Summary of East Hodge Podge Timber Sale Documents

This file contains a series of Timber Sale Preparation Plans prepared by the U.S. Forest Service for the East Hodge Podge timber sale in Penn North District, Montana. The plans detail silvicultural prescriptions and management requirements across seven planning units (PUs 16, 17, 18, 19, 21, 24, 26, and 27), encompassing various forest types and harvest methodologies.

The timber sale documents specify harvest methods including commercial thinning (4220), clear cut with leave trees (4117), patch clear cut with reserves (4115), group selection (4152), and coppice cuts (4102). Planning units range from 3 to 35 acres, with treatment areas of 3 to 29 acres, and basal areas exceeding 57 square feet per acre in most stands. Key species include ponderosa pine (POTR), white spruce (PIGL), aspen, balsam fir, and paper birch. Post-harvest objectives focus on establishing diverse, resilient stands through natural regeneration (aspen suckering, birch seeding) and artificial reforestation with white spruce, white pine, and balsam fir at specified densities (400–1,000 seedlings per acre depending on unit). Mitigation requirements address season of operation (typically July 1–September 15 or when soil is frozen 4 inches or deeper), wetland protection (50–150 foot filter strips depending on slope), wildlife habitat preservation including snag retention and coarse woody debris management, Northern Long-eared Bat protection (minimum 9 large trees per acre retention), and minimization of soil disturbance through existing road and skid trail use. Monitoring includes 1-, 3-, and 5-year stocking surveys with certification thresholds of 400–4,000 seedlings per acre of acceptable growing stock.