Garrett County Tree Farmer and GCFB member Bill Buckel was selected as the 2019 Garrett County TFOY, MD State TFOY and Northeast Area TFOY! Read more below!
Derek, Bill & Tina Buckel (center) being presented with the 2019 MD TFOY award in the House of Representatives
What makes them outstanding?
Bill and Tina Buckel have been American Tree Farmers for 38 years. During this time they have acquired and/or added acreage to three separate Tree Farms. They actively manage 134 wooded acres collectively known as "Rocky Resolve Tree Farm." Bill developed a passion for forestry working with his father and uncle. They taught him the different tree species during tree harvests and also while hunting. This passion passed down to his son Derek who helps manage the Tree Farm. Both furthered their silviculture passions by attending forestry related seminars and workshops throughout the years, learning to sustainably manage the family’s Tree Farms. The Buckel’s enthusiasm shows in all the hard work completed on their Tree Farms. They have employed a variety of timber management techniques on nearly all their wooded acreage. Partial clear cutting was completed soon after becoming Tree Farmers. These areas are now young healthy forests today. They operate a portable sawmill to produce lumber for use on the farm. They recently completed a 10 acre timber stand improvement project and are now working on 13 more acres. Bill and Tina marked and tallied over 100,000 board feet of mixed hardwood for a commercial harvest. The family collects sugar maple sap from 450 trees in the spring. They enjoy all facets of forest ownership. The Buckels are the true definition of a Family Forest; from Bill's father instilling a love for the forest, to Bill passing that along to his son and sharing it with his wife Tina.
Tree Farmer Story
Bill and Tina Buckel, owners of Rocky Resolve Tree Farm inherited a tract they call the Platter Place in 1976. They entered the Tree Farmer family in 1981 by placing this tract into the American Tree Farm System. Fast forward to 1990 when Bill and Tina purchased the family farm from Bill's parents. This consisted of two tracts named the Keefe Place and the Johnson Place. In 1997 the Buckel's added another tract called the Wiley Place adjoining the Platter Place. In 2010 they purchased another tract next to the Keefe tract naming it the Rose Lot. This purchase gave them a 16 foot right of way providing better access to the woodlands of the original homestead Bill grew up on. They also added acreage to the Platter Place in 2005 by buying back an out sale parcel that had been conveyed prior to their ownership. This parcel is called the Jonsey lot.
The Buckels are particularly proud of Rocky Resolve Tree Farm because their roots run deep in the local area. Bill grew up on the Keefe and Johnson tracts and has fond memories of spending time with family working and hunting in these forests. This area is rich in forestry history also. These tracts were heavily timbered in the early 1900s by the Jennings brothers who owned large tracts of land that were improperly managed. Some of these tracts had suffered from poor silviculture practices in the past. Bill wanted to leave the land better than he had found it. Growing quality trees while enhancing wildlife habitat and creating a place for the family to enjoy for future generations seemed to be a good investment in the land.
Bill and Tina have faced challenges in becoming successful Tree Farmers. Being parents of two children, who were involved in sports and various organizations meant that management of their Tree Farms had to compete for their energy. They are both well respected members of the community, who were both employed full time and being actively involved in many organizations took up a great deal of their time. Currently, Tina is president of the Firemen's Auxiliary where Bill has been a member of the Bittinger Volunteer Fire Department for 45 years! They also serve as officers in several other organizations and both serve on local Boards. Now that Bill and Tina are semi-retired, they focus more time on even better stewardship of their land.
They have also faced challenges brought on by Mother Nature. Invasive pests, severe storms and poor site qualities have combined to make it challenging to grow quality trees and maintain wildlife habitat. They have overcome these challenges by working as a family to manage their tracts. They have been involved in every aspect of management except harvesting commercial timber. Bill and his son Derek work together in timber stand improvement projects, salvaging downed or damaged trees, field mowing, road maintenance, building brush piles and nesting boxes for birds and bats.
The Buckels constantly monitor their properties for invasive plants and insects. They appropriately treat a variety of invasive plants as they occur. Combating insects like Emerald ash-borer and hemlock woolly adelgid is another challenge. Bill and his son have remedied this by utilizing the dead and dying wood, harvesting it and turning it into lumber that has been used to build a log cabin and lumber for Bill and Tina’s new home which was constructed during 2014 and 2015.
In 2012 Hurricane Sandy hit the area with over 3 feet of wet heavy snow in late October. Many of the trees still had leaves, especially the oaks which are abundant on Rocky Resolve Tree Farm. This caused widespread damage to their Tree Farm where quality mature trees received broken tops and young pole trees were bent over making them of no valuable as future timber. Bill and his son did the best they could to salvage this damaged timber and use it as firewood or turn into lumber.
The namesake of Rocky Resolve comes from the fact that much of their woodland is rather rocky terrain and the area's harsh weather also challenges a Tree Farmer's will at times. It also seemed an appropriate name given that a large black birch tree found on the farm has tenaciously and successfully clung to the top of a large boulder for many years. Both situations demand resolve to endure!
The Buckels have followed recommended practices for their properties including some that they weren’t so sure about. In 1983 their forester recommended clear-cutting much of the Platter Place tract. Bill was hesitant to clear cut this property but went with the advice of his forester. Today, the Buckels current home sits on this tract of land utilizing the previous log landing as the home site. A former haul road is the driveway which is now surrounded by a young healthy forest. Bill has always worked with his forester and their technicians on guidance before implementing work on his Tree Farms. He has consulted with them for help on marking commercial timber sales, timber stand improvement techniques, general guidance on wildlife habitat enhancement, and what would be best for the land. From Bill's training and advice from his forester, every timber sales contract that has been written he has required that the wood product operator have liability insurance in the event of an accident on his property. This proved to be quite important when unfortunately, an accident occurred during a timber harvest in 1999.
Almost 40 years after beginning their journey, Bill and Tina can now look back and have something to be proud of knowing that they took a once mismanaged property and turned it into a healthy forest for their family to enjoy. With their extra time in retirement, they are enjoying and are anxious to continue or even increase their efforts to improve the land and perform forest improvements. They are pleased to know that future generations will also benefit from their current efforts.
Speaking out for forest landowners
Throughout the years Bill and Tina have participated in a number of programs related to their Tree Farm. Bill attended the Ruffed Grouse Society Covert Cooperators 3 day training course in 1991 to learn more about promoting good forestry and early successional habitat on the family’s Tree Farms. They have also participated in workshops presented by University of Maryland that include the Legacy Estate Planning workshop and Forest Stewardship Course. Bill has been a member of the Maryland Forest Association for several years and has attended several forestry workshops offered locally.
In 2013 Bill completed a 4 day Lumber Grading Short Course presented by NHLA. Bill wanted to better understand the valuation of the lumber produced from trees on his properties. This course provided the necessary education helping Bill more accurately prepare lumber for use in the building and woodworking markets.
The Buckels have offered their Tree Farm to local school and forestry related groups to demonstrate results of their different management techniques. As a Cub Scout leader for his son's scout pack, Bill educated the scouts in forestry related topics such as tree identification and timber harvest techniques.
Tina used their maple collection system as her field project in obtaining her Master’s degree in Adult Learning by hosting several friends at their Tree Farm. They spent the afternoon in the woods learning about all the facets of the maple water gathering system and transportation processes through hands on training.
Bill recently became treasurer of the Garrett County Forestry Board and is involved in other Board functions, especially their American Chestnut Restoration Project. Bill is an associate member of the local Soil Conservation Board and has been invited to apply for full membership.
The Buckels proudly display Tree Farm signs along public highways on all three of their Tree Farms.