Take a Walk Around Your Property. Don’t Bring a Chainsaw.

Field Notes | Modern Forestry Services

One of the first things I like to do with a landowner is simply walk the property.

Not mark trees. Not decide how many acres need thinning. Not start talking about equipment.

Just look.

If you own forestland, try doing the same thing sometime. Leave the chainsaw at home and walk your property as if you were seeing it for the first time.

Start With the Trees

Look up at the crowns.

Are they full and healthy, or thin and struggling? Are several trees crowded into the same space? Are younger trees growing underneath larger ones?

Then look down.

Is the ground covered with grasses and other vegetation, or mostly needles and bare soil? Are there old stumps, down logs, slash, or signs that someone worked here before?

You don’t need to know the name of everything.

You’re looking for patterns.

Then Look Beyond the Trees

Walk an old road.

Follow a drainage.

Notice where the forest changes from thick to open, or where one tree species gives way to another.

Find the biggest tree on the property!

Find a tree that’s dying and spend a minute looking at it. Is there pitch on the trunk? Insect activity? Woodpecker feeding? A damaged root? Heavy competition from surrounding trees?

Look for young trees. Wildlife sign. Places where water moves after a storm.

These small observations begin telling the story of a property.

Ask a Different Question

Landowners often ask me:

“Which trees should I cut?”

It’s a reasonable question, but I don’t think it’s always the best place to start.

A better question is:

“What is happening in my forest?”

Once we begin to understand that, decisions about thinning, fuels, wildlife habitat, erosion, roads, forest health, or even leaving an area alone, become easier to make.

Good forestry isn’t about finding an excuse to cut trees.

It’s about learning to read the land well enough to know when we should, when we shouldn’t, and why.

Try This on Your Own Property

The next time you have 30 minutes, walk through a part of your property you normally pass by.

Find one thing you haven’t really noticed before.

Maybe it’s an old stump. A patch of young trees. An unhealthy crown. A game trail. An old road. A place where the grass suddenly grows better.

Then ask yourself:

Why is this different here?

You may not know the answer.

That’s okay.

Learning to notice is where stewardship starts.

Modern Forestry Services works with landowners throughout Northern New Mexico to better understand their forests, make informed management decisions, and turn those decisions into practical stewardship on the ground.

Want another set of eyes on your forest? Sometimes the best place to start is simply walking the land together.