Manage Pine plantation

[OutdoorLovin]

Good morning, New member 1st post.

Seeking some well-seasoned advice...
I am thinning a 30 yr old white/red pine plantation in Wisconsin. My goal is habitat improvement, not marketable lumber. I am only taking smaller trees (most under12")and am looking to move the logs so as not to encourage bark beetles and I do not burn.  Couple of questions...
1. How far do 8.5 foot bark-on logs need to be moved from standing timber to minimize bark beetle (and other pest) risks? Can I leave slash and branches under 4" in standing timber?
2. Does removing bark; cutting crescent slabs off edges and squaring up logs, eliminate bark beetle problems. I could use post/beams for projects
3. Do I need to be concerned about cutting above 40F due to fungal transmission (Heterobasidion, annosum root rot, etc)? I immediately spray cut stump with borax soap solution. Was told by forester works as well as expensive logging specific sprays.

Thanks for your input.

I also have some questions about saws and milling.
-David

[Texas Ranger]

Bark beetles do not infest dead timber.  Damage done in logging encourage bark beetles, unless your bark beetles are a lot different than ours, we used cut and leave to kill a bug spot.

[OutdoorLovin]

Thank you.
From original post: My goal is habitat improvement, not marketable lumber. I am only taking smaller trees (most under12") and am looking to move the logs so as not to encourage bark beetles and I do not burn.

There is not much local market for pulp/small logs, and most people do not like to burn pine in woodstoves

My overall goal is to "artificially age" my 30yr old plantation. I was told that leaving fresh logs/slash in standing timber can attract bark beetles to the site and lead to tree infestation. We are currently in moderate drought conditions and trees may be stressed. I would like to know if there is some safe distance away from standing timber to stack fresh cut logs. And if under 4" tops/slash present problems if left on forest floor.
Thank you for further thoughts

[barbender]

Yes, fresh logs over a certain diameter (3-4" I think) will be infested by bark beetles. I don't know how far from the stand you would have to take the removed wood to keep the beetles from infesting the live timber. 

Our pine logging contracts specify that all cut pine products must be hauled with two weeks during spring and summer months, to prevent beetle outbreaks.

[OutdoorLovin]

Thank you for quick replies

[OutdoorLovin]

What about Q' 2 and 3 from original post?
2. Remove bark edges?
3. Heterobasidion/fungus and borax treatment?

[beenthere]

I'm curious, what "habitat" are you trying to improve? 

[barbender]

I think the easiest solution would be to pile and burn, or chip the material. 

[SwampDonkey]

Ambrosia will definitely attack freshly cut logs as they are still green. You'll have cinnamon piles at the holes. Also sawyer beetles like fresh logs. These insects won't attack healthy trees. 

Pine beetles typically hit hard pines, southern hard pines, and mountain pine beetle hit western lodgepole pine and jack pine. Mountain pine beetle populations crashed since 2019 in the west. These insects hit trees that are stressed or over mature and in decline. However, in huge outbreaks they will hit healthy trees with brute force and kill them to. Unless your in a zone of a large outbreak of pine beetle it's not a big deal.

Engraver beetles can hit white pine, spruce, tamarack, but prefer red or jack pine (hard pine). Typically dying or stressed trees are hit.

I wouldn't worry so much about beetles going from logs to healthy standing trees. If I was gong to the bother of cutting sizeable wood, I'd find a way to make heat off them. That will depend on how much ground you have to thin out to and what your time frame is. Wasting wood is unheard of in these parts, but market restraints can make a man rethink it, that's for sure. I thin my ground all the time here, and I burn it all for heat.

[Magicman]

Here in the South, Longhorn Beetle grubs will infest underneath the bark and bore pencil size holes into the logs usually about 2-3" deep.  I prefer to saw SYP logs after they have lain for a couple of months and the bark has loosened.  Perfect for me is when there is still moisture and the innerbark and logs will be slick and black.  I then will see 1/4" 1/2" grubs before they damage the logs.  When they get larger you can easily hear them crunching from 10' away.

The above won't do much to answer your questions, but just stating what Longhorn beetles will do to downed timber.  I don't know that they are any threat to standing live timber.

[barbender]

I've seen aerial photos of the results of leaving large piles of fresh cut wood on site in a red pine plantation. All the standing trees within a certain radius of the pile were dead. The beetles lay eggs on the fresh cut wood, and then when the eggs hatch the young beetles go for the nearest wood. They overwhelm the nearest trees.

[OutdoorLovin]

Sounds like good advice for the beetles. On the fungus front... will spraying borax solution immediately on cut stump be an effective treatment. I also cut base in two stages; placing a 8-10" cookie atop of cut/treated trunk at ground level with the intent of physically blocking spores as well. I generally cut in winter anyway.
Thanks

[Ianab]

The fungus is going to be breaking down stumps / slash / roots etc at some stage, you can't avoid that unless you remove or burn the wood. But the way fungus works is that it grows through the dead wood, and once it's gained enough energy it puts out the visible "spore" bodies (mushrooms etc). The spores from those then get blown around and some find a new home. Rinse and repeat. 

Healthy trees are exposed to fungal spores all the time (well any mushroom season), and shrug them off, unless there is a weak spot / wound that they can get a start in. Even then the tree will try and compartmentalize that area to slow the spread into healthy wood. 

So I don't think trying to stop fungus in the stumps is going to achieve anything, unless you basically pressure treat it and make it toxic enough to resist rot. Then you have probably created new problems. Otherwise, it's going to start growing mushrooms once the weather warms up or the borate washes off. This is just the natural cycle of things, otherwise the forest would be littered with dead trees / logs / stumps for ever. 

Pine makes really good "campfire" wood as it burns easily with a nice cheery flame. Sure you need more volume of wood for the same heat, but dry weight wise most woods have about the same heat content. Naturally a chunk of denser hardwood weighs 2x as much, so you get 2x the heat from it. Locally pine is the most common firewood, but it's only worth 1/2 the dollars per cubic meter, because you only get 1/2 the heat compared to a denser wood. But there is no reason you can't collect and burn it yourself, even if selling it is difficult. Hence the "campfire wood" angle, where you sell it by the bundle or sack. Or wait till near the end of Winter, if you have ANY dry wood then, someone will be cold enough to buy it. 

[Tarm]

If you cut the pine tress in September or October it will be to late (cold)in the year for the beetles to infest them. By next spring the felled trees will be to dry for the beetles to use. Beetles need both fresh wood and warm temperatures to reproduce. Now if you limb up the larger logs it will take longer for them to dry out increasing the risk. Cut them up the second year after they have dried out.