Kentucky has an estimated 280,000 family woodland owners who own 10 or more acres. These mostly family owners own over 75% of the 12.3 million acres of woodlands in Kentucky. Unfortunately, these family woodlands are facing unprecedented threats from invasive insects, invasive plants, climate change, poor timber harvesting practices, woodland fires, and timber theft/trespass. These owners are mostly individuals, joint owners, or family partnerships (family forest owners) and they control more than 8,500,000 woodland acres in the state and provide the vast majority of the raw materials that supply the Kentucky forest industry. Supporting and educating Kentucky’s family forest owners is a prime objective of UK Forestry and Natural Resources Extension (UK FNRE)and benefits not only those owners but also all Kentuckians who derive benefits from these natural resources. 

In addition to numerous local and online forestry educational programs, UK FNRE conducted a statewide educational program designed to educate Kentucky’s family forest owners. The largest such effort during the June 20203 to June 2024 period was the 2023 Kentucky Woodland Owners Short Course. The program included more than ten partner organizations and consisted of a series of four online sessions and two field sessions. Over 300 family woodland owners participated in the online sessions and 137 participated in the field sessions. These Kentucky family forest owners indicated they owned more than 37,000 woodland acres.