Woods Wise Wire - February 6, 2018

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Woods Wise Wire


In this issue:


Piscataquis County Soil & Water Conservation District (PCSWCD) is looking for a Executive Director

Year-Round Part-Time Position

The qualified candidate must have excellent managerial, oral and written communication skills, the ability to work well independently and to be a team player. Must have broad knowledge and interest in natural resource conservation and agriculture. The successful applicant will work closely with a volunteer Board of Supervisors, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) agencies at the Dover-Foxcroft, Maine, Service Center and will manage a staff of three part-time workers. The preferred candidate will have grant writing and fundraising experience and will be an effective public speaker. Must have competency with internet functions, Microsoft Office Suite, and website management. Hourly pay to be negotiated with successful applicant.

For a detailed Job Description, visit www.piscataquisswcd.org.

To apply, submit cover letter, resume, and letter of intention to: careers@piscataquisswcd.org. No phone calls please.

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Cooperative Forestry Research Unit (CFRU) Webinar Series: Spruce Budworm: Monitoring and Early Intervention Strategies

Spruce Budworm on branch

Please join us for the first webinar in our new CFRU series, which will focus on spruce budworm monitoring and early intervention strategies. Following an update on spruce budworm conditions in Maine by Allison Kanoti, Rob Johns will speak to us about the New Brunswick's monitoring, early intervention, and communication strategies employed to combat spruce budworm in the province. There will be time for questions following their presentations.

This webinar will be held on February 14th, 2018 from 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. EST using Zoom web conferencing software.

Please click on this link to register for this webinar
(https://zoom.us/meeting/register/42adaedc1b9d0141cde7dc3c8da9331e)

Webinar Program 

2:00 - Welcome (CFRU), then Spruce Budworm in Maine (Allison Kanoti)

2:10 - Spruce Budworm: Monitoring and Early Intervention in New Brunswick (Rob Johns)

2:50 - Q & A with Allison and Rob 

About the Presenters

Allison Kanoti is an entomologist for the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation & Forestry. She coordinates surveys and management for several insect pests in the state, including spruce budworm, and administers and helps implement state and federal quarantines.

Rob Johns is an entomologist for Natural Resource Canada's Atlantic Forestry Centre in Frederickton, New Brunswick. He studies the ways in which trees resist damage by herbivorous insects, as well as the ecological factors that influence the distribution of these insects and their predators through time and space 

Using Zoom

Please register for this webinar ahead of time using the link provided above.

When joining the meeting, you will be prompted to download Zoom launcher. Please follow the instructions provided to enter the webinar.

For these webinar presentations, participants will be muted and video will be disabled.

Please feel free to type questions for the presenters in the chat box on the left-hand side of the screen - these questions will be read by the moderator at the end of the presentation. There may also be time for you to ask questions as well.

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Woodland Stewardship Tour at Bearce-Allen Preserve - Bristol

Trees and path going through a stonewall

Join Knox-Lincoln Soil & Water Conservation District for the second in a monthly series of short field tours to highlight woodland stewardship and conservation practices of private landowners in Knox and Lincoln counties. These free tours are led by Maine Forest Service Midcoast District Forester Morten Moesswilde and are open to landowners, loggers, foresters, and others interested in the stewardship of small woodlands.

On Thursday, February 15 from 2-4pm, see the Results of a Careful Timber Harvest at Pemaquid Watershed Association Bearce-Allen Preserve in Bristol. Pemaquid Watershed Association (PWA) holds 438 acres in conservation easements and over 491 acres in actual preserves. The Bearce-Allen parcel has been developed as both a preserve and demonstration forest with a 1.1-mile Interpretive Trail that includes 21 stations highlighting forest succession, tree identification, and how to look for signs of animals. PWA conducted a small, careful timber harvest at the site in 2014-2015. Moesswilde will review the harvesting process and results with the forester and logger, as well as discuss how such a harvest fits within a conservation objective. Please dress for field conditions!

Additional tours in the series are currently scheduled on Thursdays, March 15 and April 19 from 3-5pm. The March tour examines Tree Selection for the Future Forest at the Koubek property in Bremen; April highlights an NRCS Wildlife Habitat Improvement Project at Medomak Valley Land Trust Burkett Mill Preserve in Waldoboro. Monthly tours will be added throughout the season.

For more information about this and future tours, visit www.knox-lincoln.org/woodland-stewardship-tours, contact the Conservation District at 596-2040 or info@knox-lincoln.org, or contact Morten Moesswilde at 441-2895. Although tours will be held rain or shine, participants are asked to let the Conservation District know of plans to attend in case of cancellation for stormy weather. 

Photo credit: Hannah McGee

Photo caption: Walking tour will highlights the conservation benefits of a recent harvest at PWA’s Bearce-Allen Preserve

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Waldo County Woodland Stewardship Field Tour : Maple Sugaring for the Small Woodlot Owner - Morrill

Waldo County Soil and Water Conservation District and Maine Forest Service are continuing a series of short field tours to highlight forest stewardship and conservation in Waldo County. These events are open to landowners, foresters, loggers, and others interested in the stewardship of small woodlands, and offer a two-hour opportunity for observation, questions, and discussion of different woodland conditions and management activities.

Thursday, February 22, 2-4 p.m. – Maple Sugaring for the Small Woodlot Owner – Whether you want to tap two trees, or twenty, this demonstration and tour will help get you started. University of Maine Cooperative Extension’s Kathy Hopkins is the state expert on maple syrup, and will give a hands-on presentation of the basics of identifying trees, tapping trees and making syrup, what equipment you need. Kathy will have equipment on display and we’ll have a look at the sugar house (pre-season, in all likelihood). We’ll also take a short walk into the sugar bush to look at both sugar and red maple (hint: you can tap both for maple syrup!). This presentation is geared toward beginners in maple sugaring, especially woodland owners, homeowners and other non-commercial producers, but everyone is welcome. We are grateful to be able to hold this event at Simmons & Daughters Sugar House in Morrill, which is located at 261 Weymouth Road. The sugar house & farm are approximately 2.0 miles west of the center of Morrill village, on the north side of the Weymouth Road. http://www.simmonsanddaughterssugarhouse.com/

Our March event will be a post-harvest review of a 2017 logging operation – what was the plan, how did it work, what are the results. Planning is often critical to achieving the goals you have for your woodland and for the harvest itself – here we’ll look at things in retrospective. We hope to have both forester and landowner present to provide context. SAVE THE DATE! Wednesday, March 21th, 3-5 p.m. (note time change). Location TBA.

These events are free and open to the public. They will involve being outdoors/walking in the woods and will occur rain, snow, or shine, so please dress for field conditions. If driving is hazardous, please call to confirm. Parking is often limited so please consider carpooling if you can. For more information contact Aleta McKeage, Technical Director of Waldo County Soil and Water Conservation District at 218-5311 or Morten Moesswilde, Midcoast District Forester with the Maine Forest Service, at 207.441.2895. 

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