The Leaf and Root Tribe

To the great tree-loving fraternity we belong. We love trees with universal and unfeigned love, and all things that do grow under them or around them - the whole leaf and root tribe." 

~ Henry Ward Beecher

What's not to love about trees? Sometimes one just has to stop and admire the view, otherwise what's the

New growth on Douglas Fir, Schenck Tree Farm

real point in owning a family forest?

Finally got a chance to just look around a bit on the tree farm this weekend. This is a fast changing time of year, when things blossom and fade before you know it.

Our family forest is made of mostly of Douglas fir. You can see the new growth at the tips of the branches in the pic above.

We also have other tree species, although in lesser amounts. It is a good idea to have a mixed forest, rather than solid Douglas fir. It creates a healthier forest with less chance of one insect or pathogen taking out the entire forest. But that is a subject for another blog. Today we just admire the trees.

Douglas fir in bloom, Schenck Tree Farm

We also have, for example, Maple. In fact, it used to be quite prevalent. The school we attended as children was called Maple Grove. The Maple are also in bloom, but look quickly. It doesn't last long.

Maple Tree in bloom, Schenck Tree Farm

Maple Tree in bloom, Schenck Tree Farm

Cascara tree, Schenck Tree Farm

Cascara has a medicinal market, but we have too few to make it productive. This one's best use it to filter light through it's leaves.

Taking time to admire the trees is one of the less tangible benefits of being a family forest owner. But then, I probably do not have to tell you that.

For a good tree identification book, try Plants of the Pacific Northwest by Jim Pojar.

Blessings,
Margaret Mills

Surprising Facts About Historical Artifacts in Your Family Forest

English: Artifacts of various tools found in Oregon (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I did sign up for the American Tree Farm Systems webinar on June 4th, "Archeology in Your Woods."

This has yet to take place, but we have gone ahead and done some research on our own on this fascinating subject. What we've found applies to our home state, Oregon, so if you live elsewhere check on your own government sites.

A few things surprised me. We tend to think of Native American burial grounds as being of historical significance, and they are. Also, traditional camping and living places with hearths, arrowheads, obsidian chips, bone handles and other evidence of indigenous peoples living and working in a area should be treated with respect and care. However, these are not the only archeological sites of import.

An item needs to be only 75 years old to be of archeological significance.

My family has owned our timberland for 75 years now. Our own old homesite and bits and pieces are therefore just now potentially of archeological significance. I have a hard time wrapping my head around that, but technically this is true. Only a trained and licensed archeologist could determine if, in truth, our old stuff had archeological significance. 

In Oregon, it takes ten items or features constitute an archeological site.

This would mean a spot with multiple arrowheads, obsidian flakes, fire hearth, etc. could be a site. But so could a location with iron nails, hewed wood, broken china, glass bottles and tin cans (i.e. trash), if more than 75 years old.

A site must be eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places to be determined an Archeological Significant site.

It takes a professional archeologist to determine whether a site is significant or not. They can also declare a site "non-significant" and having no protection under Oregon law. This might be an important point for landowners who have other plans for the area. The landowner might decide to protect the site on his own, but it would not be required by law. Known sites not yet evaluated are considered significant until proven otherwise.

You retain your property rights if a site is found on your land. 

Artifacts from the site also belong to the landowner unless they are Native American sacred objects or remains. There are no restrictions on your continued use of the property. You can even sell the odd arrowhead found on the ground, but if you plan to excavate and sell more, you need to get a proper permit.

Wandering around our property this past weekend I was more than normally in tune to objects that might be significant lying beside the roads and trails we followed. Lengths of thick, rusty cables were certainly over 75 years old as they date to the time when heavy-duty logging was done in the area, and the small-gage railroad ran through our place. I also found some nondescript bits of iron machine parts. Not sure I like this change in focus, as I am normally surveying the plant-life for art, craft or medicinal value.

