If you own or engage a wooded property , you might think timber is the No . 1 product to reap and sell . But do n’t overlook the time value of an inviolate forest . Trees furnish numerous ecosystem welfare including clean air , water filtration , prevention of territory erosion and carbon segregation , yet there is much more to a forest than timber .
There ’s a mart for just about anything you’re able to think of that live in a timber . The terminal figure used for this view of using hazardous country for income is non - timber timberland products , or NTFP for short . Also live as forest agriculture , it is a character of agroforestry that focuses on ware such as high - value specialisation crops such asmushrooms , ornamental pieces and medicinal plant .
The practice of NTFP are ancient , but there are newfangled educational and community opportunities imprint . Here are some of the good emerging resource for digging late into your forest property and learning how to cultivate , sustain , regenerate and earn income from your good land stewardship .
Index to NTFP Documents
This websiteis a clearinghouse of NTFP information published across the U.S. Many of the materials are specific to the Pacific Northwest , but some great general information is let in as well . Some examples are birch barque excerption , ejaculate appeal and vines for wreaths . Browsing through this page is great for stimulating ideas and trigger your imagery about unparalleled products your land provides freely .
Appalachian Sustainable Development
unequaled to the southeast U.S.,Appalachian Sustainable Developmentprovides helpful publications such asForest botanical : Income Opportunities in the Forest Understoryand a list of vendee for ginseng ( pictured below ) . The organization offer practical guidance on marketing and packaging delicate intersection such as shiitake mushrooms . Appalachian Sustainable Development also align in - somebody meeting that get in touch growers to buyers in the region . Incentives for beginning woodland farmers admit a cost - parcel program and help with NTFP processing and selling . Shutterstock
The University of Missouri Center for Agroforestry
Mizzou has awealth of scientific research and issue , and even a high-pitched school curriculum for teaching agroforestry . you could shop its list of published reports on merchandise you might have never deal , such as fateful truffle polish . you may also sign up to receive one of its newssheet and read about speciality , such as pawpaw beer . If you need to scale up your skills and devote serious study to forest husbandry , view itsonline master ’s degreein agroforestry .
University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension
Not every state ’s cooperative extension phone include forestry , much less agroforestry . as luck would have it for the southeast , NTFP is a matter of expertness atUniversity of Kentucky Cooperative Extension . publication that limn best practices for locating wild ginseng and for cultivating wild - simulated ginseng , for example , have been provided to the populace since the 1980s and update every few year . Another helpful example is a shiitake yield workbook . These and more can be found on itspublications page . Shutterstock
Conservation of forests is not just about saving the trees . It take a ethnical fracture to rate the community of diverse and dynamic plants , animals , minerals and landforms , not to note the unquantifiable experience of just being in a forest . as well , it is authoritative to connect with a living biotic community of forest gardeners to learn and partake technique and resources for cumulate products . If you are golden enough to have access to woodlands and prefer to explore products other than lumber , you could have a lucrative and thriving partnership with nature for many years to come .
Shutterstock
Shutterstock
