The summer of 2023 has been brutal!! We have set new temperature records and have been dealing with a drought. We are not used to droughts in this part of the country and when they do occur, it leads to other problems. The main two problems currently facing timberland owners are a southern pine beetle infestation and a lack of sawmills to sell our wood. This combined with the ongoing drought leads us to an untenable situation. I’m currently dealing with a bug infestation (you can see our pictures down below) of about 30 or 40 acres. This is beautiful 30-year-old timber that I’m talking about that should bring in a pretty penny. But instead of harvesting the timber and re-investing those proceeds, I’m forced to PAY someone to come in and cut and leave this timber to rot. This is a no-win situation and it breaks my heart to have to let this timber rot.
While southern pine beetles are cyclical, not having an outlet to sell timber creates a situation where we are losing money and in serious danger of wildfires. Luckily there are new sawmills coming online in Southwest Mississippi but until then, the best that we can do is cut these trees and let them rot.
