Bambra Agroforestry Farm in Bambra, Victoria, Australia | Commercial and industrial

Bambra Agroforestry Farm

Locality: Bambra, Victoria, Australia

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• Commercial and industrial
• Forestry service
• Forestry and logging

25.01.2022 Bambra Agroforestry Farm and Rowan Reid on other platforms: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bambra_agroforestry_farm/ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZgscAdjlyAvTWxysn4W20A... LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rowan-reid-5bb3aa30/

25.01.2022 Making forestry beautiful (again) BANKSIA SEMINUDA is one of the largest trees in the genus. Grows naturally in southwest WA and has very good craft and furniture timber with a red/orange colour and pronounced ray cells. We grow them for shade, timber and flowers. This requires annual pruning to develop a clean straight lower trunk. Pruning will also yield flowers for sale.... Help us show the world how growing trees for profit can be good for conservation. #multipurposeforestry #agroforestry #banksia #bambra

24.01.2022 Another one of my articles in Australian Wood Review is now available free. This one focuses on some of the myths about the wood quality of fast-grown eucalypts. "Wood density, tension wood, tangential shrinkage, live knots, natural durability and fiddleback. Experienced woodworkers are familiar with these terms, particularly when working a piece of timber on their saw bench. But what about in the standing tree? How do growth rate, tree management and age affect wood quality ...in different tree species?" http://www.woodreview.com.au/news/growing-trees-for-profit Heartwood book $49.95 with free postage during lockdown: www.agroforestry.net.au Rowan

23.01.2022 Woodsmans friend.

22.01.2022 New Zealand is leading the way in showing us that there is a future for small-scale, high-quality, multi-species forestry. Pinus radiata is ubiquitous in New Zealand and is often the only timber available for building and furniture. They even use it for firewood! But, since the 1960s farmers have been growing a range of alternative species including many of our Australian natives. See NZ Farm Forestry Association ... Now there are small sawmills, like MacBlack Timber - New Zealand, who are milling and drying a wide range of farm and urban timbers including macrocarpa, redwood, Australian blackwood and other acacias, various eucalypts, elm and more. The future of forestry is not just big monoculture plantations and corporate sawmills - it can include (it should include) farm and family forestry and small family businesses that supply variety and quality timber.

21.01.2022 Rotating that big Blue Gum (32-yr-old, 75cm DBH) on our Norwood Portable Sawmills band saw. I use a sling and an electric 4WD winch Ive fitted to the front end loader. The sling stops the "thump". Look at that clean, knot-free wood. I cant understand why people still debate whether you should prune and space eucalypts! 10 minutes work when the tree is youn(pruningg and thinning) makes a huge difference when milling. Free information about when and how to manage your trees ...available on our website: www.agroforestry.net.au #agroforestry, #farmforestry #portablesawmilling #eucalypt #forestry #pruning #bambra #deansmarsh #norwoodsawmill Regenerative Forestry RegenAG

21.01.2022 Bambra Agroforestry Farm; where harvesting an 85cm diameter, 32-yr-old, high-pruned eucalypt tree from a multipurpose riparian buffer strip for profit IS an act of conservation. Www.agroforestry.net.au #agroforestry #farmforestry #sawmilling #permaculture #Landcare #treebooks #timber #portablesawmill #regenerativeagriculture #regenerativeforestry

20.01.2022 "Timber wont be the main motivation for farmers to plant trees, but that doesnt mean farmers shouldnt consider trees as a viable farm product" Rowan Reid Story in The Land today featuring Rowans farm in the Otways and Taylors Run Farm on the New England Tablelands: More on our web site: www.agroforestry.net.au ... #regenerativeagriculture #forestry #agroforestry https://www.theland.com.au//67263/trust-fund-in-the-trees/

