Last Update: 08/26/2023
2022 Scientific Presenter
Mr. James Bowen, WV Division of Forestry
Landowner Assistance Forester
Mr. Bowen will speak about "Natural Hypovirulence"
Jim Bowen is a 1980 graduate of Moorefield High School. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Forest Resource Management from WVU in 1984. A native of Huron County Ohio, he began driving trail grabs in logs his Father felled summer of 1975 (age 13, and moving to WV in 1976 and continuing to work in the woods and sawmill), running the edger and helping delivering slab firewood. At this time, stories of the once great American chestnut were first imparted from local lore. Summer of ’82 after earning an Associate in Forestry from then Potomac State, he was part of a six man Junior High Power Rifle Team representing WV and taking Silver Medals at the Nationals at Camp Perry, Ohio. This training came in handy collecting grafting scions for (John) and Lucille Griffin’s (Sp?) program in ’95 as well as his own grafts from a pair of promising American’s found in Richland County (North Central) Ohio in 1984.
For several decades now his two main chestnut endeavors include: (1.) Inoculating survivors with a promising wild hypo strain - with mounting successes. (2.) Growing pure American seedlings for himself and others. He chose to be self employed as a handmade knife maker while still in college till ’88 when he grew tired of “the same old grind”. Next came a custom dozer business and a run as an Encyclopaedia Britannica salesman becoming a Sales Master Club Member and “highest lead converter in the Washington Division” (according to his Manager) until beginning employment as a WV Division of Forestry Service Forester from 1993 to present planning to retire this October. Hopefully then, even more time will be spent improving inoculation techniques (really tall tree cankers are still quite vexing), seedling establishment and local provenance compatibility. Jim enjoys fishing and is an avid hunter, driven to pursue big bucks, elk, mule deer, and moose. He hunts where no sane man will go!
