Jerusalem Skyline - Management for Emerald Ash Borer, Climate Change Adaptation, and Forest Bird Habitat

As Vermont's Forests are impacted by the compound stresses of a changing climate, fragmentation, and non-native species, it becomes more important to maintain all our native species as a mechanism to enhance resiliency. Breeding bird habitat was lacking, and emerald ash borer threatens the long-term existence of all species of ash native to North America, including the Jerusalem Skyline, with 7% of the property's basal area belonging to white ash. The ash on the site have been monitored for signs of EAB and tree health using the MaMa protocol. During the winter of 2020-2021, an ash demonstration harvest was conducted, but limited by steep ground. In the summer of 2021, 16 white ash trees were injected with emamectin benzoate and the remaining 4 trees were treated in July 2022 to preserve genetic diversity and protect seed trees for future ash regeneration.

Starksboro, Vermont

Can be found at the end of Russell Young Road

44.161882

-72.993285

Non-motorized, non-mechanized recreation. It's not posted, please email Caitlin for information on parking and directions.

Vermont Land Trust

+1 (802) 989-9616

57 acres

Northern Hardwoods

emerald ash borer

emerald ash borer

Little is known about the history of the parcel prior to its acquisition by VLT in 1986. In 1988, a single tree selection harvest was performed. No cutting has since occurred. It is likely that portions of the property were cleared for agricultural use and other portions remained forested; perhaps used as a sugar bush.

Acer saccharum (sugar maple)

45%

Picea rubens (red spruce)

18%

Betula papyrifera (paper birch)

15%

In 2015, Audubon Vermont conducted a forest bird habitat and concluded that while there were some small pockets of dense understory, vegetation that is up to 5’ tall, in small natural gaps, this important habitat feature for certain breeding birds was generally lacking. Further, although there are many snags, standing dead trees, and trees with cavities on the property, many of them are smaller than 10” in diameter and therefore of lower habitat value. In addition, softwood should be selected as a priority in order to maintain its presence in the forest, thereby benefitting softwood-preferring bird species. Then in 2017 VLT worked with the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science to identify some potential management actions to address climate impacts. Some of the challenges climate change presents to meeting VLT’s management goals include: • Loss of dominant species may result in difficulty maintaining species diversity • Sugar maple may be replaced with red maple • White ash may be eliminated by emerald ash borer • Increase in extreme storm frequency may reduce number of snags which are necessary quality wildlife habitat As Vermont’s forests are impacted by the compound stresses of a changing climate, fragmentation, and non-native species, it becomes more important to maintain all our native species as a mechanism to enhance resiliency. Emerald ash borer threatens the long-term existence of all species of ash native to North America. According to the latest research, the preservation of ash requires a multi-pronged approach: leaving a range of ages and sizes, regenerating ash, biocontrols, and insecticide treatments of small groups of seed trees. In June of 2019, Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) was detected 5 miles from the Jerusalem Skyline property. White ash represents 7% of the basal area in the northern hardwood stand on the property. In 2018 VLT established a Monitoring and Managing Ash (MaMA) research plot in the Red Maple-Black Ash Seepage Swamp, which was historically a skid trail. We have been monitoring the 40 ash since for signs of EAB and tree health using the MaMa protocol. During the winter of 2020-2021 an ash demonstration harvest, limited by steep ground, was conducted. In the summer of 2021 16 white ash trees were injected with emamectin benzoate and the remaining 4 trees were treated in July 2022 to preserve genetic diversity and protect seed trees for future ash regeneration.

The Jerusalem Skyline Forest is managed to conserve forest health, produce high quality saw timber and non-timber forest products, protect water quality and forest hydrology, conserve soil resources, protect rare plants and natural communities, protect cultural and historic resources, enhance and protect wildlife habitat, particularly for forest birds of conservation concern, maintain scenic qualities, increase forest resilience to climate change and conserve white ash. The treatment occurred from December of 2020 to March 2021. For this project, maximizing species and age class diversity, retaining late-successional forest structure, and protecting forest regeneration was key to the property goals of conserving forest health, enhancing forest bird habitat, and increasing forest resilience to climate change. In order to increase species diversity, five larger groups were added (ranging in size from a quarter of an acre to three quarters of an acre.) Late-successional forest structure was retained, such as legacy trees and large diameter downed wood, and the tree tops and branches were left intact (instead of lopping them) in order to protect forest regeneration, slow down decomposition, provide birds with foraging and nesting habitat. Further, red oaks were planted in the two largest openings as an assisted migration strategy.

