The purpose of this thesis is to examine what motivates nonindustrial private forest landowners to accept bids of various levels for harvesting. Through the use of a survey we specifically consider what preferences and landowner characteristics effect these decisions. Landowners were randomly selected from counties in Southwest Virginia. The participants were presented a payment table in which they were asked to indicate the level of certainty with which they would accept bids of various levels for their timber. The information obtained for the survey was used in a LOGIT model to examine which variables were most important both in determining the certainty respondents attached to different bid levels, and the likelihood of accepting a bid of any size. Our most important results show that factors such as bequest motives, tract size, absentee status, and environmental preferences influence the bid acceptance decision for landowners in the sample. / Master of Science

The study was undertaken in response to a prediction by the Virginia Department of Forestry (VDOF) that current harvest levels cannot be sustained into the future given an increasing growth to removal insufficiency throughout the state of Virginia. The purpose of the study is to determine how market signals, land and owner characteristics, and owner preferences affect landowners' decisions concerning their forestland. Particular emphasis is placed on the effects of absenteeism and land fragmentation on landowner behavior. Such information is important for targeting policies that will successfully maintain commercial timber levels throughout the state. / Master of Science

Residential non-industrial private forest (NIPF) owners within the Wildland/Urban interface are an increasingly important forest owner demographic. An increase in rural residential land use is fragmenting historically large contiguous forestlands. Consequently resource management has become decentralized. NIPF-landowners, as the new land managers, must now be capable of creating resilient forest ecosystems at the landscape scale. To overcome this issue landowners and resource managers at all levels of decision-making (including landowners) must come to understand how social structures such as psychology, organizations, institutions, and culture are linked to behavior and the physical world. Collaborative Interface Modeling (CIM) has been created in response to an information gap that exists between the social and natural sciences at the site scale. CIM reveals the causal linkages between land use decisions and their effects allowing landowners to more closely trace and investigate their management policies, behaviors, and feelings as well as the consequences of those behaviors. A demonstration of the CIM process with residential forest landowners is conducted to evaluate the process and detect possible implications of encroaching development on the Jefferson National Forest in Montgomery County, Virginia. A focus on fuel wood collection was established because it has been noted as a potential source of negative impact. Possible implications and improvements to the CIM process are also noted. / Master of Landscape Architecture

Extension professionals are faced with the challenge of effectively communicating relevant information to an evolving audience with diverse interests. This study utilized mixed methodologies to highlight specific educational programming needs of nonindustrial private forest landowners (NIPFs) in Mississippi. Ten landowner focus groups were conducted during January 2012, followed one year later by the mailing of 3,000 survey questionnaires to Mississippi NIPFs owning 20 or more acres of uncultivated land. Findings indicated NIPFs are more likely to adopt new ideas if educational programming is tailored to their specific needs, indicating the need to group the audience by their interests. In particular, findings showed an increasing need for educational resources, particularly regarding succession management and estate planning. Eighty percent of respondents indicated passing land to heirs was an important or very important reason for land ownership. Results also emphasized the importance of employing new technology as a means for communicating more efficiently.

Forest resources are significant in Mississippi's ecology and economy, with 12.5 million acres of Non-Industrial Private Forest (NIPF). Frequent ownership changes with lower durations decrease the average parcel size. The study examined the trends of NIPF parcelization accommodating duration analysis and tax roll data to identify the length of ownerships in an eight-county study. Based on the results, lower duration of ownerships was associated with increased number of smaller parcels less than 11 acres and a substantial loss of large forests. The median duration of ownership was between 10 to 15 years and 59% were absentee NIPF owners. Duration analysis revealed the length of NIPF ownership was highly associated with the size of the forest, sawtimber price, an economic recession, and distance to the closest metropolitan city. Lower ownership durations and smaller parcels will limit economies of scale and alter the functionality and structure of the NIPFs in the future.

Nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) owners control a significant portion of forestland nationwide. Even though women own or manage NIPF lands, we know very little about how women manage forestland and what barriers women face in forest management. In addition, while there are several forestry organizations available to NIPF owners, few are geared specifically to women. Women Owning Woodlands network (WOWnet), an OSU Forestry Extension program for women woodland owners in Western Oregon, proved an ideal community to study women in forestry. I approached my research from a feminist perspective and, using qualitative mixed methods, I interviewed 16 women to learn about women's experiences in forestry, women's roles in forest ownership and management, and women's use of communication and networking in forestry. I examined all of these questions through the theoretical lens of empowerment. Despite evidence of an overall shift in forestry towards a more gender-inclusive field, gender roles can still be limiting for many women. Some still feel the need to prove their abilities in working in forestry, and some expressed that femininity can be a barrier for women in forestry. However, many women emphasized that they had positive experiences in forestry. Women also play important roles in the ownership and management of their land, particularly as it pertains to current stewardship and land transfer. Women may face unique challenges to forest management. The irregular lifestyle associated with forestry may be especially difficult for women who also run a household. Accessing information poses a barrier as well. Women communicate and network in forest management through involvement with a variety of natural resource-based communities, in general, and WOWnet, in particular. WOWnet, however, is unique from other communities because it is more horizontal, small-group and praxis-based in its approach. The female perspective, both in terms of the kind of information and the delivery of information, also draws many women to WOWnet. Forestry is dynamic and women are an increasingly important part of forestry, especially when it comes to establishing a vision of good land stewardship. Yet, women's varied roles in the ownership and management of forest land are frequently circumstantial. Women face barriers in accessing forestry knowledge that hinders their achievement of management goals. WOWnet, because it focuses on a female perspective and because it attracts diverse women interested in learning and sharing knowledge about forestry, is an important community for many women in forestry. Recommendations are for extension to shift away from the traditional top-down model of knowledge diffusion to a more holistic approach where university, extension, and landowners equitably engage in discussions of land management. In sum, WOWnet can empower women and serve as a model for other women's groups seeking to empower women. / Graduation date: 2010

Non-industrial Private Forests (NIPF) landowners constitute a major component of the forested land portfolio in the Southeastern United States. The lands they possess provide a variety of social benefits but many aspects of how these landowners manage their properties exist. The goal of this research was to determine overall landowner awareness regarding wildfire programs and education and identify interrelationships among management strategies, demographic variables, and experiences. Specifically, it was hypothesized that landowner program awareness, interest in biomass utilization, and wildfire mitigation strategies would be influenced by the type of information they received, management activities, and other factors. Seven logit models were constructed to analyze these interrelationships. Results revealed that the type and quality of information landowners received was important in most cases. Landowners not receiving any information were less likely to take action to prevent or mitigate wildfire damage to their property. Wildfire education was highly valued by participants. Knowledge of existing biomass utilization programs was almost non-existent. However, the desire to obtain information on this topic was high. In general, state agencies were utilized more than federal agencies, and landowners felt that cost-share programs and marketability of removed biomass would encourage participation in wildfire prevention activities.

Interest in using woody biomass from forestlands for energy production has reemerged in recent years. In Kentucky, bioenergy has great potential to help reduce reliance on fossil fuels. However, questions still remain about economic and other social effects associated with forest-based bioenergy production. This study investigates some of the economic implications of harvesting woody biomass for bioenergy production alongside traditional forest products in Kentucky. Results show that forest-based bioenergy can increase financial return to nonindustrial private forest owners. This study also investigates social impacts and drivers of forest-based bioenergy in Kentucky. Results indicate that a variety of issues will have to be dealt with in order for bioenergy production from forestlands to be viable in Kentucky.

