The Hardwood Forestry Fund (HFF) has decided to voluntarily dissolve its operations. The Board is pleased to announce a final distribution of its $190,000 to the Arbor Day Foundation and One Tree Planted to implement Hardwood Tree plantings in line with the HFF’s mission and goals.
The Hardwood Forestry Fund promoted hardwood timber growth, management, education, and environmentally sound uses of renewable forest resources by providing grant funding to partnering organizations. We supported sustainable forestry by funding selective tree planting, direct seeding, natural regeneration, and management in publicly owned Forests and other properties. Most of the funding came from forest products companies, foundations, and individuals.
About the Hardwood Forestry Fund
During our 35 years of operations we approved funding of over 5 million seedlings for 289 projects, in 38 states and 4 foreign countries. Using seedling planting, direct seeding, and forest management techniques to promote natural regeneration the Hardwood Forestry Fund created sustainable forests on suitable and quality public sites. The mission was to manage young forests for wildlife habitat, water quality, soil conservation, timber products, and natural resource education, The Hardwood Forestry Fund was a 501(c)3 foundation based in Sterling, VA.
History
The HFF was formed in 1990 by members of the Hardwood Plywood and Veneer Association, which eventually became the Decorative Hardwoods Association. The first planting was in 1990 on a 500 acre Boy Scout camp near Galesburg, Illinois. It was part of an Illinois Forestry Field Day for the Boy Scouts. We have conducted forestry field days in conjunction with a number of our project partners.
See Projects
Below: Photos of one of our many Projects - The Larry Frye Heritage Forest Dedication, Clark State Forest, IN:
A sign at an Indiana State Forest acknowledges a planting from 34 years ago.
The HFF had a Volunteer Board of Directors, and currently has no employees. Most of our active Board members are nearing retirement age, and we have decided to “hand the torch” over to the Arbor Day Foundation and One Tree Planted to carry on our mission. The Dissolution of the HFF was authorized by the District of Columbia (Washington, DC) on May 12, 2025.
Contributors, Partners, and Project Hubs
Some of the top Contributors over the years have been the following:
Anderson Wood Floors
Armstrong World Industries
Bruce Hardwood Floors
Columbia Forest Products
Rockler Woodworking
U.S. Department of Agriculture
WalzCraft Industries, Inc.
We have had many important partners along the way including:
American Forests
Boy Scouts
State Foresters with their Departments of Natural Resources
The Jane Goodall Institute
The National Wild Turkey Association
U.S. Forest Service
Universities
The States with the top number of HFF Projects have been the following:
The Arbor Day Foundation is a global nonprofit inspiring people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees.
One Tree Planted
One Tree Planted is an environmental nonprofit dedicated to making it simple for anyone to help the environment. Our simplified donation process and global reach has helped us build a movement of supporters who believe in the power of trees.
Our focus has always been on future generations.
For More Information
Keith Christman
Decorative Hardwoods Association
703‑735‑2900 · Keith@DHA.org
Hardwood Forestry Fund
Our Mission
The Hardwood Forestry Fund (HFF) has decided to voluntarily dissolve its operations. The Board is pleased to announce a final distribution of its $190,000 to the Arbor Day Foundation and One Tree Planted to implement Hardwood Tree plantings in line with the HFF’s mission and goals.
The Hardwood Forestry Fund promoted hardwood timber growth, management, education, and environmentally sound uses of renewable forest resources by providing grant funding to partnering organizations. We supported sustainable forestry by funding selective tree planting, direct seeding, natural regeneration, and management in publicly owned Forests and other properties. Most of the funding came from forest products companies, foundations, and individuals.
About the Hardwood Forestry Fund
During our 35 years of operations we approved funding of over 5 million seedlings for 289 projects, in 38 states and 4 foreign countries. Using seedling planting, direct seeding, and forest management techniques to promote natural regeneration the Hardwood Forestry Fund created sustainable forests on suitable and quality public sites. The mission was to manage young forests for wildlife habitat, water quality, soil conservation, timber products, and natural resource education, The Hardwood Forestry Fund was a 501(c)3 foundation based in Sterling, VA.
History
The HFF was formed in 1990 by members of the Hardwood Plywood and Veneer Association, which eventually became the Decorative Hardwoods Association. The first planting was in 1990 on a 500 acre Boy Scout camp near Galesburg, Illinois. It was part of an Illinois Forestry Field Day for the Boy Scouts. We have conducted forestry field days in conjunction with a number of our project partners. See Projects
Below: Photos of one of our many Projects - The Larry Frye Heritage Forest Dedication, Clark State Forest, IN:
A sign at an Indiana State Forest acknowledges a planting from 34 years ago.
The HFF had a Volunteer Board of Directors, and currently has no employees. Most of our active Board members are nearing retirement age, and we have decided to “hand the torch” over to the Arbor Day Foundation and One Tree Planted to carry on our mission. The Dissolution of the HFF was authorized by the District of Columbia (Washington, DC) on May 12, 2025.
Contributors, Partners, and Project Hubs
Some of the top Contributors over the years have been the following:
We have had many important partners along the way including:
The States with the top number of HFF Projects have been the following:
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Minnesota
- Pennsylvania
- Wisconsin
Explore more HFF projectsAwards
The HFF’s Johnny Appleseed Award recognized the outstanding work of Natural Resources Professionals. Previous winners of the award were:
Current HFF Board Members
Arbor Day Foundation
The Arbor Day Foundation is a global nonprofit inspiring people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees.
One Tree Planted
One Tree Planted is an environmental nonprofit dedicated to making it simple for anyone to help the environment. Our simplified donation process and global reach has helped us build a movement of supporters who believe in the power of trees.
Our focus has always been on future generations.
For More Information
Keith Christman
Decorative Hardwoods Association
703‑735‑2900 · Keith@DHA.org
Jeff Ashelford
Arbor Day Foundation
402‑473‑2118 · jashelford@arborday.org
Jim Martin
Marwood Veneer
502‑594‑3403 · Jim@MarwoodVeneer.com
Lesley Whyte
One Tree Planted
802‑444‑8050 · lesley@onetreeplanted.org