Healthy Forests

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From Missouri Conservationist: Jan 2008
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Our Glorious Forests: Three Creeks CA

Size: 1,500 acres

Location: Boone County, 5 miles south of Columbia on Highway 63, then 3 miles west on Deer Park Road

Highlights: Forest, restored native grassland and karst. Facilities and features include primitive camping, hiking, bicycle/horse trails and three intermittent streams: Turkey, Bass and Bonne Femme creeks.

Find more info: Call (573) 884-6861, or visit  our online atlas, keywords "Three Creeks"

Unless you’re a scientist, you might not be familiar with the term “karst.” This German word from Slovene dialect refers to a limestone region with sinkholes, underground streams and caverns. Karst resembles a big, stiff sponge that soaks up water and any pollutants it carries. What’s the best way to conserve karst and its groundwater? Preserve its thick, protective cover—otherwise known as forests and grasslands. A good example of forest-covered karst is Three Creeks Conservation Area. This rugged land features scenic bluffs, intermittent streams, geologic formations and old Eastern red cedar trees. However, when the Department of Conservation purchased Three Creeks, the land showed extensive sheet and gully erosion, the result of decades of logging, grazing and burning. Today public ownership ensures that Three Creeks’ forest is managed for watershed health and wildlife benefits, and its karst is protected from development.

We All Live in a Forest

Make the most of your woodlands this winter.

MU Extension’s Missouri Woodland Steward program and the annual Missouri Woodland Owners’ Conference are designed to help landowners increase both habitat value and income.

The Missouri Woodland Steward program offers three ways to learn about basic forestry and wildlife management. The first is a series of four indoor evening sessions ending with a Saturday “Walk in the Woods.” The final field component demonstrates practices introduced in the classroom. Second, a DVD package allows landowners to learn woodland management basics at home. Third, an online format offers something in between the live workshops and the DVDs.

For a current listing of upcoming live sessions, which range in price from $30 to $50, see the links listed below. Order the DVD set ($40 plus tax and shipping and handling) from MU Extension at (800) 292-0969, or online. To register for the online version ($80 and includes the DVD set), visit online and type “Woodland Steward” into the search window.

Register now for the annual Missouri Woodland Owners’ Conference slated for Feb. 22–23 in Columbia. This year’s topics include an update on state forestry law revisions, carbon credits, how to sell your timber, planning your timber harvest, and CSI: The Forest. Visit online, or call Glenda at (573) 634-3252.

This Issue's Staff

Editor in Chief - Ara Clark
Managing Editor - Nichole LeClair
Art Director - Cliff White
Writer/editor - Tom Cwynar
Staff Writer - Bonnie Chasteen
Staff Writer - Jim Low
Staff Writer - Arleasha Mays
Photographer - Noppadol Paothong
Photographer - David Stonner
Designer - Stephanie Ruby
Artist - Dave Besenger
Artist - Mark Raithel
Circulation - Laura Scheuler