Climate Resilience

Nature-based Solutions for Stewarding Small Forestlands

Municipal Officials & Professionals

Backyard & Neighborhoods

Land Managers or Stewards

Youth, Parents & Teachers

Our region has extensive forest cover, both larger tracts and small woodlands on home and business properties. These forested spaces play an important role in filtering rainfall, lowering local temperatures, and providing wildlife habitat. Forests are vital to reducing levels of greenhouse gases that are driving climate change. Forestlands capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it in the trees themselves, as well as in surrounding soils. Stewarding your small backyard forest can help to make your neighborhood and community more climate resilient.

Nature-based Solution Idea 1:

Manage Invasive Plants and Pests

Monitor forests for invasive plants and pests
Remove invasive plants
Report and treat invasive pests

Nature-based Solution Idea 2:

Encourage Old Growth Characteristics

Preserve older and larger trees
Leave downed wood and debris
Limit soil disturbance

Tips and Resources for Stewarding Small Forestlands

The key to managing small woods on your property is that the less you do the more beneficial it is for the natural forest ecosystem and for climate resilience. Leaving your woods undisturbed allows nature to follow its normal processes of growth, decline, and decomposition leading to new growth. While it is important to manage your property for invasive plants and pests, try to refrain from clearing downed limbs and logs which can provide habitat for small animals and food for decomposers. A dead tree, standing in a safe place, provides habitat for cavity dwelling birds like woodpeckers. Older trees and undisturbed soils are highly valuable for sequestering and storing carbon, which aids community climate resilience.

Idea 1: Manage Invasive Plants and Pests

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Our changing climate conditions are making our region more habitable for invasive species of plants and insects. A species is considered invasive if it is not native to the area and it is likely to cause damaging disruption to native ecosystems. These invasives can overrun native landscapes, destroy food and habitat for native wildlife, and even cause the death of trees, crops, and swaths of forests. Think of Dutch elm disease that ended the dominance of elm trees on main streets and in yards across the country. It is important to learn to recognize these invasives, appropriately remove invasive plants from your property, and to assist in the eradication of invasive insects to prevent their spread.

Invasive Plants

Learn about managing invasive plants.

Invasive Pests

There is extensive information about invasive pests such as the Asian Longhorned Beetle, Spotted Lanternfly, Emerald Ash Borer, on the MA Department of Agricultural Resources’ website Introduced Pests Outreach Project. The site has Fact Sheets on each species with information on life cycle, what host plants they prefer, photos for identification, and resources. Please note, it’s very important to report some of these pests to MDAR, using their online reporting system, to aid state-wide efforts to eradicate these pests and prevent further spread. Additional resources:

USDA National Invasive Species Information Center – searchable by state
UMass Amherst Extension Service- Invasive Insects
NH Department of Agriculture Invasive Insects
UNH Extension Service- Invasive Species

Idea 2: Encourage Old-Growth Characteristics

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Forests with old growth characteristics provide the highest level of landscape diversity and ecological value.

For managed forests, including smaller woodlots, such as the typical landowner is more likely to own and manage, the opportunity exists to restore old growth characteristics as a Nature-based Solution through modern forestry practices such as: