This twilight tour will showcase a range of techniques for releasing young trees from competition. When attempting to establish a new generation of trees, forest owners face two fundamental tasks that can become increasingly tricky: seedling release and pre-commercial thinning. Seedlings planted after harvest face steep competition for light, nutrients, water, and native and nonnative […]
ARE WE OLD GROWTH YET? NNRG TURNS 30!
Since its founding in 1992, NNRG has been led and staffed by a small, rotating band of idealists and innovators. 30 years later, though the team remains small, the impact of our work has spread as swiftly as a field of salmonberry that’s found a gap in the canopy. When NNRG sprouted 30 years ago […]
Forest Tour: Intro to Ecologically-Based Timber Harvesting
Stewarding a beautiful, healthy forest doesn’t have to mean locking the gate and throwing out the key. In fact, careful stewardship can help you to perpetually manage your forest in a way that improves wildlife habitat, sustains forest health, and provides long-term income opportunities through high-quality timber products. Forest owners in Western Washington are increasingly […]
Ode to Pa Hanson
I’ve participated in multiple surveys of small woodland owners over the years, and each time we ask the question “why do you own forestland,” the value of “legacy” is almost invariably in the top four reasons expressed. Woodland owners want to know their efforts as good stewards will endure and be passed on to future […]
Hands-On Forest Health Strategies for Western Washington Forest Owners
Learn hands-on strategies for managing healthy forests in Western Washington. Many forest owners across Western Washington are interested in taking a hands-on approach to improving the health, resilience and productivity of their forests, but may lack the information, skills and resources to do so. At this workshop, local and regional experts will introduce forest owners […]
How The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Built a Nursery that Supports Land and Community
This article originally appeared in the December 2021 newsletter of Treeline, the regional forest adaptation network. It is reprinted here with permission. You can find the complete newsletter here. A conversation with Jeremy Ojua, Lindsay McClary and Kayla Seaforth The Natural Resources Department at the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde (CTGR) has been operating the […]
2020 Reforestation Project: Year 2 Report
This article is part of the Hanson Family Forest series. In January 2020 we planted 18 acres on our family’s land near Bucoda, WA in an effort to restore several degraded sites that had been logged by a previous landowner, but not replanted. These were challenging sites to recover as they were comprised of either […]
2022 Winter/Spring Native Plant Sales
The winter wet season in the Pacific Northwest is an ideal time to plant young trees and native shrubs! Planting native trees and shrubs enhances forest biodiversity by providing habitat for wildlife and forage for pollinators. It’s also a great way connect to the land and increase your aesthetic and recreational appreciation for the forest.
2021 in Pictures
Throughout the year, NNRG’s staff have had the privilege to visit some very cool places, talk to interesting small, people, and experience the beauty and bounty of the Pacific Northwest. Our work has taken us from the Willamette Valley oak savannas to the coastal forests of the San Juan Islands, and beyond. Take a look […]
2021: The Year’s Accomplishments In Review
2022 is just days away, and the NNRG team is itching to get to work on some of the new projects planned for the year. But before we continue on our mission to strengthen the ecological and economic vitality of Northwest forests and communities, we’d like to take a moment to reflect on some of […]
BUY LOCAL FROM WELL-MANAGED FORESTS
There are so many brilliant reasons to buy local. When you trade 2-day delivery for fresh-from-the-forest, you’re supporting local landowners, sustainable forestry practices, and guaranteed high-quality products. Many local forest owners make and sell non-timber forest products that would make wonderful stocking stuffers or can feed your home hearth. This holiday season, consider supporting ecological […]
2021 NNRG Staff & Board Book Picks
We asked the NNRG staff and board — notorious for thinking about forests as much off-the-clock as on — for the best forestry, nature, PNW, and environment-related books they read this year. The result is a list as varied as it is long! Click on a title below to read about the book, or scroll […]
An Easier Way to Inventory Your Forest
Conducting a timber and woody biomass inventory of a forest may sound complicated. But as a forest owner, it’s one of the first steps you’ll need to take before diving into the substantial decisions of how to steward your forest.
Hands-On Forest Health Strategies for Camano Island Forest Owners
Learn hands-on strategies for managing healthy forests on Camano Island Many forest owners across Western Washington are interested in taking a hands-on approach to improving the health, resilience and productivity of their forests, but may lack the information, skills and resources to do so. At this workshop, local and regional experts will introduce forest owners […]
Forestry & Environmental Science Education in the Pacific Northwest
Professor Jerry Franklin, far right, lectures a University of Washington class in a ponderosa pine forest in Oregon. Photo by Debbie Johnson. If you’re interested in a career involving forest management, natural resources, or environmental science the Pacific Northwest has a wonderful range of higher education programs covering those topics. In fact, several NNRG staff […]
These Boots are Made for Walking (Around in the Forest)
Unless you own a forest and have had an NNRG forester out for a site visit, the details of a forester’s job might be a little murky to you. You suspect it involves wearing a cool vest, tree puns, and something called DBH tape…right? In the interest of pulling back the curtain on the critical […]
Bringing Biochar Back
Biochar is a form of charcoal sometimes used as a soil amendment in agriculture. But that’s really only half the story. It’s produced when organic waste material, such as forest slash, is combusted in the presence of limited oxygen. Though often described as a soil amendment, in Pacific Northwest forests it might be better thought […]
NNRG Welcomes New Staff
Northwest Natural Resource Group is pleased to be heading into the dog days of summer with three new team members! GUSTAVO SEGURA FLORES | Forestry Technician Gustavo was raised in the central coast of California with a large focus on traditional agriculture. Seeking a more temperate climate, Gustavo relocated to Grays Harbor County in 2017 […]
Soil Stewardship Basics
Forest stewardship can be thought of as synonymous with soil stewardship. Healthy soils sustain wildlife habitat, grow high-quality timber, improve your forest’s resilience to stressors like drought, heat, and pests, and store carbon. So how does one become an expert in forest soils? Below we outline the fundamentals of soil stewardship and direct you to […]
Hands-On Forest Health Strategies for Jefferson County Forest Owners
Learn hands-on strategies for managing healthy forests in Jefferson County Many forest owners across Jefferson County are interested in taking a hands-on approach to improving the health, resilience and productivity of their forests, but lack the information, skills and resources to do so. At this workshop, local and regional experts will introduce forest owners to […]