Woodland - Spring 2013 - (Page 12)

features Robert Bean, forester with the Kentucky Department of Natural Resources, at the loblolly pine grove. timber stand improvement projects under way which will eventually provide some supplemental income,” adds Bean. The monks at Gethsemani have sought the advice of the Kentucky DNR since at least 1949, when the late Thomas Merton (a popular author in the 1960s who brought world-wide attention to the monastery) wrote the agency to ask for help in fire training. Most of the DNR’s technical assistance has come in the past 20 years, however. “One of my first experiences here was with Father Pascal,” says Bean. “He had invited representatives from all the major environmental groups to the abbey and about 20 had accepted. He then called us and said he expected us to come over and tell the group about forest management.” Bean rolls his eyes. “Of course we did,” he adds. “Most had never seen a regeneration of a clear cut so it really helped give them a new understanding that forest management isn’t destructive.” Which was precisely Father Pascal’s intent. The abbey’s woodland has subsequently been the site for several field days DNR organizes through the University of Kentucky’s short courses for woodland owners. While providing some income to help with the abbey’s operating costs is one goal, the primary goal of woodland management is aesthetics. Those who come to the abbey for spiritual retreats hike through the woodland’s trails as part of their retreat experience. Only those who are in retreat at the abbey with permits, and designated community members, can use the abbey’s property. 12 woodland • Spring 2013 The woods are as much a part of the religious experience as the church and other sacred places on the monastery grounds. Our first adventure with Bean is to the loblolly pine grove, a quick drive from the abbey’s entrance. The grove was planted in 1992 on land that was formerly used for pasture and crops. Every third row was thinned in 2007 using horses, and then they lost many trees in a 2009 ice storm. “We’re due for another thinning, which will be one of the next projects to help prepare for oak regeneration,” says Bean. “The loblolly planted has always been intended to help bring back the oak.” For big jobs, the abbey hires outsiders, but sometimes that doesn’t work out in the best interests of the abbey. “After the ’09 ice storm,” Bean notes, “they hired some folks to come in and take out the salvage, but they were also taking out the good white oak. So as soon as I saw that, I got Brother Conrad to put an end to that contract.” After we tour the loblolly pine grove, we are joined by Brother Conrad and Brother Bartholomew— the abbey’s forestry department. With blue work overalls, an Eddie Bauer hat and an engaging gleam in his eye, Brother Conrad is all smiles as we decide on the next area of woodlands to explore. Brother Bartholomew—with a snow-white beard, huge hazel eyes and work gloves in hand—is holding the topo map to explain where we’ll go next. We squeeze into a beat-up pickup truck, and 85-year-old Brother Conrad slips behind the wheel. He’s been at the abbey for 55 years and knows every inch of ground, every rut and bump, and every place where he needs to get the truck into 4-wheel drive. As we traverse the 10 miles of trails maintained by the Brothers and volunteers from the surrounding community, Brother Conrad explains that, “we have gone full circle from clearing land back to reforestation,” and describes the value of the Stewardship Incentive Program that the abbey now follows to improve woodland management. On our way, we meet Brother John taking his daily hike through the woods, with a walking stick several inches taller than he is. Brother

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Woodland - Spring 2013

Woodland - Spring 2013
Contents
Overstory
On the Ground
Faith and Forestry
Take a Hike!
Tools and Resources
Forests and Families

Woodland - Spring 2013