The goal in managing hardwoods should be to produce sizable high quality wood otherwise known as crop trees. Present markets for small hardwoods are rarely good. All management cuts should be aimed at stimulating the growth and maintaining the quality of these crop trees. Favored species include the oaks, yellow poplar, walnut, ash, sycamore, birch, maple and cherry. The crop trees should occupy a dominant or co-dominant position in the stand, be straight and tall with few branches, and show signs of self pruning on the first 16feet of trunk.
To produce high quality trees, fire must be kept out of the stand and any logging activities must avoid scarring the trees. Over-thinning should be avoided to keep branching on the lower trunk from happening. Pre-commercial thinning can be carefully done when the stand is between 15-20 years old provided the dominant and co-dominant trees are protected. Any cuttings should be aimed at removing inferior trees that compete with potential crop trees. The trees removed can be sold as pulpwood or firewood if markets exist. Improvement cuts can continue at 10 year intervals until the crop trees are 16" DBH or greater. Every additional inch of diameter growth is extremely valuable. Based on a 16 foot sawlog, an 18" DBH tree has 50% more volume than a 16"DBH tree. A 22"DBH tree has almost twice the volume as a 16"DBH tree! A few inches can make a lot of difference in the value of your trees. That's why it is extremely important to mark and scale each crop tree prior to any harvest.
Selection of the harvest method should be influenced by the regeneration requirements of the stand. Consider leaving some areas of large mast producing hardwoods for wildlife. As with any timber activity, you are especially encouraged to seek professional advice if you have high value hardwoods under management.