Honestly, I doubt there is much to interest an archeologist on our property. In the process of farming, logging and clearing land and - later - old buildings, a lot of things are long gone. I know when one area was cleared of brush and replanted to Douglas fir, the bulldozer unearthed my parent's old Model A Ford remains. The old house site might reveal some glass or rusty nails, but the antique bottles have long been collected by "visitors" to our property. We no longer find railroad spikes or cables - much - along that old railroad track.

But who knows? This is an in-depth subject, and I will be sharing more as we go along.

Margaret Mills

Related articles

• Where do you "find" indigenous history?
• Possible Native American remains unearthed near Alice multiuse complex site
• Public program on Indian artifacts

How to Make Fir Needle Tea

New growth on Douglas Fir tree Schenck Tree Farm, 2013

I was tagging along behind while my brother - our tree farm manager - led an informal walking tour of our property, recently. The group was extended family, and the day was beautiful - mid-70's, sunny and clear with flowers blooming. Suddenly, my brother stepped off the path, broke off the new, mint green tip of a fir branch and popped it in his mouth. He then explained to the chuckling group that the new growth on fir branches is edible - one of many wild foods in Pacific Northwest forests.

That reminded me: I wanted to try fir needle tea again. While the rest followed my brother, I hopped from tree to tree plucking a few tips here and there and stuffing them in my pocket. No one questioned my actions, so no idea what my relatives might have thought. They humor me - I may well be the odd cousin they make allowances for.

Back at my house, I pulled the handful of light green tips out of my pocket and placed them in a saucer. I didn't have more than a third of a cup, and I thought that would be right for one cup of tea.

Instructions for fir or pine needle tea vary. As I recall, the last time I tried it, we boiled mature fir needles in water for several minutes. The result was strongly flavored tea and tasted too much like pitch for my liking. I thought the young, tender needles might yield a more delicate tea.

You can boil the needles in hot water for several minutes, or you can pour hot water over the needles and steep as you would any tea. The boiled needles are said to yield a stronger, more turpentine-flavored drink. That may be what happened with my initial experience.

I put the handful of young needles in a mug, filled it with water and put it in the microwave for two minutes. Then I let it sit for another five minutes or so. I strained out the needles - the most difficult step in the process. I just spooned them out. It would be more effective to pour the tea through a strainer, as I still had the odd fir needle in my drink. Another solution would be to put the needles in a tea ball and steep for several minutes. I plan to use the tea ball my next try.

In spite of all that, and the cavalier way I went about brewing my tea, the result was surprisingly good. It was a much milder tea than I remember, but still strong enough to be pleasant and refreshing.

New growth on fir trees, Schenck Tree Farm, 2013

Why drink fir tea?

• Cost: here in the Northwest fir needles are cheap and plentiful. Collecting them is also a simple matter, although the only caveat is to be careful to not remove too many from the same tree or branch. I was careful to only take two or three new tips from our trees, since that is the year's new growth.

• Vitamins: There just isn't a lot of research on the health benefits of fir or pine needle tea. There are stories: Native Americans used it to treat colds and prevent scurvy. Fir needles have a higher amount of Vitamin C than fresh orange juice, and they also contain Vitamin A. The essential oils released in the tea also have some benefit, especially when treating colds or congestion. Maybe not as strong as eucalyptus as an inhalant, but along the same lines. The essential oils also have some antiseptic properties.

• Variety: The flavor of the mild, light version I brewed is very refreshing. It makes a nice change from my usual peppermint or apple cinnamon teas.

Tips on harvesting fir needles

• Don't strip branches and take new growth sparingly

• Rinse the needles and chop the mature needles. Fir needles are relatively short, but cutting them in half makes them more manageable.

• Remove bits of bark and the brown, papery casings from the tree.

Enjoy! Anyone drink fir tea on a regular basis? Please share your methods and insight.

