It’s no secret that tree cutting strategies play a big role in the log’s ultimate value. But unless you spend your days in the woods around loggers, you may not know some of the strategies we use to cut trees to their highest value. Here are a few examples:

This first image shows blocks that were cut from the end of the tree. By cutting these blocks, this particular log lost volume, however, its grade was improved. With that grade jump, the overall value of the log increased. Should the log have been cut shorter to begin with? It may have been miss cut because of the flair or bulge on the bottom left side of the butted piece. But by removing those blocks, even though volume was decreased, the grade improved, and consequently, its value.  

Do you have a mandatory thinning or harvest due for your property enrolled in the MFL program? Could you benefit from talking to an experienced forester about managing your cut? We can help!

As a landowner, you no doubt have goals for your property. As experienced foresters, our team can ensure your land objectives and MFL program requirements are met. Whether increasing wildlife and recreational opportunities or creating income, utilizing a forester’s skills before, during and after a harvest can help ensure the health and productivity of your woodlot. 

What can our team of foresters do for you?

• Setup and administration of your MFL harvest, from filling notices, timber marking, boundary setup, harvesting operations, to prompt payment
• Maximize long term financial returns from your forest, improve wildlife and recreational opportunities
• Provide professional forestry management plans that are completed precisely to your expectations and goals
• Deliver expert guidance on timber harvesting and sustainable forestry practices

To take advantage of our free offer to MFL program participants:

1. Call 715-623-5410 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
2. Mention the MFL program offer. There is no obligation or fee due for this basic service.

Get outside and share with us your best winter scenery photo. Enter our contest by uploading your favorite photo to our Facebook page. We’ll compile all entries into an album and fans will then vote on their favorite. The image with the most likes at the end of the voting period will win a $25 Mills Fleet Farm gift card!

To enter our contest:

1. Like Kretz Lumber Company's Facebook page.
   
   
2. Post your submission to our page by 11:59 pm CST on January 31, 2017.

   Only one photo/submission per person. All photos submitted must be your personal images and cannot be purchased or copyrighted. Image must have been taken in Wisconsin.
   
   
3. All submissions will be added to a Facebook photo album February 1 and then voted on by Kretz Lumber Facebook fans through Friday, February 10. The picture with the most likes (within the official voting album) as of 11:59 pm CST on February 10, 2017 will win one $25 Fleet Farm gift card.
   
   
4. Enjoy the great outdoors and good luck!

This past summer our head forester Al Koeppel took to the woods with Kretz Forest Family member and landowner Jim Brandt to record a tour of his property. What transpired was hours worth of educational, and at times comical, video sharing land management strategies that have helped Jim and his wife Yvonne improve their 480 acre Shawano County property.

While each landowner has different goals, here is a short list of some common goals we often hear when talking with property owners:

• Wildlife management (attract or deter certain species)
• Improve recreational usage
• Increase timber production
• Safeguard property from disease and invasive species
• Create income opportunities
• Increase land value

This first video in our Brandt family property series gives a brief introduction to how Jim’s family acquired their property and talks about a few of the strategies Jim and Al have have used to improve wildlife habitat and produce higher quality hardwoods.

Throughout the next few months, we’ll be highlighting different segments of our tour with Jim and Al, with the goal of sharing strategies you may be interested in using on your own property. Watch the first video now and let us know if you have questions related to your property by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or calling 1-800-352-1438.

Written by: Andy Roelse, Kretz Lumber Company Forester

It can be very alarming to see galls forming on a tree on your property, but in most instances they appear to be more formidable than they really are. Galls can be formed by insects, fungi, mites and bacteria. Some may only form on leaves, while others form on branches and even the main leading branches of trees. Here we will touch upon the few most common galls seen throughout Northern Wisconsin.

Oak Galls

These blister-like gall formations can often girdle stems and can cause branch dieback.  In spring, adult female wasps emerge from branch galls to lay eggs in oak leaves.  The eggs hatch and larvae begin feeding along the leaf veins.  The tree then produces blister-like galls due to the blocking of nutrients by feeding larvae.  By mid-summer, the adults fly from leaf galls to lay eggs in twigs.  Eggs hatch inside the twigs and larvae start feeding and developing.  Galls begin to form on twigs soon thereafter.  Larvae often remain in twigs for two to three years until adults emerge.

How can we mitigate this problem? Examine oak trees annually for galls. If found, prune branches holding the gall. Branches should then be burned or buried. Consider harvesting your oak tree if overall health is dwindling.

It's time to get out into our Wisconsin forests and bag the biggest buck! Enter the 2016 Kretz Lumber Company’s Big Buck Contest and you could win more than just bragging rights. Every entrant has a chance to win!

