Recent Forestry News

Longleaf Grafting 101

Longleaf Grafting 101

April 18, 2022 - By Jim Schroering, DOF Longleaf Pine Coordinator and Ellen Powell, DOF Conservation Education Coordinator Forestry usually takes place on a landscape scale. But some forestry work requires meticulous attention to detail. Just ask the team of DOF staff who recently undertook the painstaking process of grafting longleaf pines. Grafting requires splicing a scion – a growing stem with desired characteristics – onto an established rootstock of the same species. You... Read More

Thinning Out Southern Pine Beetle

Thinning Out Southern Pine Beetle

April 7, 2022 - By Katlin Dewitt, DOF Forest Health Specialist The southern pine beetle (SPB) is the most destructive native insect that threatens pine forests in the Southeast. These tiny insects, about the size of a grain of rice as adults, are especially harmful due to the complex system of pheromones (insect “scents” that are specific to a species) they utilize to find host trees and aggregate. Pheromones allow populations to build up... Read More

A Pollinator Primer

A Pollinator Primer

March 28, 2022 - By Scott Bachman, DOF Senior Area Forester Recently, I attended the Virginia Association of Forest Health Professionals meeting held in Staunton, VA.  There were many great topics discussed over the day and a half long conference.  I will admit I was there for the pesticide recertification credits I could earn. You never know what you will get when you attend a pesticide recertification meeting, but this agenda was quite varied... Read More

Wake Up, Seedlings!

Wake Up, Seedlings!

March 14, 2022 - By Todd Groh, DOF Forest Resource Management Program Manager Can you feel it? The temperatures are rising and the daylight is lingering. New life is pushing up through the once cold soils, and we’re seeing the yellow blooms of daffodils across the Commonwealth. Spring is almost here, and the trees know it too. Red maples are often the first trees to wake up in Virginia forests and along roadways, their... Read More

New Life for Old Trees

New Life for Old Trees

March 9, 2022 - By Meghan Mulroy-Goldman, DOF Community Forestry Specialist Spend some time in Hampton Roads, Virginia, and you will probably notice that there is a lot of water. Where there’s a lot of water, there are also a lot of boats. In Hampton Roads, this means everything from small kayaks to massive aircraft carriers and everything in between. In fact, Hampton Roads is home to Newport News Shipbuilding, Norfolk Naval Shipyard, and... Read More

Spotted Lanternfly Egg Mass Scouting - DIY!

Spotted Lanternfly Egg Mass Scouting – DIY!

February 23, 2022 - By Lori Chamberlin, DOF Forest Health Manager If you are in search of a fun winter activity, look no further! The spotted lanternfly (or SLF, for short), an invasive insect that was discovered in Virginia in 2018, continues to spread, and we need your help finding egg masses. Spotted lanternfly egg masses are laid in the fall, survive through the winter, and then hatch in the spring. Each egg mass... Read More

Springtime in February?

Springtime in February?

February 11, 2022 - By Ellen Powell, DOF Conservation Education Coordinator   Nothing says springtime like birds carrying food to the young in their nests. Wait, it’s not spring; it’s February. Birds aren’t nesting yet…or are they? Most birds do wait until warmer months to begin raising young. One reason is better availability of high quality food for the nestlings. Almost all of our songbirds and gamebirds feed their young insects, a high protein... Read More

How Do Trees Survive the Winter?

How Do Trees Survive the Winter?

February 3, 2022 - By Cory Swift-Turner, DOF Public Information Specialist – Have you ever looked at a tree covered in snow and wondered, how do trees survive cold winters? Trees face several challenges to their survival in the winter, including scarce liquid water, freezing temperatures and strong winds. To meet these challenges, trees have developed a number of adaptations to help them make it to the next spring. Since the harsh, dry conditions... Read More

Urban Trees "Releave" the Heat

Urban Trees “Releave” the Heat

January 28, 2022 - By Eli Podyma, DOF Community Forester A large part of my work as a community forester involves collaborating with local non-profit organizations to protect and enhance the urban forest canopy. One of these organizations, Southside Releaf, was recently featured on an episode of Virginia Homegrown, speaking about their mission to build a healthy, equitable, and sustainable environment for all South Richmond residents. Sheri Shannon, co-founder of Southside Releaf, mentioned partnering... Read More

A Natural Partnership

A Natural Partnership

January 25, 2022 - By Ellen Powell, DOF Conservation Education Coordinator This is a tale of partnership, program creation, and a great idea brought to life. Early in 2004, Dr. Jeff Kirwan of Virginia Tech heard about a new volunteer program that had taken root in several states – one with enormous potential benefit for Virginia’s natural resources. In a matter of weeks, he pulled together a group of seven motivated worker bees and... Read More