Ash Management Guide for Private Forest Landowners

General Ash ManagementGuidelinesIntroduction: Walking the TalkThere is a lot of talk about how to manage Minnesota’s ash trees. The ‘talk’ has become thefocal point of professional management discussions and policies, as well as the news around thebreakfast tables of those who own nearly 50 percent of the forested land in the state: YOU, theprivate forest landowner.Natural resource professionals reviewed ash management recommendations, includingthose for state land, developed by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (AppendixA). Those resources professionals wanted to offer you, the family forest landowner, anotherapproach. This Guide will discuss some specific guidance on ash management. It was developedcooperatively with insight from many different fields related to forestry and ecosystem management.A detailed, multi-process survey allowed experts to apply their knowledge several times tooffer useful management tips for the complicated and unprecedented future that faces Minnesota’sforests. As a result of this effort there are some basics you should use as the foundation tobuild upon in your management decisions.The following are a few baseline tips shared by a diversity of public and privateprofessional resource managers:• Seek and use the advice of a professional forester/forest plan writer.• Closely monitor stands with ash.• Plan for forest conversions when ash is a major component of your forest.• Work with neighboring landowners to address threats on a larger scale.• Actively discourage invasive plant and insect species; manage for native species.• Think outside the box. Contemplate a wider choice of tree species appropriate to yoursites and needs. Diversify the species you select. Tree and plant diversity will help preventfuture large-scale mortality the next time we discover a major pest attacking a tree species.• Think about replacement tree species before the ash dies.• Underplanting. Consider planting shade-tolerant trees beneath canopies of existing trees.• Minimize harvest damage by using the services of a professional logger who has takentraining with the Minnesota Logger Education Program. Ask for credentials and references.• Keep in mind - you can’t call a logger and expect him/her to be out harvesting at your sitein the next week or month. In most cases, you are going to need to set the plans in motion2-3 years before the timber is harvested.• Be extremely careful if using heavy equipment on very wet sites. It may be best to leavethe ash alone in these areas.• Be familiar with, and apply Best Management Practices.Following is a detailed background of ash as a resource, ash tree identification, emerald ashborer information and identification, and ash in our woodlands and recommendations on how tomanage ash forests through this transition. We hope this Guide is useful and informative as weface this unprecedented forest change together.2