Q. Is money to clean up my stand available through FEMA?
A. At this time, there are no funds available through FEMA to assist forest landowners in removing debris from their property. www.fema.gov
Q. My forest has been destroyed by storm damage. What can I do?
A. Some forest stands are obviously destroyed but many may have enough good trees left to let the stand grow. Landowners should have their stand of trees evaluated by the AFC, a consulting forester, or wood product companies' landowner assistance program (LAP) forester to determine if there are enough suitable, well-distributed trees per acre. Sometimes stands may appear worse at first than they they really are. AFC is available to examine your property. AFC county offices can be found using the District Map. Consulting and LAP foresters can be found using our online directory.
Q. How many "good" trees per acre should I have in my stand before I start over?
A. For pine, stands less than 5 years should have approximately 350 trees or more per acre. As pine trees get older, fewer trees per acre are needed. Pine stands 5 to 15 years old may only need 150 to 200 trees per acre. Older pine stands could produce sawtimber if as little as 100 trees per acre remain. Trees should be well-distributed over the property and should be undamaged enough to grow until final harvest. Holes created by downed or broken trees may need to be replanted. When interplanting, remember to back away from standing trees enough so that seedlings will not be affected by the shade of the remaining trees. For hardwoods, similar numbers of residual good trees per acre are advisable. However, fewer numbers could be adequate depending on the species and soil conditions. A professional forester should evaluate your hardwood stands to help make that determination.
Q. Should I have a salvage-cut operation on my stand?
A. Trees with greater than 50 percent loss of the live crown, or with the bole bent greater than approximately 45 degrees from vertical, or with butt defects are considered severely damaged and can be cut for salvage. Salvage the most severely damaged stands first. Concentrate on the pine stands because they are more susceptible than hardwoods to pest outbreaks. When only a few trees per acre are damaged, it may not be worth selling them. Care should be taken that if the stand is thinned, enough good trees per acre are left and the stand is not overcut.
Severely damaged stands to be salvaged should have at least 2 to 3 bids if possible. A Timber Sale Agreement should be signed with Best Management Practices outlined (BMP Guidelines, Sample Timber Sale Agreement.)
Q. Who can I contact to determine the volume loss in dollars I have had so I can report it on my taxes?
A. A consultant forester would need to furnish this information. Visit our onine directory to find a consulting forester.
Consulting or LAP foresters provide timber marking services. Marking can be very important as a way to take only trees that need to be removed because of damage. Sometimes other trees in the stand may need to be marked to make a timber sale worthwhile. Proper spacing and tree quality should always be encouraged in the residual stand.
Q. Can I deduct my loss off my taxes?
A. Contact a tax consultant or accountant that is knowledgeable on timber taxation rules, or another tax consultant, for this information. As a forest landowner, you may be shocked to find how little you can deduct when timber is destroyed or damaged due to a storm. Deductible loss is the allowable basis (value invested) in the timber minus any insurance or other compensation received. Establishing a basis may help you recover reforestation costs in younger plantations destroyed. If you do not have a basis, the reportable loss is zero. A consulting forester can help you determine the amount of basis you have in your timber land. (Tax tips)
If you county has been declared a federal disaster area, you may elect to apply and casualty loss in the prior year's tax return and thus avoid waiting to file the loss in the current year. For example, the loss could be claimed on your 2008 tax year return, rather than the 2009 tax year return to be filed by April 15, 2010.
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Q. How can I tell if a tree is going to make it or not?
A. For pine, research has shown that loblolly and shortleaf pines bent less than 40 degrees from vertican can recover completely within two years. Trees bent 40 to 60 degrees recovered, but demonstrated varying amounts of crook and sweep. Only trees bent more than 60 degrees did not recover enough to make acceptable growing stock. Trees with broken tops with four or more living limbs remaining should survive until the next thinning operation. One of the lateral branches will become the terminal, and in 8 to 10 years, the only sign will be a sharp crook in the bole at the point where the break occurred. However, these trees will experience growth losses. For pines, if three live limbs or less remain, the trees should be harvested as quickly as is practical.
Hardwood trees have a greater tendency to recover from partially destroyed crowns. Pine and hardwood trees with partially destroyed crowns will be put under stress for future growth, and in the summer months, will need to have adequate rainfall to ease the stress. Small hardwood or pine trees (under 15 in height) usually straighten after severe bending. Taller severely bent trees should be considered for removal during the next scheduled harvest. An evaluation can be made next year to determine the number of living trees.
Q. What insects or diseases may be a problem to the remaining good trees?
A. Insects
Pine stands — Ips beetles are attracted to slash, damaged and downed trees. Drying of material reduces attraction to these beetles. Unsalvaged, downed trees should be cut from the root system to aid rapid drying. Black Turpentine Beetles (BTB) are also attracted to damaged trees and cut stumps. Close monitoring of pine stands should be conducted several times during the summer. These beetles usually attack only a few trees at a time. www.barkbeetles.org/southernbarkbeetles.cfm (Ips and BTB)
Hardwood stands — Stressed trees are susceptible to a host of borers that are present in the forests at all times. Close monitoring of stands and removal of heavily attacked trees is recommended.
Diseases
Pine stands — should have no problems.
Hardwood stands — Red oak trees stressed by crown breakage may be susceptible to hypoxylon canker, a sapwood decay fungus that causes rapid red oak mortality. A more serious, long-term effect of crown breakage is opening trees to various stem and heart rots, which, while not killing trees, reduces their value over time. www.forestpests.org (Hypoxylon Canker)
More in-depth information on each of the above agents is available by clicking on the Insects and Diseases of Trees in the South link found on each page; and www.forestryimages.org provides pictures of insects, diseases and damage.
AFC County Foresters are available for consultations at any time.
Q. Are seedlings available to replant my stand?
A. Yes, the AFC nursery has pine and hardwood seedling for sale. A list of seedlings available and pricing is available online or by contacting your local AFC office. These seedlings are sold "bare-root," and are usually 8 to 18 inches in length for pine and 8 to 30 inches in length for hardwoods. Arkansas's normal planting is from December 15 to March 31. Orders placed with the AFC for the next planting season should be placed early (anytime after July 1) as demand may be heavy.
Q. Will there be money available to help me replant my stand?
A. Contact your local Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Farm Service Agency (FSA), or AFC office.
Cost-share programs for reforestation are the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Southern Pine Beetle Prevention and Restoration Program (SPRPRP.) EQIP is administered through the NRCS and makes payments to approvated applicants at the rate of approximately 50 percent of total practice costs. Applicants can apply year round. Applications are ranked annually, usually in the early spring of each year. EQIP can help replant both pine and hardwoods, help with fire lane construction, forest stand improvement and other management practices. Contact your county NRCS office for details.
SPBPRP is administered by the AFC. Our agency receives funding in the spring to disburse to eligible landowners. Payments are reimbursed at the rate of 40 to 75 percent to replant pine only and conduct other management practices on pine stands such as pre-commercial thinning. Applications are available at your local AFC office. Visit our online directory to view a list of forestry service providers.
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