FORESTS AND WOOD PRODUCTS

OBJECTIVE 1: Describe what a forest is and why forests are important to the environment. Forest - a community of trees, plants, and animals that live together and benefit from each other. Forests are beneficial to the environment in many ways. A. Trees play a role in recycling nutrients Trees absorb nutrients from the soil & make them usable for other living things.

B. Trees help cool the environment Transpiration- the process by which plants give off water vapor through openings in their leaves. This water release lowers the temperature in the area. C. Trees give us oxygen to breathe & remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Photosynthesis provides us with the oxygen we need to survive as well as helps to reduce the impact of global warming.

D. Trees help to control erosion The roots of trees and other plants help to keep the soil in place. E. Trees keep our drinking water clean. Trees grown near water sources prevent soil from sliding into our waterways.

F. Trees provide habitat for other living things. Without forests, many types of wildlife would be homeless.

All trees fall into one of these two categories: hardwood or softwood. OBJECTIVE 2: Distinguish between hardwood and softwood trees and give examples of each. All trees fall into one of these two categories: hardwood or softwood. A. Hardwood trees— 1. Have leaves 2. Seeds are usually found in fleshy fruits or nuts 3. Most are deciduous (lose their leaves in the fall)

Examples of hardwood trees White ash Balsa Chestnut Dutch elm Hickory Mahogany Maple Red oak Sycamore Black walnut

B. Softwood trees 1. Have needles 2. Seeds are usually found in cones or woody fruits 3. Most are evergreen (keep their needles year- round) Examples: Douglas fir Pine European redwood Yew Yellow cedar

OBJECTIVE 3: Identify and explain the difference between the three types of forests. Native forests - areas where trees grow voluntarily. Examples: standing timber on farm ground state park areas wildlife refuge areas conservation reserve areas.

B. Commercial forests- places where trees are grown, harvested, and sold specifically to make wood products. Examples: Christmas tree farms tree nurseries forests owned by a lumber mill that replaces harvested trees with newly planted trees.

C. Urban forests- areas in cities or towns where trees are planted and cared for. Examples: beautification areas trees used for landscaping in a park.

OBJECTIVE 4: Give examples of products that come from trees. Examples of things humans get from the sap of trees: Soap paper dyes printing ink wax chewing gum sugar and syrup crayons varnish

Examples of things humans get from the bark of trees: cork tannin (for curing leather) drugs & oils dye.

C. Examples of things humans get from the cellulose (cell walls of trees) of trees: cellophane rayon fabric toilet paper shatterproof glass wrapping paper wallpaper books

D. Examples of things that humans get directly from wood: furniture, toothpicks, pencils, and spools. A cord of wood is 4 feet × 4 feet × 8 feet and was once the measurement used to sell pulpwood. From a cord of wood, you could make each of the following: 7,500,000 toothpicks 460,000 personal checks 1,200 copies of National Geographic magazine 12 dining room tables that seat eight people.