Black Spruce Holdings, LLC purchases spruce top stumpage from public agencies and private landowners.  The company has earned a solid reputation for operating in a professional manner.  Trusted relationships with contracted counterparties are critical to long-term operational viability.  Black spruce tops are a renewable resource; the trees will regenerate harvestable tops typically in a span of five to seven growing seasons.  When the trees regenerate, the hope is that the landowner's positive experience results in a willingness to ink subsequent contracts.

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Black Spruce Holdings, LLC has completed the necessary requirements to achieve membership status within the Minnesota Logger Education Program (www.MLEP.org).  This membership demonstrates commitment to best harvesting practices and sustainable forest management. 

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The harvesting process is basic.  The top 18 inches to four feet of the tree are cut.  Several whirls of branches are left on the tree promoting the growth of a leader which in time establishes a future top (see an example in the Videos tab).  Spruce tops are then bundled and transported out of the bog with a Bombardier skidder.  The Bombardier skidder is a tracked machine with a flatbed that weighs approximately four thousand pounds.  The ground pressure is minimal at slightly above 1 psi.  The machine is optimal in bogs as ground disturbance is negligible.  The remaining footprints after a site is harvested are a few main trails used to extract the tops.

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Black Spruce Holdings, LLC offers the following services to landowners looking to realize income from their spruce top stumpage:

• Estimates on spruce top value

• Establishing and administering the spruce top sale contract

• Designating spruce top sale boundaries

• Providing timely payment for contracted value

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Responses from previous contracted landowners have been overwhelmingly positive.  They appreciate the company unlocking economic value from what tends to be nonproductive lands.  In addition, landowners recognize the annuity-like characteristics of the relationship given the relatively short duration required to re-harvest the bog.