Patrick Hiesl

Associate Extension Specialist
Forestry and Wildlife Resources Program Team

Office: 261 Lehotsky Hall
Phone: 518-637-9650

Email: phiesl@clemson.edu
Vita: Download CV

Educational Background

Ph.D. Forest Resources
University of Maine 2015

M.S. Forest Resources
University of Maine 2013

B.S. Forest Management
University of Applied Forest Sciences Rottenburg 2010

Courses Taught

FOR 2520 - Forest Operations (Summer Camp)
FOR 2530 - Forest Measurements (Summer Camp)
FOR 2540 - Forest Products (Summer Camp)
FOR 3410 - Wood Procurement
FOR 4080/6080 - Wood and Paper Products
FOR 4100/6100 - Harvesting Processes
FOR 4190/7070 - Forestry and Recreation in Southern Germany (Study Abroad)
FNR 4700 - Multiple Creative Inquiry Courses
FOR 8930 - Statistical Methods in Natural Resources
FOR 8930 - Readings in Forestry

Profile

Dr. Patrick Hiesl is forestry professional by heart. He has earned his scientific degrees in Germany and the USA, and has deepened his skills in forest inventory and private woodlot management in Alberta, Canada. Following his graduate studies he has worked in academia as an assistant and associate professor of Forest Operations at Paul Smith's College in New York and Clemson University in South Carolina. He has several years of experience working with logging contractors to conduct time and motion studies on selected harvesting equipment, assess best management practices implementation, evaluate overall harvesting costs. In addition to research, he has taught several courses in forest operations and wood procurement, and also conducted over 40 Extension training programs surrounding the use of chainsaws, portable sawmills, and small-scale forest management. Dr. Hiesl has published over 40 peer-reviewed and 25 trade magazine articles in various journals and presented his research results at conferences and logging contractor workshops across the USA and Canada. He is currently a South Carolina Registered Forester, SAF Certified Forester, FAA remote pilot, certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and an active member of the Council on Forest Engineering and the Society of American Foresters. As of May 2026, he transitioned from a faculty role to an Extension Specialist role with Clemson Cooperative Extension Service.

Research Interests

Dr. Hiesl's research interests are in forest operations and forest engineering with a focus on better understanding the cost and productivity of harvesting operations on small and large forest areas, as well as the use of modern technology to help with forest management activities. He currently conducts research involving horse logging and small-scale equipment, logging business surveys to better understand the needs and challenges of logging businesses, mental workload evaluations of logging operations, and the costs and productivity of small-scale operations including chainsaws and portable sawmills. Dr. Hiesl collaborates with several faculty members within Clemson University and the Department of Forestry and Environmental Conservation, as well as other universities.

Lab Members

Current Lab Members:
Jennifer Boyer, MFR, 2025-Present


Graduated Lab Members:
John Visbisky, MFR, 2023-2026
Bart Swecker, MS Forest Resources, 2022-2026
Ian Snider, MS Forest Resources, 2020-2026
Jon Carter, MFR, 2024-2025
Hasini Mapatunage, MS Forest Resources, 2022-2024
Chase Land, MFR, 2023-2024
Dean Satterlee, MFR, 2023-2024
Shubhechchha Khadka, MS Forest Resources, 2022-2023
Manisha Parajuli, MS Forest Resources, 2020-2021
Ellie Johnson, MS Forest Resources, 2019-2021 (Co-Chair)
Keith Phelps, MS Forest Resources, 2019-2021 (Co-Chair)
Kipling Klimas, MS Forest Resources, 2018-2020


Graduate Committee Member:
Thomas Buchanan, MS Forest Resources, 2023-Present
Lucas Hales, MS Environmental and Natural Resources, The University of Alabama, 2023-2025
Armin Weise, MS Forest Resources, 2021-2023
Trent Miller, MS Forest Resources, 2020-2023
Jacob Murray, MS Forest Resources, 2019-2022
Andrew Purcell, MS Forest Resources, 2019-2020
Chip Byrd, MFR, 2020-2021
Daniel Callaghan, MS Forest Resources, 2017-2019
Thomas Joseph, MFR, 2017-2018
Stephen Harris, MS Wildlife and Fisheries Biology, 2016-2018
Trey Trickett, MS Forest Resources, 2016-2018
Brandon Stoots, MFR, 2015-2016
Slayton Hazard-Daniel, MFR 2015-2016

Extension and Outreach

Dr. Hiesl is passionate about Extension and educating private forest owners to better manage their forest land. He has been involved in several Extension training programs, speaking about forest operations and wood procurement. He is the host of a chainsaw safety training program that focuses on building confidence in chainsaw use. He also operates a portable sawmill in collaboration with Clemson University Forest and conducts training programs on the use of portable sawmills. He frequently collaborates with Extension agents and specialists within the Forestry and Wildlife Resources Program Team. His main focus is on small-scale forest management operations, providing landowners with opportunities to maintain a healthy forest and generate income from their forest land. He has a hands-on approach to his training programs and strongly believes in the do-it-yourself attitude of small forest owners and homesteaders.

Publications

† = graduate student author

Hiesl, P. 2026. Replacing exams with project-based assignments. Land-Grant Press by Clemson Extension, LGP 1218: 6.

Awasthi, K., N. Timilsina, P. Hiesl, P. Layton, and P. Khanal. 2025. Impact of forest products manufacturers on forestland attributes across South Carolina, United States. Trees, Forests and People, 22 (101074): 11.

†Carter, J.R., P. Hiesl, J.A. Elmore, and N. Timilsina. 2025. What A Landowner Should Expect When Hiring a Drone Aerial Applicator for Forestry Herbicide Application. Land-Grant Press by Clemson Extension, LGP 1213: 12.

†Hales, L., J.L. Hart, P. Hiesl, M.C. LaFevor, and †I. Snider. 2025. Characterizing draft animal logging operations in the southeastern United States. Trees, Forests and People, 20(June 2025): 11.

†Khadka, S., P. Hiesl, N. Timilsina, D.L. Hagan, and J.L. Conrad. 2025. The state of logging businesses in North and South Carolina in 2022. International Journal of Forest Engineering, 36(2): 14.

Hiesl, P., B.P. Rodrigues, B. Swecker, J. Steele, and †J. Visbisky. 2024. Using your portable sawmill to cut stickers for lumber drying. Land-Grant Press by Clemson Extension, LGP 1203: 8.

†Mapatunage, H., P. Hiesl, N. Timilsina, and D.L. Hagan. 2024. A case study of the subjective workload of forest equipment operators in South Carolina. International Journal of Forest Engineering, 36(1): 12.

†Khadka, S., P. Hiesl, N. Timilsina, D.L. Hagan, and J.L. Conrad. 2024. A pilot study of minority, beginning and young logging business owners in the Carolinas and surrounding states, USA. Journal of Forestry, 122(5-6): 411-416.


Additional publications can be found in the CV.

Links