Margaret Mills

The Real Scoop on Marketing NTFPs

If it was easy, everyone would be doing it.  This quip often crosses my mind in the search to connect non-timber forest products with viable markets. While selling trees for lumber has a long, established history and an enormous market, finding markets for other forest products - even identifying the products themselves - can be elusive.

POSITIVES

On the bright side, we have sold certain non-timber products over the years. Back in the day (when I was a child in the '50's) we sold Douglas fir seed cones to local industrial timber companies. There is a long history in the Northwest timber industry of replanting after harvest, and at that time they collected seeds from any location. Now they know to match the site and elevation with the seeds for better survival and thrive rate, so this is not the market it once was.

I recall my parents selling a few artists conks - a type of fungus - as well. Neighbors have made a small business of selling boughs and wreaths at Christmas time. Moss for the florist industry and cascara bark for medicinal use were also products we actually sold to a small market. More recently there has been interest in our cherry bark and willow by basket weaving groups. And we've always sold - or given away - firewood.

NEGATIVES

However, many of the developing-new-market projects are sidelined for lack of time, energy and manpower and because - economically - they are "nickel and dime" markets. Our non-timber forest products go to a disproportionate number of enterprising youths, subsistence wildcrafters, and hobbiests.

Dare I list some of the hurdles we've encountered? We have an abundance of sword fern that is popular with the florist industry, but when one family member did the research, it appeared our high Cascade Mountain fern could not compete with the lush ferns from the Coast Range of Oregon. Should we pursue it, or look for something we grow better? The people buying Oregon Grape root for medicinal use are quite a distance from our property. The economics of harvesting and transporting to market do not work out. We are actually in a fairly good location, close to major cities, but the problem of shipping and transportation increases for forests east of the mountains in the Pacific Northwest. Some eastern forests no longer have sawmills close enough to make even selling lumber practical! Distance from market can be a serious hindrance.

And there are markets that have not yet developed, such as those for fiber dye (mushrooms, lichens, bark and berries). Some, such as basket materials and dulcimer making, have just not developed the following in the Northwest they have in other parts of the country or world. Some markets take perseverance and time to develop.

SOLUTIONS

One idea that has helped in our area is the formation of co-ops. One successful organization in Oregon is the Oregon Woodland Cooperative. There is more clout and bargaining power in numbers, so the co-op has been successful at such things as getting bundled firewood marketed in local stores, as well as being able to place other "value added" items such as smudge sticks in stores as well. Small woodland owners joining together to process and market their products is one way to break out of the "nickel and dime" stage.

We've mentioned online sites as resources in an earlier post. Both the Non Timber Forest Product Resource site and the Oregon Forest Industry Directory are enormously helpful.

But they are only a starting place. Are there other options?

INDIVIDUAL INITIATIVE

It is very educational to just call up some businesses and ask questions. I learned a great deal about selling Oregon Grape root by doing this, although the buyer I contacted was too far away to be a practical market. Otherwise, I've seen forest products being marketed or promoted at local craft fairs, our annual Tree School vender display, and occasionally in small boutiques (think woodworking). In addition to co-ops, there are speciality groups that educate and help members network and market: basket weaving guilds, mushroom groups, truffles (huge interest and growing), woodworking, woodcarving and so forth. Joining a group could help get a NTFP business off the ground.

Other tactics I've seen include selling on ebay (hand carved hiking sticks, native plants, natural dyes) or other speciality sites like etsy.com (essential oils, forest-product lotions, bug repellant, natural dyes, wood carving).

While it isn't necessarily easy to sell your non-timber forest product, times are changing and more attention is being given to this area. Working together with others seems to be a key component, and I believe the future will see more woodland owners able to increase their income by this means.

Any thoughts? What ways have you tried to market your non timber forest products? Any readers with a successful business going? Please share.

