Land & Forest Management Plans

A good management plan, also called a forest stewardship plan, is the basis for all aspects of proper land management. Whether your goal is to maintain a healthy ecosystem, increase aesthetics, manage timber resources for sustainability or monetary gain, improve habitat for wildlife, increase property values, or qualify your lands for tax abatement programs - your land is inherently more valuable with a management plan. A management plan is a long-term plan of activities recommended on a landowner’s property. It is a prescription created specifically for properties to achieve the landowner’s desired outcomes and use of their land. The basic components of a management plan are landowner’s goals and objectives, overview and description of the property, health and type of trees and other vegetation, soil maps, stand delineation maps, and most importantly, recommendations or management prescriptions for each area of the property. The plan is developed only after discussion with the landowner to determine their goals and desires for use of the property. Your property will be visited for a visual inspection, and pertinent information and data will be recorded. This information, along with mapping software for soil, aerial photography, and other reference materials, will be used to prepare the plan. Recommendations may include creation of openings, creation of food plots, select-cuts or more aggressive cuts of timber, wildlife habitat development, information for removing invasive plant species or dealing with harmful insect infestations, maintenance of trail systems, protection of water courses, under-planting of specific tree species in cut areas, plantings of native prairie plants, planting of shrubs favorable to wildlife, and anything else that will help you improve your property and keep it healthy. A management plan is a valuable road map to success, and mandatory for enrollment in Michigan tax abatement programs such as the Commercial Forest Program (CFP), or the Qualified Forest Program (QFP). The cost of developing many Michigan land management plans will qualify for cost-sharing through the State of Michigan or the Natural Resources Conservation Service.