Regional Forestry Field Day Held in Clay County

By Fay Garner, CMO Assistant, NRCS State Office, Auburn, Alabama

A Regional Forestry Field Day was held in Clay County on Saturday, October 18 on the TREASURE Forest of John Osborn, the winner of the 2007 Helene Moseley Award.  Jerry and Genelle Brown, located in close proximity to the Osborn tree farm, hosted the event.

After a night of heavy rains, the day dawned clear with beautiful blue skies and crisp cool air that gave the first promise fall.  My jacket felt especially good in the morning breezes.  We loaded up on three trailers and traveled a brief distance to Mr. Osborn's loblolly pine stand, the first stop on the field day tour.

The area, still mucky in spots from the rains the night before, prevented the trailers from entering the woods, so we walked down a well-tended forest road to meet with Lehman Bass, a forestry consultant. Bass talked about forest management and the advantages of thinning, burning, and pest management. He said that the Osborn TREASURE Forest was a prime example of what good forest management was supposed to look like.

We walked deeper into the forest to meet with Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Wildlife Biologist Joel Glover to view an excellent wildlife management food plot that still glistened with the morning dew.  Glover informed us about the plants, shrubs, and trees that wildlife like to eat and what they will not eat.  This spot on the tour especially tweaked the interest of some of the teenagers present who had already participated in the early bow deer season.

As we were walking back down the dirt road to reload the trailers, and rounded a bend, Tallapoosa County Narcotics Task Force representative John McKelvey had set up a "Danger in the Woods" demonstration. He displayed common household products that, if found in the woods, could indicate the presence of a methamphetamine lab. Some of the items displayed were pill blister packages from over-the-counter cold, diet or allergy remedies; empty containers from white gas, ether, starting fluids, lye, drain openers, paint thinner, acetone, and alcohol; packaging from Epsom or rock salt; and other items. He strongly advised that if these items are found in the woods, that we leave the site at once and report it. He indicated that some meth labs have to be cleaned by a hazard clean-up team.

After the pleasant walk back through the woods, we reloaded the trailers and rode down the narrow county road to the next tour stop to view some newly-planted longleaf pines.  Consultant Forester Earl Smith talked with the group about longleaf pine management on the banks of one of the most picturesque fishing lakes I have ever seen.

The next-to-the-last stop was at a country church where local researcher Don East gave an interesting presentation about the history of Native Americans in the area. The final program in the church were presentation of awards for the 2008 Helene Mosley winner, Tree Farmer of the Year, National 4-H Forestry Judging Team, and the Alabama Farm of Distinction.

The day's tour ended back at the Brown farm for a lunch of barbeque, door prizes, and good conversation.

Special thanks to the State Tree Farm Committee, the Alabama Natural Resources Council, and the Clay County Forestry Planning Committee for sponsoring the forestry field day.

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