Harvester/Planter
The MWMC Biocycle Farm will be harvested in 2021 and replanted in 2022. The 2021 harvest will cover approximately 118 acres and 24,000 trees. Starting in 2026, Biocycle Farm harvests will regularly occur in two-year intervals of 50 to 75 acres.
Opportunities for Small and Large Operators
The Biocycle Farm’s flat, grid-aligned layout of uniformly sized and spaced trees presents opportunities for a broad range of logging operations, big and small. The Biocycle Farm is home to a variety of innovative approaches from modern processing equipment to horse logging outfits. Whatever your operation, there may be a perfect fit to make Biocycle Farm poplar harvests even more efficient for you, the MWMC, and the community.
Full Range of Farm and Forest Service Needs
The Biocycle Farm is an agricultural operation and needs services ranging from farming to forestry. After tree felling and clearing, stumps must be destroyed or treated to provide a clear site for replanting. Select stumps may be retained at nurseries to generate shoots for cuttings. Cuttings for replanting can be collected from fresh shoots, pruned branches from young trees, or provided from outside nurseries. Prior to planting, the field needs to regraded, treated to control weed growth, ripped, and tilled. Occasional lime or other treatments may be necessary to maintain soil characteristics.
Mill to Market Linkages
We have the wood, and local mills are capable and interested in milling the wood. The missing link is developing right-sized markets matched to the annual supply based on two-year harvest rotations. With a roster of interested builders and designers ready to use poplar products in their applications, the connection between mill and end-user can be completed to identify the pathway from stump to market.
Get Engaged
To learn more about potential uses of poplar and to add your name to a list of potentially interested users and buyers, email Todd Miller, City of Springfield Environmental Services Supervisor, at tmiller@springfield-or.gov.
Poplar Ceiling Grille Demonstration
As part of the 2017 harvest on the MWMC Biocycle Farm, a small portion of logs were held for a demonstration project to show potentially viable uses of poplar beyond existing regional markets for veneer, wood chips, and hog fuel. Staff worked with Urban Lumber to have the logs locally milled, and coordinated with 9Wood to fabricate ceiling grilles, which were installed in the Library Meeting Room at Springfield City Hall, 225 Fifth Street. Check out this images below to learn more about the process and the product.
