Maryland and Delaware

Stumpage Price Report

The stumpage price report is a cooperative effort between Maryland Cooperative Extension, Maryland Department of Agriculture, Maryland Department of Natural Resources-Forest Service, Delaware Forest Service, Maryland Tree Farmers and Forest Landowners. It is consolidated and distributed every four months by the University of Maryland, Wye Research and Education Center, P.O. Box 169, Queenstown, MD 21658. Their phone number is 410-827-8056.

The prices contained in this publication are collected from consulting and state agency foresters in four price-reporting areas throughout Maryland and Delaware, and are intended to serve ONLY AS A GUIDE in the marketing of standing timber. The actual value of a specific stand of timber may be influenced by the following factors:

Any one of the above factors can have a highly significant effect on stumpage prices for a species in one given area while it may have a less significant effect in another area. This information is meant as a guide only. Use with care. Prices paid for standing timber can be influenced by many factors, including but not limited to: timber quality, distance to market, accessibility of property, sale volume, market demand, season, skid distance, landowner requirements, and logging costs.

Region: Eastern Shore (ES) = Kent-Worcester County and Sussex-Kent County, Delaware; Southern (S) = Anne Arundel/Prince George’s-St. Mary’s County; Central (C) = Cecil-Carroll/Montgomery County and New Castle County, Delaware; and Western (W) = Frederick-Garrett County.

The University of Maryland is equal opportunity. The University=s policies, programs, and activities are in conformance with pertinent Federal and State laws and regulations on nondiscrimination regarding race, color, religion, age, national origin, sex and disability. Inquiries regarding compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended; Title IX of the Educational Amendments; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; and the Americans with disabilities Act of 1990; or related legal requirements should be directed to the director of Personnel/Human Relations, Office of the Dean, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Symons Hall, College Park, MD 20742.

October – December 1999

The MD/DE Stumpage price report gives the prices paid in the states of Maryland and Delaware for stumpage during the months of October, November, and December of 1999.

Stumpage refers to the price that a landowner receives for standing trees.

The four regions described in this report were designed to more accurately reflect the forest product markets in Maryland and Delaware. The markets within each of the four regions are unique. For example, the quality and quantity of black cherry and oaks produced in the Western Region usually surpasses that of the other three regions. Loblolly pine is a timber species that is found mostly on the Eastern Shore and Southern Region. The four regions were developed to take these types of differences into consideration while providing a more accurate and easily understandable price report. It is important to note that counties in border areas may reflect the trends of all the regions on which they border.

The Stumpage Price Report reflects the stumpage prices observed over the three-month period. Due to the dramatic changes common in timber markets, past reports may not accurately describe the latest market conditions. A current report is one’s best guide to the current market status. It must be remembered that this report is based primarily on a survey of consultant foresters and public agencies. The report is intended to describe general trends in the market and ignore specific factors that may affect one timber tract or another.

There are many factors that can influence the price of timber on a given tract of land and they are listed on the front cover. For example, you may notice that the range of prices for one species may vary from 50 to 350 dollars per thousand board feet. One reason for this wide range is that the lower value is for timber of poor quality while the higher value is for timber of high quality that would be used for veneer products.

The majority of the prices reported are for timber that is sold and used to produce sawtimber and veneer products. Sawtimber trees are typically above 12 inches in diameter at breast height (4.5 feet from the ground) and have at least one 8-foot log that can be harvested. Sawtimber trees are harvested, taken to a sawmill and cut up into boards, railroad ties, and other dimensional products. Veneer quality timber is typically of larger diameter, comes from the bottom log of the tree, and has no branches or imperfections. These logs are usually turned at a special mill that slices thin strips of wood that are used as veneer on a variety of wood products.

Poles are used for telephone poles, piling, and related products. They must meet special requirements. Fuelwood refers to timber sold for firewood markets. Typically this will include poorer quality trees, dead trees, as well as tree tops. Pulpwood includes trees that are used to produce paper products. Biomass includes trees that burned for power generation.

The stumpage prices for each species and or product category include three pieces of information: 1) the number of reports; 2) the range of values from lowest to highest; and 3) the average of all reported values.

Poles, fuelwood, pulpwood, and biomass are special products that are sold by the linear foot, cord, or the ton. All other prices are reported as the dollars per thousand board feet of timber. One board foot is 12 inches x 12 inches x 1 inch, with the number of board feet in each tree depending on its diameter, number of logs, and defects. Therefore, a thousand board feet of timber may be made up of a few large trees or many small trees. The scale used to determine board feet in standing trees is the International ¼ inch scale, which provides the most accurate measure of board feet for the four regions. Stumpage prices reported in a Doyle log scale, another common rule, tends to underestimate the volume of timber, and must be adjusted to be compatible with the International 1/4 inch scale.

The sale of timber products should include three people: 1) the forest landowner selling the timber; 2) a licensed professional forester to assist the landowner in determining which trees should be harvested and working with the logger; and 3) the logger who carries out the actual harvesting of the trees.

A list of licensed professional foresters is available from your local state forester or by calling Maryland Department of Natural Resources Forest Service at 410-260-8531 or by visiting their website at www.dnr.state.md.us/forests/oflists/caif.html or the Delaware Forest Service at 302-739-4811. You may also visit the Maryland Cooperative Extension website at www.agnr.umd.edu/ces/cooffices.html. Maryland Cooperative Extension also provides educational publications and workshops (www.agnr.umd.edu/MCE/Publications/) that can be of great value to forest landowners considering a timber harvest. For more information write or call the Wye Research and Education Center, P.O. Box 169, Queenstown, MD 21658 / 410-827-8056 or Western Maryland Research and Education Center, 18330 Keedysville Road, Keedysville, MD 21756 / 301-432-2767.

Penn State Cooperative Extension also provides a stumpage price report that is available online and would be of value to counties that border Pennsylvania (www.cas.psu.edu/docs/casdept/forest/tmr/tmr.html)