Songbird habitat, climate change resilience, ash conservation, water quality protection, and resource of soils.

To manage for all objectives, single tree and group selection, as well as ash insecticide treatment, were performed. Single tree selection was used to remove single mature trees and poor-quality trees competing with crop trees. Small group selection was used to establish or release advanced regeneration and increase species and age class diversity. These groups were 1/10th acre to encourage the reproduction of shade tolerant sugar maple and release patches of sugar maple and red spruce advanced regeneration. Three larger groups of about 1 ½ to 2 ¼ acre were created in areas of declining white birch and poorly formed or borer-damaged sugar maple (unacceptable growing stock) to promote the establishment of intermediate shade tolerant species, like yellow birch and white ash. The residual basal area between the groups was no lower than 70 ft2/acre east of the ridge and 80-85 ft2/acre in the wetter soils to the west of the ridge. Red oaks were planted in the gaps. To manage for EAB, ¾ acre groups were created of mature, declining, or unacceptable growing stock of sugar maple, yellow birch, aspen, white ash, hophornbeam and white birch during a harvest conducted during the winter of 2020-2021. The primary goal of these groups is to regenerate ash. Throughout the rest of the harvest area, healthy and vigorous ash trees were left in all size classes using a multi-pronged approach. Uphill of this group 20 white ash trees were treated with a systemic trunk injection of emamectin benzoate 10.0% (Trade name: TREE-age R10 by Arborjet) at an application rate of 2 mL per inch DBH using the Arborjet QUIK-jet AIR Kit. The treated trees and the ash left on the perimeter of the group will provide seed.

• forest health
• invasive species
• climate change
• wildlife habitat

Due to the steep terrain and sensitive soils, a bulldozer was used for bunching the trees and the grapple-skidder remained on the mail skid trails

Lessons learned: Planning a couple years ahead is highly recommended as it's easiest to sex trees during heavy seed years, which are episodic. It is important to sex trees before treatment because you need to make sure you treat enough females. For genetic conservation goals, USFS researchers recommend 1:4, male:female. Additionally, the TreeAge G4 is significantly slower to be uptaken than the TreeAge R10, so we recommend using TreeAge R10. Further, VLT left it up to the logger to leave large low-quality trees in the woods to increase the amount of large-diameter coarse woody material. Next time, it is planned to mark large diameter drop and leave trees.

In June 2020, VLT was awared a $5,800 grant from the US Forest Service Forest Health Protection Cooperative Lands Forest Pest Treatment Program to purchase Arborjet Quik Jet Air tree injection system and insecticide for two treatments of approximately 40 ash trees.

According to the 2014 National Woodland Owner's survey, the average size of forest holdings for family forest ownerships in Vermont with 10+ acres is 63 acres. At 72 acres, this harvest demonstrates what's possible for an average sized forest holding in Vermont. The harvest area was roughly 40 acres. A little over $18,000, $454/acre, $70/cord was generated and sold: • 110 cords of firewood to a local firewood dealer • 115 cords of pulpwood were sold to International Paper's Ticonderoga, NY mill as part of the Woods Wildlife and Warblers pilot project with Audubon, VT • 2,289 board feet of veneer sawlogs were sold to Columbia Forest Products in Newport, VT • 49,441 board feet of sawlogs were sold to Produits Forestiers St-Armand in St. Armand, Quebec

Emerald Ash Borer, Ash insecticide treatment, Lingering ash

yes

Caitlin Cusack

Forester

Vermont Land Trust

• https://vlt.org/featured-properties/jerusalem-skyline-forest/ • https://vt.audubon.org/news/bird-friendly-paper