide to a Healthy Community Forest

Kendrick Park, Sheridan, WY is an example of a mature, older park

Do you manage parks, cemeteries, golf courses or right-of-ways with aging mature trees? Are you concerned about what will become of these areas as the mature trees start to decline and become hazardous? Conversely, do you have new parks or recent additions to your town that have been planted in the last ten years? Have you stopped to think about the future of these trees and how their benefits can be maximized – ten, twenty, or forty years from now? What about all the tree care and maintenance activities that should be accomplished throughout their lifespan? In addition, are you looking for a way to document

Whitney Commons Park, Sheridan, WY is an example of a new park

all the tree work you have done and prioritize work for the future?  This article will provide direction to assist you in developing a Tree Management Plan which can help guide you in the future.  Wyoming State Forestry has the tools and skills to assist you along the way!

The first and most important step to a Tree Management Plan is conducting a tree inventory. How can you devise a plan to manage a population of trees without first understanding the trees themselves? An inventory provides in-depth information about each tree and provides tools to easily evaluate the data for a thorough analysis of your forest.  Before you begin an inventory, it is important to determine what information you would like to get out of the inventory. Inventories can be time consuming so you should only collect the data necessary to assist you in your specific goals for the area you want to inventory.  For example, you may want to determine the total value of the trees, to justify the cost of care and maintenance to your city council or mayor.

A diameter measurement is crucial to getting the total value of a tree. The total value of Kendrick Park at the time of inventory was $3,052,319!

Inventories can also provide the basis for developing future work plans.  As data for each tree is collected, specific maintenance needs can be noted, including dates for completing this maintenance.  Maintenance needs could include mulching, watering, wrapping, treating for a specific insect or disease, pruning, hazard inspection, and tree removal. After the inventory is completed and imported into a spreadsheet, you will be able to develop a yearly work plan from the maintenance recommendations you made while conducting the inventory. This maintenance schedule can assist with cost estimates and improve work efficiency.  It also can be easily updated since it is in a spreadsheet form.

There is one additional data piece to consider before conducting an inventory- a GPS location (or waypoint) for each tree. GPS waypoints can be downloaded from numerous different types of software programs to produce informative maps. If you are collecting tree

Example of Whitney Commons Park Work Plan for 2013

data by paper and downloading waypoints only, ArcMap is a great program to use. After downloading the GPS tree waypoints, you can add in your excel spreadsheet that contains all your tree data and join that tabular data to the waypoints. This can be done by matching the tree’s specific ID in the excel spreadsheet with the same ID given to the GPS waypoint. The joined waypoints and table can be exported into a new shapefile that can then be shared with others. With the new exported shapefile, anyone can click on a waypoint and view all the information from the spreadsheet about the tree. Many handheld devices take care of this step all at once by collecting the waypoint and inventory data in one place, making a shapefile with tabular data downloadable and ready to share. A person can then use the new user friendly and FREE ArcGIS Explorer Online program.

Maps provide a visual view of your entire tree population and can also highlight trends or areas of concern. Maps are also a great way to share information with the public and

All inventoried trees in Kendrick Park. Note the selected tree and tabular information that was joined from a spreadsheet. The spreadsheet was brought into ArcMap and joined to the waypoint shapefile, then exported to make a final shapefile with waypoint and tabular data.

important leaders in your community. There is now a free internet website available called explorer.arcgis.com (or ArcGIS Explorer Online when Googled) that provides a venue to share maps to specific groups or to the public in general. Each map receives its own website that anyone can access and view. Once you access the ArcGIS Explorer online homepage, click on the “My Content” tab and select the button “Sign In”. This is where you will sign up so that you can set up your own personal account. When signing up you will be able to choose from signing up for a free 30 day ArcGIS online trial account or you can pick to create a public account. Either account will provide a place to keep all your created maps and data organized, but for this article’s purposes ArcGIS Explorer online will be explained, so you would be selecting to create a public account.

