In the heart of Palmer Woods Forest Reserve, a pioneering effort is underway to fortify nature’s defenses against the onslaught of climate change. Through innovative strategies and community collaboration, the forest is being equipped to withstand the challenges of a rapidly changing world.
When the Leelanau Conservancy acquired Palmer Woods in 2016, a world of possibilities opened.
The 1155 acres of Palmer Woods share a 5-mile boundary with Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, directly connecting it to another 10,000 acres of protected land. Palmer Woods is a key component of a vast ecosystem that will be forever wild.
Previously a working timber forest for nearly four decades, the Leelanau Conservancy’s goal when acquiring Palmer Woods was to utilize innovative, science-based forest management practices to create a “forest laboratory,” a place for ecological study and advancing the understanding of habitat management practices.
Today, as we look at some of the Conservancy’s climate resilience strategies, we’ll take a tour of Palmer Woods. While the climate continues to shift due to climate change, we’re looking ahead for ways to soften the impact. Palmer Woods is the center of this work as the Conservancy’s largest Natural Area. Land Steward Caleb Garone is excited about the forest resiliency work we’re testing out and knows Palmer Woods like the back of his hand. He will show us around and discuss some of the plans the Conservancy has been working on here and beyond.
Preserving Biodiversity: Biodiversity refers to all living things in an ecosystem. Each one plays a needed role. Trees provide homes for wildlife, wildlife help spread seeds and pollinate flowers, streams and groundwater feed ferns, forests create conditions for spring ephemerals to thrive, and on and on. From the tiniest insect to the largest bear, it’s all connected. When an ecosystem has a wide variety of living things, it’s biodiverse. Biodiversity helps protect a forest against temperature increases or shifting rain patterns. When this is off balance, problems arise. Caleb points to a tangle of young beech trees interspersed with raspberry canes, “As a result of losing our mature beech trees, a dense thicket of young beech has sprouted from their roots. These thickets don’t allow space for other species of tree to grow. With beech bark disease projected to persist and no viable management solution to stop its spread, these young beech trees will be killed before they reach maturity. One of the foundational elements of forest resilience is to encourage tree species diversity. In some larger areas of beech thicketing, we will be thinning beech and planting trees to increase species diversity.”
“It’s complex; some of these beech thickets mixed with raspberry patches directly adjacent to mature forests provide abundant food and are the perfect habitat for some bird species. On a warm spring day, wood thrush, scarlet tanager, veery, towhee, and goldfinch… fill the air with song. While it may not be the prettiest-looking patch of forest to us, it’s a fantastic area for birding. We don’t want to go in with a heavy hand and remove all beech thicketing, but we will manage some to increase tree species diversity and nurture forests that can mature to old growth one day. In time, we will be able to observe the changes between managed and unmanaged areas, helping other landowners decide how to steward their forests in the face of losing their beech trees.”
HWA Prevention: Hemlock Woody Adelgid (HWA) is an invasive insect that kills hemlock trees. It pierces into the base of hemlock needles, feeding on the tree’s nutrient-rich sap. In response, the hemlock trees cut off circulation to infested branches, effectively self-pruning. Without intervention, this cycle ends in the death of the majestic hemlock in 4 to 10 years. HWA is encroaching on Leelanau County. “HWA is spread by birds, by wind, by mammals like deer, and also by people,” Caleb said. “Currently, our strategy is to find it as soon as possible so we can quickly locate an infestation and treat those trees via a tree injection. If we find it early, we can treat it, keeping them here longer. We have been surveying all hemlock-dominant forests in our Natural Areas for the past three years, every November to April. Checking as many individual trees as possible, looking for the fuzzy white HWA overwintering at the base of hemlock needles. Over the past couple of years, we have also been working on trimming low branches of hemlock over driveways, around parking lots, and trail corridors to help prevent human spread of HWA.”
While no HWA has been found in Leelanau County, a new significant population was found in the southern portion of Sleeping Bear Dunes in Benzie County this past winter. “It’s only a matter of time until HWA arrives in Leelanau if it’s not here already,” says Caleb. “We are working to identify our highest priority hemlock forests in our Natural Areas, where hemlock provides exceptional ecological value. Over the next years, when HWA arrives, the prioritization we are completing will guide which hemlock forests we will preserve via tree injection. We are uniquely positioned to decide how many hemlock trees we will maintain via this method. It’s labor-intensive work, and we’re trying to find creative ways to build stewardship capacity to help us rise to the challenge.”
Succession Planting: Leelanau will lose trees to HWA whether we like it or not. So, what are we doing to prepare for the future? In the face of HWA, the Leelanau Conservancy is implementing succession planting within hemlock-heavy areas to ensure forest resilience. Succession planting involves planting shade-tolerant trees under hemlock canopies, ready to thrive when HWA causes hemlock loss. The initiative includes Assisted Tree Range Expansion Program (ATREP) species. ATREP species are trees whose current range falls just short of the target area due to climate limitations. With the climate warming faster than these trees can naturally expand northward, ATREP strategically introduces these species to areas where they are not currently found. By doing so, we’re helping these species adapt to the changing climate and ensuring their survival as the climate in the target area becomes more conducive to their growth. It’s a proactive approach to forest management to enhance biodiversity and create climate resilience. At Palmer Woods Forest Reserve, a diverse mix of species tailored to each site will be planted and protected from deer browse with reusable metal fencing. These efforts will combat HWA impacts and contribute to a more climate-resilient forest.
Deer Exclosure: At the day’s last stop, we enter the deer exclosure. A tall fence has surrounded a section of Palmer Woods for the last seven years. Deer, though part of the forest’s biodiversity, are known to munch on young trees, wildflowers, and other plants. To experiment with what the forest would look like without this disturbance, the Conservancy created a deer exclosure to keep deer out of a specific area that will be studied. The exclosure is bursting with plant life of all kinds. “Not many people have been in here,” said Caleb as he unlocked the fence door. Upon entering the exclosure, you can’t get 10 feet without ducking a branch or getting a spiky vine wrapped around your ankle. Shielded from deer browse, this portion of the forest grows abundant. “When the deer exclosure was constructed in 2017, we designated monitoring plot locations and gathered a baseline data set on mature trees, saplings, shrubs, and understory vegetation. This May and June, we will gather a second set of data on these monitoring sites inside and outside the deer exclosure fencing. The data collected this year will begin to tell the story of how deer impact forest ecosystems in Leelanau County. This is a long-term study, and we are still very much in the early years. In addition to this vegetation monitoring, we plan to use these exclosures for other scientific exploration in the coming years.”
These tactics are just a small sampling of the climate resiliency work the LC is doing to keep Leelanau’s wild places strong. From sustainable trail construction and staying ahead of erosion and water quality issues to our herpetofauna work to simply preserving land and ensuring ecosystems remain intact. “I feel fortunate to be working with a driven group of folks,” said Caleb. “Who, along with all those who love Leelanau, see the urgency in our actions today to ensure that the Leelanau of tomorrow retains its natural beauty that makes this such a special place.”
