Non-Timber Forest Products in
Southern US
Phil Araman
For
Jim Chamberlain
USDA, Forest Service
Blacksburg, VA
Non-Timber Forest Products
• Originate from forest plants and fungi, not timberbased, may be tree-based
• Fungi, moss, lichen, ground covers, herbs, shrubs,
trees
• Roots, tubers, leaves, barks, twigs, fruits, fungi, sap
and resin, wood
• From within and on edges of natural, manipulated or
disturbed forests
Other Names
• Special Forest Products
• Forest Service (National Strategy)
• Forest Botanical Products
• U.S. Congress
• Any naturally occurring mushrooms, fungi, flowers, seeds, roots, bark, leaves, and other
vegetation (or portion thereof) that grow on National Forest System lands.
• Other Names
•
•
•
•
Non-Wood Forest Products (UN, FAO)
Non-traditional
Secondary
Minor
Non-Timber Forest Products – what are they?
Native plants with economic value
Early Accounts
• 1603 – Martha’s Vineyard
• First export back to England
• 1733 – Charleston, SC
•
•
•
•
•
60 tons Lignum vitae
27 tons for sassafras
8 chests of skins
348 barrels turpentine
2802 barrels pitch
• 1748, Charleston, SC
•
•
•
•
10,000 barrels turpentine
134,118 pounds indigo
200 Beaver skins
1700 pounds wax
1900
Georgia, Florida and Alabama major producers of pine rosin
and turpentine
Medicinal Plants -- Ginseng
Volumes of NTFPs from National Forests
State
AL
National Forest
NFS in Alabama
KY
GA
Daniel Boone
Chattahoochee/Oconee
TN
Cherokee
FL
NFS in Florida
LA
MS
VA
AR
AR
NC
SC
TX
TN/KY
Kisatchie
NF Mississippi
GW & Jefferson
Ouachita
Ozark St. Francis
NF N. Carolina
Francis Marion
NF in Texas
Land Between the Lakes
Totals
Unit of
Measure
cubic feet
pounds
pounds
pieces
pounds
pieces
pounds
pieces
pounds
cubic feet
bushels
bushels
pounds
pounds
2010
80
2
554
2,139
6,200
3,622
4,845
133
138,698
10
2,000
500
2011
220
2
1,060
2,531
1,829
6,572
3,196
138
135,711
4
500
2012
83
2013
344
443
1,261
4,021
4,732
3,757
515
1,420
2,623
3,985
3,310
452
880
1,817
5,090
6,155
95,610
59,399
85,795
28
100
20
90,000
40
8
50,000
230,000
230,000
28
200
20
282,000
2014
Total
63
pieces
cubic feet
bushels
pounds
pounds
pounds
10,592
16,327
16,594
20,572
11,955
1
101,521
12,000
20
35
112,938
6,000
10
129,061
14,000
120,538
8,000
141,596
14,000
cubic feet
pounds
pieces
bushels
90
493,840
16,486
2,000
220
490,746
25,568
39
83
528,912
22,587
28
344
284,405
25,977
28
64
299,823
17,925
-
790
4
3,024
8,231
16,490
24,001
21,263
271
515,213
10
2,060
1,340
48
882,000
76,040
1
35
605,654
54,000
30
801
2,097,726
108,543
2,095
Permitted Value of NTFPs from National Forests
State
National Forest &
Product
2010
AL
NFS in Alabama
880
KY
Daniel Boone
1,900
GA Chattahoochee/Oconee
2,043
TN
Cherokee
7,519
FL
NFS in Florida
15,226
LA
Kisatchie
10,100
MS
NF Mississippi
250
VA
GW & Jefferson
AR
Ouachita
115
AR
Ozark St. Francis
NC
NF N. Carolina
58,768
SC
Francis Marion
150
TX
NF in Texas
20
TN/KY Land Between the Lakes
Total
$ 96,970
2011
2012
2013
2014
Total
% Total
1,840
2,540
1,275
8,569
14,350
20
250
115
830
1,740
2,610
9,765
9,258
182
100
20
141
830
2,700
4,105
9,170
9,056
182
50
20
180
630
1,890
855
7,245
9,818
20
8
125
5,010
10,770
10,888
42,268
57,706
10,484
670
48
676
1.1%
2.3%
2.3%
8.9%
12.2%
2.2%
0.1%
0.0%
0.1%
61,979
75
20
71,618
155
-
75,000
100
-
67,453
175
-
334,817
655
40
70.6%
0.1%
0.0%
$ 91,033
$ 96,418
$ 101,393
$ 88,219
$474,032
Categories of NTFPs
• Edible & Culinary
• Mushrooms, berries, ramps, nuts
• Crafts
• Walking sticks, bowls, jewelry
• Floral Decoratives
• fresh/dried flowers, aromatic oils, greenery, basket filler, wreaths, and roping
• Landscaping
• Transplants and pine straw
• Medicinal & Dietary Supplements
• Roots, bark, leaves,
• Tinctures, pills, etc.
