Reforestation News

Seedlings Still Available For Spring 2024 Planting

Winter hasn’t quite let loose its grip on the Wilson State Nursery fields in Boscobel, but the warm weather has turned any snow into puddles and with limited frost in the ground, it won’t be long. These conditions in Wisconsin’s fields and forests make it easy for landowners to hike their property and consider ways to enhance them. And as thoughts turn to spring, the staff in the Wisconsin DNR’s reforestation program are readying themselves to harvest tree and shrub seedlings from the cool, moist soil.

For those considering activities to improve their properties, the DNR reforestation program has plenty of seedlings still available to create and enhance wildlife habitat, stabilize the soil, block winter wind and snow and provide a future shady spot to sit and enjoy a morning. Continue reading “Seedlings Still Available For Spring 2024 Planting”

Preliminary Seedling Availability For Spring 2024 Planting | Wisconsin DNR Reforestation Program

Proper tree planting requires a lot of decision making. One of the most crucial decisions to make is which species and age are the most appropriate and cost-effective to plant. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Reforestation Program is taking some of the unknowns out of that process by giving landowners and property managers an early peek at the seedlings we anticipate having available in Fall 2023 for planting in Spring 2024.

This list is preliminary, as some species may be added, adjusted or removed depending on health, growth and other factors as the growing season progresses.

The listed tree and shrub seedlings will be available to purchase starting on Monday, October 2, 2023. Though we expect high demand, we anticipate having a variety of species and ages available to all customers.

Continue reading “Preliminary Seedling Availability For Spring 2024 Planting | Wisconsin DNR Reforestation Program”

The Power Of Progeny: White Oak Initiative

Group of people examining a freshly-planted white oak seedling outside

DNR reforestation team leader Joe Vande Hey assists his crew with planting white oak seedlings on a plot in Prairie du Chien.

In the fall of 2021, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) reforestation team, along with their forestry peers and seasoned seed collectors, were tasked with collecting acorns from the best white oaks across the state as part of the ongoing efforts of the White Oak Initiative, a coalition working on the long-term sustainability of white oak for habitat, recreational activities and industries using oak for forest products.

In total, 39 half-gallon samples of white oak acorns were collected in Wisconsin and part of Iowa. The acorns were processed at Wisconsin state nurseries in late 2021, then shipped to the White Oak Genetics and Tree Improvement Program (WOGTIP) at the University of Kentucky in partnership with the White Oak Initiative.

Prime white oak acorns were collected from a total of 17 states participating in a white oak progeny test implemented by WOGTIP. This research aims to create genetically improved white oak seed orchards across the eastern U.S., including Wisconsin. These high-performing seed orchards will provide a reliable, known source of superior white oak seed for use in forest products industries, such as whiskey distilleries.

Continue reading “The Power Of Progeny: White Oak Initiative”

Seedlings Still Available For Spring 2023 Planting

Winter hasn’t quite let loose its snowy grip from the Wilson State Nursery fields in Boscobel, but spring will soon be here, and the reforestation program staff are readying themselves to harvest seedlings from the cool, moist soil. It won’t take long for the frost to leave the ground.

For those who have spent parts of the winter planning to improve their properties, the Wisconsin DNR’s reforestation program has plenty of seedlings available to create and enhance wildlife habitat, stabilize the soil, block winter wind and snow and provide a future shady spot to sit. Continue reading “Seedlings Still Available For Spring 2023 Planting”

Free Seedlings For Wisconsin Fourth-Graders

sugar maple seedlings

One-year-old sugar maple seedlings growing in Wisconsin nursery bed.

Every year since 1984, Wisconsin 4th-grade students have been eligible to receive a free tree seedling from DNR state nurseries to complement their Arbor Day observations. The application period for the “2022-23 Arbor Day Free Tree Seedlings for Wisconsin 4th Graders” is now open. School principals, 4th-grade teachers and 4th-grade homeschool parents are encouraged to visit the DNR’s tree planting webpage to order seedlings for Wisconsin 4th-grade students.

