Forest health demo project begins

A smokejumper treats an infected larch tree.

A project that will demonstrate the effects of different types of forest management got underway last week in the Metolius Basin.

The advocacy group Friends of the Metolius, in partnership with the US Forest Service, envisioned the Metolius Heritage Demonstration Project.

The project, located in the vicinity of the junction of Roads 1419 and 1420 in the heart of Camp Sherman, is made up of ten small units.

Treatment alternatives over the next year will include thinning, prescribed fire, mowing, thinning and larch restoration.

Larch restoration treatment started as Redmond smoke jumpers pruned Western larch infected with mistletoe. The jumpers scaled the larch and cut out infected or potentially infected limbs.

The goal is to remove the mistletoe, a fungus, so that it may not infect other nearby larch trees and especially larch seedling. A second part of the larch restoration will be prescribed burning of the area.

Larch likes bare mineral soil to get started.

Smoke jumpers are highly skilled at climbing trees. When they parachute into a fire and land in a tree, they then rappel down to the fire.

After controlling the fire, they must climb back up the tree to retrieve their parachute.

The next Metolius Heritage Demonstration activity will be the mowing of several units this week.

Upon completion of all activities, the public will have an opportunity to observe the reduction of trees in an overcrowded forest, the reduction in disease, and the reduction of fire hazards on the special units through the use of a variety of treatment tools.

The public is welcome to watch the progress at the demonstration sites.Questionsmay be addressed to www.metoliusfriends.org.