Margaret Mills

Is Your Family Forest an Archeological Site?

vintage tire at old home site Schenck Tree Farm

The American Tree Farm System web site presents webinars on various woodland management topics. The
one listed for June 4, 2013 at 2 p.m. is "Archeology in Your Woods." Since this is early May, the webinar has not yet happened, but I find the title alone intriguing. With two brothers who studied anthropology and a major passion for all forms of history myself, the proposed subject started the old cogs whirling.

History in your forest can be recent human history, the kind that can be researched through your local historical society or county records office, or it could be pre-history with sites relating to local native tribes or even further back to now-extinct animal and plant species.

A list of possible sites for historical research on our own Schenck Tree Farm could include our own more recent history. My family has owned the property for 75 years.
The original one-room and three-room cabins, barn and most outbuildings are long gone and the official home site has been moved to higher ground. A few months ago my brother and I pushed our way through the sour cherry trees and vine maple to poke around in the remains of the old house. We could still identify the outline of the yard, the sour cherry tree I used to climb as a pre-schooler, the fir where Dad hung our swing and the general location of the house. Additionally there were bits and pieces of metal, tires and even an old refrigerator. While I doubt an excavation of this site would yield much of significance (at least not for a few generations), it was interesting to poke around and reminisce. However, we were not the first to settle on the land.

PIONEER HISTORY

In the northwest corner of our tree farm is a small valley. It appears to be the collapsed cone of an old, small volcano, but whatever its geological history, it forms a sheltered bowl with a good spring. We used to occasionally find the elk herd resting there, but now it is grown up into brush and timber. At one time it was a home site, since the remains of a cabin, "The Woodcutter's Cabin," was there, and we could find bits of broken glass, wood and even bed springs. There is also a very old apple orchard of maybe half a dozen gnarled trees that are obviously non-native to the area. We don't know who the "Woodcutter" was, but research of local records might reveal some information.

The area where our farm is located has some history, even though it appears to be mostly wilderness now. It was logged heavily in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and remnants of those activities can still be seen, especially if you know where to look. The area was once far more heavily populated than it is now as farmers followed the loggers.

Keys to locating old pioneer home sites include:

• non-native plants

Our old apple trees are a clue, of course. Other clues are daffodils growing where none should be. The bulbs re-sprout every spring and in our mild, damp Pacific Northwest climate they spread.

• colored glass, vintage bottles, rusty wire, china or ceramic dish shards, enamelware pots

Section of old railroad route Schenck Tree Farm

 Of course, any artifacts from a bygone era are indications of a habitation, or maybe just a garbage dump. Some of the things we've found in the woods and fields locally include square iron nails, painted china shards, ceramic jugs, antique canning jars, rusty tin cans, enamelware pots.

LOGGING HISTORY

The logging industry itself left a strong mark on the landscape as well. One of our ponds was built to supply water for the trains they used to haul out the lumber harvested in the hills. The level, straight road that runs through our property was once the railroad itself. We used to find rusty spikes and even bent rails beside it.

NATIVE AMERICAN HISTORY

Our farm history goes even further back, of course. In the same location as the Woodcutter's Cabin there used to be a patch of camas. This article describes the significance to Pacific Northwest natives of the camas plant. It's rare to find camas at this elevation, so this might indicate a Native American stopping place. On the other hand, early pioneers in the west learned to cultivate and eat camas as well, so this also might be the work of our elusive Woodcutter.

Since we have done little excavation on our tree farm, our discovery of Native American artifacts has been slim-to-none. On another farm we once owned, maybe four miles away, we found arrowheads with every turn of the plow. Perhaps that farm was a central location or meeting place.  Or maybe we just haven't dug in the right places.

I am looking forward to the webinar, and hope to learn some new information about finding historical evidence in the family forest.

What artifacts have you found in your forest? Has anyone made a major archeological find? Would love to hear about it. Leave a comment.