19.01.2022 Trees for animal welfare and profit. Winter is lambing time on the Bambra Agroforestry Farm and across western Victoria. It is estimated that about 10% of all lambs born in the region die from cold stress induced by windchill. Slowing the wind increases the effective temperature by as much as 8 degrees Celsius. A paddock of pruned trees can reduce windspeed by 60% without reducing visibility or providing cover for foxes. If planting trees across the paddock is not possible or practical then consider multipuporse shelter belts like on Yan Yan Gurt West Farm. 20m tall belts around a 4ha lambing paddock will ensure that any lamb born will be in a spot with a windspeed less than 50% of an open paddock. www.agroforestry.net.au

18.01.2022 Great to see that our book is now available in the United Kingdom through Waterstones: the biggest bookshop chain in the UK with more than 200 stores. UK Waterstones LINK: https://www.waterstones.com//hear/rowan-reid/9781925556117 Australian buyers: www.agroforestry.net.au... Free postage offer ends June 30th. See more

17.01.2022 "You need to understand the science, but it only makes sense if you have a story to place that science into. That is what tree growers do on their own farms." This article provides a transcript of my conversation about my book "Heartwood" with the Global EverGreening Alliance book club that went live last month. Buy "Heartwood" from the author (signed copies for Australian buyers)... Free postage worldwide during the lockdown: http://agroforestry.net.au/products/products.asp Transcript: https://www.evergreening.org/wood-and-wine/

17.01.2022 Fiddleback in our 32-yr-old Shining Gum I milled the 6m long pruned log from a 30m tall, 75cm diameter, 32-yr-old Shining Gum last week. It have fiddleback along the full length and in all sides. You only see true fiddleback on a radial face so I quartersawed the log. We now have about 1m3 of 2 inch boards going into the kiln. I dressed up a sample to see what it will look like. This sample covers more than 15 years of growth from the right to the left. Fiddleback is a wavy ...grain that has a consistent amplitude and frequency that continues year after year. What causes it? Well it can clearly occur in straight, fast growing trees and does not vary with the seasons. In my book "Heartwood" I share some of our research that suggests that my pruning may have initiated it. It doesnt seem to occur in our trees before we started removing live branches. Once it starts it seems to spread down the stem. The beauty of fiddleback makes the timber worth much more. There is so much to learn about the art and science of growing trees for conservation and profit. Heartwood available from bookstores or signed copies from us at: www.agroforestry.net.au

15.01.2022 Its pruning time on the Bambra Agroforestry Farm Video shows the difference between unpruned Redwoods (on a neighbours farm) and our 32-yr-old high pruned Redwoods (which I pruned up to 8m when they were young). I then show how I use my electric pole pruners to work on our young Redwoods. I prune more than 70 different species for timber. Although there are subtle differences the basic approach is the same:...Continue reading

14.01.2022 One tree = Many values Many trees of many species on many farms = Multipurpose "TapesTree" of forests across the agricultural landscape. Oaks for aesthetics, fire protection, shade, acorns and, one day, furniture timber. If youre growing trees for a single reason youre missing the potential of #multipurposeforestry.... #agroforestry #farmforestry #permaculture

12.01.2022 In the Blackwood chapter of my book "Heartwood" I aspire to harvesting a large diameter pruned Blackwood that Id planted myself. I didnt have to wait long. This one was a short log but had a diameter of 55cm. See my next post to check out the timber: Bambra Agroforestry Farm Norwood Portable Sawmills... Hardwood Mills Australia #blackwood #agroforestry #farmforestry #sawmilling #permaculture #Landcare #woodland #forestry #trees #heartwood #bambraagroforestryfarm #bambra Rowan Reid Author of "Heartwood - the art and science of growing trees for conservation and profit" More: www.agroforestry.net.au Forest scientist and tree grower

