A forested stand with fewer quality trees is often healthier than a forested stand with a greater density. Small-acreage landowners should consider using the Timber Stand Improvement Method.

While implementing habitat improvements on a small property can provide homes to small mammals, songbirds, reptiles and amphibians, the home ranges of large mammals and several birds often encapsulate several hundred acres.

Pine straw production, timber sales and wildlife management will top the list of topics at the Agroforestry and Wildlife Field Day slated for Thursday, Sept. 20, at the University of Georgia’s Westbrook Research Farm in Griffin, Georgia.

Proper management of a pine stand requires thinning in order to prevent disease and insect infestation and to maximize profit. Thinning is the process of cutting or removing certain trees from a stand to regulate the number, quality and distribution of the remaining trees.

Southern Regional Extension Forestry (SREF), in collaboration with eXtension, an online learning resource for Cooperative Extension System professionals, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, have launched the Climate Learning Network (CLN) website, climatelearning.net, as a clearinghouse for the most up-to-date information for farmers, homeowners, natural resources professionals and Extension personnel.

You took time to select and decorate the perfect live Christmas tree for the holiday. Now put a little forethought and time into recycling it. University of Georgia Extension offers suggestions on how to creatively recycle this year’s Christmas tree.

Container-grown or balled-and-burlapped Christmas trees can be planted as landscape trees after the holidays. This way of enjoying a Christmas tree is practical in Georgia, where the mild December or early January weather is ideal for tree planting. With care and planning, your Christmas tree will serve as a living memory for many years.

Before buying a pre-cut Christmas tree, put it through a few freshness tests, says University of Georgia Extension Agent Adam Speir. Christmas trees can be kept healthy and green through the holidays by following these tips.

Led by increases in forestry and livestock values, Georgia’s agricultural output increased by $484 million in 2014, making agriculture, once again, the largest industry in the state with a value of $14.1 billion. According to the most recent University of Georgia Farmgate Value Report, published earlier this month, the value of Georgia’s livestock and aquaculture industries increased by almost 36 percent from 2013.