# Timberland management software that keeps the cruise, the prescription and the basis on one stand record

> Timberland management is the practice of running forest land as a producing asset: cruising stands, writing prescriptions, scheduling thinnings and final harvests, selling stumpage and regenerating what comes off. The United States held 765 million acres of forest land in 2017, of which 514 million acres was classified as timberland, and the federal inventory rests on roughly 1 plot per 6,000 acres. Neurobird keeps the cruise, the prescription, the harvest and the tax basis on one stand record.

- URL: https://neurobird.com/timberland/
- Product: Neurobird Timberland Management Revenue Recovery Platform
- Niche: timberland management
- Buyer: timberland owners and consulting foresters
- Status: in development, open for early access
- Updated: 2026-08-21

## What Neurobird Timberland Management does

- Hold stand inventory, age and basal area where the schedule can read it
- Write and track prescriptions so a thinning window is a date rather than a hunch
- Record stumpage sales, volumes and revenue against the stand that produced them
- Keep basis, reforestation cost and amortisation attached to the acres they belong to

## How it works

1. **Hold the stand** Acres, species, planting year, age, basal area and site index, updated when a cruise happens rather than when a plan is rewritten.
2. **Schedule from the data** Thinning and harvest windows come from stand age and stocking, so a mill call is answered from a list instead of a guess.
3. **Keep the tax file attached** Reforestation cost, basis and depletion sit against the acres, so the sale and the return are built from the same numbers.

## From the source material

> Timberlands previously identified as not suited for timber production are required to be reassessed every 10 years.

Source: fs.usda.gov, https://www.fs.usda.gov/media/114244

## Industry context

- **765 million** Acres of forest land in the United States as of 2017, of which 514 million acres was classified as timberland, meaning productive land that is not withdrawn from harvest. (source: USDA Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis, https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/programs/fia)
- **6,000** The Forest Inventory and Analysis programme installs roughly 1 permanent field plot for every 6,000 acres of forest, remeasured on a cycle of about 5 to 10 years depending on the state. (source: USDA Forest Service, forest inventory, https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/inventory)
- **37%** Of US forest land is owned by families and individuals, about 29 percent by the federal government and 22 percent by corporations. Most private ownerships are small and advised by a consulting forester. (source: USDA Forest Service, forest management, https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/forest-management)
- **$10,000** The reforestation expense a qualifying owner may deduct in a year under section 194, with the remainder amortised over 84 months. Basis and depletion decide what the sale actually nets. (source: National Timber Tax programme, https://www.timbertax.org)
- **223** 36 CFR Part 223 governs the sale and disposal of national forest timber: appraisal, advertisement, bid, contract and scaling. Private sales borrow most of their vocabulary from it. (source: eCFR, 36 CFR Part 223, https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-36/chapter-II/part-223)

## Pricing

- Small ownership: $130 per month, up to 2,000 acres
- Consulting forester: $300 per month, up to 20,000 acres
- Institutional: $560 per month, unlimited acres

## Questions

### What is timberland management?

Timberland management is the practice of running forest land as a producing asset: cruising stands, writing prescriptions, scheduling thinnings and final harvests, selling stumpage, and regenerating what comes off. It works on decade long cycles, which is exactly why the record has to outlive the people keeping it.

### How much timberland is there in the United States?

The Forest Service recorded 765 million acres of forest land in 2017, of which 514 million acres was classified as timberland. About 37 percent of forest land is owned by families and individuals, which is why consulting foresters carry so much of the actual management work.

### What is a forest inventory plot?

The Forest Inventory and Analysis programme installs roughly 1 permanent field plot for every 6,000 acres of forest, remeasured on a cycle of about 5 to 10 years. It is the only nationally consistent forest inventory in the country and the benchmark most regional growth assumptions rest on.

### How is reforestation treated for tax?

A qualifying owner may deduct up to $10,000 of reforestation expense per year under section 194 and amortise the remainder over 84 months. Timber basis, depletion and holding period all matter at sale, and getting them wrong is the most common timber tax mistake.

### Does this replace our GIS?

No. Stand boundaries and mapping stay in GIS. What lives here is what happens on the acres: cruise data, prescriptions, entries, sales and basis, joined to the stand so the schedule and the tax file agree.

## Sources

- [USDA Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis](https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/programs/fia)
- [USDA Forest Service, forest inventory](https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/inventory)
- [National Timber Tax programme](https://www.timbertax.org)
- [36 CFR Part 223, sale of national forest timber](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-36/chapter-II/part-223)

## Contact

- office@neurobird.com
- https://neurobird.com/