Family Forest Network

10/14/2026

Updates from the Field

When laying out a boundary, the path is the path! In order to ensure accuracy with the area intended, the path along the mapped boundary is followed closely during flagging. Sometimes this means going through a balsam fir thicket for a brief period. Eye protection is extra helpful during these spots.

10/14/2026

Join us this Saturday (Oct. 17th) at the 2026 Woodland Owner of the Year Field Day! Celebrate this year's Provincial & Western winners, Carla & Ross Pentz, at their woodlot in Lunenburg County. The field day will run from 9am to 4pm.

Address: 872 Camperdown Road, Hebbs Cross, NS

09/08/2026

Updates from the Field

Watch out! - In this photo, FFN field staff specifically mark a keep-out zone for machinery to avoid during harvest. Drainage areas like this are flagged off in order to minimize rutting hazard and prolonged damage to the soil ecosystem and surrounding forest.

08/28/2026

Updates from the Field

Dinner's ready! While all snag trees are prescribed to be left untouched during an FFN harvest, trees with feeding cavities (like the one in this photo) are specifically marked by field staff during layout to be left untouched to maintain a key piece of habitat for returning birds and other wildlife after harvest has completed.

06/30/2026

There's still time to register for for the 2026 Bird Walk this Saturday (July 4th) at Otter Ponds Demonstration Forest in Mooseland, NS! Dr. Cindy Staicer will talk about conserving habitat for forest bird Species-at-Risk, using ARUs to learn about and monitor birds, and beneficial forest management practices.

For more details and to register, visit: otterponds.ca/2026birdwalk

There's still time to register for our Otter Ponds Bird Walk this Saturday (July 4th)! Dr. Cindy Staicer will talk about conserving habitat for forest bird Species-at-Risk, using ARUs to learn about and monitor birds, and beneficial forest management practices.

For more details and to register, visit: otterponds.ca/2026birdwalk

06/23/2026

Family Forest Network partners Mersey Tobeatic Research Institute and North Nova Forest Owners Co-op Ltd. are co-hosting a Bird Workshop led by Dr. Cindy Staicer in the Wentworth Valley this weekend. Join them to learn more about the birds in your woodlands. Please sign up through this link: https://forms.office.com/r/dRq9Bi6tB0

A reminder that we are co-hosting a Bird Workshop with North Nova that will be led by Cindy Staicer in the Wentworth Valley next weekend. Come join us to learn more about the birds in your woodlands. Please sign up through this link: https://forms.office.com/r/dRq9Bi6tB0

05/27/2026

Applications are now open for the Gas Tax Access Road Program administered by Forest NS! The program provides funding support to landowners to build and maintain access roads into your woodlot.

To apply for funding, visit: https://www.forestns.ca/roadpogram-1

Access Road ProgramThe Gas Tax Access Road Program helps you manage your woodlot by providing support funding to build and maintain access roads into your woodlot. If you are approved, the below funding is available. 2026 Funding Application 2026 Road Funding for Forestry Please ensure your applicat...

05/27/2026

Updates from the Field

Spring time in the woods! Field staff were continuing Pre-Treatment Assessment work in Inverness County this week, and caught a short break from the dreary weather.

05/08/2026

Updates from the Field

From one of our field staff assessing a woodlot near Londonderry earlier this week:

"Spring beauties were everywhere and the bees were celebrating. The site is also loaded full of trout lilies but only a few were opened. I'm betting they will all be out sometime next week.

I also caught a small bear (just a yearling) napping, we had a very brief staredown at about 10ft before it took off through the woods."

To learn more about spring ephemerals, we recommend checking out this article from Kate MacQuarrie in PEI: https://www.pei-untamed.com/post/spring-ephemerals

02/23/2026

Mark your calendars! Join us for a 3-part webinar series on managing Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (HWA) in Nova Scotia.

If you care for woodlands with hemlock, this series is for you. These webinars are designed to equip woodland stewards with practical, research-informed tools to respond to HWA. Across the series, we’ll explore:

🌲 Chemical Treatment Options and Resources for Woodland Stewards (February 26)
🌲 Understanding Biological Control & Research in Nova Scotia (March 5)
🌲 Silviculture Strategies to Help Prepare & Adapt your Woodland for HWA (March 19)

Whether you’re looking to take immediate action or plan for the future of your forest, this series will help you make informed decisions to support hemlock conservation in Nova Scotia.

Learn more and register: https://www.medwaycommunityforest.com/events