Record Staff Report
St. Meinrad Archabbey in St. Meinrad, Ind., was named the Indiana Tree Farmer of the Year for 2017 at the annual meeting of the Indiana Hardwood Lumberman’s Association last month in Indianapolis. Michael Gregg, St. Meinrad’s consulting forester, and Benedictine Father Guy Mansini received the award on behalf of the archabbey.
The American Tree Farm System, which was established in 1941, promotes stewardship of land, water and timber on family-owned land, according to a news release from St. Meinrad. The system certifies sustainably grown and harvested timber.
The archabbey enrolled in Indiana’s Classified Forest Program in 1923, the release said. In 2013, St. Meinrad was recognized as the tenth 50-year-old tree farm in Indiana.
About a decade ago, the archabbey reforested substantial acreage of old pasture and crop land.
The archabbey woods have provided timber for abbey building projects over the years and, since 1965, have helped sustain the local timber and woodworking industries, supplying more than four million board-feet of lumber to the area.