12.01.2022 Growing trees for conservation and profit "I have read many definitions of what is a conservationist. I suspect the best is written not with the pen, but with the axe. It is a matter of what a man thinks while chopping" Aldo Leopold (American ecologist: 1887-1948) Its time the thinking woodsmen (and women) reclaim the title of conservationist.... Photo: our 33-yr-old multipurpose riparian buffer provides for soil erosion control, wildlife habitat, stock shelter and timber. Www.agroforestry.net.au #aldoleopold, #agroforestry #farmforestry #sawmilling #permaculture #Landcare

12.01.2022 FORESTRY WITH FLORISTRY Autumnal colours: exotic (oaks) and native (banksia). BANKSIA SEMINUDA (WA River Banksia)... Hopefully well be able to run our Autumn tours next year. We grow more than 50 tree species (the oldest are now 33-years-old) for conservation and profit in multipurpose parklands with grazing or understory. And now we are milling and drying our own timber. Its forestry as youve never seen it. We are not the only ones: In our region we have 200 farming families who are members of our Otway Agroforestry Network.

11.01.2022 Bambra Tree Sleeves - A flexible tree guard for wallabies and sheep We use these for both natives and deciduous trees in paddocks with cross-bred sheep, wallabies and kangaroos. For details about assembly and use see: http://agroforestry.net.au/main.asp?_=Tree%20Guards... We plant tiny seedlings in these tubes (using a short stick to hold the sleeve away from the seedling). In most cases the seedling will reach the top of the tube by Christmas. After a couple of years, when the tree is stable, we remove the post to reuse. The plastic stays on to protect the bark. I then cut the plastic off before it starts getting tight around the trunk. More on our web site: http://agroforestry.net.au/main.asp?_=Tree%20Guards We only sell what we use or produce ourselves: Works out at approx. $2.75/treeguard (2m post, 1.2m sleeve and 3 ties) You can purchase the tubing in rolls and the posts from: http://agroforestry.net.au/products/display.asp #agroforestry #Landcare #permaculture #treebooks #farmforestry #forestry #trees #heartwood #bambraagroforestryfarm #bambra #deansmarsh #treeguards Propagate Ventures

09.01.2022 American Black Walnut - the origin of the "Allelopathy" concept and a gift for future generations While many American farmers long suspected there was an antagonistic effect of Black Walnut trees on tomatoes, potatoes and apples, it wasnt until a scientific paper was published in the 1920s that that the concept of allelopathy gained scientific credibility. In the grounds of the Virginia State University farm, a crop of lucerne had been sown in a paddock containing two large... Black Walnut trees. By mid-summer a large area, much greater than the extent of the tree canopies, was dominated by grass, leaving a clear line between it and the healthy lucerne crop. By digging around the tree researchers confirmed that the edge of the alfalfa crop perfectly matched the extent of Black Walnut roots. After some testing they concluded that the toxic agent was a chemical (later named Juglone) released from the tree roots. Grasses grown close to Black Walnut seem immune, which may explain why the pasture composition under trees is often better than in open paddocks. Although some tree species (some pines, alders and cherries) are also affected most are not: We grow Poplars and Red Cedar close to Black Walnut without any apparent problems. Black walnut only grow well on deep soils. We grow ours on small area of alluvial creek flats. Pasture production is great under the pruned trees. Growth is steady and wood colour is strong. Of course, Black Walnut grow slower than most species we grow but then we are not growing them for ourselves: These trees are for our descendants. What better gift is there than the time bound up in mature tree? We have fresh Black Walnut seed available now for spring germination: I prefer to direct seed into the paddock because it has a strong taproot. Direct seeding avoids transplant shock and is cheaper than planting seedlings. Growth is also faster; saving 1 year. Seed is provided in a bag with some peat moss ready for soaking, fridge storage and spring germination. We also have a small amount of dried timber ready for sale. Please message us if you are interested. Well send photos and dimensions. For seed: http://agroforestry.net.au/products/products.asp More information, tips and stories in the Black Walnut chapter of my book Heartwood. See: www.agroforestry.net.au

