Author: Darren Morris
Major Program: Forest Education: Health, Management, and Utilization
The White Oak Initiative’s Landowners for Oaks (LFO) Series was completed in 2022 and has since provided forest landowners and others with foundational information necessary for sustainable management of white oak and upland oak forests. These publications were designed to inform forest landowners of the overall importance of white oak and upland oak management. The series, currently numbering 11 publications, is a valuable educational and informative resource for foresters and forest mana
Author: Grace Coy
Each year, the UK Urban Forest Initiative, with support from Extension, hosts a 20-hour workshop called TreeCATs (Community Arboriculture Training). In 2023, 24 enthusiastic participants from various regions in Kentucky, including Lexington (Fayette), Georgetown (Scott), Berea (Madison), and Paducah (McCracken), came together to expand their knowledge and engagement in urban and community forestry (UCF). The majority of participants were students from UK and other higher education institutions i
Author: Ellen Crocker
The Kentucky Master Naturalist (KYMN) program was developed by the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension with valuable input from stakeholders at public and private organizations. The mission of the KYMN program is to develop a cohort of well-informed volunteers to advance education, research, and outreach efforts dedicated to the conservation and management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Becoming a KY Master Naturali
The University of Kentucky Department of Forestry and Natural Resources Extension team launched the weekly online program From the Woods Today in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the program remains an important component of our forestry and natural resources Extension programming efforts (https://forestry.ca.uky.edu/woods-today). The From the Woods Today program features current information on woodlands and wildlife in Kentucky including presentations on woodland management, tree identific
Author: Chad Niman
7 workshops were hosted at the Wood Center during this timeframe. During the workshops we explained why these species of wood were chosen to produce the product for each workshop. We also discussed/provided general information pertaining to forestry practices in Kentucky including the Kentucky Forest Conservation Act, food from the forest, and its impact on our forest and the economic impact the Forest Products Industry has on Kentucky’s economy. We take time to discuss the history of the
Kentucky’s forests cover nearly half the Commonwealth but only scattered information had existed on the overall economic impact of Kentucky’s forest and wood industry. To address this shortfall, a team of faculty and staff from the University of Kentucky Departments of Forestry and Agricultural Economics (Drs. Jeff Stringer, Alison Davis, and Terrell Baker along with staff members Bobby Ammerman and Billy Thomas) worked closely to compile data from a wide variety of sources for the K
The cross-campus collaboration between Forestry, Architecture, Fine Arts, campus Arborists, the Office of Sustainability and others continues to make strides in utilizing trees that must be removed for public safety and construction purposes. The Campus Wood Program features a Lucas slabber and swing-blade sawmill under a pavilion constructed from campus wood and wood inventory storage within one of the old Vaughn warehouses. The collaboration has been featured multiple times for the educational
Despite the ecological and economic advantages of using cross laminated timber (CLT) products, the North American building industry has been slow to adopt this emerging architectural component. The technology has been used in Europe and British Columbia for over 20 years. Many parts of the world have embraced laminated timber (CLT) and mass timber as components in large scale architectural projects. As cross-laminated timber is emerging across portions of the US, this region is far behind despit
2022 marked 6 years of UK Forestry and Natural Resources Extension celebrating the importance of forest products and the forests and people that provide them. Forest Products are incredibly important to Kentucky, as nearly half of Kentucky is in forest and the circular economy in Kentucky renew-ably contributes nearly $14 billion annually. Reading of the Governors proclamation for forest products week, free food and drinks, a from the woods presentation on forest products week all highlight
Kentucky ForestryWorks is an educational training and certificate program focused on forestry, wood industry and logging career opportunities and skillsets. The educational committee is busy promoting upcoming educational opportunities and resources available for high school students and teachers to learn more about the hardwood forests of Kentucky and the related career fields. Kentucky ForestryWorks is a partnership between UK Forestry Extension, Kentucky Division of Forestry, and Kentucky For
In 2022, 2 programs were delivered covering hardwood grading systems, hardwood lumber inspection, cant product specs, material handling, defects and characteristics, wood drying, and hardwood markets. This is a very focused and highly skilled forest and wood industry training for sawmill and wood industry employees. The trainings allowed 1 business to get up and going, and 2 others to expand their operation. The return from time and efforts focused in support of forest and wood industry training
UK Forestry and Natural Resources extension through our wood products team have been engaged in work with several large stave and cooperage facilities in Kentucky that were having significant moisture variation and breakage issues with barrel staves in their manufacturing process. Chad Niman working directly with the wood industry with drying and quality aspects of wood products manufacturing received multiple requests relating to drying and breakage issues that were rising in stave and cooperag
Two Ohio Valley Lumber Drying Association program meetings were hosted by University of Kentucky Forestry Extension personnel within this timeframe. One meeting was held in London, KY in the fall of 2022. This was our last meeting with UK forestry and wood products associate Bobby Ammerman as he sadly passed away shortly afterward from unrelated causes. The meeting was held at the Hampton Inn conference center and tours included BPM Sawmill and Robinson Stave and Cumberland Cooperage. This
Tree Week is a week celebrating all things tree that happens each October in communities across Kentucky. Extension specialists and agents contribute to Tree Week in many different ways, from organizing events to delivering programs. This year, as in past years, the Forestry and Natural Resources Extension Team organized a webinar series to engage people in a broad range. This series featured seven presentations by a range of speakers addressing common tree questions including: Monday Oct 1
Callery pear, Pyrus calleryana, is an invasive plant that has become a major issue in the state of Kentucky. Bradford pears (a cultivar of callery pear) have been widely planted but, unfortunately, not only are these trees a poor choice for landscapes due to failure issues, they also produce seeds that invade natural areas, damaging the productivity and integrity of farms and forests. To raise awareness about callery pear (and other invasive plants), we developed the Kentucky Bradford Pear
Invasive plants are a major issue in Kentucky and beyond, impacting a wide range of habitats from forests to grasslands. Already there are many different invasive trees, shrubs, vines, grasses, and herbaceous plants that cause problems in the state. In addition, new plants arrive each year. From recognizing new invasives to best practices in managing current problems, landowners and professionals need more information about invasive plants.To increase understanding of these issues an
Forests are key to Kentucky’s economic and environmental wellbeing. The state is 47% forested with over 12 million acres of woodlands and, collectively, the forest sector contributes over $13.5 billion annually to the state’s economy and impacts over 60,398 jobs. However, a range of insects, diseases, invasive plants, and other issues threaten the sustainability of our forests, woodlands, and urban trees. For example, the invasive emerald ash borer alone is estimated to cost Ke
