Michigan State University Launches Course On Urban Forests And Climate Change

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hand holding earth and tree

The Michigan State University Forest Carbon and Climate Program has launched a new intensive course, Urban Forests and Climate Change. This online professional training will be offered multiple times throughout the year. Course content was co-developed with MSU faculty and the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science, a collaborative, multi-institutional partnership led by the USDA Forest Service.  Continue reading “Michigan State University Launches Course On Urban Forests And Climate Change” →

DNR Offers Free Tree Seedlings To Wisconsin Fourth Graders Ahead Of Arbor Day 2024

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The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is offering free tree seedlings to every fourth-grade student in Wisconsin as part of the department’s annual Arbor Day tree planting program.

Wisconsin fourth grade principals, teachers and those who homeschool can now place seedling orders and coordinate delivery by completing the 2024 Arbor Day application by March 15, 2024.

Planting seedlings from state nurseries is a great way to celebrate Arbor Day (April 26, 2024) which is dedicated to increasing the number of trees across the country to help improve the environment. By ordering seedlings, you can help.

Through its fourth grade Arbor Day tree planting program, the DNR provides interactive education to Wisconsin students around the importance of trees within our environment. Annually, the DNR provides approximately 50,000 free tree seedlings to fourth-grade students throughout the state. Continue reading “DNR Offers Free Tree Seedlings To Wisconsin Fourth Graders Ahead Of Arbor Day 2024” →

A Look Back To The Blue Blizzard Of 2022

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Photo of aspen saplings in Douglas County left permanently bent after an ice storm in 2022

Aspen saplings in Douglas County were left permanently bent over after sustaining the burden of the immense weight of ice and cemented snow loads on stems and branches. / Photo Credit: Paul Cigan, Wisconsin DNR

By Paul Cigan, DNR Forest Health Specialist, Hayward;
Paul.Cigan@wisconsin.gov or 715-416-4920

Wisconsin weather is often dealt out in extremes and excess.

This year, winter has gotten off to a mild start, but in mid-December 2022, tens of thousands of acres of forest land in Douglas, Sawyer and Washburn counties was permanently changed by a generational winter storm that became famously known as the “Blue Blizzard of 2022.”

Continue reading “A Look Back To The Blue Blizzard Of 2022” →

Just Say ‘No’ To Knotweeds

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Photo showing a worker logging a large roadside infestation of knotweed.

Species in the knotweed complex grow very quickly, causing large infestations on roadsides like this one. / Photo Credit: Randy Westbrooks, Invasive Plant Control, Inc., Bugwood.org

By Erika Segerson-Mueller, DNR Invasive Plant Program Specialist, Oshkosh Service Center;
Erika.SegersonMueller@wisconsin.gov or 715-492-0391

As you work on your New Year’s resolutions this year, you might want to add “don’t plant invasive species” to your list. Too wide-ranging? Try narrowing the goal to a species-specific suggestion: “Just say ‘no’ to knotweeds.”

Sometimes referred to as “the knotweed complex,” Wisconsin has three regulated species of knotweed: Japanese knotweed, giant knotweed and a hybridization known as Bohemian knotweed. Each has been found in the state.

Continue reading “Just Say ‘No’ To Knotweeds” →

Green Light On For Oak Tree Work

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Photo of fallen leaves from a red oak that show discoloration, an indication that the tree is infected with oak wilt.

Discolored fallen leaves from a red oak tree indicate that the tree is infected with oak wilt. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR

By Art Kabelowsky, DNR Forest Health Outreach and Communications, Fitchburg Service Center;
Arthur.Kabelowsky@wisconsin.gov or 608-335-0167

With the weather taking its time to turn wintry, it’s a good time to remind landowners and work crews that now through the end of March is an ideal time to perform pruning, trimming and brush removal on and near oak trees.

This is a low-risk period for the trees to be infected with oak wilt, a fungal disease spread by beetles. When a red oak is infected with oak wilt, it will die that year. The disease also stresses white oaks, often proving fatal.

