Science Daily — Researchers have developed a breed of American chestnut that is resistant to the fungal blight that decimated its population in the early 1900s.

But the return of this “king of trees,” so-called for its picturesque form and towering height of more than 100 feet, remains hampered by a slew of obstacles, said a Purdue University researcher.

“We are on the verge of overcoming chestnut blight, but there is a whole new set of obstacles to get past yet,” said Douglass Jacobs, an associate professor of forestry and natural resources who is helping develop the blight-resistant chestnut.

To reintroduce the American chestnut, he said, researchers must get past several policy limitations, gather new data, educate the public about the species and address new threats posed by exotic pests. He details these and other challenges in a paper published in July’s issue of the journal Biological Conservation.   full story

Have you ever thought much about the importance of forests to Pennsylvania’s landscape, lifestyle and heritage? After all, our commonwealth’s name reflects its forested history. Literally, Pennsylvania means Penn’s Woods.

Today, after more than 300 years of European settlement, about 60 percent of the commonwealth remains forested. This vast forest resource is largely in private ownership – about 12.5 million acres of the state’s 17 million acres of forest is held by nearly 700,000 owners who daily make decisions about the future of their forestland. Since private individuals, and not state, federal or local governments, own most of the forest, private citizens make decisions that impact the sustainability of the commonwealth’s overall forest. An interesting and challenging goal for these owners and the natural resource professionals in Pennsylvania is to keep our forests green and growing and to do so in a sustainable manner. While you may appreciate our state’s forests, it is often difficult to witness a commitment to forests; one most often sees this tremendous natural resource treated apathetically.   full story

The following is from the Forest Connect page of Cornell University Cooperative Extension:

The ForestConnect 2007 Forestry Internet Seminar Series uses web conferencing technology to provide research-based and unbiased information to forest owners and others interested in private forest lands management. Broadcasts occur on the third Wednesday of each month, once at noon and a repeat live broadcast at 7:00 PM, Eastern time. Each broadcast is scheduled to run an hour, although questions and answers may take additional time. The noon broadcast is saved and may be viewed at this site using the links below.

There is no charge for participation, but registration is required. Email communication with URL details is only sent to people who have registered. New registered participants will be notified daily the week of a broadcast, with the final announcement sent at 11:00 AM the day of the broadcast. Please visit the links on this page to register and to learn of dates and topics for future broadcasts.   read more and register