Arbor Day is right around the corner, but why wait to start celebrating and learning about trees? The LEAF K-12 Forestry Education Program provides resources to incorporate into the classroom for Arbor Day or any day! The downloadable Urban Forest Lesson Guide provides a pathway for teachers to engage students and teach them about the trees in their neighborhood. Forestry Education Kits on a variety of different themes are also available for checkout for both formal and non-formal educators. Check out the LEAF website and consider utilizing the resources they have to offer this spring. Continue reading “LEAF Lessons”
Did you know?
Tree Fund Scholarships And Grant Deadline March 15, 2025
TREE Fund offers scholarships for undergraduate students who aspire to careers in arboriculture, urban forestry and related fields. Before applying for any scholarship, carefully read the guidelines for each scholarship provided on the website. Contact a staff member at TREE Fund directly should you have questions or require additional information about these programs.
Apply online by March 15, 2026. Continue reading “Tree Fund Scholarships And Grant Deadline March 15, 2025”
Run For The Trees
Now is the time to sign up to Run for the Trees! Racers can complete their Happy Little (Virtual) 5K anywhere outdoors between April 18-26, 2026. The nine-day window includes Earth Day (April 22) and Arbor Day (April 24). Continue reading “Run For The Trees”
USDA Forest Service Requests Proposals for Wood Innovations Grants
A stack of logs guards an old conifer seed orchard near Lake Tomahawk in the Town of Hazelhurst in 2024. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR
By United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service
The United States Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service today announced up to $95 million in competitive grant funding through its Wood Innovations program for projects that advance innovative wood uses, expand wood-based construction, and grow U.S. wood energy markets and forest product processing capacity.
Continue reading “USDA Forest Service Requests Proposals for Wood Innovations Grants”
2026 Wisconsin Forest Products Market Update
Lumber is produced at a mill. / Photo Credit: Twin Oaks Lumber
By Elle Soderberg, DNR Forest Products Specialist
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Forest Products Services team would like to share some perspectives based on our conversations with forest products industry contacts and information sources. Our goal in sharing these informational updates is to provide material to help you understand how the state’s forest products industry is being impacted, not only by market/seasonal trends, but also by major announcements (e.g., mill closures, expansions, economic factors, etc.).
Continue reading “2026 Wisconsin Forest Products Market Update”
Wisconsin DNR’s Forest Regeneration Monitoring Program
New hires familiarize themselves with FRM data collection. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR
By Gabe Spangler, DNR Forest Regeneration Monitoring Coordinator
The Forest Regeneration Monitoring (FRM) program was initiated to better assess the status of naturally regenerating forests across the state and to provide data on forest regeneration success or failure in relation to deer herd population density across Wisconsin. Previous forest monitoring methods were not intensive enough to tell a precise, county-level story of the impacts of deer browse (herbivory) on forest regeneration or the quality of the forest habitat available to deer.
Continue reading “Wisconsin DNR’s Forest Regeneration Monitoring Program”
EUDR Update: Changes In 2025 And The Hardwood Industry’s Path To Compliance
By Brian Zweifel, DNR Forest Products Specialist
American Hardwood Assured (AHA) is a free, AI-based digital platform developed by the American Hardwood Export Council to verify that U.S. hardwood products are legally harvested and deforestation-free.
Understanding The EUDR And Impacts On The U.S. Forest Products Sector
For those who haven’t been keeping up with international policy, the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) is an environmental policy proposed to ensure that products sold within the EU do not contribute to global deforestation or forest degradation. The regulation targets seven key commodities—cattle, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soy, and wood—that are major drivers of deforestation for agricultural expansion. While the goals of the EUDR are widely supported by environmental and industry groups, its original compliance requirements created significant, and potentially insurmountable, challenges for the U.S. hardwood industry. This article explains the critical updates and delays announced in late 2025, details the proactive solutions being developed by industry groups like the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) and American Hardwood Assured (AHA), and outlines a clear path forward for forest products companies. These recent developments have shifted the compliance conversation from crisis to a more manageable, strategic response. Continue reading “EUDR Update: Changes In 2025 And The Hardwood Industry’s Path To Compliance”
New Publication Highlights Technology, Training Needs in Northeastern Lumber Drying Operations
By Scott Lyon, DNR Forest Products Team Leader
A new study published in the Forest Products Journal by the University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension, the United States Forest Service and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources examined dry kiln operations across the northeastern and north-central United States.
The research explored current technology use, production practices, and workforce training needs in the hardwood lumber drying industry, with the goal of helping training providers and industry leaders better tailor education and support to real-world operating conditions.
The survey found that most firms dry a wide range of hardwood species, reflecting the region’s diverse forest resources. Eastern white pine was the only softwood species dried by a majority of respondents. While species diversity was common across operations, the study revealed a clear divide between small and large kiln facilities in technology use, investment plans, and quality-control practices.
USDA Timber Industry Program Aims To Revitalize Rural Economies
A USDA Forest Service timber cruiser measures a tree. The TPEP is a cooperative effort with the USDA Forest Service and USDA Rural Development. / Photo Credit: Lance Cheung, USDA
By United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service
Note: The Timber Production Expansion Guaranteed Loan Program (TPEP) provides funding to eligible applicants to establish, reopen, expand, or improve a sawmill or other wood-processing facility that processes ecosystem restoration byproducts from National Forest System lands.
The reopening last year of a sawmill in Tilleda, Wisconsin, one of the many recently shuttered sawmills in rural Wisconsin, is a signal of hope for the challenged forest products industry everywhere. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development (RD) would like to see more mills brought back to life here with funding through its Timber Production Expansion Guaranteed Loan Program (TPEP).
Continue reading “USDA Timber Industry Program Aims To Revitalize Rural Economies”
USDA Forest Products Lab Offers Newsletter
The United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory, based in Madison, is now offering a free newsletter to interested subscribers.
The newsletter covers a variety of topics related to forest products research and can be accessed online on the USDA Forest Service website.
To sign up for the newsletter, go to the bottom of the linked webpage under the heading “Sign Up for Our Newsletter” and enter your contact information.