There are two ways to win:

1. Biggest Buck: $50 Fleet Farm gift card
   
   
2. Wild Card: $25 Fleet Farm gift card (One winner will be randomly selected from all eligible contest entries.)

To enter our contest:

1. Like Kretz Lumber Company's Facebook page. 
   
   
2. Bag your buck and post a picture on our Facebook page by 11:59 pm CST on 11/28/16.
   All photos submitted must be bucks taken during the 2016 Wisconsin rifle season and shot in one of the following Wisconsin counties: Langlade, Lincoln, Marathon, Shawano, Menominee, Forest, Oconto, Portage, or Waupaca. No other submissions will be accepted.
   
   
3. With your submission, include your score.
   We are using a complete honor system.* To determine your score:
   
   1 point per inch of inside spread
   + 1 point per “point” number of antlers 1” and longer
   = Total Points
   
   An example: 
   Inside spread = 15 inches 
   Eight 1-inch “points” = 8
   15+8 = Total score of 23.
   
   *Kretz reserves the right to disqualify any entries suspected of cheating.

We will announce the winners the week of November 28, 2016 on our Facebook page.

Good luck and have a safe hunt!

This contest is in no way sponsored or administered by Facebook. The information you provide will only be used for this contest's purposes.

Submit your best Wisconsin autumn photo!

Get outside and share with us your best autumn scenery photo. Enter our contest by uploading your favorite photo to our Facebook page. We’ll compile all entries into an album and fans will then vote on their favorite. The image with the most likes at the end of the voting period will receive a $25 Mills Fleet Farm gift card!

To enter our fall Facebook photo contest:

1. Like Kretz Lumber Company's Facebook page.
   
   
2. Post your submission to our page by 11:59 pm CST on October 16, 2016.
   Only one photo/submission per person. All photos submitted must be your personal images and cannot be purchased or copyrighted. Image must have been taken in Wisconsin.
   
   
3. All submissions will be added to a Facebook photo album on October 17, 2016. Kretz Lumber Company Facebook fans will then vote by liking their favorite image in the official album through October 27. The picture with the most likes as of 11:59 pm CST on October 27, 2016 will win one $25 Mill’s Fleet Farm gift card.
   
   
4. Enjoy the great outdoors and good luck!

By Charley MacIntosh, MAT Region 2 Board Member and Kretz Lumber Company Forester

Logging can often be left behind as the topic of agriculture arises. As a result, opportunities to educate and raise awareness for the economic and environmental benefits of our industry cannot be ignored. From roots of a corn stalk, to roots of an Aspen, both organisms are grown and harvested as a commodity that we could not go without.  

On August 16^th, 2016, I had the honor of meeting with ten Michigan FFA state officers from across lower Michigan to assist in guiding them on an active logging site tour. The Michigan FFA Association focuses on developing student’s leadership skills, personal growth, and career success through agricultural education. Bill Brand, owner of Northland Harvesting, was gracious enough to let us tour his job. We were able to observe hot saw cutting and the loading of a log truck. 

To help landowners better utilize forest management practices for improving wildlife habitat, Kretz Lumber Co., Inc. presented its 14th annual Fall Forestry Festival in early September, hosting over 250 landowners on the 29 acre Ray Kretz Industrial Forest in Antigo. The biennial event provides attendees from across the state an opportunity to unite, learn and share best practices for forest sustainability and conservancy. Sustainable forest management happens when educated landowners have the tools, resources and knowledge needed to effectively manage their land. Our goal, this year, was to teach landowners correct forest management practices in order to assist them in meeting their own personal wildlife goals while also preserving the legacy of their woodlands. 

Rather than start the day with a keynote, this year’s festival featured an expert panel discussion on the topic of forest management for wildlife habitat. Panel members included Scott Walter from the Ruffed Grouse Society, Janet Brehm from the Department of Natural Resources, Ron Eckstein, a retired wildlife biologist from the Wisconsin DNR, and Brian Hoppe with Reed and Hoppe’s Wildlife Food Plots. Panelists took audience questions with topics ranging from invasive species and how to start a forest management plan, to what, if anything, can be done to divert destructive badgers. 

Hundreds of landowners will come together Saturday, Sept. 10 in Antigo’s Ray Kretz Industrial Forest to educate themselves on proper forest management and celebrate stewardship across Wisconsin and Michigan forests. It is all part of the 14th annual Fall Forestry Festival hosted and sponsored by Kretz Lumber Company. 

The festival provides attendees from across the state an opportunity to unite, learn and share best practices for forest sustainability and conservancy. Festival organizers say sustainable forest management happens when educated landowners have the tools, resources and knowledge needed to effectively manage their land. This year’s festival will focus on forest management practices for improving wildlife habitat and will feature an expert discussion on the topic. Panel members will include representatives from the Ruff Grouse Society, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and Reed and Hoppe’s Wildlife Food Plots.