Continue reading “Green Light On For Oak Tree Work” →

Fight Invasives As Part Of A CISMA

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By Erika Segerson-Mueller, DNR Invasive Plant Program Specialist, Oshkosh Service Center;
Erika.SegersonMueller@wisconsin.gov or 715-492-0391

Photo of a goat grazing during a demonstration held by the Monroe County Invasive Species Working Group

A field day in August 2023, hosted by Monroe County Invasive Species Working Group, featured a live goat grazing demonstration among presentations that included invasive plant identification tips, funding opportunities and management techniques. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR

If you’ve been fighting invasive plants in your woodlands, you may have wondered if there were any groups in your area to support weed management. The short answer? Probably!

Wisconsin currently has 14 different Cooperative Invasive Species Management Areas, or CISMAs. These regional county groups bring together community members to work on various invasive species-related projects ranging from fieldwork outings to controlling and monitoring invasive plant occurrences to education and outreach events so more local citizens can learn about and get involved with invasive plant management.

Continue reading “Fight Invasives As Part Of A CISMA” →

Subscriber Survey Coming To Your Email

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Icon of a survey under the DNR Forestry News banner

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources soon will launch an email survey of Forest Health News subscribers. / Graphic Credit: Wisconsin DNR

By Art Kabelowsky, DNR Forest Health Outreach and Communications, Fitchburg Service Center;
Arthur.Kabelowsky@wisconsin.gov or 608-335-0167

Every five years or so, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR)’s Forest Health Team surveys the readership of the Forest Health News to gain insight into the types of articles our readers find most valuable and interesting.

The next survey should arrive in your email folders within the next few weeks.

Continue reading “Subscriber Survey Coming To Your Email” →

Urban Forestry Inflation Reduction Act Grants Update

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By Laura Buntrock, DNR UF Partnership & Policy Specialist, Rhinelander; Laura.Buntrock@wisconsin.gov or 608-294-0253

We are excited to share the following updates on Urban Forestry Inflation Reduction Act Grants through the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The DNR was allocated $4.875 million of Inflation Reduction Act funds from the USDA Forest Service earlier this year. Of that, $4 million will be sub-awarded to local entities through our competitive grant program. Given the requirements and intentions of these funds, the Urban Forestry Inflation Reduction Act Grants will People Talking at an Urban Parklook different from the grants we have offered in the past. We have meticulously worked through the emergency rule change process to temporarily modify the structure of our grant program to facilitate the disbursement of this new funding. Our regular and start-up grant offerings will continue unchanged in 2024.

Continue reading “Urban Forestry Inflation Reduction Act Grants Update” →

DNR Urban Forestry Program Announces 2024 Grant Recipients

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By Nicolle Spafford, DNR Urban Forestry Grant Manager; Nicolle.Spafford@wisconsin.gov or 715-896-7099

city with trees

Photo Credit: Preston Keres, USDA Forest Service

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) today announced Urban Forestry Grant Program recipients for the 2024 grant year. The program helps fund projects consistent with state and national goals for increasing the urban forest canopy.

The Urban Forestry Grant Program is distributing almost $805,000 in grant funds, with $554,680 in state funding and an additional $250,066 in federal funding. A dollar-for-dollar match puts the estimated cost of these projects over $1.6 million. In total, 58 applications were selected to receive funding, with awards ranging from $1,580 to $25,000. Continue reading “DNR Urban Forestry Program Announces 2024 Grant Recipients” →

Save The Date: WAA/DNR Annual Conference, Feb. 25-27, 2024

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Join the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Wisconsin Arborist Association (WAA) for the 2024 Wisconsin Annual Urban Forestry Conference. The conference will be held from Feb. 25 to 27 at the KI Convention Center in Green Bay.

The DNR and the WAA have developed three days of enriching educational programming on the latest research, innovations, developments and arboriculture and urban forestry industry issues.

This conference is intended for professional arborists, community foresters, nursery professionals, park and recreation directors and staff, tree care workers, landscape architects, green industry professionals, community administrators, volunteers and students. Continue reading “Save The Date: WAA/DNR Annual Conference, Feb. 25-27, 2024” →