As Minnesota’s climate changes, forests will face pressures from tree diseases and pests, heavier and more frequent rainfalls, warmer temperatures, and prolonged drought. You can foster a healthy, resilient woodland by adding species that are predicted to adapt well to these changes.
To ensure a healthy and productive forest, we’ll need to use strategies for climate adaptation. These will likely include a combination of management actions to help forests stay resilient to climate stress, such as:
- Adding species that are new to the forest to increase diversity.
- Prioritizing native trees and plants that are predicted to do well.
- Nurturing targeted areas to persist much as they are today.
- Removing invasive plants and thinning forests to reduce competition.
Would you like to know more? Watch Anna Stockstand explain how to make your woodlands climate-ready and visit the climate-ready woodlands website to see what to plant in your Minnesota woods.