I'm having a timber buyer come out tomorrow and look at mostly black walnut trees on my farm. Is there anything I need to make sure is in the contract?

Any tips?

Keith

contact your state's Forestry agency and ask for a Service Forester site visit...shouldn't cost anything, but ask when you call.

they'll get you started in the right direction.

there's a LOT to managing timber the right way, and a good bit of knowledge even just to sell it.

Aside from the financial you need a clause covering conditions of roads and access. Not only should things be returned to at least an as found condition it can also be used for improvements if the equipment will be on site to do so.

Contract terms, stumpage pricing terms, payment terms.

Who is responsible for post harvest clean up. Make sure terms that property will be left in as good or better condition than before harvest began.

A harvest plan with detailed cutting prescription and map.

Get multiple quotes too. Highest price most often isn’t always the best overall experience, pay attention to quality of job. It often pays to take the middle of the road offer as that’s the best outcome as you aren’t getting screwed on value and the quality of the harvest is typically better.

I’m a forester, happy to answer any additional questions Keith.

Google "who buys black walnut trees in ohio" . lots of info on the internet.

This is good advice. A reputable forester will have you covered and pay for themselves. You can expense their commission to offset some capital gains.

I'm picking up my check tomorrow from the logger. 100% paid in full before they set foot on our farm.

Ol dad

I just checked and Ohio has the "call before you cut" program. You should look into it.

Ol dad

I got a friend that has a forester come out and value the trees and tells him which ones to cut.alot of times the loggers take the best and leave the rest. Taking the least desirable ones leaves the better ones get bigger and the walnuts from those trees will be planted by squirrels and have better stands come up for future generations.

Get more than one quote.
But don't shop around the quotes you get, anyone can outbid the previous guy by a nickel.

Keith, this wouldn't happen to be a group out of Hardin county would It? My brother and i were just contacted about two weeks ago about a wooded area we own. Not sure how they got our number on it. Windstalker sounds like he's got the questions to ask.

Yup, high grading is what happens when you leave it up to the cutter. They pull the best and leave you the junk.

Every cut should start with a cruise identifying the culls that'll never make anything. Get those gone even if it means just dropping them. Next plan for the next cut, what are you keeping that has a chance to grow into something nice. Get them the room and sunlight to thrive. What's left is what your looking at for this cut. If need be mark each and every tree go or stay.

Rereading my last I see one thing. Always be planning for the next cut, always. The goal is that each cut should be better than the last one.

Thanks everybody. You gave me a lot to think about and look into.

The guy coming out to look at my walnut trees is my dad's first cousin. I've known him my entire life. I even lived with his younger brother, while I was waiting for my house to close and had to have Dayton residency for work. I think he will give me good advice and a good price, if he wants it. He buys veneer, but has a timber company he uses to cut, who buys saw logs. One of my dad's other cousins' husband is retired from the veneer business and recommended him too. An ex husband of another of my dad's first cousins is also in the veneer business.

I think most of my black walnut trees are just saw logs. I've got a few I think are possibly veneer grade.

My business partner, for the nursery, has some black walnut trees that I am pretty certain are veneer grade.





She only has around 20 black walnut trees, but most are well over 30" diameter and some have close to 30' of clear trunk. She just has two small lots in a town, so finding a timber company is going to be hard.

I've only got a little over 10 acres, probably over half is wooded.

I'm going to replant and plant what I was using as my lower hayfields, with nuts from my partners trees, because they are better quality then mine.

Keith

sound advice, we had a 40 cut, and it was a nightmare to get the roads clear and level, it was in the contact that they had to took over a year to get them to come back an fix

Yea, working with logging companies is a nightmare. They never do what they say they will do. Best way to get them to do it is require a $20,000 refundable deposit returnable when all parts of the logging contract is completed to your satisfaction. They will ensure your fences and roads are repaired.

I've had loggers come and look at my woods several times, I always backed out, a lot of these guys are out right crooks, It's been recommended to get a private forester to do the marking and contracts, they also find the best price...it's what they do, it generally pays their fee and you get on the ground representation.

If you trust your guys great, you're in their area and know their reputation....but a second or third quote can't hurt....Good luck!.

you SAY that, but in your next breath (below), you tell us you're going to trust this guy because he's a relative, etc.



I was a Service Forester for about 8 years, and heard bunches of stories just like yours. I can count on one hand the number of times the landowner was "happy" with the outcome. doing it that way (handshake with a guy they knew).

you've been given good advice by guys here who know the scoop.

The best loggers to work with are those that plan to be around and build relationships. We've been fortunate to have worked with the same guy for over forty years. The smart ones know how to build relationships knowing that landowners will need more cut later. Unfortunately our guy is now long retired and in very poor health.

Ask for references from other landowners and if your area has landowner associations reach out to them for references.

if he doesn't have a well-written contract (with ALL of HIS interests covered) and a performance deposit big enough to cover potential problems, he's an awfully trusting soul.

Stumps are worth a lot. But they have to be removed by cutting the roots off so no cracks run into the main body of the stump. don't just rip them out with an excavator......jk