Setting up a public account is your starting point for creating your own inventory maps and also where you can find plenty of educational material about ArcGIS Explorer online. Making a map is pretty simple; you can begin by clicking on “New Map” tab located in the upper right hand corner of the screen. Then upload your zipped shapefile data and choose a basemap from the assortment of backgrounds that are available. You can easily edit your waypoint symbols and the pop-up display information by selecting the layers tab and then your shapefile in the table of contents area. This will bring you to your Layer Details and where you can make your edits. Once you have saved your map, you can share it with others. In order to share your map with others, click on the “Share” button at the top of the map. This provides you the actual map website that can be linked to Facebook or copied and pasted into presentations, handouts, or brochures. The options and methods of educating the public are endless with the use of ArcGIS Explorer Online. From setting-up mobile phone Apps to adding photos of each tree to their GPS location, you are able to better connect with a techno-based public about your community’s trees.

Planting is an important component of future management. Sheridan Arbor Day 2011 in Kendrick Park

After you have had a chance to analyze your inventory, work plan, and maps, the last piece to your Tree Management Plan is to focus on the future. What are the goals and objectives for your community forest? How are those goals or objectives to be implemented? Are there new project ideas that can be applied? For example, this is where you might include a future tree planting plan and targets for tree diversity.  It is critical to make your goals and objectives achievable so that your Tree Management Plan is successful. Also think about continuing education for yourself and your maintenance staff. Wyoming State Forestry is committed to providing professional community forestry assistance to our local communities and can provide tree care workshops as well as aid in developing Tree Management Plans.

Example:

Kendrick Park Planting Plan:

Hopefully as a result of reading this article you have realized how critical a Tree Management Plan could be to your community. Make sure that all future goals,

Kendrick Park planting plan

recommendations, and implementation plans get documented in the Tree Management Plan, that way everyone can understand what you are trying to accomplish. It will become easier to apply for grants and ask for financial assistance for community forest costs when you are able to show why you need the support and how you plan to use it to accomplish your Tree Management Plan’s goals. I hope you have become inspired to move forward with this process and begin better managing your community forest. If you need assistance, Wyoming State Forestry is just a phone call away!

Kelly Norris is an Assistant District Forester with the Wyoming State Forestry Division.  Stationed in Buffalo, she covers Campbell, Johnson and Sheridan counties.  She can be reached at Kelly.norris@wyo.gov or (307) 684-2752. 

4th Annual Northern Rockies Tree School Comes to Dillon, Montana

The theme of this year’s Northern Rockies Tree School (NRTS) is “Risky Business”- Tree Risks and Arboriculture in the Northern Rockies.  Mark your calendars for September 19 and 20 and plan on attending what is likely to be the best NRTS ever.  With national renowned speakers such as Ed Gilman and John Ball on the agenda and a full-day pre-conference workshop geared to professional arborists, this year’s conference has something for everyone.

In just its fourth year, the NRTS has built a strong reputation as a first-rate conference and leader in community forestry education and outreach in the region.  Building on the momentum of last year’s conference in Sheridan, the Montana contingent is confident this year’s NRTS will only strengthen the bonds between organizers and attendees from Wyoming and Montana and further their opportunities to network and share ideas.  Additionally, with this year’s location being within a short drive of Idaho, organizers hope to attract a strong contingent from southern Idaho, which would greatly add to the experience for all.

For more information on the conference, visit the Dillon Tree Board’s website at: www.dillontrees.org   A conference brochure and on-line registration form is already available at the website.  A limited number of scholarships are also available for WY residents to attend the conference, contact Mark Hughes at (307) 777-5478 for further information.

New Arboretum Comes to Life in Newcastle as Community Celebrates 18 Years as a Tree City USA

Recently an arboretum in Newcastle was established through a grant from the Wyoming State Forestry Division.  On May 23^rd as part of Newcastle’s annual Arbor Day celebration, over 50 trees were planted at the arboretum site along Stampede Street from the Weston County Children’s Center on the south end to the high school on the north end.  Several groups pitched-in to plant the trees, including around 20 cub scouts from pack 66, the Newcastle Tree Board, Town of Newcastle, Wyoming Conservation Camp and the Wyoming State Forestry Division.

Children from the Weston County Children’s Center help plant a tree at the arboretum under the direction of Town Arborist, Travis Peterson.

