This is a portion of the view out our front window. Those are beautiful White and Douglas Firs, some of them very tall and thick. We fell in love with this piece of property because it allowed us to live in the forest, and looking out at this view is wonderful.
I noticed before we moved up that three of the largest trees next to the creek had died some time ago and were now just spars. Because we use our wood stove for heat I asked the project foreman of an outfit doing some logging up the road last month to stop by to see if his guys would drop them for me (WAY over my skill level) so I could then cut them up and turn them into stove wood. He came with his head cutter, and that's when I got the bad news. The increasing number of dead branches I was seeing on the surrounding trees was an omen.
The culprit is an insect known as the engraver beetle. It strikes fir trees, and over the last few decades has moved from the east coast to the west. It's about 1/8" long and lives inside fir trees except the months from June to October when it takes wing for its breeding cycle.
The living part of a tree trunk is a thin layer between the bark and the wood known as the cambium, which carries water and nutrients up and down. It tastes good to the engraver beetle, so it burrows in and eats that layer, and that layer only. It gets its name from the tunnels in the cambium it leaves behind.
Note: the following pics were taken of the trees in those first two pics, the trees between MoHo and the creek.
At this point the tree looks perfectly healthy and will even produce the normal new growth in the spring.
That little spot is so small that I never would have noticed it if the cutter hadn't pointed it out to me, but once I knew what to look for I began to notice them...all over.
I don't know if they send out an email to their friends or lay a gazillion eggs, but the next step is what looks like dried mud on the bark of the tree. That's more cambium and beetle poop kicked out from under the bark. But again, if it hadn't been pointed out to me I'm not sure I would have ever paid it any attention.
At this point branches will begin to die, starting from the lower and moving to the upper part of the tree.
Eventually the beetles do what's called girdling. They chew through the cambium all around the tree interrupting the flow of water and nutrients. The tree starves to death because that critical flow is stopped.
At this point the branches all die and the bark begins to fall off.
And when it's all off you can see why it's called the engraver beetle. It's those horizontal tunnels that do the real damage.
Unfortunately, the outcome is all but determined as soon as that first beetle enters the tree and leaves the little light brown spot that tells of its presence. Some Douglas fir trees can fight off the invasion if other environmental conditions are ideal, but White Firs are especially susceptible.
At the recommendation of that project foreman I asked Robin B. to come out. She's the regional rep for the OR Dept. of Forestry, was here as promised this morning at 9 a.m., and spent a lot of time saying, "This is SO sad." All of the trees in those first pics and many more over our three acres show signs of infestation. "These are great trees. Look how big and thick that one is!" Followed by another, "This is so sad."
There's only one solution: cut them all down. And the wood has to either be removed or cut & split for firewood. The latter is out of the question; I have neither the skill nor the space to do that. Many of these trees, if dropped without the requisite skill and equipment would lay right across MoHo, or Fred, or Mi Gallanero. This is going to require a commercial enterprise, a logging outfit, and some equipment of significant size.
Robin says the infestation is undoubtedly sufficient to get me a special exemption from the state laws governing the removal of trees that normally requires 50% of standing timber be left in place if it's next to a significant watershed (our creek). But she has to run that through the state office in Salem. Then I have to find a logging outfit that will take on a job this small, one where the cost of getting the equipment in is going to be close to any profit they'll make from the trees that still have useable (they use the term merchantable) wood. Robin has some recommendations that we hope will bear fruit (pun?). That's critical, because in our current state of belt tightening we can't afford to do anything that involves cash-out-of-pocket. So if/when we get a permit from the state I'll contact her recommended timber companies and hope at least one of them decides there's enough "merch" wood to at least cover the costs of removal.
And we'll end up with a large portion of our lot clear cut.
I HATE clear cut.
Pam and I have decided to label this an unfortunate opportunity. We'll have a large area that's now shaded woods that will suddenly get lots of afternoon sun. Fruit trees? Replant Douglas Fir seedlings? A goat pen?
I dunno. We never imagined anything like this scenario and we still have several steps before we're near a resolution. The first is to wait for Robin to call back with the results of her conversation with the state guys in Salem, and assuming that goes well I start contacting timber outfits.
Oh, BTW, Robin says the best course of action may be to take out ALL the conifers on both sides of the creek, all three acres, to have as much merch timber as possible (increase the profit margin) and stop the spread.
I'm talking to myself. I'm reminding myself that God knew all about the engraver beetles when we first saw this property and put in an offer. That he knows exactly what we're going to hear from the timber companies, and that the One who planted these trees on this beautiful piece of property will give us wisdom for whatever comes next.
But I agree with Robin. They are beautiful giant fir trees, and this is so sad.
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