Hi Sarah,

Congratulations and welcome to woodland ownership!  Thanks so much for reaching out to us.  We are happy to help.  The first thing I would recommend doing is thinking about the long term goals that you have for your land, what you'd like your land to look like in the future.  This is an important step because it will direct what activities are recommended.  With your MyLandPlan.org account, you can use our easy to use goal setting tool to help you set your goals. The New Hampshire Forestry Extension has developed a great book that has a chapter on Setting Objectives that can help landowners (no matter where they are in the US) think about their goals, including some good questions to ask yourself as you are thinking about them. 

The next thing to do it to develop a map of your land, identifying features that are notable and important to you. 

Once those two steps are done, then you are ready to talk with a professional forester.  A forester will listen to your goals, look over your map and walk your land with you.  He or she will take time to understand the current conditions of your land and then recommend future activities you can take to ensure you achieve your goals.  The Forestry Directory will help you find and connect to a forester near you.  We also have resources on Choosing a Consulting Forester and Finding and Hiring a Consulting Forester. 

cheers,

Caroline Kuebler

Program Manager, MyLandPlan.org