Connecticut’s Forest – A Legacy of Change in Today’s Forest

Over the past four centuries, the forest of Connecticut has undergone significant changes. From the early 1600s, when Native American land-use practices included fire and agricultural clearing of the forest, on through the colonial period, and then the years of trade and industrial development, the forest has been heavily shaped by human society. Many of these practices, particularly those throughout the 19th century, were not beneficial to the forest. At the start of the 20th century, the new State forestry program sought to take on the challenges of restoring Connecticut’s forests head-on through practices based on scientific management and productive use of the forest. Before it closed in 2005, Connecticut’s State Forest Nursery had a main role in the recovery of the forest. While forest land acreage has more than doubled in size from its nadir in the first half of the 19th century, the challenges to forest management in Connecticut remain immense, as Connecticut’s foresters rise to meet these challenges.

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Author(s): Chris Donnelly

Publication: Tree Planters' Notes - Volume 63, Number 1 (2020)

Volume: 63

Number: 1