The Rural Voice, 1990-03, Page 36CHESLEY KINSMEN CLUB
presents GREY -BRUCE
AGRI FAIR '90
April 10 & 11
CHESLEY
COMMUNITY CENTRE
12 noon - 9:00 p.m.
Over 100 display booths of agri business products and service.
Food and refreshments available. Proceeds to: Community Betterment
ONE SOLUTION
TO GLOBAL WARMING
Well-managed, healthy forests utilize atmospheric carbon (from carbon
dioxide) at the rate of 2.5 tons per acre per year, making forest land the
world's major storehouse of carbon dioxide, the worst of the "greenhouse
gases." By reforesting idle farmland with fast-growing trees, we are
helping to combat global warming.
A well managed White Pine forest
REFORESTING IDLE FARMLAND — A WISE MOVE
Reforesting idle farmland provides many benefits, but simply planting
trees is not enough to moderate global warming. When planting, we
must choose those trees that are fast-growing on local soil conditions
and manage these new forests for continued rapid growth rates. The
trees we plant must have potential for efficient conversion into useful
products with a long storage life (such as structural building materials,
furniture, wood trim). In the Wingham District, the white pine frequently
meets these criteria best.
Our goal: to quickly "lock up" carbon in the wood of vigorous new
plantations and to keep it there, In the form of forests and wood
products, over the long term. Our future may depend upon It!
Ontario
Ministry of
Natural
Resources
Hon. Lyn McLeod
Minister
A conservation message from
the Wingham District Office
of the Ministry of Natural
Resources, R.R. #5, Wingham,
Ontario NOG 2W0.
32 THE RURAL VOICE
from pests. Spray for forest tent
caterpillars. "The majority of tree
deaths from infestations of forest tent
caterpillars occur because the trees
were weakened in the first place."
Three, fertilize bush lands.
MacLachlan recommends that farmers
contact the Ministry of Natural Re-
sources first and ask for soil testing.
Generally, trees need potassium and
phosphate, he says, but in a slow -
releasing, long-acting form.
Four, learn good forest manage-
ment. MacLachlan says the MNR will
send a technician to mark trees on the
instructions of the landowner so that
over -crowded stands can be thinned
and diseased trees can be removed.
Five, avoid grazing cattle in a
hardwood bush. Livestock not only
eat or trample most young trees, they
also compact soil and remove it from
around tree roots. And when livestock
destroy the protective humus layer of
soil, the sub -soil beneath dries out,
damaging the forest eco -system.
Six, follow good logging practices
to minimize damage to trees. Avoid
logging when bark is loose, generally
from April 1 to August 1.
Seven, drive farm implements
carefully in the bush. Avoid hitting
trees. And don't put wire around trees
when fencing. This damages the tree
and can be dangerous later if the tree
is cut down with a chainsaw.
A bush does more to hold water
than anything else on a farm, adds
MacLachlan. "Trees hold the mois-
ture in the ground, they slow down
run-off and, in the long run, trees
make agriculture possible."
"As shade, trees are nature's air-
conditioning. They are also important
windbreaks. Trees greatly increase
the real estate value of property and
enhance the quality of life with their
beauty and shade."
Other ways to help ensure tree
survival include becoming politically
active, MacLachlan says. Write letters
to the MNR, the Ministry of the En-
vironment, and politicians expressing
your concerns. Ask for soil testing.
Support research projects in your area.
Plant trees when the MNR has them.
Learn to farm with the forest.
For more information about Tree
Watch, write P. O. Box 77, Ariss,
Ontario, NOB 1B0.0