A time-honored friendly competition among 15 southern forestry schools will take place when Mississippi State University's Forestry Club hosts the 58th Annual Southern Forestry Conclave next week.

The March 12-14 event is free and open to the public at the university's John W. Starr Memorial Forest. Featuring different student competitions each day, the activities will be held at the equipment show site off of Hwy. 25.

Conclave brings together universities from across the south to compete in an assortment of forestry challenges, testing both physical and technical skills.

"It not only celebrates the history of the field of forestry, but also the camaraderie shared by professionals in the natural resources industry," said MSU Forestry Club President Zach Senneff, a senior forestry major from Caledonia.

Thursday evening will consist of nonpoint competitions, while Friday and Saturday will be used for physical and technical events. Physical events include archery, axe throwing, log rolling and birling, pole climbing, pole felling and cross-cut sawing. Technical events include dendrology, wood identification, compass and pacing, and wildlife identification, among others.

In addition to the competitions, the Stihl Timbersports Series will be held Friday night at the Covered K Arena in Maben.

An awards ceremony Saturday night at the Starr Memorial Forest will conclude the weekend.

Senneff said this year's Conclave is the result of months of hard work from the MSU Forestry Club, professors, volunteers and the natural resource community. For more information, contact Senneff at < ahref="mailto:zas34@msstate.edu">zas34@msstate.edu.