Treesearch

Describes the history, ecology, and silviculture of central hardwood forests and the status and ecology of early-successional forest songbirds and ruffed grouse. Concludes with management guidelines for early-successional communities in central hardwood forests.

Uses an individual tree growth process model, ECOPHYS, to assess the difference between climate extremes on growth of hybrid poplar.

Key Findings: *Recreational uses of roads were expressed most often: Recreational uses and benefits of roads on the national forests were discussed most often in the news media overall. This discussion included both expressions of opinion about the value of roads for recreational purposes and, more commonly, descriptions of roads being useful for recreational access. Discussion of recreational uses of roads was dominant in each region, but not in national news sources. *Ecological costs of roads were also discussed frequently: The view that roads entail ecological costs was the second most...

The genus Juglans L. (family Juglandaceae) comprises about 20 species of deciduous trees. These monoecious trees are native to North and South America, and from southeastern Europe to eastern Asia (Bailey and Bailey 1976). They are grown as ornamentals, for the edible nuts, and some species for the fine-grained wood highly valued for furniture, veneer, gunstocks, and cabinet work. The Persian walnut (J. regia L.) is the most horticulturally developed and widely cultivated species for nut production (McGranahan and Leslie 1990). Worldwide production of walnuts in 1992 was listed at 918 180...

The job of forest managers and policy makers is growing increasingly complex because of rapid change in the social, political, economic, and scientific environments in which forest management is carried out. Managing public lands in ways that are responsive to changing social conditions requires continuous monitoring and assessment. But traditional methods for monitoring the social environment are slow and expensive. This study used innovative computer methods to analyze more than 30,000 online news media stories about the Forest Service and ecosystem management. Public attitudes, values,...

Birch trees are prized for their outstanding bark characteristics and their graceful delicate foliage. Numerous species and cultivars are used in landscapes, and almost all are distinctive in bark coloration, growth form, and susceptibility to certain insect pests. Though homeowners often desire birch as an ornamental tree, they soon discover that birch can be very difficult to maintain as a healthy, long-lived specimen. In many landscapes, birch trees begin to decline within a few years, and many trees die well before reaching maturity. A healthy birch tree should be able to survive and...

Central Hardwood forests regenerate rapidly following a major disturbance like a clear-cut. The subsequent aboveground growth and development of the resulting stands have been well-documented for these forests. However, the belowground components, specifically the dynamics of fine roots, are not well understood. Fine roots are the main vectors through which plants uptake water and nutrients and represent a significant proportion of a plant's net primary productivity. Studying the dynamics of fine roots during stand/forest development is essential to understand forest ecosystems and for...

Prescribed fire is a valuable tool in the restoration and management of oak savannas. BEHAVE, a fire behavior prediction system developed by the United States Forest Service, can be a useful tool when managing oak savannas with prescribed fire. BEHAVE predictions of fire rate-of-spread and flame length were validated using four standardized fuel models: Fuel Model 1 (short grass), Fuel Model 2 (timber and grass), Fuel Model 3 (tall grass), and Fuel Model 9 (hardwood litter). Also, a customized oak savanna fuel model (COSFM) was created and validated. Results indicate that standardized fuel...

Although research and management approaches for ecosystem management have been troublesome to define, we believe a number of guidelines can be used to focus research. These include: (1) synthesize the extensive information describing hardwood ecosystem response to disturbance, (2) ensure that syntheses cross traditional boundaries between disciplines and resources, (3) develop principles that operate at the broad scale and avoid getting mired in excessive detail, (4) incorporate a modeling framework to organize information and relationships, and (5) focus on mechanisms of disturbance....

Rapid deforestation in Mexico, when coupled with poor access to current and consistent ecological information across the country underscores the need for an ecological classification system that can be readily updated as new data become available. In this study, regional vegetation resources in Mexico were evaluated using remotely sensed information. Multitemporal Global Vegetation Index (GVI) data from Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer images provided ecological information at regional scales by being interpreted as phenological patterns of vegetation productivity and seasonality.