The seedlings will be shipped next spring in time for Arbor Day celebrations.  They come with a plastic bag for protection and instructions on how to plant and care for them. Planting a seedling and watching it grow can be a great learning tool for students. Find ideas for planning an Arbor Day celebration on this DNR webpage.

If you have any questions about the free seedling program for Wisconsin 4th-graders, please contact Carey Skerven at the Griffith State Nursery (Carey.Skerven@wisconsin.gov).

DNR Accepting Seedling Orders For Spring 2023 Starting Oct. 3

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will accept seedling orders from Wisconsin landowners for planting trees and shrubs in spring 2023 starting Oct. 3, 2022. The high-quality seedlings are native species appropriate for planting throughout Wisconsin and grown at the F.G. Wilson State Nursery in Boscobel.

Seedlings grown by the state nurseries are used for reforestation and conservation plantings on private, public and tribal lands. These seedlings can provide future forest products and revenues, wildlife habitat, soil erosion control, living snow fences, carbon sequestration, aesthetics and shade to landowners and managers in every county. Continue reading “DNR Accepting Seedling Orders For Spring 2023 Starting Oct. 3”

Preliminary Seedling Availability From The Wisconsin DNR Reforestation Program For Spring 2023 Planting

Proper tree planting requires a lot of decision-making, and one of those decisions is which species and age are the most appropriate and cost-effective to plant. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) Reforestation Program is taking some of the unknowns out of that process by giving landowners and property managers an early peek at the seedlings we anticipate having available in fall 2022 for planting in spring 2023.

This list is preliminary, as some species may be added or removed depending on health, growth and other factors as the growing season progresses.

These tree and shrub seedlings will be available to purchase starting Monday, Oct. 3, 2022. Even with the expected high demand, we anticipate having a variety of species and ages available to all customers. Continue reading “Preliminary Seedling Availability From The Wisconsin DNR Reforestation Program For Spring 2023 Planting”

A Legacy Of Tree Planting

Near Boscobel, the Wilson State Forest Nursery was a beehive of activity through the month of April. Walking row after row of small trees, behind a harvesting machine, crew members carefully lifted seedlings from soil so as to not damage roots. Overseeing the operation is Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Reforestation Team Leader Joe Vande Hey.

“We’re looking at about three-and-a-half million trees this year,” he says proudly. “We sold just about everything we have, and I’m anticipating sales to increase probably to the five-million range over the next couple of years.”

Wisconsin’s Reforestation Program grows high-quality, reasonably priced, native-tree seedlings and shrubs to plant on private and public lands for conservation. It has a rich history dating back to 1911 when the state’s first tree nursery was planted. Over the decades, 1.6 billion seedlings have been supplied to landowners.

Vande Hey says Wisconsin’s pledge to plant 75 million trees by 2030 is part of the reason he has a positive outlook for growth over the next couple of years. “It’s definitely putting an emphasis back on tree planting. It sparks interest and that’s going to mean an increase in sales.”

Providing future forest products, improving wildlife habitat, preventing soil erosion are all motivating the effort, but now more so than ever, there’s a focus on removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, as outlined in Wisconsin’s Statewide Forest Action Plan.

As it turns out, carbon sequestration and carbon storage are two things our forests do very well. Protecting the planet by fighting climate change is a cause that continues to grow in popularity.

Vande Hey explained, “Trees tie up carbon, so the more forested land we have, the more carbon we can capture. Private landowners definitely see the benefit and want to be recognized for helping plant trees.”

He says 60 to 70% of stock grown in state nurseries is being shipped to private forest landowners, such as the FitzRandolph family featured in this video.

The nursery sells 30 to 40 different species, a mix of hardwoods, conifers, and shrubs: generally red, white and jack pines, white spruce, oaks and maples.

Emerald ash borer is causing “a pretty good shift” for orders to some areas, Vande Hey said, with alternative species like white oak, red maple, tamarack and cedar going to areas where ash trees once flourished. More species changes are on the horizon, not because of emerald ash borer, but due to global warming.

“We’re starting to play with species typically found only in southern Wisconsin, trees we historically didn’t grow a lot of that might be planted in other areas of the state, or even species that historically don’t come into Wisconsin,” Vande Hey said. “Trees native to Illinois, Iowa and Indiana, where it’s a bit warmer.”

