Stories

Family Forester Turns to LP to Help Preserve Family Legacy

Ruben Williams turns to LP when it’s time to thin the timber on his family’s farm in Cullman County, Alabama. Maintaining the land is important to Mr. Williams. He, his brother, and his sisters are the third generation to own the forest.

Mr. Williams spent 31 years with the U.S. Forest Service before retiring to run the 320-acre family farm in 1973. He knows a lot about responsible forestry, which is why he turns to LP at harvest time.

Williams had hired logging companies on his own, but found few who specialize in thinning to cull smaller, less valuable trees and open up space for the remaining trees to grow wider, taller and more valuable. He found just the opposite with the logging team that local LP foresters sent to help him fight a pine beetle infestation on his land several years ago. He’s been calling on LP ever since. “They have a system that works well with the timber and the land,” Mr. Williams said.

“Thinning requires special care,” LP Hanceville Resource Manager Tim Thornhill said. “You have to ensure that the trees that remain aren’t harmed in the process.”

The extra care that LP takes is important to Mr. Williams, who maintains his forest as a family legacy. “We’ve set it up so that the next generation will enjoy the land as much as we have,” Mr. Williams said. “Hopefully they’ll pass it on to future generations.”