Article written by Gary Schneider

In my last post I wrote about how the thinking around forests has literally and figuratively changed over the past few years as a result of post-tropical storm Fiona, the work of the Forestry Commission, and an increased awareness among landowners about biodiversity, wildlife enhancement, and all the ecological goods and services provided by a healthy forest.

Prince Edward Island is heading towards a more ecology-based forest policy. The first step should be understanding that we can only get to healthy forests if restoring biological diversity is built into every forest stewardship decision.

The present system of clearcutting and plantations isn’t working if the goal is to create healthy, high-value forests. There is ample evidence of shallow-rooted trees blowing over, insects and diseases attacking monocultures, and low-value wood being produced at a high cost. It is also having an impact on wildlife.

Matthew Betts, a forest researcher from New Brunswick now teaching in Oregon, has studied the effects of clearcutting on forest birds, and found that industrial forestry has simplified the structure and composition of forests. This simplification and the significant loss of older woodlands has caused a decline in 66% of our bird species. We need to do much better – diverse forests include a broad range of habitat and food sources for wildlife and that should always be our goal.

A red-eyed vireo nestling in the forest.

The other side of industrial forestry happens when we put in a plantation of one or two species of conifers. More than 30 years ago the province brought in a wildlife specialist from New Brunswick to do surveys and research. One of his reports looked at red pine plantations. He concluded that they were “biological deserts.” Unfortunately, we continued for decades planting red pine plantations. Today, we know that they have almost no value, and that is just one of the monocultures that we have been planting in this province.

So how do we get to a more diverse forest that is attractive to wildlife and has a high potential to become a valuable resource? We keep adding appropriate species to our forests, including a mix of deciduous and coniferous trees, shrubs, wildflowers, and ferns. Centuries of using forestland to grow food crops has seriously degraded our woodlands and we need to reverse this trend.

This means we need access to a much wider variety and larger numbers of native plants. For years watershed groups and private landowners have asked the province to grow more species and shift from the heavy reliance on white spruce to species such as red oak, sugar maple, white ash, red spruce, and a variety of native shrubs. The provincial nursery is already growing some excellent quality trees, including red oak, hemlock, and yellow birch. What is needed is a commitment to greatly increase the numbers and variety.

An increased availability of native plants will lead to more diverse plantings across the province. This is especially important if we have any hope of bringing back rare species such as ironwood, black ash, witch hazel, and hobblebush.

Iroonwood seeds (one of PEI's rarest native tree species)

A change of direction in what is being grown is only the first step but it will leave a legacy of healthy forests – something that we’re not seeing now.