Margaret Mills

Related articles

• First Blog
• Camas In Bloom Again
• Tree Carvings at an Abandonned Farm

Get These Essential Safety Items Before Carving Hiking Sticks

English: Carving Knife Photographer: (L. B. Ehrler) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

After attempting to carve a design into my first alder hiking stick, I went around with a large bandage on my thumb for several days. Again, I'm setting myself up as the poster child for what not to do in making hiking sticks (don't lean them against a wall to season, etc.).

Carving hiking sticks is a subcategory of woodcarving, therefore the safety rules for woodcarving apply. No exceptions. Since my wounding, I've been told to NEVER carve without safety equipment in place, and follow the rules.

One of the basic rules for safe carving is not a piece of equipment at all, but rather simply to always keep your blades sharp. This may have been behind my own accident. I had been using my son's beginner woodcarving chisels and allowed the one I was working with to become dull. This isn't laziness, although that might be the case with some folks, but I simply was unsure how to sharpen a little chisel like that. I understand the basic principle with a knife - I was also using a jackknife at that time - but my technique needs practice. And that's a topic for another post.

So, keep your tools sharp. Accidents happen when you have to put too much force on the knife or chisel to get it through the wood, and it slips.

Now, on to equipment:

•  Thumb guards. It was, indeed, my thumb that was injured by a slip of the chisel and I can see, from experience, how the thumb on the hand with which you are holding the wood is most vulnerable. Leather thumb and finger guards are available from stores that carry woodworking supplies.
• Kevlar gloves. This protects the whole hand. For some of us, this is the better option. They come in pairs and can be worn on both hands, although then you get into dexterity issues. Some prefer to only cover the hand holding the wood and keep their knife-wielding hand free. 
• Leather aprons. Heavy leather aprons are great to protect the rest of you from knife slips, and also to catch shavings and sawdust.  Woodworker's aprons also have pockets for your various tools. They become even more essential as safety equipment when working with power tools and the hot pyrography tools.

These are the bare necessities: sharp tools, thumb guard and/or kevlar glove, leather apron (can also be found in canvas or denim).

What are your favorite safety tips for wood carving?

Margaret Mills

Hiking Stick Designs: Celtic Art

English: A simple Celtic knot with doubled threads. The design is taken from the Lindisfarne Gospels (St John ff. 210v-211). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 Today we are posting a popular post from our now discontinued blog, "Hiking and the Art of Making Walking Sticks."

Of course, the choice of what to burn, paint or carve on your hiking stick is a very personal choice. We've reviewed some practical designs in a previous post, but now we want to take a look at a few designs that are just for fun.

Celtic designs are familiar to most, and there are numerous online sites and books available that tell how to create your own Celtic knots and spirals. This type of art has a long, complex history, but for stick decorating we will keep it simple.

WOVEN KNOTS

Celtic-knot-basic-linear (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

What is commonly recognized as Celtic is made up of interlaced designs, usually a woven ribbon or cord. These Celtic knots are often closed loops, no beginning or end. This works for decorating down the length of your walking stick. Here is one method for designing your own Celtic knot, although there are plenty of others, including some that allow you to design with computer.

 NATURE

English: Vector version of a design from the Book of Kells, fol. 29r. Traced outlines in black and white representing three intertwined dogs. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Another common element, and one that works well with something as natural and basic as a hiking stick, is nature. Much Celtic artwork includes stylized animals as well as vines, and anything oak: leaves, trees, acorns. The ancient Celts revered the oak tree, and elements of oak often show up in artwork.

SPIRALS

Spirals - C or S shaped designs - are ancient, dating to prehistoric times. The Irish monks used spirals on crosses and illuminated manuscripts. Probably the best known spiral shape is the triskelon, or "Spiral of Life," which came to symbolize the Holy Trinity.

This is just a sampling of various design elements for Celtic art.

We've been copying simple Celtic knot designs onto a stick and using a pyrography tool to burn in the design. We continue to explore the possibilities.

Margaret Mills

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• Knots of Faith

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