Spring 2024
Briefly noted
Short reviews of books by alumni, faculty, and WSU Press » More ...
Forestry
Spring 2024
Fire and longleaf pines: A talk with John McGuire
John McGuire (’93 Env. Sci., ’95 Biol.) directs the Private Lands Prescribed Fire Program at Tall Timbers, Inc. He holds a master’s degree in forestry from Auburn University and serves as president of both the Alabama Prescribed Fire Council and Alabama Invasive Plant Council.
His awards include 2016 Forest Conservationist of the Year in Jackson, Missouri; 2008 Longleaf Alliance Contribution Award in Auburn, Alabama; 2004 USDA Forest Service Centennial Congress Award in Asheville, North Carolina; 2003 South Carolina Wildlife Society Forest Stewardship Award in Columbia, South Carolina; and 2000 Governor’s Award for Forest Conservation in Montgomery, Alabama.
McGuire was the outreach coordinator for the Longleaf … » More …
Fall 2023
High and dry for a NW icon?
A slow burn for iconic Western Red Cedar » More ...
Winter 2022
Oh, Christmas trees!
There might not be a perfect holiday tree but Dr. Christmas Tree has improved the options. » More ...
Winter 2022
Talkin’ around the Christmas tree
The Pacific Northwest—particularly western Washington and Oregon—has historically been a major Christmas tree production region. Today, it produces about a third of the Christmas trees sold each year in America.
In general, there are two types of growers: large-scale farms producing trees for the wholesale market and smaller, often family-run operations for the choose-and-cut market.
Christmas trees around the United States:
The top Christmas tree-producing states are: Oregon, North Carolina, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Washington.
The average growing time is seven years, but it can take as few as four and as many as 15 to reach the typical height of 6 … » More …
Summer 2022
A burning issue
A more native approach to managing our Northwest’s natural fire cycles » More ...
Winter 2021
Bigleaf belief
Right here in our own backyard, who knew how sweet it is! Bigleaf maple syrup in Pacific Northwest » More ...
Spring 2020
Wild things
Wild greens in Washington state, from nettles to fiddleheads, offer a delicious alternative to salads. » More ...
Winter 2018
On the straight, tall, and narrow
The straight, long rows of tall and thin loblolly pine grow very fast in the South’s flat lands, especially compared to the slow-growing Douglas fir on steep Pacific Northwest slopes.
It’s just one of many differences that Travis Keatley (’99 Forest Mgmt.) has witnessed as he manages more than seven million acres of timber across 11 states for Weyerhaeuser.
As vice president of southern timberlands for the timber, land, and forest products company, Keatley works out of Hot Springs, Arkansas, and travels from Florida to Virginia to Louisiana, and all states in between, as he oversees Weyerhaeuser’s … » More …
Spring 2017
TalkBack for Spring 2017
Where would the wood?…
I enjoyed the article “Wood Takes Wing” in the Winter 16 edition of Washington State Magazine on the many possibilities for wood as a new source of carbon molecules for all of those polymers we take for granted. Technologies that allow us to reduce burning of fossil fuels for energy recognize its highest value. The potential for atmospheric carbon reduction is a plus.
But there was an unasked question hanging behind the article—where will the timber come from to fill the old mills? The same environmental groups who just say no to transporting or burning fossil fuels also eagerly block … » More …