Benefits of a Woodlot Thinning Operation

It is well-known that the majority of our Catskill forests were once cleared for agricultural use and have since grown back after farm abandonment. These “second-growth” forests are often overly dense and lacking in diversity. Just as weeding a garden helps plants thrive, forests too can benefit from some “weeding”.

Join us for a tour of long-time CFA member Norm Maender’s woodlot, which has seen improvements through active forest management. Norm has witnessed the forest return from an abandoned cow pasture over the last 60 years. He will discuss the most notable changes, as well as show us a recent commercial thinning where trees were removed and sold to benefit the residual stand of oaks and maples. Learn about thinning as a silvicultural practice, and how you might apply it on your own property.

We would like to thank Norm Maender for helping make this event possible.

        Members: Free | Non-members: $10