Image provided by: Friends of the Sandy Public Library; Sandy, OR
About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 21, 1978)
w i n WWW) r * * • • r * 9 *.*.* * t f iry y |r r » * Thur« Sept 21, 1878 ($•< I) SANDY (O r»., POST— ' Forest Service harvests cones for seeds The U S. Forest Service has its own version of "coneheads.” They’re not aliens with pointed heads claiming to be from France, a la “ Saturday Night Live,” but forest technicians working to ensure that an ample supply of seeds w ill be available for planting Gathering cones for seeds is not an idle pastime, but an important aspect of reforestation and a very competitive venture among private companies such as Weyerhauser. Private individuals have also gotten into the act, selling cones to nurseries who usually pay $5-7 per bushel Approximately 100 cones, depending on size, comprise a bushel. The Forest Service also used to pay individuals for cones, a practice it has continued in recent years, according to Shelley Butler, a forest technician at the Zigzag Ranger Station “ We get all our own cones except those we trade with other districts,” Butler said. “ The Forest Service used to buy from other people, but it couldn't track the seed source. “ A lot of people would bring in cones from other areas,” she added. Cones need to be traced to a specific area so that their seeds can be planted in a location with a sim ilar climate, elevation and soil type. Cones are being sought by the various Forest Service districts in the north west. The Zigzag district has a surplus of Douglas F ir seeds and is concerned p rim arily with obtaining cones from Noble Firs. Retrieving the cones is no easy task. The seeds are ready for picking for one month only in the fall when 50 percent of the shells have seeds in them. Since climbing the trees is the major method of retrieving the cones in this area, climbers must wait until a good, dry day. This year the rain has limited the crew out of Zigzag Tuesday was the first day that Butler and forest technician Dave Hanken could scale the 120 foot Noble firs to throw the cones to the ground Their method is easy. They select a tree loaded with cones and Hanken climbs to the top, aided with equipment sim ilar to that of a mountain climber He throws a couple of cones down to Butler who checks to see if the seed percentage is high enough to continue the harvest. If so, Hanken w ill throw or shake nearly every cone down from the tree, usually about three bushels. Other areas use different methods, such as mechanical climbers or tree shakers, but the trees in the Zigzag district are too large or too isolated for these tactics. From the Kinzel Lake area, where Butler and Hanken collected three bushels, the cones w ill go to the Columbia Gorge district, where the cones w ill be placed on racks to dry for 1-2 weeks. They w ill be examined by a state seed certifier who w ill document the source and type of the cone. From there, the cones w ill be sent to the Wind River Nursery in Carson, Wash., where the seeds are extracted from the cones. The nursery w ill develop them into seedlings, holding the young trees for two years until a district puts in a request during planting time. Eventually, the seedlings w ill replace trees which have been logged or bur ned. So the next time you see a guy in a forest service outfit at the top of a 100- foot Noble F ir don’t be alarmed, he’s just your average conehead. S to ry and photos b y M a rk F lo yd ** Dave Hanken picks at the 100-foot level. Rapelling is a fast way down, if there are no limbs. SEWING MACHINE I <■ I J j - ’’Shop & Compare. . .We’re Lowest!” -- > Cones should be 50 percent full of seeds. Now YOU can enjoy good nutrition 4-wheelers to gather Four-wheel-drivers from Salem to Seattle w ill gather at the Gresham Fairgrounds Sunday to oppose a federal proposal to convert more than 13 m illio n P a cific Northwest acres to wilderness. SHOE REPAIR M X to M tlF F W a « ia > . Tla tfcaa ta p a lr • Gt*» I l ia * I Maoarana H a a U ............................................ ‘ t dV t M anilla Haait ................................................. ’ 1 I M aol.ia % I o l a * .......................... ............... ' I f t F( . laothar . to la « ...............................................'7 M Fr • M aolitaHaal« .............................................. M .d V F r • M a o lti. , to la « ............................................. ' i t t F r • la o H ia r s tola« ..........................................'d V V Fr lto la « M a a < ....................................... M t M F r K WESTERN TIP 38811 Proctor 8lvd . Sondy 11 o.m. ■ 3 p m I---------------------CaUNRSKCltL----------. SPECIAL HEALTH EQUIPMENT WATER DISTILLERS VEGETABLE JUICERS FOOD DRIERS FLOUR MILLS WHEAT GRASS JUICERS NATURAL VITAMINS SUNSHINE HERBS - V.E. IRON PRODUCTS LARGE VARIETY OF HEALTH BOOKS *199" (With trade.) 775-9583 or 771-3933 Tom I Joan Burgess (TSP Elna pictured) No. 21 No. 72 TSP Elna ElnaZZ WITH CASE W ith Case - Save ‘ 179 J ■ 4 SALE tauwt— - - - - - • • • • • • • • • SAVE M U FT3 R US. Rep. Les Aucoin has said he w ill attend the rally and speakers w ill include representatives from the governor’s office and Joe Poppino from the Forest S ervice’s P ortland office. Poppino is the RARE II coordinator for the Pacific The press conference and Northwest region. rally is set for 1 p m and is Four wheel-drive assoc sponsored by the Pacific iation members are planning N orthwest 4-Wheel D rive convoys to the rally, one Association representing s ta rtin g in Seattle and members in Oregon, Washington and Idaho A p icking up members in Tacoma, Longview and spokesperson said F rid a y that 5,000 persons are ex Vancouver, and another coming north from Salem pected for the rally. and collecting support up the The group is gathering to valley. voice its feelings about the The forest service has been U S. Forest Service study on conducting a review and RARE H evaluation of roadless areas, and Oct. 1 is the end of the RARE 11 (Roadless Area period for comments and Review and Evaluation) is a study being conducted on 2 9 proposals from the public. million acres in Oregon, 2 6 Some of the areas w ill be proposed for w ilderness, million acres in Washignton and 8 million acres in Idaho others fo r non-wilderness with the possibility of these purposes, and some w ill need further study. Worthington lands being converted to said wilderness In your ow n home, w ith : SALE No. 62 SU Elna with Case! WHITE 710 FIRST LADY With Case SAVE »179 Inte rested in Q u iltin g ? OCTOBER CLASS SCHEDULES: — Sign up now! Kay Daniels, Instructor * Folded Star Class • Oct 3 or 24 ($7 SO) 1 C lm i 7 to 8 p m * Beginning Quilting - O c t.8 ($ 18 00) 5 W»«fc« 7 to 8 p.m. SA LE S A L E ft J«0«0 Vlonwr Bird.. Sandy. O» «7OSS .*»-7«O»
