Choosing and Preparing the Site

The choice of tracts for a fuelwood plantation will be influenced by ecological considerations and alternative land uses. Bottomlands, hillsides, shelterbelt strips, fencerows, roadsides, and poor or eroded soils are all suitable. Planted as a shelterbelt upwind of crops, a strip of fast-growing cottonwoods not only produces fuelwood, but may increase the yields of the protected crops.

As with any crop, the productivity of trees will be limited by basic site characteristics-soil fertility, available light, temperature, rainfall, and weed competition. However, many fastgrowing trees are more tolerant of poor conditions than are traditional agricultural crops. For dry sites, you may have to build firebreaks and provide water during droughts, but with these efforts, even dry sites may be used for fuelwood plantations.

In a general publication of this sort, it is difficult to be specific about the total acreage that one should plant. Your decision will depend on your fuel needs, the productivity of your land, the species you choose and its rotation length, and alternative land uses and fuel sources.

Foresters in Michigan (see Sources) estimate that three acres of hybrid poplars or northern red oaks will produce a continuous supply of wood to fuel an efficient airtight stove for an entire heating season, starting in the tenth year for a poplar plantation and in the fifteenth year for an oak plantation. Extension foresters in Iowa suggest a five- to ten-acre plantation with harvests starting after five to seven years. Publications from both states suggest staggering the planting of fuelwood plantations: for example, planting just one-fifth to one-third of the plantation each year. This tactic will spread out establishment costs, labor, and harvesting over several years.

Land is prepared for fuelwood forests in much the same manner as it is for other crops: it is cleared, plowed up with a moldboard plow, and then disked. It is important to have an even surface if you will be using a commercial, nursery-type transplanter for planting the trees. It is a good idea to test the fertility of your soil. If it is deficient in nutrients, add the recommended amounts of fertilizer, but do not overfertilize. Overfertilization encourages weeds and discourages the natural soil-enriching activity of nitrogen-fixing trees.

Initial preparation of the planting site is extremely important because it is the key to reducing weeds, the primary cause of plantation failure. Cut or burn off the brush in the summer or fall before planting time, and then begin weed control measures. If time allows, fallowing and several diskings are desirable in the summer before the planting year to reduce the population of weed seeds. This technique is inexpensive and avoids the use of chemicals, but it is also time consuming. An alternative is to apply a nonselective contact herbicide in the fall to the rows or actual spots where trees will be planted. Herbicide application followed by plowing after the herbicide has taken effect is recommended by Michigan extension foresters (see Sources). Another approach would combine plowing in the fall and spot- or strip-spraying with a preemergence herbicide in the early spring.

If you do use herbicides, be sure to follow all label instructions and control application rates carefully. Avoid the use of herbicides whenever or wherever there is a chance of contaminating nearby areas. More information on this subject can be found in Use of Herbicides in Establishing Woody Plants (see Sources).

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