For those who cut their logs from their property.

[DYork]

Do you intend to reforest or did you reforest if you have already cut your logs? Except for the build site itself, I just don't like the idea of cutting down 50 or more trees and not replacing them with seedlings. Do state forest services still give away seedlings to plant? Pine seedlings that is.

[rreidnauer]

I do intend on harvesting from the property I acquire, and conditions will determine if I replant new trees. If I end up having to use hardwoods for my construction, I'll be select cutting trees, and there is usually plenty of saplings and smaller trees beneath the canopies of the larger trees I'll take. There wouldn't be a need to replant in this situation. Should I get lucky enough to have coniferous trees, replanting will be determined by just how much deciduous trees there are in the competing area. If dense enough, they'll easily crowd out coniferous trees, and replanting would be futile. And if I get really super lucky and have nearly all coniferous trees, then I would almost certainly replant the area.

[wood bug]

Hi DYork, I also live in Texas, I just bought 100 seedlings from the Texas Forest Service. I ordered 50 of the Drought hardy pines for $22 and 50 arbivoer cedars. (spelled wrong) also for $22 plus shipping was like $52 total, I have a huge amount of Oaks on my 15 acres these new trees are only for wind breaks ,screening and looks. But if you get on the TFS web they have alot of pines and hardwoods for sale, personaly if I had the pines I would use them , you would still have the young growth and could replant the rest.

[DYork]

Mine is a mix, pine & hardwood, but down here, the pines seem to crowd out the hardwood except in the river bottoms. The hardwood is mostly pin oak, elm, hackberry, white oak with a few cedars.

WoodBug,
I guess what got me to thinking about this was reading the book Sawdust Empire-the Texas lumber industry 1830-1940. (written by Robert Walker and Robert Baker) If you get a chance, pick it up at the library. What we all now call The Big Thicket looked a LOT different when settlers 1st came to Texas in the 1800s. Today, The Thicket in my area is just that, a dense forest, with nearly impenetrable underbrush growing between towering pines. Way back when, that same area was nearly 100% long leaf pine, with a very clean forest floor. It was described as being 'parklike in appearance, and indeed the old pictures show exactly that. Very impressive-nature was. Again, except for the river bottoms, the floor was clean, no vines, brambles, bushes. The timber companies cut all the pines, and the underbrush moved in. When the CCC replanted the lands, the underbrush already had a foothold and humans prevented the naturally occuring fires that periodically burned it off. And, the CCC planted mostly Slash Pine because it grew faster than the 3 native species, Longleaf, Shortleaf, and Loblolly, but now, it's a mixture of all 4 species of pines. Loblolly, longleaf, Slash and Shortleaf.

I want to replant what I cut in longleaf. They'll take longer to grow beyond 4-5' high but once the taproot is down they'll take off for the sky.

Don

[wood bug]

Yes I have seen alot of those old photos. I also read that President Teddy hunted bear on the Tx-La border and wrote that the "cane" was so dense a rabbit counld'nt get through, and also now as then Indians used to burn alot while now loggers do it, I've seen 100's of acres in E. TX burning during the night

[DYork]

I've kinda wished for a fast moving brush fire on our place at times, except for the loss of the buildings and other damage. And, that's one of my biggest concerns. With the S.H. National Forest border within 100 yards of my build site, there's always the possibility of a camper's fire gettng away from them. And out here where I currently live, I've seen 10s of thousands of acres go up in just the last 2 months. We've had only a trace of rain since Oct, and these are supposed to be the wet months. :(

[JeffandSara]

Hi, Don--

We were unable to harvest our logs from our property. Most local timber is way too short and tapered due to climate conditions for anything larger than a shed. Also, most of the yellow pines that would have been appropriate for a house or cabin were logged in the 1930s for the existing cabin on the property.

We had to go elsewhere to buy our timber, but we also tried not to cut any more of what we had than necessary for the building site and approaches, so our small acreage had retained it's well-wooded character. However, we are considering adding more yellow pines in some areas which were deforested by previous owners or by the logging for the original cabin.

Bailey's sells seedlings in the winter, and quite cheaply, so we may order some from them. They carry incense cedar, redwood, sequoia, doug fir, ponderosa pine and Colorado spruce, 100 seedlings for $79.00. http://www.baileys-online.com/store/USA.htm Look under "reforestation products" and then "seedlings" if anyone wants more information. They don't carry longleaf, but there might be an easter/southern timber/logging supplier who does for those of you in that part of the country?

Good luck on your project, Don!

Sara :D