According to the 2016 Forestry Inventory and Analysis performed by the US Forest Service and the Kentucky Division of Forestry, Carroll County has 25,650 forested acres (29% of the total acreage in the county) with 100% of those acres privately owned.  There is an average of 3,952 board feet per forested acre of sawtimber trees.  The total tree grade volume (Doyle Log Rule) is 101,378,835, of which 7.55% are Grade 1, 71.86% are Grade 2, 13.36% are Grade 3, and 7.23% are below Grade 3.

Based on this data, there is a high potential for improving the quality of trees through forest management.  It is also important to educate woodland owners about woodland management practices and encourage the use of professional foresters with the Kentucky Division of Forestry or Kentucky Association of Consulting Foresters.  To share this important knowledge with the community, the Carroll County Cooperative Extension Service participated in the 2020 Getting to Know Your Woodlands Webinar Series:  Next Steps.  This program is a follow-up to the 2019 Webinar Series called A Primer for Beginners.

This program was targeted at Kentucky’s private woodland owners and designed to assist private woodland owners in the management of their woodlands as well as those with an interest in forests and wildlife. It was a partnership of UK Forestry Extension and numerous Forestry Extension Units from other nearby universities and the Southern Region Extension Forestry team that was hosted by county extension offices with county extension agents/staff serving as local hosts. The program was web-based using the ZOOM webinar system and offered five evenings of educational programming broadcast to each hosting county extension office.

The programs were as followed:

• February 6th, 2020. Woodland Management: What is Right for You and Your Woodland? Managing your woodlands to grow healthy forests and produce revenue depends on making the right choices for your location. This session will help woodland owners to understand how stand dynamics and market considerations are used in the application of management.
• February 13th, 2020. Understanding the Financial Aspects of Woodland Management. This session provides an overview of financial factors that affect your woodland management such as when to re-plant, when to thin, when to harvest, when to use cost-share programs and more.
• February 20th, 2020. More than Timber: Income Opportunities from Non-timber Forest Products. There are a range of possibilities to generate income from your woodlands that depend on your location, forest type and more, that are compatible with timber management too. In this session learn more about the opportunities to generate income from your woodlands.
• February 27th, 2020. Launching your Woodland Legacy: Intact, In Forest and In Family Ownership. Most woodland owners cite legacy as one of their main reasons for owning land, and a large majority express concern over their ability to keep the land intact.  This session is designed to help you find the best way to pass this legacy intact to your heirs.
• March 5th, 2020. Kentucky Forestry and Wildlife Assistance: Finding the Help You Need. Learn about the forestry and wildlife resources and assistance available in Kentucky to help you care for and get the most from your woodlands.

Both Kentucky Master Loggers and woodland owners attended the series.  Attendees resided from Carroll, Henry, Jefferson, Pendleton, and Trimble Counties as well as Jefferson and Switzerland Counties in Indiana.  As a result of the program, all attendees reported they would know who to contact with questions about their woodlands.  Knowing who to contact is an important first step to making woodlands more productive and healthier.  On average, participants reported an increase in knowledge after a specific program concluded.

The long-term impacts from this program will result in participants’ enhanced ability to address a variety of woodland related issues, resulting in increased revenue, increased woodland productivity, and improved woodland health. These benefits occur to the individual, our county, and our Commonwealth.