09.01.2022 Its pruning time on the @bambra_agroforestry_farm Video shows the difference between unpruned Redwoods (on a neighbours farm) and our 32-yr-old high pruned Redwoods (which I pruned up to 8m when they were young). I then show how I use my electric pole pruners to work on our young Redwoods. I prune more than 70 different species for timber. Although there are subtle differences the basic approach is the same:... I inspect every tree, every winter from year 1 until I have achieve a clear stem of 4-8m (depending on species). The aim is to correct tree form and remove branches that will leave knots in the sawlog. 1. Remove every branch on the trunk up to a point on the stem that is 8cm in diameter; then, 2. Remove any branch over 2.5cm in the remaining canopy to prevent large branches developing over the coming year; and then, 3. remove any competing leader (double leaders are common in some species) at the top of the canopy to ensure there is one strong, straight leading shoot. Repeat every winter till you reach the final log height. Whilst step 1 is not required until the trees have a trunk of more than 8cm in diameter, steps 2 and 3 might be required from year 1. If a tree cannot be corrected (and has no other values) then Ill cull it to provide space for its neighbours. Due to Covid-19, we cannot run our winter pruning and thinning workshop this year. However, I do have a range of videos and free publications on pruning on my web site: www.agroforestry.net.au

09.01.2022 More on live stumps Peter Wohlleben opens his best selling book "The Hidden Life of Trees" with a description of a live Beech stump. He uses this discovery to build his story about social networks and trees caring for each other. It is view of nature that has captured the imagination of the public. He then states (on page 5): "As a rule, friendships that extend to looking after stumps can only establish in undisturbed forests...... Planted forests behave more like the stre...Continue reading

08.01.2022 Wood Review magazine has just uploaded an article I wrote for their magazine on growing Australian Red Cedar making it freely available to all. Whilst the caption for the lead photo is wrong - its not actually me in the photo (thanks Digby) - the planted Red Cedar growing in a low rainfall area is real and over a metre in diameter. My point is that this premium native rainforest timber species can be grown well outside its natural range. In fact, given the problems caused b...y the cedar tip-moth, those of us outside the east-coast sub-tropical rainforest belt are at an advantage. On our Bambra Agroforestry Farm in southern Victorian, Red Cedar has been growing at more than 1.5cm/yr in diameter despite our dry summers.. And, due to its unusual ring-porous wood structure, the faster you grow Red Cedar the more dense and high quality the wood. Were looking forward to milling some high-value furniture timber in less time than it takes to grow pine for structural timber (about 30 years) More in the Red Cedar chapter of my book: "Heartwood - the art and science of growing trees for conservation and profit" (available at: www.agroforestry.net.au ) Rowan Reid Forest scientist and owner of Bambra Agroforestry Farm https://www.woodreview.com.au/news/grow-your-own-red-cedar Digby Race

08.01.2022 Our 33-yr-old Blackwood (Acacia melanoxylon) on the bandsaw. The short pruned butt-log was 55cm in diameter. I milled it into 1.5 inch slabs and will soak the white sapwood in boron to protect it from Lyctus before drying the slabs in the solar kiln. Perfect for live-edge coffee tables. There has been a lot of debate about whether it is even possible to prune Blackwood for timber and whether rapid growth reduces the colour of the heartwood. I can only show what we have been ...able to achieve and share my knowledge of the science and practice of growing high-quality timber on farms. To see a video of the milling check out our previous post Bambra Agroforestry Farm More in the Blackwood chapter of "Heartwood - the art and science of growing trees for conservation and profit" Available in bookshops or from our web site: www.agroforestry.net.au (now with free postage worldwide). Rowan Norwood Portable Sawmills from Hardwood Mills Australia #agroforestry #farmforestry #sawmilling #permaculture #Landcare #treebooks #timber #portablesawmill #regenerativeagriculture

