Ash Management Guide for Private Forest Landowners

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12 16Photo: Christopher Cotrell
Ash wood has been gathered and shapedinto snowshoes of varied design by manycultures that inhabit the boreal and subborealforest ecosystems. Ash wood lendsitself to manipulation and retains its givenform once dry. Ash is also lightweight,making it ideal for snowshoes, toboggans,and vessels. The wood properties of ashhave made them a fiber source for a fewMinnesota-made products:Pulp and Paper: Two of Minnesota’spulp and paper mills use small amountsof ash mixed with other species to createpaper pulp. These mills used about 10,000cords of ash in 2007.Engineered Wood: Ash is used byone Minnesota mill to manufacture hardboard.Solid Wood Products: Over 100Minnesota sawmills use some ash, butthe overall consumption is low. Total ashuse in 2007 was about 9,000 cords. Thereare several exporters for black ash veneer.The volumes are small but these exportsare high value.Minnesota’s ash paneling industryis viable, particularly when it comes toblack ash. Black ash is sawn into panelingand flooring when quantities are available(and that may not be regular or often).Ash has always been an offering in thepaneling and flooring industry. Black ashis also used as a craft wood both in nichemarket items and traditional Minnesotacrafteditems such as snowshoes andbaskets. Also, ash is popular for firewoodas it is easy to split.While the industry that producespaneling and pallets is big, their use ofash isn’t. There are a couple reasons forthis. The size and quality of the raw ashmaterial is undependable. Not very muchash makes it to sawlog or veneer size. Thesupply just doesn’t lead to a consistentdemand.Another reason is that harvesting opportunitiesare limited to the season whenthe ground is frozen or dry, because ash ismost often found in lowland areas. Thosein the timber industry tend to focus theirefforts in the winter season on speciesthey are certain they can market.While a number of factors makeharvesting ash undesirable, other characteristicsmake Minnesota ash desirable forvarious industries. Ash has a unique, variablegrain pattern that appeals to many.It is not a “light-colored” wood, butit is not a “dark” wood either. It is somewhatvulnerable to fashion swings. Iflight-colored paneling is “in” to make theceilings look higher and the room lookChapter 3Ash: A 21stCentury ResourceAsh trees are common ‘urban trees,’ liningthe streets and boulevards of communitiesthroughout Minnesota. And, as with mosturban tress, ash trees bestow beauty, cutenergy costs, and absorb and filter stormwater – services estimated to be worthover $290 million each year to Minnesotacommunities.Photo: DailyinventionMost often, discussion centers on the largeproportion of ash trees that comprise urbanand suburban landscapes. Ash specieswere used to replace elm trees after Dutchelm disease wiped out what was once thepredominant urban landscaping tree. Ashtrees sometimes comprise one quarter ormore of the trees in municipal areas.17
Page 3 and 4: We gratefully acknowledge Melvin Ba
Page 5 and 6: Table of ContentsChapter 1A History
Page 7 and 8: The Delphi Survey ProcessThe Univer
Page 9: The Emerald Ash Borer & Chestnut Bl
Page 12 and 13: Chapter 1A History of Minnesota’s
Page 14 and 15: Chapter 2MinnesotaAsh SpeciesIdenti
Page 16 and 17: How to tell an ash from an ashIdent
Page 19: Chapter 3Ash: A 21stCentury Resourc
Page 23 and 24: igger, then ash is not the first ch
Page 25 and 26: Photo by Pennsylvania Department of
Page 27 and 28: Chapter 4The EmeraldAsh BorerA litt
Page 29 and 30: feed on ash leaves for a few weeks
Page 31 and 32: will likely reduce population build
Page 33: Chapter 5The Native PlantCommunitie
Page 36 and 37: Chapter 5The Native PlantCommunitie
Page 39 and 40: Wet Forest: Dieback and declineEmer
Page 42 and 43: Chapter 5The Native PlantCommunitie
Page 44: Chapter 5The Native PlantCommunitie
Page 49 and 50: Mesic hardwood forests have a diver
Page 51 and 52: the invasion of undesirable plants
Page 53 and 54: for ash roots to reach mineral soil
Page 55 and 56: and re-colonize a burned landscape.
Page 57: A general overview of ash species d
Page 61 and 62: Survey Recommendations: WildlifeUnt
Page 63 and 64: Chapter 7Other Implicationsof EAB a
Page 65 and 66: Windthrow MortalityAll hardwood for
Page 67 and 68: • Create conditions favorable for
Page 69 and 70: Appendix BQuestions & Answers about
Page 71 and 72:
Appendix CMinnesota Department of N
Page 73 and 74:
GLOSSARYabiotic: Nonliving parts of
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Ash Management Guide for Private Forest Landowners

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