The Land Trust has started work to restore the forests of Aspen Hollow Preserve. This 58-acre property along Whychus Creek is northeast of Sisters. It is a mix of juniper and ponderosa pine forest interspersed with small aspen groves. Our forest restoration goal here is to thin the small juniper, as well as some of the pine, to mimic historic conditions and improve the health of the remaining pine and aspen. It will also benefit the native grasses and wildflowers, provide improved habitat for wildlife, and help reduce wildfire danger for our nearby neighbors.

We recently completed work to cut small juniper and ponderosa pine and have piled it for future burning. Our work is focused on the south side of Whychus Creek in a fairly steep canyon section where juniper is encroaching on pine and aspen. Because of the challenging terrain, we did the cutting and piling by hand without the use of heavy equipment. We ended up with more pine in our burn piles than originally expected, so we will be waiting and returning to burn these piles next fall after the pine has had sufficient time to dry out.

We'd like to send a big thanks to our Aspen Hollow Preserve neighbors that provided access onto their properties so we could acquire aerial imagery of the restoration area before we begin work. These photos will be compared to post-restoration images and provide a great monitoring tool over time.

Check out a video showing some of our forest restoration work at Aspen Hollow Preserve:



Learn more:

• About historic conditions in healthy east Cascade pine forests.
• About the Land Trust's Whychus Canyon Preserve forest restoration.
• About the Land Trust's Metolius Preserve forest restoration.