08.01.2022 Selectively harvesting sounds great in theory but the challenge is to fell the tree without causing damage to the young ones. I didnt have many options with this 35m tall eucalypt. My aim was to land it between 4 young Hickory Wattles (yellow lines) and a small Red Cedar (red). All but one tree was unscathed. Unfortunately a branch of the eucalypt grazed one of the Hickory Wattles on the way down causing bark damage. Well see how it heals over. Being winter and having a sm...all diameter it might recover without any negative impact on the quality of the timber that grows over the central core. Not to worry, I need to thin the wattles out to a wider spacing anyway. Im aiming for an average spacing between the high-pruned wattle of about 10m; a parkland rather than a plantation. Hickory Wattle also coppice strongly so if I want to retain it I can cut back to ground level and grow a new tree. 4 out of 5 is not bad for an amateur faller. You can see the good form of our young Hickory Wattle. Its a native of SE NSW but this strain comes from a friend who selected straight trees. I have collected seed from our older trees for sale. They are very easy to grow and perfect for spring sowing. Available on our web site: http://agroforestry.net.au/products/products.asp

08.01.2022 Same creek crossing on our Bambra Agroforestry Farm: Multipurpose riparian forestry for conservation and profit. Remember - before you plant trees take some "before" photos so you can see what you have achieved. It also provides proof if someone in authority tries to tell you it has always been a forest (which has happened to us). The log (5.5m long and 80cm in diameter) was harvested from the same planting along the creek. Its a 31-yr-old pruned eucalyptus log heading for o...ur sawmill where we milled out over 1m3 of timber that will store more than 1m3 of carbon for decades. Farmers should be cautious about accepting conservation-only grants to fence out their waterways: They wont let you cut the trees down selectively even if it is good for conservation and biodiversity. More at www.agroforestry.net.au #agroforestry Mulloon Creek Natural Farms

05.01.2022 Our friends felled a Sydney Blue Gum in their backyard. It was impossible to get the log out, so I took my Logosol Portable Sawmills Bigmill system in. We quartered the log for resawing on the bandsaw later. A good quality portable chainsaw milling system is a great tool for salvaging timber. The Bigmill system starts with a simple jig that fits on the saw. Then you fit the running bar to the log. The brackets allow you to swing the running rail 90 degrees. https://www.logos...ol.com.au///big-mill-system-basic-petrol/ You need a pretty powerful saw to rip eucalypts (we used a Stihl 044). I fit a special ripping chain (thinner chain sharpened at 10 degrees rather than 30) that leaves a cleaner finish. You also need a thinner bar. For my first sawmill I fitted the Timberjig to the chainsaw and made up my own running board out of timber flooring. Once I had a square edge I used the jig to cut boards. More details in the Silky Oak chapter of my book "Heartwood - the art and science of growing trees for conservation and profit" For more like this: www.agroforestry.net.au Rowan Reid with Josquin Tibbits #agroforestry #farmforestry #chainsawmill #sawmilling #logosol

05.01.2022 Despite the slogans, the environmental frontline is not occurring at the forest blockade; it is at the farm gate. In just 200 years of white settlement, we have cleared the native forests off more than 60 per cent of the continent to create family farms. The result is the greatest extinction of native animals and plants seen in modern times, massive land degradation problems, the release of millions of tonnes of carbon into the atmosphere, and mounting animal welfare issues... due to heat and cold stress in farm stock. We need to engage family farmers in the restoration of tree cover in ways that control land degradation and enhance biodiversity, whilst also supporting farm incomes? In this article in UK Forestry I argue that the conventional approach of just giving farmers money to plant trees or save remnant vegetation (cost-share grants) has not worked. We need a suite of approachesplus supporting legislationthat facilitate innovation, build confidence and reward farmer-led multipurpose forestry on family farms. https://www.forestryjournal.co.uk//18001019.forestry-mus/

