Are foresters in Oregon planting alder to supply Wood Products manufacturers?
Most Oregon land managers interested in growing a commercial timber species tend to plant conifer species like Douglas-fir on the west side of the Cascades and ponderosa pine on the east side. However, since the mid-’90s the commercial value of red alder has increased significantly: nowadays red alder is planted commercially, and the timber value of red alder is competitive with that of Douglas-fir. When alder is kiln dried, the cell structure collapses and becomes fairly dense. This makes it easy to hold screws, and easy to plane and to mill. Red alder wood is typically used for cabinetry and other furniture, and not typically to make structural lumber. In traditional unmanaged alder stands, it can take 50-70 years for red alder to reach diameters large enough to make sales profitable. But research suggests that planting and density management can achieve commercially viable diameters in 25-35 years. Commercial planting of red alder is mainly done by private forestland owners, on both
