Florida Forestry Information |
|
|
Forest Management:
|
 |
| What
is a forest inventory? Why should you inventory your property?
What kinds of information do you need from an inventory? Whom
do you ask for assistance in cruising your forest property? This
section will help you to answer these important questions.
|
|
| What is a Forest Inventory? |
| A forest inventory
or cruise determines the location of timber and estimates its quantity
by species, product potential, size, quality, or other characteristics.
A cruise may be conducted for land acquisition or sale, a timber sale,
or other objectives.
A cruise can also assist in assessing other forest values such as wildlife habitat (mast, crops, snags, wetlands, dens, nests, thickets, etc.), watershed, recreational opportunities, or other management opportunities that exist on the property. Why Should You Cruise Your Property? The reasons for conducting a cruise vary among landowners, and these reasons are dictated by the goals and objectives landowners have for their properties, financial or otherwise. Some common reasons why landowners cruise their forest lands are:
|
| Forestry Services |
| Whatever the reason is for your decision
to cruise your land, the next step is to decide who will conduct the cruise.
Depending on your personal experience, you could conduct the cruise yourself.
If you do it yourself, you should at least have experience with the following:
1 - Land Measurements
 If you don't
have experience with these, you should probably use the services of a forestry
professional. One of the most important forestry professionals is
the consulting forester. Before choosing a consulting forester,
do some research on the consultants in your area. Talk to other clients
and people who have known the consultants from long business experience.
Managing forest land is a highly technical and long-range endeavor.
You need the best possible assistance.
Click on the link below for a look at some useful extension publications
providing detailed information on the types of forestry professionals available.
Some information on assistance programs is also given (use the "Back" function
to return here):
|
| Before the Cruise |
| Whether you decide to use the services
of a professional forester or to do it yourself, there are some things
that you should do before the cruise to make sure all the background information
is in order.
Get a Map If you don't already own a map of your property, get one. Your county courthouse, library, or a surveyor's office are good places to find the information needed to obtain the appropriate map which shows your property. If your property is small, the section of the map showing your property can be blown up to a more convenient scale. Do Some Walking Dig out your deed and make sure that the location and size of your property
is clearly specified. Walk the boundaries as they are described in
the deed and be certain that they are clearly marked. This will prevent
accidental trespass and potential conflicts with adjacent landowners.
While you are out walking the boundaries, take some time to become familiar with your land if you haven't done so already. This can be a very rewarding experience, especially if the family is involved. Going out and learning about the forest firsthand may be the beginning of a growing interest in forest management and stewardship for you and your family.  Take a few days
to go trekking around your land with the map of your property, a compass,
and some field guides on the plants and animals of your region. Note
any specific details such as water bodies, large trees, wildlife habitat,
hazards, or any other sites of significance on the map. After a thorough
informal survey of your land, write a brief description of your findings.
Forest landowners who know their land well are equipped to take an active
role in formulating goals and objectives for their land, and in developing
and carrying out forest management plans.
Compartmentalize the Land If your forest property is large (over 300 acres) and contains several different forest types based on site characteristics, species, and stage of tree growth, it may be necessary to organize your property into specific compartments or management units. Why would this be necessary?
An aerial photograph of your land will help you determine the types of forest communities you have and to organize your property into compartments if necessary. A professional forester can assist you in obtaining and analyzing aerial photographs. If it is necessary to organize your property into compartments, each
compartment should be cruised separately. This will promote more
uniform data from the cruises, thereby making the analysis less difficult.
Also, more accurate and specific information will be provided for each
compartment.
|
| The Cruise |
| Sample Size |
| The purpose of the cruise is to find
out what you own. This could be done by measuring every tree on your
property, but it is often more economical to measure an adequate sample
of the trees. What is important for you as the landowner is to be
sure that the sampling percentage is large enough to give you a reasonable
estimate of what you own.
The size of the sample will depend on the total area, the purpose of
the inventory, and the species, size, distribution, and value of the timber.
In general, a comprehensive inventory requires a 20% sample for areas
under 300 acres, and a 10% sample for areas larger than 300 acres.
For example, if you own 100 acres of timberland, it would be necessary to measure every tree on 20 acres. If the area is 500 acres in size, it would be necessary to measure every tree on 50 acres. A professional forester will be able to plan an efficient sampling system
for your property. Go to the Contacts
section for a list of consulting foresters.
|
| Information |
| Once the sampling system is determined,
it is necessary to decide how much information to gather. In other
words, what do you want to know about your land?
For example, if you want to determine how much pulpwood and sawtimber
is on your property, the cruise must show volumes by products, species,
or groups of species, and dbh (diameter at breast height (4.5 feet above
ground)) classes.
Growth Projections Another important part of some cruises is an evaluation of growth rates
for projection of future tree sizes and volume. Growth rates can
be determined by using an increment borer. A few trees in each diameter
class should be sampled by counting the number of growth rings in the outside
inch of the borer sample for each sampled tree.
Soil An important part of the cruise is an evaluation on the soil on your
property. The productive capacity among different soil types is variable.
Some acres may produce twice as much wood volume as others, and recognizing
this could offer you excellent opportunities. The measure of soil
capacity used by foresters is called site index. Site index
is the total height (in feet) to which the dominant trees in a timber stand
will grow in 25 or 50 years.
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service has prepared soil surveys by
counties for most of the nation. These surveys include detailed
descriptions of the soils of the county and a discussion of their suitability
for crops, tree farms, pasture, engineering applications, and wildlife
habitat. The USDA Service Center in your area can
provide you with a survey summary for your county and a consulting forester,
county forester, or extension agent can help you understand what the information
means to you.
Written Report The cruise should include a written report on stand conditions, particularly for areas that need cultural treatments or are ready for harvest. These areas should be shown on the map.
|
| After the Cruise |
| When the cruise is complete you need
to make sure that the information is complete according to your objectives.
The following records should be at hand:
|
| Concluding Remarks |
| Private landowners are a diverse group
with many types of goals and objectives for their lands. Regardless
of your plans, the sooner you take inventory of what you own, the better
prepared you will be to implement or further develop your original ideas.
|
| References
Avery, T.E. and H.E. Burkhart. 1983. Forest Measurements. McGraw-Hill Publishing Co., N.Y. 329 pp. Fazio, James R. 1987. The Woodland Steward. The Woodland Press, Moscow, ID. 211 p. Goff, Gary R. 1994. Timber Management for Small Woodlands. Inf. Bull. 147IB180rev. N.Y.S. Coll. of Agr. and Life Sci., Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. 57 pp. Vaardman, James M. 1978. Tree Farm Business Management. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York. 213 pp. Vaardman, James M. 1989. How to Make Money Growing Trees. John
Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York. 296 pp.
|
Keep
in mind that a cruise will be most helpful if: