The Rural Voice, 2004-10, Page 17buy a small chain saw to do minor
trimming work.
"The biggest thing you need is
knowledge," he says. "You have to
know what you're looking at (when
you look at your trees)."
The best way to gain that
knowledge is to join your local
woodlot association, Horning says.
At association meetings you get to
meet other woodlot owners and
compare notes and you hear speakers
who can bring you up to date on the
latest information.
"To me that's the only way to go."
he says of his decision to join the
Grey -Bruce Woodlot Association.
"It's been a real good thing for me.
I've learned a lot. I wish they'd had it
going 20 years ago."
Midwestern Ontario's climate
is perfect for growing
quality hardwood. "We're
so lucky in Grey and Bruce and
Huron because the very best
hardwoods in the world grow right
here." He quotes Listowel mill owner
Richard Keeso who told the Huron -
Perth Woodlot Association that
Ontario hard maple is so good it's
now looked on as an exotic wood.
"Really, you've got the best, why
don't you look after it?" he wonders.
The average woodlot, he says, has
about five per cent of its logs that can
be sold for veneer production.
Veneer logs can bring a woodlot
owner about three times as much as a
log sold for lumber. It's quite
possible through good management
to increase the number of logs that
qualify for veneer prices, he says. He
expects his woodlot will have 15 or
even 20 per cent of its logs in future
going at veneer prices. "There a huge
difference in dollar return because
veneer is where the big dollars are."
Another simple thing woodlot
owners can do to increase their return
is to get competitive bids. "It
certainly pays to get bids in timber,"
he says, pointing out there was
$6,000 difference between the high
and low bids on his recent sale. "The
more bids you have the better. If you
manage your woodlot well you'll
have higher quality and bigger
volume making it more attractive to
get bids."
He also warns farmers against
allowing companies to come in and
take all trees above the minimum
Dave Taylor & Jim Eccles
Desboro, Ontario
519-794-9992
Tree Marking,
Advertising,
Woodlot
Assessments,
Serving all regions of Ontario
1-888-923-9995
John Todd
Paris, Ontario
519-442-3102
Harold Frost
Clinton, Ontario
519-482-7176
\ON L.
oumo s -
Marvin L. Smith
B.Sc.F. (Forestry), R.P.F.
Farm Woodland Specialist
570 Riverview Dr.
Listowel, Ontario N4W 3T7
Telephone: (519) 291-2236
Providing advice and assistance with:
• impartial advice/assistance in selling timber,
including selection of trees and marking
• reforestation of erodible or idle land
• follow-up tending of young plantations
• windbreak planning and establishment
• woodlot management planning
• diagnosis of insect and disease problems
• conducting educational programs in woodlot
management
• any other woodland or tree concerns
Ever wonder what you should be
doing with your woodlot?
Consider a membership in the
Huron/Perth Chapter of the
Ontario Woodlot Association
"Dedicated to the Wise and Profitable Use of
Ontario's Private Woodland Resources"
Officers of the Huron/Perth Chapter
President: Victor Roland 335-3944
Treasurer: Jim Ginn 524-2522
Directors: Roger Cook 271-1978
Gordon Pryce 527-0917
Floyd Harper 348-9854
Glen Pridham 433-9056
Norman Jefferson 348-8283
John Haak 482-3353
Marvin Smith 291-2236
Are you satisfied with returns from your woodlot? Appearance
of your woodlot? Need more information? Want to meet
other woodlot owners with similar interests?
Want an informative quarterly newsletter?
Come and join us:
Ontario Woodlot Association 1-888-791-1103
Watch for our local fall event details.
OCTOBER 2004 13