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Clinton News-Record, 1986-09-10, Page 29Page 8A—CLINTON NEWS -RECORD, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 1986 Reforestation tour held in Goderich Township by ¥NR By David Emslie GODERICH TWP - On August 28 the Wingham District Office of the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) hosted a bus tour for land owners and interested citizens of reforestation areas and managed woodlots here. There were three basic purposes for the five stop tour. The first was to show the development of white pine and black walnut plantations that have been established on marginal crop land to help stop soil erosion, improve farm appearance, shelter wildlife, and turn the land back into holding a pro- fitable crop. Before stopping to view these plantations Steven Bowers pointed out that Huron Coun- ty is one of the most productive agricultural areas in Canada. Marvin Smith, another employee from the Wingham office agreed with this statement. "I would definitely say that southwestern Ontario is one of the best, it is right at the top." As to why the MNR is involved in reforestation Mr. Bowers noted, "There are a lot of areas that should be reforested, areas that are too steep to cultivate. What we are advocating are alternate uses for marginal crop land and waste land." According to Mr. Smith, the areas that are reforested are, "generally, areas that can't be cropped with typical row crops. Land that is just sitting there." He added that land that is steep, rolling, in stream valleys or small with irregular shape are the types that are hard to grow on, and thus good for this program. The first benefit of reforestation Mr. Smith -touched on was the finanacial one 'He explained they have to justify the cost of planting the trees, and that although it will take 50 or 60 years to see any return from Community renewal project to receive assistance the trees, it is a return to society. "Aside from the direct financial ben fits, if erosion has occurred, the trees will rehabilitate the land," Mr, Smith said. He said the land will not be returned to productivity as far as growing farm crops on it, but the land that is basically just waste land will be able to turn into a money maker again with these long term crops. "Another benefit is the better scenery, it is nicer to look at," Mr. Smith explained. "It also gives a better habitat for wildlife," The trees they primarily plant are black walnut and white pine, but small quantities of spruce, cedar and larch are also used. The use of black walnut and white pine leads to the next purpose of the tour, to show proper management of a tree plantation. The main reason proper management is important is because white pine and black walnut, if cared for properly, can be very valuable trees. Mr. Smith listed why these trees are valuable. "With black walnut it is the fact that it has a good pleasing grain, and it has the inherent properties of being able to be dried without warping and twisting. It can also be formed or machined easily into what you want," he said. "For white pine, the main thing is it again will dry well while maintaining its .shape. It is also reasonably soft wood, but strong for its weight. It is good for a lot of uses." Black walnut will reach maturity at 50 to 60 years, and if cared for properly, at this time an acre of walnut can be worth from $15,000 to $20,000. White pine matures at ap- proximately the same rate, and a properly managed tree plantation of this pine can br- ing a price from $6,000 to $10,000 per acre. The first step in proper management is finding the right areas to grow these trees in. The sites for the white pine do not have to Steven Bowers was one of the represen- tatives from the Wingham District Office of the Ministry of Natural Resources who acted as a tour guide for a reforestation tour held in Goderich Township on August 28. (David Emslie photo) be chosen too carefully, but the walnut trees need a special environment. "We plant the walnut in areas that have a minimum of 20 inches of good topsoil. It must be drained well, but be moist," Mr. Smith said. "Not in a dry soil, but well drained, where the excess of' water can run through, but the soil holds enough Water to allow the trees to grow." Spraying around the trees is the next managerial step. Spraying is carried out for three or four years after planting to keep the weeds and grass down. If the weeds and grass are not sprayed, they are in competi- tion with the young trees for two things, moisture and nutrients. According to Mr. Smith, if spraying is not done, the difference can be amazing. "It can mean the difference between having and not having a plantation." A other method of tree plantation maagement was explained by Mr. Bowers. "We use corrective pruning to favor one central stem. We can produce merchan- disable walnut if there is proper pruning, but it is an annual, ongoing process." The MNR sets up management programs to carry out pruning of the black walnut and white pine. "The only trees pruned are black walnut and white pine because the other trees are not worthwhile. It won't increase the value of other trees much through pruning," Mr. Bowers explained. The reason the pruning, or trimming of the side branches is carried out is because the value of wood increases the less knots there are, and branches cause the knots. "We like to trim up to 17 feet, this. leaves 16 feet of good wood," Mr. Bowers said. "We usually do the pruning when the trees are 15 or 20 years old, when they are four to five in- ches in diameter." However, not every tree is pruned as it would be too time consuming, only the most vigorous and the largest trees are pruned. "The ones most likely to make it to maturi- ty," Mr. Bowers explained. The third primary purpose of the tour was to demonstrate the benefits of proper thinn- ing of a middle aged hardwood lot. "The reason wood lots are thinned is because the leaves are the factory of the tree; they produce the food and food makes the tree grow in diameter. Thinning gives the leaves and branches a chance to spread out," Mr. Bowers said. Thinning is comprised of cutting down certain trees in a wood lot to make space for the.healthier ones, but Mr. Bowers said that one has to be careful during the thinning because an improperly thinned woodlot will lose some of its value. Mr. Smith explained how improper thinn- ing could take place, and why it would drop the value of the lot. "In any thinning the best trees, crop trees, have to be preserved. If they are removed inadvertently, you won't get as good returns, and if too few trees are removed, it won't increase the growth rate enough," he said. He added that if the lot is thinned too much, the crop trees will be left un- protected, and a good storm with high winds could knock them over. Over the course of the day approximately 130 people took in the tour with tour guides Mr. Smith, Mr. Bowers and Gabriele Aleksa. All older sections of Ontario municipalities are now eligible for assistance under the provincial Program for Renewal, Improvement, Development and Economic revitalization ( PRIDE) , Municipal Affairs Minister Bernard Grand - maitre announced recently. Mr. Grandmaitre made the announce- ment at the annual conference of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario. PRIDE is a program of professional and financial assistance designed to promote the upgrading of older sections of Ontario municipalities. Originally, PRIDE provided assistance for projects in older residential and com- mercial areas. These areas continue to be eligible, and the program has been expand- ed to include community renewal projects in all older sections of a municipality, in- cluding industrial and mixed use areas. "An expanded PRIDE initiative will give municipalities greater flexibility in dealing with their individual needs," Mr. Grand - maitre said. "PRIDE will help municipalities create an improved environment for investment, create jobs and strengthen their tax base." Under PRIDE, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs encourages municipalities to con- sider community renewal as an important part of their planning process. The ministry works with municipalities, Business Improvement Areas and the general public to provide a wide range of professional advice, ongoing support, infor- mation services and financial assistance. The financial assistance is in the form of a grant covering 50 per cent of improvement and land acquisition costs for a comprehen- sive community improvement project. Project components eligible for financial assistance under PRIDE include: • building, improving or replacing social and recreational facilities, municipal ser- vices, utilities and parking facilities intend- ed to serve the project area; • aestI etic improvements such as .streetscape upgrading and landscaping; • acquisition and clearance of land and buildings; • relocation costs including moving costs - and related compensation. McBRIDE BROS. 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