Caretakers of the forests
Published in: Daily News (Jacksonville, NC)
Date: 10/29/2006
By: Chrissy Vick
As a low fog rolled into the middle of the forest, Ricky Adkins pulled out his machete. The forest ranger traipsed through limbs and leaves on his way to the foot of a swamp in search of one special tree — a tree native to coastal North Carolina but located only on hills near swampy ground. Only two cherry bark oak trees tower tall along others in this old forest north of Jacksonville in the far reaches of Onslow County. Hunting for the cherry bark oak and other trees that are becoming rare in the county is becoming harder for the rangers. When accessible trees are finally located, the rangers can spend hours trying to collect the trees’ seeds. The rangers lay long, black nets over the forest bed under targeted trees, which can’t be reached by bucket trucks. Rangers will then check the nets weekly or sometimes daily to collect the tree’s seeds. Sometimes, their labor yields nothing — bears and squirrels have their eye on the same prize. So do insects that burrow into the acorns and seeds, leaving behind a tiny larvae that eats the inside. Adkins remembers a day the forestry crew gathered a 1-gallon bucket of seeds; a mere 10 acorns were usable. “There are so many variables,” Adkins said. “It’s a hard job. But seed collection is very important.” The N.C. Division of Forest Resources spends a large amount of their time in forest management, doing all it can to ensure forests are around for generations to come.
“Over the years, forestry and timber has been the No. 1 industry in the county,” Adkins said. “But with the onset of development, it’s being lost. I think we’ve lost this year 3,000 to 4,000 acres (of forest). The development is very, very rapid so timber is getting squeezed on it everywhere.” Adkins knows most of the county — and its trees — by heart. “I can take you anywhere in this county and show you development that is going on right now,” he said. “It’s from all four corners of the county.” Development is razing entire tree lines and forest and leading to more contact between humans and the wildlife they are displacing, Adkins said. But timber is valuable in ways many Americans don’t understand, said Adkins. Trees are not only the No. 1 producer of oxygen, but there are thousands of byproducts made from them. “From toothpaste to shampoos, it’s our only renewable, sustainable natural resource,” Adkins said. “Over time it’s going to become more and more important as the population increases and we lose more and more land to urban development. We’re going to have to do more with the acres (of forest) and have less land to do it in.”
Those reasons cause the rangers to devote what time they can to the seed collection and other programs that try to protect the trees and the forests that face human predation and Mother Nature. “In the last several years, hurricanes have taken a toll on acreing production,” Adkins said. “It blows the seeds off the trees and damages them before they can mature.” After seeds are collected by the rangers, they are shipped to a nursery in Goldsboro to grow into 1 to 2-year-old seedlings. The trees are then sold to landowners, whom rangers work heavily with through partnership programs for tree farming. “Forest management is a bigger job than most think,” Adkins said. It’s not, he explained, just about fighting fires. “We do a little bit of everything,” he said. A different light In the winter months, Onslow County rangers will help local landowners plant around 400 acres of trees. But their involvement doesn’t end there. Rangers spend time surveying land and developing a plan to help landowners transform their land into a tree farm. “It’s beautiful isn’t it,” Adkins said as he walked among wide rows of tall long-leaf pines. Red needles covered the ground like thick carpeting, glistening with drops of rain that day. Adkins is proud of those 23 acres of trees, planted 10 years ago. The landowner farms the needles after they fall, selling them to nurseries around the country for landscaping. “He’s had a lot of capital outlay, and now he’s getting it back,” Adkins said. “I’m pretty sure he won’t ever sell this land to developers.” Just down the road from that farm lies another success story. Hiding within the long grasses of wide-open land is a number of seedling long-leaf pine trees. The landowner is paid through a cost-share program with the Farm Service Agency to grow and manage the trees. Planting trees, along with site preparation, can run landowners anywhere from $70 to $260 an acre. Other programs within the Forestry Service pay a cost-share percentage to help farmers with that cost. Another program helps crop farmers convert their land to tree farms. Adkins helps local landowners explore all those options and form a plan to prepare their land for planting. “We give advice on logging — from planting trees to harvesting trees to thinning trees,” Adkins said. “We’ll give advice on how it’s to be done, when (it’s done) — everything but putting a dollar amount on it.” Some would criticize the Forestry Service for helping landowners prepare such forests, as many will end up being harvested. But Adkins sees it in a different light. “You don’t feel bad about taking something you can replace, as far as logging and cutting timber,” Adkins said. “It’s good to know we can rely on the products that come from them. We know we’re not going to do damage if it’s done in the right way.” ‘Let’s work together’ One method rangers use in forest management to help control potential fires and encourage wildlife activity is understory burning. “That helps prevent major wildfire,” Adkins said of the method that clears thick underbrush away in forests. “It’s an insurance policy that generally lasts two to three years.” It is something, though, that requires permitting and strict control. Other aspects of forest management include pest control and herbicide advice. The non-native gypsy moth — which can be deadly to hardwood foliage — was recently located on Hammocks Beach. Rangers are working to help control it. Rangers also help tree farmers control weeds and other pests like sand spurs.
Fire control and forest management go hand-in-hand for the good of the forests, Adkins said. “All those aspects are kind of rolled into one,” he said. “I think the most important part of it is protecting the environment. Man is inherently destructive to it, and we try to put back some of what man destroys.” Adkins hopes development will eventually slow down in the county and more comprehensive environmental planning will be done for new subdivisions. “There is not going to be anymore long-leaf pine eco-systems left,” he said. “Once they put houses on them, they’re gone forever. To me, it’s an eco-system that is endangered. But people have to have a place to live. So let’s work together and look to the future a little bit.” For more information on the N.C. Division of Forest Resources or its programs, visit their Web site at www.dfr.state.nc.us. Contact staff writer Chrissy Vick at cvick@freedomenc.com or by calling 353-1171, ext. 239.