04.01.2022 First warm days of the year are firing up our Solar Kiln. This year I've added misting to prevent the humidity dropping too low when the temperature rises quickly. The misting starts automatically when the humidity drops below the set level. I've got it set at 70% for a load of eucalypt. Hot air can hold more water so when the temperature rises in the kiln the humidity drops. If the humidity drops to less than 50% early in the drying cycle it can cause cracking and distortio...n in eucalypts. In effect, I'm sweating the timber to extract the moisture from the core without drying the surface of the boards too fast. The 2nd display shows the "absolute humidity" which is the amount of water held in a cubic meter of air. Shows hotter air in the kiln has almost 3x more water. As it cools in the evening this moisture condenses on the timber thereby relaxing the moisture stress in the boards. More at www.agroforestry.net.au. Kiln is a "Mini Pro" from https://solarkilns.com/t1-mini-pro/

03.01.2022 Growing Redwoods to control erosion of highly dispersible soils on our Bambra Agroforestry Farm We've planted more than 70 tree species, both native and exotic, but only one is able to control the tunnel erosion. We grow Coast Redwood for timber on our highly dispersible sodic clay soils. Another example of how growing trees for profit can be an act of conservation.... See the chapter on Redwood in my book "Heartwood- the art and science of growing trees for conservation and profit" www.agroforestry.net.au

03.01.2022 Annual spring burning under our high-pruned pines. This provides a wide firebreak to the west of our shed. Using the green pasture at the top as a break we burnt downhill and against the wind. Burn removes layer of dry pine needles. Soil underneath is wet. More on our farm: www.agroforestry.net.au #agroforestry #regenag #environment #farmforestry

02.01.2022 Just needs "de-barking"! The tallest tree weve harvested on our farm: 41.5m Blue Gum (Eucalyptus globulus), 75cm DBH (diameter at 1.3m). 32 yrs old. We needed one more straight-grained eucalypt for 5.8m long structural beams. This one was pruned to 6.5m and looks good.... But, whenever we harvest the aim is to leave the forest in a better state by reducing competition to allow other trees to flourish. In this case we have native rainforest species along the adjacent creek and Redwoods in the paddock. In effect, we are helping our forests transition faster to the next successional phase. More by luck than skill I missed every Redwood seedling, just! If Id broken one I would cut it back to ground to encourage regrowth. Having an established root system it would most likely catch up in a few years. Now, its off to the sawmill with this one. More on our farm including free publications and shop: www.agroforestry.net.au #agroforestry #farmforestry I Love my Norwood & Wood Norwood Portable Sawmills #eucalypt #forestry #familyforestry #bamba #deansmarsh #Otways #MasterTreeGrower #eucalypt Regenerative Forestry Agroforestry Ireland World Agroforestry Agroforestry RegenAG

01.01.2022 This great little spoon carved by Liam Culbertson from our Black Walnut thinnings looks like it could be 400 years old! I bought some carving tools from Liam and might give it a go myself, Ive got plenty of Black Walnut and Blackwood wood I could use. Liam is happy to sell it. Message him through his instagram site: https://www.instagram.com/p/CCklniGjROo/

01.01.2022 Diameter is not a good indication of age. We planted this 75cm diameter eucalypt in 1988. Despite two droughts and an average rainfall of less than 700mm we achieved almost 2.5cm in diameter per year. No fertiliser, never watered. The secret is silviculture: timely pruning and thinning. ... Harvesting for profit can be an act of conservation. Removing this tree will release the young Blackwood and Australian Red Cedar we planted to replace it. Although we cant run our silviculture workshop this winter, you can learn the art and science of pruning and thinning from my book "Heartwood" or my free-download papers and book chapters. Download free publications from my website at: http://www.agroforestry.net.au/main.asp?_=Publications #agroforestry #farmforestry #sawmilling #permaculture #Landcare #treebooks #timber #portablesaw #forestry #trees #heartwood #bambraagroforestryfarm #bambra #deansmarsh #silviculture Photo: Albert