Regeneration Harvesting and Forest Restoration
Poor management of our deer herd over the past eighty years and poor timber harvesting practices have created an insidious and serious problem in Pennsylvania. 
High grading practices that have removed fruiting species like oak and cherry and thedisease that wiped out the American chestnut tree along with over browsing by overabundant deer have created a tragic loss of quality forest habitat. Forests have been changed from highly productive land to "green deserts." Heavy fern growth and very poor qualitytree growth is now the norm on private land in our state.
Through the use of modern silvicultural techniques including timber stand improvement harvesting, herbicide applications, deer exclusion fencing, prescribed fire and mechanical removal of undesirable species, I can restore forestland to its original diverse and productive condition. A multilayered and diverse forest will support a wider variety of species and higher numbers of animals.
When all habitat requirements are met on your property for any given species, the game will move in and stay there.
This photo shows a forest restoration project. Previously a stagnant stand of oak, red maple and black gum, with a "fern desert" understory, this area now has abundant blueberry, partridge berry, grass and thousands of young seedlings and stump sprouts. The seed trees that were "released" by timber stand improvement harvesting now are producing tons of acorns and are putting on good diameter growth every year.
The income from the wood sold from the property paid for the fern spraying and for the deer exclusion fence. Once a new stand is well established, the fence will be removed and deer will have use of the forest for food and cover. Without fencing, deer would eat all of the plants trying to grow and the result would be treeless understory. The area is now growing a diverse stand of various oaks, maple, cherry, black gum, mountain laurel, blueberry, pine, hemlock, serviceberry, dogwood, grasses and forbs.
Once a dark, fern covered forest floor, This photo represents the original condition of the forest prior to the forest restoration project, this area has no understory vegetation other than fern growth. The timber is overcrowded and stagnet.
These 2-year-old stump sprouts were produced by forest regeneration harvesting, herbicide treatment of fern and protected by deer proof fencing.
