Oak Conifer Restoration

Lake County, a Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified land manager, is restoring and enhancing 313 acres by creating mixed hardwood, inclduing oak, and conifer forest stands which provide habitat and food needs for many wildlife species, 35 of which are listed as a Species in Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN). The project will create multiple areas of a mixture of spruce, pine, and oak within existing Northern Hardwood stands. Increasing the conifer closer to pre-settlement and historic logging is a landscape goal of Northeast Minnesota. Oak is being planted for wildlife food benefits and in an effort to practice adaptive management for climate change. Planting these areas with conifer and oak provides under-represented habitat, provides food for many wildlife species, and prepares for predicted climate change.