Date: Tue, 17 Jun 2014 10:19:33 -0400
From: “John R Dykers”
Subject: Forests, trees, et al
Thank goodness our discussion has begun to deal with more difficult specifics. Andrew George and Maryphyllis are quite correct that when I cut my old growth mixed hardwoods and a few pines, I will lose shade and habitat for some species; if I replant with pines to send great grandchildren to school they will have to be managed properly for a healthy stand and to achieve that objective, and they won’t be a mixed species, only one dominant and a few outliers. 40 years from now when the ‘sawlogs’ are ready for harvest, pine lumber may be obsolete! (I saved a stand of black walnut at Pretty Valley when making pasture 50 years ago. The furniture industry left and these once very valuable trees are now good shade! – still a value, but different.) Maybe use the space for pasture; don’t know yet. But I am saving a wide strip along Meadow Creek as buffer and mixed old forest and wildlife habitat..
I am guessing now that Chatham Park will have a few such areas, AND that the trees they plant in ‘open space’ will be various species (hope they have lots of multicolored maples!) and their eventual problem will be removal of dying old trees and doubt there will be much logging.
BTW, logging is not a sin if done properly. We should not denigrate good people who make a living doing this work; it is hard work and still so even with modern machinery to help move big cut timber. We don’t have as much wood in homes as we used to, but I’ll bet you have some pretty wood in your homes, at least I hope so. (my first wife painted over the pine paneled living room; I may yet strip the paint off!) Still, I carpeted over some beautiful hardwood floors!
Nothing will stop a real ‘wildfire’ in dry timber, and if a house is in the way, it is very likely to be damaged. But a more modest fire in an area with partial clearing around a home, may spread by hot ashes on a roof. Asphalt shingles were designed to be less susceptible to hot ashes than wood shingles, and metal roof are a bit better still. Andrew summarized this accurately Tuesday.
Bottom line? The ‘county’ will lose some ‘old growth’ any time one of us builds a home or Chatham Park builds a bunch of homes and businesses. People crowd out other parts of nature. People can mitigate this loss by planting trees and nurturing them.