Assessing the health of your woods when you don’t have a lot of knowledge about how it grows and what to look for is a challenge. The University of Maryland Extension Woodland Stewardship Education Program will be holding a Forestry Friday Workshop from 12 noon to 4:30 p.m. on August 13, 2021 at the Western Maryland Research & Education Center in Keedysville, Md. to help landowners use some new tools to learn how to assess the health of their woodland.
The use of new mobile apps makes exploring your woods fun and educational. HealthyWoods, is a collaborative effort between forest specialists from Kentucky and other hardwood-producing states in the Appalachian region, including Maryland, and provides woodland owners with a convenient tool to scout the health of their woods. Another tool is the Woodland Health Assessment Checklist that provides five categories for the landowner to consider and a color-coded rating for each. This workshop will demonstrate how to use both the app and written checklist tool.
A smart phone will be needed to use the apps and it is suggested participants download the HealthyWoods app and become familiar with it prior to the workshop: https://healthywoodsapp.org/. A paper copy of the Woodland Health Assessment Checklist will be provided at the workshop but is also available on the website at https://extension.umd.edu/resource/woodland-health-assessment-checklist-management-actions.
Cost is $12 per person and registration is limited. There will not any lunch served but water will be available. Participants will meet at WMREC and walking will be required. The workshop will start at 12:30 p.m. and be completed by 4:30 p.m. To register go to: https://umeforestryfriday08132021.eventbrite.com.
Directions to Western Maryland Research & Education Center: https://agnr.umd.edu/research/research-and-education-centers-locations/western-maryland-research-education-center.
For more information on registration contact: Pam Thomas, pthomas@umd.edu; 301-432-2767 x315. For information on the program contact Jonathan Kays, Extension Forester, jkays@umd.edu, 301-432-2767 x323.