Two Arbor Day celebrations were conducted during the course of the day.  The first was at 10:00 in front of the Weston County Children’s Center where Bob Hartley, Town Engineer oversaw the ceremony.  Children and teachers from the Children’s Center were in attendance along with members of the Tree Board and Wyoming State Forestry.  The children assisted with the planting of a Toba hawthorn in the arboretum and later gathered in the Children’s Center for a group picture in front of the Tree City flag.   At 2:00 Mayor Greg James read the Arbor Day proclamation in front of a group of cub scouts and volunteers and officially declared May 23 as Newcastle’s Arbor Day.  The cub scouts were then taught how to plant a tree and assisted the tree board in planting several trees in the arboretum.

The arboretum will be a living experiment to test the suitability of a wide range of tree species to Newcastle’s harsh climate.  Trees were selected based on their ability to withstand cold temperatures, windy conditions and heavy, alkaline soils.  Several trees native to Wyoming were planted while the remaining trees were chosen due to their ability to withstand harsh conditions.  At least two trees for each variety were planted.  With the trees chosen, it is expected that most of the varieties will prove hardy to Newcastle’s climate; however some may not survive.  Varieties that do not survive will be replaced with trees that are known to thrive in the Newcastle area.  Trees will be monitored throughout the year and if trees die they will be replaced in the fall or spring.

The funding for this project came from the Wyoming State Forestry Division’s arboretum grant program.  This grant provides funding to establish arboretums around the State.  Through these arboretum trials the Forestry Division hopes to compile a more comprehensive list of trees suitable to Wyoming’s climate.  From these lists, communities will have a reliable resource for determining which tree species will grow in their own area.  This will lead to the planting of a greater variety of tree species which experts agree is a key factor to a healthier and more sustainable community forest.

Cub scouts from local pack 66 complete the planting of this tree by watering it in.

The Town of Newcastle and the tree board invite you to visit the arboretum.  Many more improvements are planned for this area as well.  New sidewalks will soon allow residents a safe and picturesque route to the high school from the south.   Approximately 50 more trees will be planted next year which will bring the total number of trees to well over 100.  Eventually trees in the arboretum will have permanent signage which will identify each tree species and give a brief description of its growth habitats and native range. For now, most trees have nursery tags attached to lower branches which list the common name of the tree.  Stay tuned for more as the arboretum is only in its infancy and will continue to grow and evolve.

To view a YouTube video of the project, go to: http://youtu.be/570vf83qbes

Tree Pruning Workshops Available Upon Request

As the result of an early fall snowstorm that dumped over a foot of snow, this green ash succumbed under the weight, breaking in half and necessitating its removal.

Wyoming State Forestry Division is scheduling pruning workshops across the state to train attendees on how to structurally prune young trees.  Establishing strong structure in young trees is critical, especially in our state where trees are often put under heavy stress as the result of snowstorms and strong winds.  In just the past 5 years, Wyoming has experienced several storms that have decimated community forests in numerous communities.  Where these storms have occurred, young trees have often taken the brunt of the punishment.  This is largely due to the fact that young trees across the state are generally not being pruned properly.

Oly demonstrates structural pruning concepts using a ladder and hand saw.

Pruning workshops are taught in half a day and include both classroom presentations and outdoor hands-on demonstrations.  Attendees are encouraged to prune trees themselves under the direction of the instructor.  Structurally pruning young trees is not a difficult task, most trees can be pruned in under ten minutes and accomplished using a hand pruner, hand saw and 6 foot ladder.  Upon completion of this free course the attendee will have the basic knowledge and skills to properly prune young trees and will be able to teach others these valuable skills. 

If you are interested in hosting a pruning workshop in your community, please contact Mark “Oly” Ellison at mark.ellison@wyo.gov or 275-2853. 

Wyoming State Helitack Enters 10th Season

Wyoming State Helitack is celebrating the start of its tenth season in operation.  The helicopter and crew started on May 15th this year and have been busy making improvements to their base located on the Duncan Ranch south of Glenrock.  This year the crew is made up of Ryan, Adam, Caitlyn, Garret and two new faces, Melanie and Andy.  The helicopter is still contracted with Sky Aviation but the pilot for this year has changed.  Ty and Chase make up the pilot and service truck driver this year.  The interagency fire fighting crew consists of four State of Wyoming employees and one each from the U.S.F.S and the B.L.M.   It is this continued cooperation that will help take the program through another 10 years and beyond. Last summer was a record setting season that saw the most fires and flight time for the program since its inception in 2004.  This year the crew is up for the challenge again, but hopefully for the citizens of Wyoming, they will not be as busy as last summer.