LEAF Newsletter

Be Part of Wisconsin’s Forestry Future! Reserve Your Spot Now.

When the Wisconsin School Forest Program started almost 100 years ago in 1928 following the great cutover, Wisconsin students planted tens of thousands of trees. Those trees have grown and been managed by generations of foresters. Although long-lived, trees eventually age and decline. Seedlings from the state nursery help replace trees to supplement natural regeneration after sustainable harvest and natural decline. These seedlings also allow landowners to manage for specific goals such as improved wildlife habitat, converting marginal agricultural lands to forests, and replacing species such as ash that have succumbed to invasive species or disease.

One of the great benefits of being a registered Wisconsin School Forest is free tree seedlings from the Wisconsin state nursery. That flow of trees depends on a good source of seeds, and for decades, Wisconsin residents have supported this effort by collecting seeds and selling them to the Department of Natural Resources reforestation program.