Whatever the species, the seedlings will be planted to regenerate acreage where trees have been harvested or going into the ground where forests have been absent.

“Some forest landowners are planting through the Conservation Reserve Program – taking crop ground that is highly erodible and putting it into more permanent cover. There are a good number of seedlings being planted under hardwoods, particularly in southern Wisconsin where they’re not getting the natural oak regeneration that they desire.”

Wherever seedlings are headed, he says Wisconsin’s reforestation program has the capacity to meet increased demands, now motivated to a large extent by climate change.

What’s Your Seedling Story?

By Lauren Peterson, Reforestation Communication Specialist, Division of Forestry

What’s the most sentimental space in your home? For many families with kids, it’s often a wall or a doorframe used as a tried-and-true method of tracking growth. This little corner of the house is filled with chicken scratched names, jumps in ages, even greater leaps in height, and happy memories of the past. However, for some Wisconsin families, a measurement of years gone by grows just outside the window.

For 40 years now, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has encouraged all fourth-grade students to take part in planting a free tree seedling, distributed by the Division of Forestry’s reforestation program. Fourth-grade teachers and homeschool parents are eligible to submit their orders for seedlings from winter through early spring in order to receive their shipment by Arbor Day.

It’s hard not to get sentimental thinking about tiny kids planting tiny seedlings, right? After an arduous journey of bouncing around in backpacks and being forgotten at bus stops, with branches abused but mostly intact, these seedlings found their forever homes outside those windows. Throughout the years, these seedlings have mirrored the growth of the tiny hands that first placed them in the soil.

Much like the seedlings and the fourth-grade students, this initiative to get future generations excited about forestry has grown each year to become a tradition unlike any other. Introduced in 1982, the project really hit its stride in 1984. Within the last decade, the DNR has supplied an average of more than 38,000 seedlings annually with a high of 45,857 seedlings shipped out in 2021. DNR’s reforestation team estimates that around 350,608 seedlings have been sent out to fourth graders across the state in the last ten years.

Conifer seedlings growing at the Wisconsin DNR nursery in Boscobel, WI

Seedlings are often a species of pine, distributed with an educational brochure to assist in planting and a plastic bag to ensure backpacks stay clean. Conifers, specifically pine, are commonly used for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, it is relatively easy for children under supervision to plant. These little pines are green in early spring and grow well throughout the state on a variety of soils. Finally, nurseries often have a large quantity of pine from year to year in the quantities needed to distribute thousands across the state.

That said, on the 100th anniversary of the Wisconsin state nursery program in 2011, the nurseries celebrated by providing sugar maple seedlings instead. Sugar maple was selected as the state tree of Wisconsin in 1983 and the nursery program felt it was appropriate to use that seedling for their centennial anniversary.

This Arbor Day we celebrate not only the holiday, but the countless people who made this seedling project grow to what it is today and the children it has impacted. Through four decades of this endeavor, the DNR has had the support of countless teachers, principals, parents, volunteers and employees. For many fourth-graders, planting their seedling has been a fun springtime activity and watching it grow throughout the years is a memory to be proud of. To others, it sparked a fascination with forestry, natural resources, conservation, or science. After 40 years, one thing is still true; this was never just about planting seedlings.

Do you have a memory about planting an Arbor Day seedling? We welcome your stories and photos at Forestry.Webmail@Wisconsin.gov.

DNR To Accept Seedling Orders For The Spring Starting Oct. 4, 2021

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Division of Forestry’s reforestation program will accept seedling orders from Wisconsin forest landowners for trees and shrubs to be planted in spring 2022 starting Oct. 4, 2021. The high-quality seedlings are native species appropriate for planting throughout Wisconsin.

Seedlings grown by the state nurseries are used for reforestation and conservation plantings on private, public and tribal lands. These seedlings can provide future forest products and revenues, wildlife habitat, soil erosion control, living snow fences, aesthetics and shade to landowners and managers in every state county. Continue reading “DNR To Accept Seedling Orders For The Spring Starting Oct. 4, 2021”