Nothern White Cedar Shortage in Maine

[peakbagger]

Maine's dwindling cedar supply leaves uncertain future for log home company (bangordailynews.com)

When I see these articles, I always wonder if its a case of the industry just starving the loggers long enough that they got out of the business or if its just the writing on the wall for the logging industry in Maine in general?. Not sure about northern Maine but down in Northern NH we have had 3 warmer than normal winters in row where its didnt get cold enough to head into the woods until late February. 

It also could be the resource was not managed well so the woods not there?. 

[Don P]

I see nothing on their website, they and their nationwide dealers are still selling it looks like  ???. IIRC Ward is the oldest log home kit company and they are not having trouble it sounds like. White pine is the log home tree here and it is the majority of what I see moving right now.

[Southside]

I wonder if a factor could be the clear cutting from the '80s to get ahead of the Spruce Budworm epidemic. The fir regen that came from that was so thick you literally could not see your feet.  

[PoginyHill]

There has been at least a hint of shortage here for northern white cedar. A couple local buyers bought during the summer last year, when they normally buy in the winter only. I think it may have to do with harvest activity - whether related to weather (frozen ground is often required to access where cedar grows) or simply fewer loggers around.

One of the buyers makes cedar fence, and I think their business skyrocketed in the last few years along with other home improvement related businesses.

[mudfarmer]

That's too bad, I talked with Katahdin about 5yrs back and liked what they were making :-\

Local mill here has had a hard time getting cedar for a few years. Possibly due to a shingle mill starting up, probably lots of other factors involved like less small loggers, deer related regen issues, every single white cedar that makes it to fence post size getting cut for fence posts We do not have a stick of it on our land unfortunately. The state just sold about ~1000 cords of it in part of a sale, 4-24" DBH spread.

[wisconsitom]

I can see where inability to access stands during recent too-warm winters is a factor.  More generally though, cedar regen has been problematic for decades now, due to overabundance of the whitetail rat.....er deer, some call them.

[Southside]

Whitetails are definitely not a problem in northern Maine. There are several large cedar mills right on the Maine / Quebec border, St Pamphille, Daquaam, etc. Could be that the wood is heading there these days. 

[barbender]

Reading the article, it sounds more like a problem of a lack of producers. Or, as they quoted another cedar log home place that said they're not having any supply issues, maybe Katahdin is not willing to pay what it takes to get the wood through the gates? I just know from what I've been around, when one mill says that they can't get enough wood, and their competitor says supply is good, there is typically some bad management practices at the place with supply issues🤷

 The article didn't mention anything about a lack of supply of standing timber. 

 Another thing could be the closure of other markets in Maine. Not many loggers are going to make it if all they cut is cedar for 2 months a year. Up here we have seasonal markets, like tamarack, black spruce and black ash that are basically only accessible in the hard frozen winter months. That is timber that loggers cut as a part of a broader "portfolio" of other species that keep them going year round.

 White cedar is a very limited market in MN. Most of our cedar is of poor quality, being on the margins of its range. There was one mill in Littlefork that was buying cedar, I don't know if they are still operational or not. 

 Once you start getting up towards the Canadian border the quality of the cedar improves. I just cut a sale about 70 miles NE of my home that had decent, not great cedar that was reserved on the sale (tamarack sale) but we still ended up cutting a bit for access. I think I brought 8.3 cords home😁

[SwampDonkey]

Most of the big stands of cedar are clear cut off now. Ward always got a lot of cedar from New Brunswick over the years. We probably had 100 acres of mature cedar on the farm one time, sold logs and rails, most all went to Maine. Buyers are so used to getting cedar cheaply, maybe the loggers couldn't make it pencil out anymore. Those big stands of cedar are a lot more scarce. Some stands had 36" cedar, the really wet ones never had much over 16". Ours was mostly in between, cedar up to 26" or so.

When thinning with clearing saws on private ground at least, we are told to leave the cedar unless a thicket. My ground has lots of cedar, no deer to amount to much. Never any in the winter. Just an old bull moose up there this winter. He likes to break off post sized ones once in awhile. And some of the breaking is by bears (claw marks). They all have fun. :D

Context. These haven't been cut off yet that I know of. This was part of the farm.



 There was always a big aspen here and there among it.

I planted spruce in this cedar slash, 10 years after it was cut. Right now there is probably 2000 cedar in there for every spruce tree. :D





Even more than in this photo. I thinned it. But there was even more ingrowth since.

[barbender]

Donk, I've never seen a cedar stand like that here. It's almost always a part of a mixed stand. Looks like nice stuff👍

[SwampDonkey]

Nice to walk in in the winter time, like a park.

[SwampDonkey]

And next to that plantation. I did fill in some spruce in through it.





A little thinning project some spring or fall. ;D Not a big stand, but needs spaced. I have another stand on over the other side of it that is bigger trees, fence post sized. Thinned it already.

[peakbagger]

I maintain part of the Appalachian Trail boundary in western Maine. I have some very large white cedars in small clusters right on the boundary. At best they will be in 50 to 100 foot radius patches up on a steep mountainside. Not a lot of small ones just 20" to 30" trees. I always thought they grew in swamps.   

[47sawdust]

Our local sawmills saw a lot of cedar for uses other than log home construction.A lot of my customers prefer white cedar decking over PT.If I don't buy in April or May it might not be available.

[wisconsitom]

In favored areas WC occurs on upland sites as well as swamps.  

[SwampDonkey]

I always thought they grew in swamps.  

Nope, the upland white cedars here grow with red maples, yellow birch and ash. Here's a 36" one and all those broom sticks are maples. Quite often there is a lot of red spruce and fir to. Not this place, it was  predominately maples.





This is the Napadogan region and there are big cedars there.

The difficult places to get cedar back are the real wet sites. They tend to spread by layering. Not a very good seed bed. The cedar will establish on raised spots, often an old tree or stump that elevates it. The roots mostly spread on top of the ground, seeking the high spots, no lack of water.

Like were that spruce was planted above in the slash, doesn't look like a cedar anywhere. Then boom your overtaken. Took a good 20 years, to get the 'boom'. You don't notice cedar seedlings much when it looks like moss from 10 feet. :D