Edible & Culinary
Mushrooms
shiitake, maitake, lion’s mane
Grow for Local Foods Market
Grow Organic
Ramps (Allium tricoccum)
• Spring ephemeral
• Edible leaves, bulb
• Festivals, community groups
• Internet, farmers markets,
restaurants
• Possible grow in raised beds
• Important point – find markets
before starting
Crafts
Vines
• Smokevine, Grape, Kudzu
• Wood, vines used for decorations
and crafts
• Smokevine root used as medicinal
tea for digestion
• May be pests
Under-Utilized Trees
• Sassafras
• Root bark used as
flavoring, aromatic, and
medicinal
• Wood used for furniture,
decorations
• Wood and bark used as
yellow dye
Fringe Tree
Floral & Decoratives
Decorative Plants
Goldleaf Birch
Kuwa Branches
Corkscrew Willow
Curly Willow
Landscaping – transplants & mulch
Rhododendron
Mountain Laurel
Flame Azalea
• Native Plants
• Evergreen shrubs with
spring blooms
• Popular in landscape
plantings
Pine Straw for mulch
Medicinal & Dietary Supplements
Distribution of Ginseng Harvest
Major Medicinal Plants from Southern US
Average Annual Harvesta Average Annual Harvesta
2001-2005
2006-2010
Latin Name
Common Name
Plant part
Percent Change
Actaea racemosa
black cohosh
Root
224,072
284,162
26.8%
Aletris farinosa
white colicroot
Root
1,012
690
-31.9%
Aristolochia serpentaria
Virginia snakeroot
Root
121
43
Caulophyllum thalictroides
blue cohosh
Root
6,651
5,169
Chamaelirium luteum
fairywand
Root
4,688
4,541
Cypripedium spp.
lady's slipper
Whole plant
51
48
Dioscorea villosa
wild yam
Tuber
33,422
37,692
Hydrastis canadensis
goldenseal
Root & Leaf
73,619
74,708
Panax quinquefolius
American ginseng
Root
62,294
63,461
Sanguinaria canadensis
bloodroot
Root
24,823
5,056
Serenoa repens
saw palmetto
Fruit
3,293,377
2,432,841
Trillium erectum
red trillium
Whole plant
1,099
1,445
Ulmus rubra
slippery elm
Bark
182,435
304,207
-64.2%
-22.3%
-3.1%
-4.3%
12.8%
1.5%
2.0%
-79.6%
-26.1%
31.5%
66.7%
Forest Service Research
• Non-Timber Output Assessment
• Ecosystem Valuation Methods
• Sustainable Harvest Levels & Methods
• Forest Farming
• Goal
Non-Timber Product Output
NTPO
• Survey mechanism to report NTFP harvest volumes
• Similar to Timber Product Output
• Report according to FIA unit (compatability)
• Improve reporting for International Commitments
• Analytics illustrate status and changes
• Institutionalize Process
• Develop on-line reporting and summaries
Medicinal Forest Products Harvest by FIA Zone
Total – 26,263 Pounds
<1%
Zone 4
99 %
Zone 2
Zone 3
Zone 1
<1%
Slippery Elm (Ulmus rubra) Bark
Total – 14,000 Pounds
100%
Zone 4
Zone 2
Zone 1
Zone 3
Inventory of Medicinal
Plants
Black cohosh
Log (root mass) = 3.33 – 0.02 (July harvest) – 0.42 (August harvest) + 0.76 log
(crown area) + 0.46 log (plant height)
Blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides)
50.00
45.00
y = 0.0201x + 4.3146
R² = 0.7461
40.00
Rhizome Area (cm2)
35.00
30.00
25.00
20.00
15.00
10.00
5.00
0.00
0.00
200.00
400.00
600.00
800.00
1000.00
Total Leaf Area
1200.00
(cm2)
1400.00
1600.00
1800.00
2000.00
Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis)
40
Green Root Weight (grams)
35
30
25
20
15
10
y = 0.7654x + 3.1302
R² = 0.6352
5
0
0
5
10
15
20
Green Leaf Weight (grams)
25
30
35
40
45
Edible Forest Products
Value to Communities
Inventory
Optimal Harvest Timing
Optimal Harvesting of Ramps
160.0
90%
80%
126.5
70%
118.0
Canopy Transparency
60%
96.2
100.0
50%
80.0
40%
60.0
30%
40.0
20%
20.0
10%
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Optimum Harvest - Two weeks before full leaf-out of canopy
- Canopy leaves at 52% development
May 17
May 10
May 3
Apr. 26
Apr. 19
Apr. 13
Apr. 5
0%
Mar. 29
0.0
Mar. 22
Leaf Area per Bulb (cm2)
120.0
132.5
Leaf Area / Bulb
Maximum
Edible
Biomass
Canopy Transparency (%)
140.0
151.4
Forest Farming
Final Thoughts
• Long history of use of NTFPs
• Lots of products and opportunities
• Need to think beyond typical forestry
• Forest Service has active research on these products
• But …
• How can we work together to address your opportunities
Thank You!!
Blacksburg, VA 24060
540-231-3611
jchamberlain@fs.fed.us