1. NEW ENGLAND REGIONAL RESTORATION WORKSHOP FEBRUARY 12, 2011 PORTSMOUTH, NH R ESTORING THE A MERICAN C HESTNUT

2. H OW F AR H AVE W E C OME ? T HE A MERICAN C HESTNUT AND TACF

3. American Chestnut: The Tree Major component of eastern forests Fast growth, large, extremely rot resistant High-value timber species Nuts valuable to wildlife Tannins used in tanning leather Nuts valuable to people and livestock Culturally significant

4. Chestnut Blight Blight first identified in New York in 1904 Fungus (Cryphonectria parasitica) girdling canker Two vectors for spread: airborne ascospores and sticky, spiral conidia (asexual spores)

5. Chestnut Blight Spread very quickly Functionally wiped out chestnut as over-story tree by 1950’s

6. TACF Backcross Breeding Program Goals: To develop blight-resistant American chestnuts To ensure regional adaptability To ensure long- term resistance

7. TACF’s Breeding Plan Expect to produce a tree with a high level of blight- resistance and American chestnut character and the ability to survive and compete in the forest.

8. Meadowview Research Farms Location: Meadowview, VA Support: TACF’s Chief Scientist Dr. Fred Hebard, research assistants and farm staff Completed 4 generations of breeding since 1989 Started with 2 advanced sources of resistance ‘Clapper’ -1 st backcross from USDA breeding program ‘Graves’ – 1 st backcross from CAES breeding program Adapted cultural methods to reduce generation times Flowering and selection size achieved in 2-4 years Currently home to 34,000 trees on over 150 acres

9. TACF Backcross Breeding Program Goals: To develop blight-resistant American chestnuts To ensure regional adaptability To ensure long- term resistance

10. TACF State Chapters Currently 17 state chapters from Maine to Georgia Carry out the TACF breeding program locally Tasked with inventorying local, wild American chestnuts Conducting controlled pollinations and harvesting nuts Planting and maintaining orchards Educating the public All-volunteer with regional staff support

11. TACF Backcross Breeding Program Goals: To develop blight-resistant American chestnuts To ensure regional adaptability To ensure long- term resistance

12. We have been producing B3F3 nuts in Meadowview since 2005 Most B3F3s have gone into large test plantings It will take a long time before we know how they will perform in the forest Chapter breeding programs are a generation or two behind What’s Next?

13. W HAT I S R ESTORATION ? R ESTORATION

14. The Society for Ecological Restoration’s (SER) definition of ‘ecological restoration’: “Ecological restoration is the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed.” And an… “intentional activity that initiates or accelerates the recovery of an ecosystem with respect to its health, integrity and sustainability.” What Is Restoration?

15. Process vs. Practice The process of ecological restoration includes a wide range of practices including: erosion control, removal of exotic native species, reforestation, re-vegetation of disturbed areas, etc. Are our current practices part of the restoration process?

16. Establishment of TACF  Structured organization created a network of state Chapters and volunteer-run breeding orchards to develop blight-resistant trees Breeding  Developing a tree with adequate levels of blight- resistance and American growth characteristics Testing  Evaluating the effectiveness of our breeding program through progeny tests and silvicultural testing in the “real world” Reintroduction  Returning the chestnut to our eastern forests Breeding – Testing – Reintroduction represent TACF’s practices in our overall process of restoration TACF’s Restoration Practices

17. RESTORATION Breeding TestingReintroduction TACF and our partners will need to advance our breeding program while testing and conducting early reintroduction. Restoration operates on a continuum. Restoration

18. RESTORATION Breeding TestingReintroduction Breeding has been our central focus Look to progeny plantings as an opportunity for reforestation and testing Long-term testing of most advanced breeding generations Incorporating results into future breeding efforts Restoration

19. W HERE D O W E G O FROM H ERE ? P LANNING F OR T HE F UTURE

20. Restoration Plan Draft restoration plan presented in April 2010  Provided a good foundation for discussion  Generated a lot of questions and suggestions  Highlighted a need to make this a much more methodical and inclusive process New strategic planning approach  Start with data collection  Collect member/partner questions and suggestions  Use data to guide strategies

21. Restoration Plan Data collection starts with four focus areas or “tracks” Regional Meetings  Gather input and recommendations from our members and partners  Hosted regionally by TACF’s RSCs Breeding and Testing  Chair – Dr. Kim Steiner; Penn State University Development and Business  Chair – Michael Doochin; Interstate Packaging Company Reintroduction and Ecology  Chair – Dr. Brian McCarthy; Ohio University

22. Regional Meetings Subject –Specific Tracks Gather member and partner input regarding all three subjects:  Breeding/Testing  Business/Development  Reintroduction/Ecology Provide input to subject- specific tracks Use notes from Regional meetings to help focus discussion Meetings open to all, but field professionals and experts in the subject will be encouraged to participate Restoration Plan

23. Data synthesized and reviewed Writing/review groups established Draft plan developed for initial review Restoration Plan

25. Regional meetings complete by early March 2011 Subject-specific tracks scheduled and completed by May 2011 First draft available for review by Fall 2011  Draft should be presented at fall Board Meeting/Annual Meeting  Available for member/partner review shortly thereafter Reasonable timeline…

26. THANK YOU!