I de svenska skogarna är tallen (Pinus sylvestris L.) det näst vanligaste trädslaget och konkurrerar bäst på torrare och blötare marker. Av den anledningen är det viktigt vid föryngring att ståndortsanpassa. Det har dock blivit allt vanligare att privata skogsägare planterar gran (Picea abies L.) på typiska tallmarker på grund av det höga betestrycket. Detta kan vara förödande för tillväxten och kvaliteten. Ett sätt att klara betestrycket är att ha en högstamtäthet för att få många alternativa stammar kvar till älgsäker höjd. Där kan föryngringsmetoden vara avgörande. Mellan 2013–2016 planterades och självföryngrades 92,2 % av tallföryngringsarealen i Sverige, de resterande 7,8 % såddes. Att så tall på lämpliga marker resulterar ofta i en hög stamtäthet och det finns möjlighet att välja förädlat material. Detta ger en trängseleffekt vilket bidrar till hög virkeskvalitet, samtidigt som det kan ge en tillväxtökning upp till 25 % gentemot beståndsfrön om förädlat material används. Detta är en kombination som bara är möjlig att åstadkomma med sådd. Studiens syfte har varit att undersöka vilken inställning skogsägare har haft till tallsådd och varför så få använt metoden. Dessutom har det kartlagts vilka som använt metoden och varför. Detta har gjorts med en enkätundersökning som skickades ut till 240 skogsägare jämt fördelat över Sverige, varav 103 svarade. Det har även gjorts intervjuer med skogsbolag med eget skogsinnehav från nord- och mellansverige. Resultatet visade att 15 % av respondenterna från enkätundersökningen någon gång sått tall. Det var vanligare att de som ägde en skogsfastighet på 100 hektar eller mer någon gång hade sått tall i jämförelse med de som ägde 49 hektar eller mindre. Av de som sått svarade 92 % att de var nöjda med resultatet och 73 % kunde tänka sig att så igen. Det var ingen skogsägare från Götaland som sått tall. Av de som inte hade sått tall svarade 48 % att anledningen till de inte gjort de var för att de inte tänkt på det och 69 % svarade att de hade en varken positiv eller negativ inställning till metoden. Detta kan jämföras mot de som någon gång hade sått tall där 86 % svarade att de hade en positiv eller ganska positiv inställning. De skogsbolag som låtit sig intervjuas svarade samtliga att de har sått tall, dock i olika omfattning. Det bolag som sått mest var Sveaskog som svarade att de har sått 27 % av deras tallföryngringsareal. Detta kan jämföras med Holmen skog som sådde strax över 20 % och då är contortatall inkluderad. De främsta anledningarna till att de har sått var för att det bedömdes vara kostnadseffektivt och ger många stammar per hektar vilket har varit positivt i områden med högt betestryck. Alla intervjupersoner berättade att det är viktigt att välja rätt mark för ett positivt resultat. Resultatet från enkäten visade att de som svarat att de någonsin sått tall hade en positivare inställning till sådd, vilket tyder på positiva erfarenheter. Nära hälften av de som inte sått tall svarade att de hade varken en positiv eller negativ inställning. En möjlig orsak till det är att de inte hade någon erfarenhet av metoden och därför ingen åsikt. De som någon gång har sått var i regel större skogsägare. En möjlig orsak till det är att det är större sannolikhet att de har en lämplig mark tillgänglig och att de troligen föryngrar oftare än mindre skogsägare. En hög andel av de som inte sått svarade att de inte tänkt på det. Detta skulle kunna bero på ointresse eller okunskap. En stark orsak till detta är sannolikt på grund av tradition. Skulle de privata skogsägarna skaffa sig kunskap om detta och vilka marker som är lämpliga skulle det kunna finnas pengar att tjäna. Detta eftersom det är billigare, lättare, och skapar bättre kvalitet än de andra föryngringsmetoderna. Tallsådd går dessutom bra att kombinera med andra metoder och anpassa föryngringsåtgärden efter förutsättningarna. I områden där betesskador ställer till stora problem kan tallsådd vara ett outnyttjat verktyg i verktygslådan. / The aim of this study was to investigate the attitudes of forest owners to direct sowing of pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and also why so few have used the method. The study also aimed to identify reasons for forest owners to use or not to use the method. A questionnaire was sent to 240 non-industrial private forest owners (NIPFs) all over Sweden. As a complement, interviews were performed with forest companies from the north and middle parts of Sweden. The results showed that 15 % of the NIPFs respond that they had used the method direct sowing of pine at some occasion in the past. No forest owner origination from Götaland had used the method though. It was more common among those who owned a forest property of 100 hectares or more than among those who owned 49 hectares or less. Most of those who had used direct sowing in the past were satisfied with the outcome of the regeneration, 92 %, and 73 % were willing to use the method again. They also showed a more positive attitude to direct sowing, 86 %, compared to those who had not tried the method, where 23 % were positive and 69 % were neither positive nor negative. The main reason for not have used the method showed to be that the NIPFs answering this questionnaire had not thought about it. Of the companies interviewed in this study, Sveaskog and Holmen were the ones that have used direct sowing the most: Sveaskog sow 27 % of the yearly pine regeneration area and Holmen just over 20 % of the yearly pine regeneration area, including lodge pole pine (Pinus contorta Douglas ex Loudon). The main reason to why the companies have used direct sowing was that they consider the method cost effective. The also appreciate that the method results in a lot of stems per hectare which has been positive in areas where browsing is a problem. The results from the questionnaire showed that those had sown pine in the past tended to have a more positive attitude to the method than the forest owner that had not sown. This indicates that they have had a positive experience of the method. Nearly half of those who had not sown had neither a positive nor a negative attitude to it. One possible reason for it is that they had no experience of the method and therefore no opinion. Direct sowing works well to combine with other methods and can be adapted to different conditions. In a time when damage from browsing can cause big problems to regenerations of pine, sowing could be an important tool in the toolbox.

Many landowners in the southeastern United States have invested in southern yellow pine plantations and managed them using traditional management schemes. However, non-industrial private forest landowners often have goals and challenges that make traditional management less desirable or possible. This thesis contains two projects that offer potential solutions for these landowners. The first project is a management option for landowners with small parcels that wish to manage pine plantations and proposes low-density management paired with crown lifting for the production of saw logs without commercial thinning entries. The second proposes a method for incorporating mixed-species management into already existing plantations. This increases biodiversity and could be more ecologically stable than single-species plantations. These options present opportunities for non-industrial private forest landowners who do not fit into the traditional management framework due to differences in management goals or economic constraints on management.